“Anything With an Eastern European Name in Front Of It Is Not a Good Sign.” That’s some Karissa wisdom for you. What she really means is – it’s going to be a tough one.
What’s behind the name, anyway? To prefix “Bulgarian” before split squats and “Romanian” ahead of deadlifts makes the exercises sound much harder. You wouldn’t hear us trainers ask you for Scottish deadlifts or British split squats.
Eastern European countries have long been known for their Olympic lifting champions, as reflected in the training of their bodybuilders. Two functional and weight training tools came from Eastern Europe: medicine balls and kettle bells. The use of medicine balls originated about 3000 years ago with the ancient Persian military. Over the centuries, Olympic athletes have used medicine ball training to enhance power and agility.
Kettle bells, although they sound pretty tame when you know not what you are about to pick up, are an Eastern European spin on exercise, too. Kettle bells have been around for centuries; originating in Russia, their popularity spread quickly to its neighboring countries. After the Cold War, Eastern European training manuals made their way into the United States, and American coaches adopted the training method. Using kettle bells teaches “your body to work as one synergistic unit linked strongly together”, according to Henry Marshall, a certified personal trainer and kettle bell trainer. So when you hear a proper name before an exercise, get ready to push yourself.
Renegade rows, for example, mean you take your dumbbell rows to plank position. Turkish get-ups are not your normal way of rising from a prone position.
The moves are more challenging, but the compound movements bring core and multiple muscle groups into play. After all, you expect results, right?
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