OKC North

I love this gym, the people and the trainers. Everyone is super friendly and encouraging.

I love Okc.
It’s has one of the best kettle bell programs in the country and a great community of folks of various levels that are a part of it.

Almost don’t want to review this place for fear of it being over-​run. I go almost every morning and the workouts are amazing. There are usually 3 – 4 people per class total, with trainers who are world class. It literally feels like having personal trainers for an absurdly low rate.
Because I go in the early morning I don’t work with John, but Patrick is a super rigorous, super knowledgeable trainer who will push you to your limit in total safety for both kettlebells and straight weightlifting. Matt focuses on the total experience more, reminding you that it’s more than just about strength, but is equally rigorous about the diversity of activities you go through in his bootcamp style class.
I don’t think I’ll ever find a place as good as this anywhere else. Blessed…

It’s not just kettlebells! There are other heavy things to lift, too, including your own middle-​aged, out-​of-​shape desk-​jockey butt.
After years of not working out, years of sitting all day in front of a computer, years of lower back issues, and years of maintaining the polite fiction of ‘baby weight’, I was finally convinced by trusted friends/​family to try the boot camp classes at OKC North. I laughed uproariously at the idea of my making it to a 6AM weekday workout, so of course, after some more after-​dinner wine, I agreed to give it a shot.
When my alarm went off at dark o’clock on that first day, I wondered what the hell I’d been thinking… but I went. And I’m so glad I did! Matt is a fantastic trainer, a supportive coach, and easily handles a group comprising people at different levels of skill and experience. I’d never lifted kettlebells before and had little experience with free weights, but I’m learning and improving every time. After only a few months I’m feeling better than I have in years (both physically and mentally). I gave up my other gym membership (the gym I never went to), and I now go to OKC three times a week. I love the group dynamic, am learning to use all sorts of muscles I forgot I had — and my back is a million times better. I know I probably sound like a paid shill, but trust me, *I* pay *them,* and it’s well worth it.

Amazingly enough, if you walk into this clean, well laid-​out Berkeley gym you can get access to one of the best kettlebell sport coaches in the country.
John Wild Buckley was trained by Russian masters of the sport, and still works closely with them. As is a competitive lifter, coach and the head of the OKC, which hosts the largest kettlebell lifting competitions in Northern America, John has brought the sport of kettlebell lifting to new heights in the US.
What that means for people in the Bay Area, is that at OKC North you can learn directly from the best. Right now, John himself teaches the beginning class as well as offering high-​level coaching. So whether you are a beginner who wants to learn the fitness benefits of kettlebell sport, or a trained athlete ready to compete on the international stage, you can do it here.
I’m not sure how this happens, but everyone who works and trains at OKC is incredibly friendly. A VERY wide range of people work out there, representing literally all ages and levels of fitness. Somehow everyone is made to feel welcome, and is then challenged to their exact right level by the coaches. This place is a gem.
I should also mention that in addition to kettlebells, the gym has excellent personal training and coaches who run great high intensity workouts and bootcamps.
But my thing is kettlebells, and this sport changes lives. It’s a super-​efficient workout for the entire body, resulting in a tremendous fitness gains and weight loss. Still, it is more than that. It’s a practice. Continually working to improve your form is meditative, taking you out of the daily mindset the way a long run or yoga might do. As someone who has trained with the OKC for 5 years, I highly recommended this gym, no matter what your goals are. Check it out!

I’m not sure if I can accurately describe Orange Kettlebell Clubr and everything it has done for me, but, to put it simply, Orange Kettlebell Club (OKC) is the best place in the Bay to lift kettlebells. It is where I learned to love to lift. It is where I was taught how to snatch, clean, and jerk and more importantly how to do these motions correctly. Working with John Wild Buckley at OKC not only helped me improve my physical health and ability, but also strengthened my willpower in the way that only a fighting through the last few minutes of a long set can achieve. lifting at OKC has been a pleasure and, while often sore or exhausted, I never left the gym regretting that I went in the first place. John Wild Buckley and the rest of the OKC coaches are friendly, supportive and can really help you hit your numbers when you need an extra push. It is the people of OKC North and the community that really makes it shine. If you have any interest in kettlebells at all or are just looking for a different way to exercise, check OKC out.

