Introducing: Hells Kettlebells

Following on from the popularity of the piece I wrote about Dav Dennis and his and his partners Crossfit Cardiff gym, this is a profile on the team from Hells Kettlebells and The Boat Shed TC in Cardiff.

I first met Dan Forbes on our very first course in the OLF Training Centre, it was the EKI Course on the last weekend of January in 2010. The next time I met him was in March at the Trojans Lifting Club Kettlebell Sport Competition- he brought some friends this time!! His friends were the Hells Kettlebells and they’d come all the way from Cardiff to compete in the competition.

Thanks for taking the time out to do this Dan, can you introduce the Boat Shed Training Centre and Hells Kettlebells Team?

The Boat Shed training centre is made up of Dan Forbes, Peter Rankin & Michael Johnson. Around 18 months ago we did our EKI qualification with OLF and discovered a love for kettlebells! We’d done our advanced EKI within 6 weeks. Having discovered how kick ass these ‘tools’ were, we rolled out the hellskettlebells bootcamp. A monthly bootcamp, where attendees came to 3-4 kettlebell based classes a week and followed a nutrition plan. Even we were shocked by the results we started seeing. On average people dropped a stone a month. Off the back of the success of HKB we opened the boat shed.

-What was the idea of Starting your own Facility?

Simple really. We got really fed up of commercial gym’s ripping trainers and members off. They charge big money and give nothing in return. We decided to open a results orientated training facility where anybody could come along, get quality coaching and honest advice without paying through nose for it.

You hosted a comp last year, what was the motivation, will you be hosting more?

Once you get involved in KB sport you meet some great people participating in a great sport. There was nothing like that going on in Wales let alone Cardiff so we decided t hold the Welsh open to give people a chance to compete and also raise the profile and awareness of the sport. In KB sport there’s a real friendly and welcoming atmosphere. We’ve made friends from all over Europe just by competing in them.

What are the ideals, philosophies of the Boat Shed?

Hard work. Honesty & Friendly. We try to be as open and as honest with our members as we can. We’re not trying to blow smoke up anybodies ass and if you want to great results from training then you better be prepared to work hard and people appreciate that honesty. The classes bring about a camaraderie with the members that you just don’t get in most gyms. There’s something about pushing yourself and can being able to look around the room knowing everybody else has done the same brings a group together.  We all have different styles of teaching as well which keeps the members on their toes and keeps it fun.

You’ve just recently opened your own facility the Boat Shed has this been something you’ve always wanted to do?

Yes! Always! Let’s be honest the general standard within this industry isn’t great, unfortunately. Most gyms are only concerned with making money and most instructors get their personal development from fitness magazines. Here we are very experienced yet still constantly learning as instructors and trying new things with our members. We keep the stuff that works and get rid of the stuff that doesn’t. We have a network of sot tissue practitioners, ART therapists, chiropractors and physiotherapists. This way we can offer a more complete service to people whilst staying within the scope of what we do. Ultimately we give people a choice. If you’re looking for a spa, flat screens and rows of treadmills then you’re in the wrong place. If your ready to try something different that actually works then give us a call.

What kind of training do you do at the Boat Shed?

We have kettlebell classes, kettlebell sport club, bootcamp style classes, crossfit classes, a womens only barbell class and intro classes that everyone must attend before moving into the main timetable. We run workshops and camps. we will be running a pre season training camp this summer for instance. We try to cater for as many different styles as we can. Most people would call it ‘functional training’ but I hate that phrase ha.  You tell us what you want to do and we’ll tell you how to do it.

Who is your clientelle?

When we first started the bootcamps we thought we’d attract a lot of guys looking to kick ass on the bells. Instead we got mainly women who seriously kicked ass! I would still say that we have more women training here but that is changing. The biggest problem is men have too much ego ha. They don’t like getting their asses handed to them by a 9 stone woman. Plus we don’t have any machines here, that’s right no preacher curl bench or seated calf raise machine just space. Most guys look for those things, don’t see them and leave. Those that give us a go, love it and end up in much better shape.

Have the course you’ve done with OLF helped with HK or Boat Shed

Massively. We’ve all been in the industry for a long time and all been on courses where we’ve left thinking ‘what a waste of time!’. With OLF it was different. What we experienced were instructors who really knew what they were talking about, teaching that went beyond the scope of the course and a higher standard of assessing. Awesome!! Through doing the courses we didn’t just get qualified we gained a passion for kettlebells and made some great friends. We’re still in contact with the OLF guys and regularly bounce ideas off each other coupled with the odd bit of banter. We recommend OLF courses to people all the time and if you’re not an EKI, why not??

Thanks for this Dan, we’ll see you at the comp in May if not before…. If you’re ever in Wales you gotta check out the Boatshed TC and the Hells Kettlebells Team.  info@theboatshedfitness.co.uk