Seacoast Kettlebell

After putting my own health and fitness on the back burner to focus on raising kids and my career, I was fat, sick and tired. I was making time to see my chiropractor 3x/​week and regular acupuncture treatments for neck pain knowing all along that if I lost weight and got in shape, I would treat the cause instead of the symptoms. My personality type is extreme, I’m either all in or all out. In some ways this is beneficial, but was the reason why I failed every time I tried to get healthy in the past.
Being older and wiser, on 1÷1÷15 I took a different approach in hopes that ‘it’ would finally click for me. I spent 3 months cleaning up my diet and changing my eating habits. Once that became routine, I told myself it was time to add in regular exercise. I have always made monthly gym donations in the past, never enjoying it or motivated enough to even attend regularly. I had heard of Seacoast Kettlebell before and happened upon an ad for their 8-​week program on Facebook. Before I could talk myself out of it, I signed up. I told myself I would just commit to 8 weeks and see how I felt/​if I saw results to help me decide whether to extend my membership or not.
Initially I was self-​conscious being over 40, overweight and out of shape. There ARE seriously fit people at SKB and people who don’t need to be shown the same thing 10+ times before they get it. However, none of that mattered. The coaches are there to help and would rather show you the same thing
than have you get injured or not get anything out of what you are doing. After 8 weeks I saw REAL results, but also felt so much healthier. I realized I had to continue on this journey as can honestly say I was enjoying it!
The energy in the gym is contagious. I typically attend after work when my brain is fried, I’m way overtired and my stress level is at an unhealthy high. It all starts to melt away during warm-​up as I realize I need my head in the game to make it through the workout. The time flies by and before I know it, I have sweat more than I ever thought was possible. Most importantly, I’ve had fun doing it. The camaraderie is amazing — even the seriously fit regulars want to see you succeed. The coaches are so personable — always making you laugh while pushing you past that voice in your head that’s telling you to quit. The schedule is the best around — if I get stuck in traffic, at work late, or driving kids around, I can always go later.
I’m now in my 4^th month of attending SKB and no doubt in the best health of my life. I’m seeing muscle definition in places I never thought possible. I’m down 50 pounds but really don’t even pay attention to the scale any more as my body continues to change for the better even if the scale doesn’t move. I have lost a lot of inches as well as body fat. I can do REAL push ups, squats for days and even run — gasp! Some days are still really hard but others I surprise myself with what I can do.
I have a very busy life — a demanding and stressful job, 2 kids, family and house to take care of and live almost 30 minutes from SKB. Most days I feel like I’ve already run a marathon by the time I get to work in Portsmouth, but now I have something for myself to look forward to when it’s over — working out. No day is ever the same and all I have to do is show up and do as I’m told. I’m making time to get to SKB and most days will gladly sacrifice getting to bed early to do so. I’m pretty sure it’s impossible to go to SKB and not see major results, no matter what kind of shape you are in when you walk through the door!

By far the best gym I’ve been lucky enough to be part of. Knowledgeable and supportive staff, intelligently constructed whole body workouts that challenge no matter your prior fitness level, it’s always scaled well to ability, injury, goals, what have you. They’re serious about enjoying lifelong fitness and will make anyone who walks in feel that way too.

I’m visiting from out of town and back home in California I’m a crossfitter. I have been attending this gym for 3 weeks (my stay here in New Hampshire) and have really enjoyed myself.
Apparently this place used to be a crossfit, but it didn’t work well for them so they dropped the name. Many of their exercises are similar however and what I found cool is that they do a lot of kettlebell work (in the name right? lol).
I attended the large class and the more private smaller classes. Both are fine and incorporate weights with cardio. The exercises are varied and have left me sore, even considering I’m an avid crossfitter at home.
There are a few things I don’t like but I think it’s more of where I come from and how I like to exercise so nothing really bad on the gym. I enjoy more pushing during my workout, like «you can do more weight, just add a little» or «you got this don’t drop that weight.» I personally find that encouragement helpful (not to injury of course). There are a LOT of instructors here and one or two I have noticed are helpful that way but not the majority.
Although they don’t claim to be a weight lifting gym, they do incorporate olympic weight lifting a little. My last and only real complaint I guess is that several of their instructors do not have a good knowledge base for weight lifting. It’s not really their main thing nor is it heavily relied on in the workouts so not a giant deal. I’m not faulting them for this in my rating but I was really surprised that for example… depth in a squat was faulted by several instructors. Things like that make me put less weight on the bar during workouts here because I’m not confident personally to weight lift «alone» more or less.
So if one wants olympic weight lifting or an emphasis on it, go somewhere else. However, for free weights, kettlebells and body weight movements/​exercises this place is awesome and I definitely recommend. I will be returning when I come back!

SKB is an incredible place. Colin and the staff know your name, your ability, and your goals. The workouts are well designed. The gym atmosphere is awesome and supportive.