I love the Orange Kettlebell Club and John Wild Buckley is the best. I have learned a lot from him. I am stronger, more agile and more coordinated. You don’t have to be young – I am 66. John is encouraging, funny, energetic, smart and talented. Best of all, he makes it fun to come to OKC and work out.

I’ve been working with John Wild since around 2012 and he has helped me take my kettlebell sport game to the next level.
John is an excellent coach, pays close attention to your specific needs and writes a program geared toward closing the gap between where you currently are and where you want to be.
If you’re looking for a coach to help you move past a plateau, or kick your butt through the mental game of improvement John is your man.
Indeed, the whole team at OKC North is more than happy to talk and work with you about your needs and goals. These folks are the real deal. Genuine, approachable, and hella funny. To top it all off they work out of a mega convenient facility with just about all you need to kick start your active life.
Don’t sleep on the heater! Check out OKC North today.

Seriously awesome community at OKC North, and with the OKC as a whole. Amazing people, amazing coaches, amazing sport. If you’re interested in kettlebells, this is the place.

About 9 months ago, I decided that I wanted to learn a bit more about kettlebell workouts, so I contacted John, one of the owners at OKC North. I had expected to learn a few things I could incorporate into my regular workouts to keep things interesting, and to keep me from getting bored with lifting weights. What I got instead was way more, and much better, than what I expected.
John first taught me the basics of kettlebell lifting technique, with an emphasis on safety and proper technique. It turns out that kettlebell weight training builds your strength, and also works your cardio fitness and endurance (your sets can ten or twelve minutes), so it fit nicely into my intiial fitness goals. What I hadn’t expected when I started was that I also had to learn to improve my mental discipline in order to make real progress in this sport. I have had to learn how to handle all the stuff my mind throws at me when I am pushing my personal limits.
The people at OKC North are experienced professionals, and they can actually help you learn this essential set of mental skills. If you’re going through it, they’ve probably experienced it. They can point the way through, and help you to make personal breakthroughs. For me, that has been the most important and successful aspect of my training with John, and it has given me the confidence to push myself harder than I ever have before with a sport. It helps that John is very intuitive, and pays close attention, and gives instruction with insight, humor and authority. I look forward to training every time I go to OKC North.
OKC North also introduced me to the competitive sport of kettlebell weightlifting, which is this amazing THING out there in the world. I’m so into it now that I have participated in two competitions, something I never imagined when I started. And I absolutely love the feeling of getting up in front of a group of fellow athletes and showing what I can do, even though I’m still a total novice. I’m totally hooked on the sport now, and kettlebell lifting is the core of my exercise plan. I’m way stronger and much more fit than I was when I started at this, and I am much more highly motivated to keep at this than I have been with any other sport or activity I’ve participated in.
The other great thing about OKC North is the people who work out here – they are a great group of people to work out with. Very down-​to-​earth, welcoming and helpful to newcomers, and people range in age, fitness and experience level. And a lot of fun to work out with. Love it!

I’m a competitive kettlebell lifter. This is where I come for coaching. I’m there once a week getting personal instruction and coached workouts. There’s a lot offered there throughout the week, but my focus is on the kettlebell action. I’ve gone from a complete newbie to having completed my third competition last August. I assume I will compete twice a year from here on out.
Working out at the bigger chain gyms is like eating at the bigger fast food chains. Working out here is more like a carefully curated kitchen with special attention to fresh ingredients and attention to quality.
I’ve been lifting with many of the people there for years now. We help each other improve and encourage each other when exhaustion kicks in. We have all body types and ages, from the lean and athletic to big Shrek bodies like mine. There are tiny women and big dudes and we all learn from each other.
The lifting I do isn’t a fad or a gimmick, but an actual sport established in another part of the world that is growing here. Come by and check it out.