I have been doing a kettlebell workout routine for the past six months, twice and now three times a week for one hour. I really enjoy this form of exercise. The compact shape of the kettlebell allows you to do moves and combinations that you cannot do with traditional freeweights or dumbbells, and anyone can do it as there is a thorough range of kettlebell weights/sizes to accommodate anyone from one’s grandma to a heavyweight champion. As well, my instructor includes body weight exercises and yoga for stretching, and the three make for a great combination. I’ve seen many results in many places – my muscles are forming and becoming well defined, and my strength has skyrocketed. My stamina has gone up drastically, as has my flexibility. Overall I feel more energetic and more determined. Some workout secrets: the biggest one is to find something you love to do and do it consistently. I didn’t like working out by means of going to a gym and running on a treadmill as it wasn’t very competitive or interactive. But I love kettlebells because I feel challenged and motivated to increase the weight of the bell or to increase the number of reps I can do. You also need to chisel out time for your workout and stick to it. I do my workout from 6–7am on Tuesday and Thursday – yes it’s tough to pry myself out of bed at 5am, but I know that I can do it, so I keep at it every day. If you are a treadmill/stationary bike/rowing kind of person, here’s a neat tip: bring something you really want to read/watch/listen to, perhaps a DVD box set of a TV series you like. You can only consume the media when you are on the machine exercising. That way, at least you have some motivation to get up and exercising.