My Free Kettlebell Class.

On the right beside the 44.

A couple of weeks ago my new DragonDoor 24kg/53lb kettlebell came in, and along with it a coupon for ONE free lesson with participating RKC Instructors. Group, boot camp, individual, it’s at the instructor’s discretion. So today I paid a visit to my instructor Brad Hamilton at Life Warrior Fitness. He helped make sure I was ready for the 20kg/44lb bell a few months back.

Today I didn’t have an agenda and since I document every session on Facebook and he’s a friend, he pretty much knows what I’m doing. He just verified, to make sure. Started with the Get-Up. Then we worked shoulder mobility with one move where I pressed a 26lb I think, then keeping it vertical moved my shoulder in rhythm back and forth. Then an Arm Bar with the 18lb, and believe me, from that angle, it’s plenty. I routinely press 44lbs overhead and the 18 was moving a little.

Then we went downstairs into the Dungeon. I forgot the order we had worked. Worked a heavier Get-Up with the 35, and then the 44. Which I hadn’t done before with that kind of weight. Worked Two-Hand Swings, 10 reps with the 35, 5 with the 44, and 5 with the 53. The last time I was with him I leaned back to much. He didn’t say anything so I guess I fixed it. Brad told me to point my feet in a little, more straight than I was. That made it harder. Also Dead-Stop Swings. That will build explosiveness.

Worked on Heavy Cleans a lot to. I was popping my elbow out a little, not as much as last time. And torqueing when I came up got to stay straight. Did Snatches. And though a workout, the 35 was a lot easier now. The 44 was too, up to 5 at least. His only correction on my snatch form was breathing so kick ass on doing better with that technical move.

Finished up with showing me a couple of new stretches, Press Up and Roll Overs and the advice to do Joint Mobility on Variety Days. He had been taking notes and working on a program for my Thursday Variety Day.

5×5 Heavy Cleans with the 53 and five Get-Ups alternating between the 30 and 44, progressing up until all 5 is with the 44. Three sets of 5 Snatches with the 44. That adds to my Monday Snatch Practice as well. So before long RKC Standard maybe? Swings and/or High Pulls 5-10 reps for 3 sets with the 53. When that gets easy…Dead Stop Swings. And he added a technical note on my TGUs about a bigger step forward during the reverse lunge. Occasionally hoist a kettle bell overhead and take a walk.
He was telling me that one of his friends asked if he did Overhead Lunges with weight, that he liked 7lb dumbbells.

I’m sorry, I smirked.

Brad told him about the TGU with weights a lot higher than that. Also learned I’m the only one really Snatching the kettle bell among his clients. I gotta be different I guess, hahaha. He’s working a blend of ROTK and another program so Brad’s going to get a bit more powerful. That’s double kettlebell work. I can’t press doubles yet of substantial weight. I tried.

Anyway, just wanted to post this. For a few reasons, I love kettle bells, it helps me process, and what I love, I share.

For Earlier Posts on Training with an RKC and Kettlebells go here.

Still Battling the Demon, What Oni Is Forging

Time for another assessment. What damage has Oni, the 44lb Kettlebell has wrought. This time the ROP is taking a little longer since I smashed my elbow into a tree and took a week off, then backed off a couple of weeks and starting again from there. So the normal cycle will be about 4 weeks longer.

However, since after that I’m moving to a 53lb kettlebell, what the Russian Military use, I’m going to own the 44 before I move up. So when I hit (1-2-3-4-5)5 or 75 total, I’m going to back off for active rest for a couple of weeks and do the Program Minimum with the 44lb. Tactical Get-Ups and Swings. Then I’m going to add some density and really build up my armor. I  will work up to (3-5-7)5, and if I can press the 44 seven times, the 53 is not a problem.

This will take 12 weeks starting today. The reason I am doing this is sometimes I have to really grind out on my heavy days. So I don’t want to go heavier until I’m sure about the 53. After you hit the 40lb and up kettlebells any flaws you have in form will become apparent.

Now lets look at training so far….

Mondays is the Light Day. Military pressing the 44. And I’m snatching more than doing High Pulls with Oni the 44. And my local RKC‘s suggestion of rows fixed my posture so now he has me doing pull ups. At least I think that’s right. I see the term used so much for pull ups or chin ups.

All I know is I grab the bar at shoulder width, palms facing out, and pull up to my collar bone from a dead hang. Kipping  is for sissies. I do that for rep ladders like my presses, only less reps.

