Success Story: Lauren Brooks Kettlebell Queen

Lauren Brooks has a nationwide reputation as an expert personal trainer and leader in kettlebell fitness.

Brooks was using traditional training methods at the start of her career in early 2000 when a group of kettlebell experts in the San Diego area were looking for trainers to attend a workshop. Brooks was selected to participate. After just one workshop, Brooks knew there was no going back to her traditional training ways. She was hooked on kettlebells.

As with so many Southern California residents, Brooks has always tried to spend as much time as possible outdoors. With kettlebell workouts, she realized she had found a way to bring her passion and profession out of the gym and into the fresh air.

"Kettlebells opened the door for me to unconventional training," said Brooks, whose company is called On the Edge Fitness. "It allowed me to do outdoor training, where I didn't have to be in a gym and rely on machines. Just give me a chin-up bar, some medicine balls and a couple of kettlebells and we have workouts to do for years and years."

Brooks, who earned a degree in kinesiology from San Diego State University in 2002, has turned the backyard of her home into an outdoor training facility built around the concepts of kettlebell training that she first incorporated into her own workouts.

"This was a whole-body approach where you get your strength, conditioning, and flexibility all in one session," she said. "In just a few weeks my body got so much stronger and leaner. When I saw it happen with me, I implemented it with my students, and they loved it.

"It's the philosophy behind the tool that I connect with. It's the movement. It's the fact that you can use your body weight and add moves in a very smooth, dynamic fashion. I threw away so many things I learned over the years like working with the machines; chest and back one day, etc."

Brooks has continued to educate herself on the use of kettlebells since her first workshop. She said she owes a lot of what she has learned to Russian trainer Pavel Tsatsouline, who introduced kettlebell training to the United States. Brooks was 25 when she received her first certification in kettlebell training by attending one of Tsatsouline's workshops in St. Paul, Minnesota, the hub for kettlebell training in the U.S.

"It was a three-day Russian boot camp," Brooks said with a laugh. "It was a chance to really break down the philosophy of kettlebell training. It was life changing. And I've gone out there at least four times since, as an instructor, as an assistant, and to further my education with them."

Brooks released her first video eight years ago, shortly after she had her first child. Her goal was to prove to the world that kettlebell training is for everyone. She'll soon release her 12th and 13th fitness videos, all of which are available on her company website, ontheedgefitness.com.

Her success as a trainer and proponent of kettlebell training has led to a nickname in fitness circles: "The Kettlebell Queen."

"I had a hard time with it at first," Brooks admitted. "Years ago, when I had no idea where this kettlebell thing was going to go, I created a blog called ‘Kbell Queen', just for fun. When it started to get more popular people started calling me that.

"All these years later, I'm in my late 30s with four kids, and people still call me that. It's an honor. A little embarrassing, but still an honor."

Brooks and her husband, Todd, are a fitness family. Todd left a career in IT to focus on his passion for fitness and to help Brooks with her company. Brooks became ISSA certified in the early stages of her personal training career. She's proud to have recently written her first article for the ISSA website. Meanwhile, Todd has completed his studies and has also become ISSA certified.

Together they will continue to praise the benefits of kettlebell training.

Brooks also operates an online gym called "Lauren's Playground" with over 250 members worldwide. Members have access to videos and fitness programs that are tailored to individual needs like overall strength training, weight loss, leg workouts, and more.

Once relying on traditional training methodologies and now the Kettlebell Queen, this form of training has become a way of life for Lauren Brooks and so many of her clients and fans.