Joyful Heart in the News

New York City is flush with trendy workout options and celebrity trainers are as ubiquitous as the bodega. But on a recent Saturday, I encountered a workout regimen that has forever changed my opinion of exercise: Kettlebell Kickboxing. I attended the first-ever red-carpet “Fitness Gala” event co-hosted by NBC’s Smash star Megan Hilty and celebrity trainer Dasha Libin Anderson. More than 100 New York exercise enthusiasts joined me as a broke a sweat while wielding a rather large kettlebell, and afterward we were all treated to a special brunch created by Candice Kumai, star of E!’s new documentary series Playing with Fire.

All proceeds from the event benefited the Joyful Heart Foundation, an organization founded by actress and advocate Mariska Hargitay that works to heal, educate, and empower survivors of domestic violence and child abuse. After trying an array of niche workouts, Hilty confirmed that kettlebell kickboxing was the thing for her due to its constantly evolving moves and its empowering can-do-anything attitude. The actress also said working with the Joyful Heart Foundation was a no brainer: “We wanted to enhance awareness of this organization today and we also wanted people to take something away from this kickboxing class.” Sign up here to experience the kettlebell kickboxing workout for yourself … and check out Hilty on Smash on NBC every Tuesday night.