Listen, I get it. Kettlebell training, all the exercises and the “lore” that surrounds the kettlebell community can be more than enough to get the newcomer looking for another way to get fit. The implement itself can be a bit unnerving. They sit there, parked on the floor almost daring you to try. This is probably why some manufacturers color them pink and yellow and green: just to take some of the edginess away from this truly remarkable tool.

I can remember my first dance with kettlebell training. One of my mentors, Mike Burgener, introduced me to them and put me through the ringer. Followed by a three-day weekend in Minnesota with some of the toughest human beings I have ever met. Both encounters left me crushed inside because the approach was to get me tooled up with technique and then smash my soul by putting me through workouts I barely survived. But that is the tone in the kettlebell community. We are going to test your mettle, we are going to find out who is the toughest in the room and only when the smoke has cleared will we declare someone worthy to train with kettlebells.

There’s a catch though. The kettlebell community as a whole, the two big monoliths in the profession with a few more small timers: they are all geared to the advanced user who desires to be certified to coach or teach kettlebell training. The expectation going to one of those events is that you have mastered the exercises, so much so that you complete one of the toughest performance minimums in all of fitness- the dreaded 5-minute snatch test. Somewhere in the mix, wires got crossed and the common understanding is you have to be soldier, an MMA fighter, police officer or an all-around tough guy to qualify to use kettlebells. This is simply not the case.
So if you are buying into the rumors, how does someone who has never used a bell, go from a no one to a someone? This is why you find yourself here.

Perform Better’s Kettlebell 101 course taught by celebrity trainer Don Saladino and strength coach Chris Holder is about taking the most inexperienced kettlebeller and getting him/her ready for anything. The intent of this live course is to start from the beginning.


“But I’ve never touched a kettlebell.”

Great, you are in the right place.

“I’ve done it a few times but I know I’m not doing it right.”

Perfect, this course is for you.

“Well, I’ve been training with bells for a while now but I don’t really understand how to set up effective workouts for myself.”

All of your questions will be answered.

“I’m actually getting ready to attend one of the other big certs, I’ve been grinding for a long time now, so what on earth could you teach ME?”

You’ll be surprised because not only will this course open your eyes to things you never knew, even you seasoned practitioners will walk away with more ah-ha! moments than you can count.


See, Don and Chris have been teaching kettlebell training a combined 30 years. Maybe more time than any duo in the business. Together they have a clientele in the tens of thousands over the course of their careers and if the “mastery is 10,000 hours” thing is true, they both passed that mark over a decade ago.

What separates Don and Chris is precision. They have distilled down the most essential teaching points so they can get even the most inexperienced mover looking like a pro in no time. And Kettlebell 101 is going to be taught in a way where it will feel like both Don and Chris have shown up in your living room, backyard or garage to do a 2-on-1 private training session for you and you alone. The tone, the delivery and the strategy will be exactly how it would be if you hired one or both for a personal training session.

What to Expect

The course will be total immersion in the six most commonly used kettlebell exercises taught over the course of one day: Saturday, May 15th. We will start at 10a EST and take a deep dive in each exercise. We will break for lunch and Don and Chris will take questions while everyone eats and rests. The second half of the day will be more of the same. At the end of the instruction time, we will go through a detailed programming section with sample workouts and demos of how to execute tried and true approaches to getting fit. The day will wrap with an extensive Q&A where Don and Chris will take all of your questions and get them answered. The scheduled end of the day will wrap at 6p Eastern.

This course is for everyone. From the newest to most experienced kettlebell athlete, what we have in store will leave each person having much deeper understanding on how to use this truly extraordinary piece of equipment. Looking forward to seeing you all there!