This place has changed my life. I’ve been a member at Seacoast Kettlebell for nearly two years now, before that I had barely ever made a consistent stint at a gym for 2 months. I thought I was ‘working out’ but I was really just spinning my wheels and becoming more frustrated with what I thought was exercise. I also had to eat restrictively to maintain my weight even while ‘working out’, and as a busy Mom and business owner, those restrictions were tough to maintain. Then I heard about Seacoast Kettlebell… and I laughed. «I’m not one of *those* people,» I said to myself. «I could never do that.» But I kept thinking about going… and it bothered me. Was I accepting that I was too old and out of shape to even try Seacoast Kettlebell? I felt that by accepting that I wouldn’t just let myself down, I’d let my family down. I wanted to be the Mom who could encourage her kids to follow their dreams, and how could I really do that as a tired, out of shape, 30something who had already started quitting?
So I went.
I met Colin, the owner, for my first workout. It was tough. I didn’t know a lot of the exercises, I could barely jump rope, I felt like an idiot. Then the warm up was over, and it was time for the actual workout. I remember wall balls, gasping for breath, and repeating over and over in my head «Don’t cry. Don’t stop. Don’t cry. Don’t stop.» My ass was handed to me that day (sorry, there really isn’t another way to say it). As I stumbled out the door wondering what had just happened, I could feel my resolve harden. I told myself that I would walk through that door again and again until wall balls didn’t scare me, until I didn’t want to cry or stop. And I did. And I still do.
I’ve lost weight. I’ve gained muscle. I’ve learned how to eat clean and no longer struggle with having to restrict my diet to maintain weight. I love my body now. I am strong and I am confident. I have learned and tried so many new things because of Seacoast Kettlebell.
If you are reading this and trying to decide wether to give Seacoast Kettlebell a try, I urge you to call or e-​mail Colin and start what will probably be the best decision you’ve made in a long time. There are other gyms in the Seacoast area, but none can offer the background or qualifications of Seacoast Kettlebell. Colin has dedicated years of experience to this gym-​he is the only coach and trainer that I feel I can trust completely with my fitness and health goals. This gym is a safe place where members can push their limits and discover their true potential. The staff and coaches are all knowledgeable, kind, and truly dedicated to each member’s success. They recognize that there is not a ‘one size fits all’ approach to health and fitness.
If you are ready to come alive and reach your physical best, you are ready for Seacoast Kettlebell. See you at the wall ball station! ;)

In 2011 I gave up. I was not investing in my health or my body.
I walked into Seacoast Kettlebell with major back issues and arthritis. My body weight was out of control for my short 5’3 stature. I was hitting 6’s and 7’s on a pain scale of 10, some days it hurt to walk down the stairs. Being veteran of rugby, a sport I played for nearly 10 years, I needed some sort of extra push, walking on a treadmill, hanging out on an elliptical machine just wasn’t doing it, I wasn’t committing, I wasn’t working very hard.
Meeting Colin (the owner) for the first time I was overjoyed at knowing that he had a sense of humor, not something I thought I would find in an army kind of guy. He made me feel comfortable, showed me how to do the kettlebell movements before I was even allowed to go to class to ensure I was being safe and was pumped that I was there. Not just because I was another person spending money at the gym, but because he thought he could help me. And he did.
Right away I realized this was not your typical Planet Fata$$ $ 19.00 a month gym. He knew everyone’s name, remembered which weights they should be using, challenged them when they didn’t work hard and joked with them when he hadn’t seen them in a while. All the trainers are like that, they make you feel like family and come to find out, so did a great number of people that go there. No one looked at me like I was fat and didn’t belong, they pushed me when I slowed down, asked me if I was ok when I needed to stop and challenged me to go heavier and harder. Someone even ran with me one of my first workouts, after he had already done the running, just so I wouldn’t give up.
I’ve lost weight, lost inches, my back doesn’t hurt anymore and beyond that I’m more invested in my body and my strength and my will more than I ever have been. I am in very little to no pain, my arthritis is handled and instead of hitting 6’s and 7’s on the pain scale, I’m hitting PR’s on my weights, barbell and kettlebells alike.
Is this the place to go if you’re looking to walk around, waste time, maybe burn a couple calories and eat some pizza? Not at all. Well, maybe, you’ll just get disappointed when there isn’t pizza and someone is pushing you to your max. This is the place to go when the gimmick of $ 10 a month fails you and you realize that you need more. This is the place to go if you want to meet some of the most incredible, inspiring people you’ve ever met in your life. This is the place to go to become part of something bigger than yourself. Lastly, this is the place to go if you want to change your life, just like I’ve changed mine.
Physical fitness is not only one of the most important keys to a healthy body, it is the basis of dynamic and creative intellectual activity.
John F. Kennedy

There is nothing that compares to Seacoast Kettlebell, and I can certainly adhere to that since I have tried just about everything. I recently moved to Boston and have to say the one thing i truely miss about living in the seacoast is this gym. It is an extremely motivating environment, gives you a great sense of community, and, most importantly, a kick-​butt workout! You will never be bored or feel like you aren’t getting your moneys worth. I miss you SKB!

I’ve been a member of Seacoast Kettlebell for a year now and hands down, it has been THE BEST gym experience I’ve had.
Here was my situation a year ago — most of my life, up until we had kids, I’d stayed in top shape with a combination of running, biking, climbing.. . etc. However, with 2 young kids under 4, at 39 years old, I found myself very out of shape. I’d tried the P90X and the INSANITY videos (which are great) but I’d never stick with them for more than a couple weeks.
I needed exactly what Seacoast Kettlebell offered:
— Intense, varied workouts that were 1 hour long and offered throughout the day at times that worked with my family, kid, work schedule
— Accountability — coaches and others at the gym to push me when, if I was working out on my own, I would want to slack off. Everyone is friendly and the culture at SKB is to encourage each other.
— Wholistic — the workouts, over the course of a week, address every aspect of fitness, from endurance to cardio to core strength and also flexibility. No home routine was giving me that.
Keep in mind, though, that Seacoast Kettlebell is a CrossFit-​affiliated gym — CrossFit is a philosophy & a method of training called H.I.I.T. used by some of the world’s best athletes. At SKB, I have found that I’m training with SERIOUS athletes and I am always pushed to work hard. Some of these fellow SKB’ers are training for marathons/​triathlons plus several UNH teams are trained by SKB — that said, there are always serious athletes at each class that really push me so I can make the most of the hour-​long session. Some people will find that training at this level is not for them.
SKB has a great one-​month trial membership so you can give it 30-​days to see if you like it.