Tuesdays and Thursdays are my Variety Days. When the volume goes up, I use these days for rest.

Wednesday is the Medium Day. I started to play a little on these days with Hand to Hand Swings. They look like a one-armed swing except at the top I release the bell and grab with the other hand. Repeat. And Clean & Presses of course.

Saturdays I go big, its the Heavy Day. I go as Heavy as I can and still leave one in the tank. And that’s hard as it should be. I’m having to extend my rest periods to. Yet another reason to stick with the 44 for awhile. Also started Double Kettlebell Swings with the 30 and 44. Switching hands every few reps to balance out. And Joint Mobility from Pavel’s SuperJoints.

So on my normal three training days are Presses, Rows and Swings. Let’s see where it got me.

I didn’t do anything Functional, just Body Comp.

Body Composition

Let’s look at the difference in the 6 week time frame.

Body Part                     Before                         After               -/+

Neck                             14.5                              14.5                     0

Shoulders                43                              43.25                   +.25

Chest                           37                              37.25                  +.25

Waist                           31.25                       31.5                       +.25

Biceps                         12.1                                12.1                     +0

Forearms                 10.66                         10.75                +.09

Thighs                       19.80                         20                      +.20

Calves                           13.20                       13.50               +.30

Weight                         142.4lbs                 142.8              +0.4lbs

Body Fat %                  11.90%                  12.50%           +.60%

Lean Body Mass        125.40lbs           124.95            -0.45lbs

Just about everything went up. No pictures though, I’ll include those in 6 weeks. Easier to see the difference.

Related Articles:

Six Weeks Into the Rite of Passage; Where Am I Now?

The Day After Seeing A RKC; My Kettlebell Report Card

I Need Professional Help

Something To Smile About…

A little something to make you smile on a Monday. The above is one example of how the Wolf Mentality is viewed. Is it Thinking, Drinking, A Threat, Rioting, Saving the World or Just Watching Society Crumble?

The below picture is how my favorite training tool the kettlebell is viewed. A weapon, unsafe, insane, ineffective, superhuman or just the skill of strength?

The Rite is Almost Complete, So Where Did 12 Weeks of Kettlebells Get Me?

I’ve almost finished my first cycle of the Rite of  Passage, in fact next week will finish it out. Then I move up to the 44lb kettlebell. My sister questioned my sanity when I told her.

Snatch

Fitness Progress Report:
Functional: Increases across the board. Reached my goals so all that’s left is pushups, pressing strength and endurance.

• Pushups are still not up to 51. Considering the gains everywhere else it may be because I started of by pressing the 44lb to failure. Just smoked my shoulders.
• Military Presses with the 44lb kettlebell.

         Left: 7 times (5 rep gain) Right: 4 times (3 rep gain)

• One-Rep Max Weight

         Left:55lbs (was 40lbs)      Right: 50lbs (was 40lbs)

• Snatches. 100 in 5 minutes, maybe 5o at the most would be called as a rep, the rest ‘no-count’ by a RKC. Smoked me. Did it with the 30lb ‘bell.

Body Composition

Let’s look at the difference in the 12 week time frame.

Body Part                     Before                         After               -/+

Neck                             14                                14.5                 +.5 in

Shoulders                42.25                         42.5                 +.25

Chest                           36.25                         36.75              +.5

Waist                           30.75                         29.75              -1.0

Biceps                         12                                12                        0

Forearms                 10.50                         10.50                 0

Thighs                       20.75                         20.50              -.25

Calves                           13.5                            13.25               -.25

Weight                          141.4lbs                    139.8              -1.5lbs

Body Fat %                  12.17%                      10.10%           -2.07%

Lean Body Mass        124.19lbs                 125.68            +1.49lbs

Some size gain, added muscle and fat melting off. Can’t wait to see what the 44lb kettlebell forges when I begin a new cycle.

Snatch in motion

How I got there

The Rite of Passage from Enter The Kettlebell. And a Primal Diet.

Fats: 130.8 grams (averaged)

Carbs: 131.6 grams (averaged)

Protein: 151.2 grams (averaged)

For more on primal go here.

Now on the suggestion of the RKC Brad Hamilton I saw last week I’m going to add onto my Variety Days. My next Cycle will look the same as the last but with the 44lb kettlebell.

The Variety Days will consist of Planks, Tactical Get-Ups, and Goblet Squats.

And Joint Mobility Drills Daily.

