Kettlebells: A Smart Replacement for Dumbbells

By Lynne Anderson
WebMD Feature

Kettlebell workouts are a way to build muscle strength and endurance. What makes a kettlebell workout different from other weights workouts? 

For starters, you work with only one kettlebell at a time. Hoisting the heavy metal bells not only helps strengthen your arms and pecs, but also works your core, heart, and lungs.

"The reason the kettlebell is so great is that there’s offset center of gravity," says Laura Alton, a certified trainer, physical therapist, and Russian kettlebells certified instructor at the Cooper Fitness Center in Dallas.

That means your body has to work harder to maintain balance. In so doing, you work many different muscle groups -- and get your heart rate up at the same time.

"It's a two-fer; it's like you're killing two birds with one kettlebell," says Riva Rahl, MD, medical director for wellness programs at the Cooper Fitness Center. "If you're doing it appropriately, the benefits are huge."

Kettlebells got their start in Russia, so the story goes, as a farming weight. They're everywhere now. If you're thinking about trying it, you should know these three things:

Technique matters. Think about swinging around a gallon of milk -- the same weight as a beginner kettlebell -- for 30 minutes, and you get the picture. Or think of slinging around a 25-pound bag of potting soil. To avoid injury, you need to know what you're doing.Work with a trainer. They can help you learn how much weight you can use and how to use your kettlebell. "Make sure you use a certified kettlebells instructor," says Alton, who went through what she describes as three “grueling” days of certification training.Look for a smooth handle. Your kettlebell should have a smooth handle. “Your hand can get pretty roughed up by one that’s not smooth," Alton says. Ask your instructor for the weight you will need. If you're buying kettlebells, some people like to buy them in sets of three because with work, it won’t be long until you are moving up to the next weight.

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Beginner's Marathon Training Schedule, Tips for Full or Half Marathons

Planning to run your first marathon or half marathon? Knowing the secrets of training can help you run your first race.

First, clear the idea with your doctor at a physical exam. Then, do this:

This makes you accountable. Tell everyone who will listen, says Joe Donovan, a Milwaukee runner who wrote the Essential Guide to Training for Your First Marathon.

"Only when you tell other people is it real," he says. "Certainly, some people will think you are nuts."

Some did, he recalls, when Donovan announced his decision to run his first marathon while he was a graduate student, working for a U.S. senator. "At first there was disbelief," he says of the people he told. Next? "There was this kind of 'Wow, this is amazing.'"

It became a topic of conversation and support among his fiancée (now his wife) and co-workers, which helped him stick to his training.

It's not as simple as saying your goal is to finish 13.1 miles (a half marathon) or 26.2 (a full marathon), says Cathy Fieseler, MD, a veteran marathoner and ultra-distance runner.

Ask yourself why you are running the race, she says. "Do you have a time goal? Are you trying to qualify for [the Boston marathon]? Are you doing it in memory of someone? Because you are turning 40?"

Figuring that out, she says, will guide your training plan. For instance, if you're running in memory of someone, you may not care about how long it takes you, but if you want to finish within four hours, you might need a different plan.  

You need a nuts-and-bolts training plan. You can get that online, from a running coach if you happen to be in a running club, or from running publications.

If you're easily running 3 or 4 miles at a shot now, plan to train for about three months before a half marathon and about five months before a full marathon, says Todd Galati, an American Council on Exercise spokesman.

Your plan should be realistic. "I don't think you need to run every single day," Fieseler says. "Figure out what works for your life."

Don't add miles too quickly, Galati says. The established rule is not to boost your miles by more than 10% per week.

Doing speed work can improve your times. For instance, run faster than usual for an interval of time, then drop back to your slower pace, and repeat. But don't increase mileage, do speed work, and tackle hills all at once, he says. That's too much.

Speed work can make you faster, ''but it also ups the risk of injury," Fiessler says, especially as you age. Be aware of the tradeoff, she says.

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Certain Diabetes Medications May Lower Heart Failure Risk

Study found people taking newer drugs were 44 percent less likely to be hospitalized with the condition

By Maureen Salamon

HealthDay Reporter

SUNDAY, March 10 (HealthDay News) -- A newer class of diabetes drugs may offer an extra benefit: A new study suggests these medications lower the odds of suffering heart failure.

Researchers from Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit found that patients taking so-called GLP-1 drugs -- including brand-name medications such as Byetta, Januvia and Victoza -- were more than 40 percent less likely to be hospitalized for heart failure than patients prescribed other blood sugar-lowering medications. GLP-1 diabetes drugs have been in use for only the last several years and are considered second-line treatments after well-established medications such as metformin, physicians said.

"I don't think we can say this will magically prevent all heart failure deaths, but the strength of the association warrants more investigation," said study author and cardiologist Dr. David Lanfear. "Heart failure is a very common disease . . . but something about diabetics make them definitely at increased risk for developing heart failure."

The study is to be presented Sunday at the American College of Cardiology's annual meeting in San Francisco. Evidence presented at medical meetings has not been peer-reviewed and is considered preliminary.

According to the U.S. National Institutes of Health, about 6 million Americans suffer from heart failure, which occurs when the heart can't efficiently pump blood through the body. Diabetics, who now number 25 million in the United States, are between two and four times more likely than those without the condition to die of heart disease, which includes heart attacks, heart failure and other cardiac problems.

In the retrospective study, Lanfear and his colleagues examined data from more than 4,400 patients taking diabetes medications between 2000 and 2012. About 1,500 were taking GLP-1 medications and nearly 3,000 were not.

Over an average nine-month follow-up period, patients taking GLP-1 medications were 41 percent less likely than others to be hospitalized with heart failure. Additionally, these patients were 44 percent less likely to be hospitalized for any reason, and 80 percent less likely to die of any cause.

But neither Lanfear nor a doctor not involved with the research could point to reasons why this newer class of diabetes drugs seems to dampen the risk of heart failure.

"We don't know the mechanism yet. It's under active investigation," Lanfear said. "There are clues, but they would be a guess."

Lanfear noted that of the total 20,000 patients at Henry Ford Hospital identified as taking diabetes drugs during the study period, only about 1,500 were taking GLP-1 medications, or about 7 percent.

"We were surprised a little bit by the strength of the association [between the GLP-1 drugs and lower heart failure], but the results still need to be confirmed by other studies," he said. "We can't take this as an endorsement of these drugs."

Calling the study promising, Dr. David Friedman, chief of heart failure services at North Shore-LIJ's Plainview Hospital in Plainview, N.Y., said future research should be prospective instead of analyzing past data.

"Heart failure is a huge problem among diabetics. Every year, there are about a half-million new heart failure patients, and a tremendous portion are those who've survived heart attacks and a fair number have diabetes," Friedman said.

"With diabetes and obesity issues constantly on the radar now, and with the onset of more heart failure cases, we need to find more novel approaches," he added. "If we can improve outcomes in this way, we'll have more hope for these patients."

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