Yeah, the hand switched, My wife took 7 pictures of me snatching. These are the best.

Related Articles:

Six Weeks Into the Rite of Passage; Where Am I Now?

The Day After Seeing A RKC; My Kettlebell Report Card

I Need Professional Help

The Day After Seeing A RKC; My Kettlebell Report Card

Well yesterday I sought professional help.

No, not for my head. Can’t work miracles.

Had my private session with Brad Hamilton, RKC to check my form. I arrived a couple minutes before he did and helped him carry a couple of Dragon Door kettlebells up the steps to the office. We were in the door before the appointment time. This is what we did:

Warm Up

Dynamic Stretching, looked a little like Systema stretches to me, but I don’t stretch much so I’m probably wrong. You hold the stretch for a couple of seconds if at all. And Halos. He suggested I look into Pavel’s Super Joints ( I did ), Scott Sonnon, Steve Cotter or Z-Health mobility drills.

Diagnostics

Then I had to do a Plank. I can hold one for 2 minutes, barely. This was to make sure I was tight in the right places, which translates into power for presses and remembering the feeling when I tense up at the end of a swing. He recommend I do more, so on my Variety Days, I’m adding Planks.

TGU

Turkish Get-Up, he wanted to see mine. I did pretty good. He showed me the improved one, called the Tactical Get-Up. They never rest at the RKC. I had seen it before, tried it, but he broke it down well.

It now has a high bridge and your hand doesn’t move. The guy in the video repositioned his. Still impressive.

Kettlebell Swings

Swings, two hands and one hand. What I thought was my weakness was sitting back, however that wasn’t my issue. I had two problems.

• Power Breathing. Breathing and holding some air to protect my back in my diaphragm. Done right, it sounds like hydraulics at work.
• Leaning back when I swing. Can cause me to topple over with a heavy weight.

Also told me with one arm swings let the other ride along freely. Like a two kettlebell swing except one hand’s empty. That helps me stay square and not torque nothing. And play chicken with the ‘bell.

Kettlebell Cleans

Cleaning the Kettlebell. Needed work, I knew it would. I’d let my elbow flare out and to prevent that he made me hold a piece of paper between my side and elbow when I dropped the ‘bell to reclean or park it.

Kettlebell Overhead Presses

Presses, the mother’s milk of upper body strength with a kettlebell. On the way up, I did good. I went straight down on the way down. He stopped me and asked why? I thought it was a Military Press. The better way is to trace the arc around my head again. More work for the shoulders and lats. He checked me with the 26lb (easy), the 35, (little heavier than my current) and the 44, (the next one I’ll use). He said I was ready for the 44lb kettlebell. That’s no small amount of pride in myself for working to that.

Kettlebell Snatches

Snatches, the reason I came. I have a hard time doing them cold. I like a  High Pull or two to find my groove. Except my high pulls were actually one-hand swings. So I learned proper two-hand or one-hand high pulls. Then I snatched. I wasn’t driving enough for a proper Hardstyle Snatch, it was the Sport version.   The ‘bell rolled around my wrist. Then I snatched 26, the 35 and the 44(if I remember, did a lot yesterday.)

Goblet Squats

Goblet Squats. I heard of them from Scott on Twitter, but never did them. Until yesterday. I have to remember to lead with my chest out and up on the way up, driving through the heels. And on the bottom, do a slight figure-8 rocking motion. Another Variety Day addition.

When I was standing he noticed my posture, imbalanced. My shoulders are pulled forward. Showed a way to fix it, that I can’t entirely remember other than turning the femurs in with turning the knees. So I asked, and he said it was from the Feldenrais Method. And Rows. He checked my form, said pull up with my thumb going into my armpit. That will pull my shoulders back by developing lats and rhomboids.

I asked how to do it. Between my presses. For every press, two rows. Or Pull ups.

All in all a very productive hour, to bad  it wasn’t taped. I suggested that. He has a veritable tool kit of diagnostic tools I haven’t covered but I’m already over 700 words into this post. He told me I was fairly advanced for someone who was teaching himself. I credit that to Pavel’s breaking down the drills in ETK and the YouTube videos various RKC’s put out. However I recommend all kettlebellers have their form checked by an RKC at least once.

Monday I’ll finish this cycle of the ROP, and post my gains for the 12 week cycle. Then I’ll be offline working on getting my book published.

Brad’s Websites:

Life Warrior Fitness

Little Rock Kettlebell Boot Camp