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December 25, 2006
Build muscular quads with RKC kettlebell jerks
In the sport of GS or kettlebell lifting the technique of absorbing the shock of the kettlebell dropped to the chest between jerks involves coming up on toes to meet the falling kettlebells and rolling softly on your heels. Like landing from a jump. It is the most energy efficient way to catch the kettlebell, which is important for the kettlebell sport.
But if you are not planning on competing in GS and are training with kettlebells to maximize your strength and conditioning for another application you should stay flat footed when dropping the kettlebells(s) to your chest. For two reasons. First, unless you take your time learning if from an experienced GS competitor, the toe to heel technique is hard on the knees. Second, you would be missing out on the extraordinary quad building benefits of the flat-footed –or “rooted” –RKC style jerk. The controlled repetitive eccentric loading will work magic on your vastus medialis. These muscles right above and inside the knee will fill out within weeks and you will notice a big difference in your jumps and kicks.
Learn the hard style jerk technique from The Russian Kettlebell Challenge book or DVD.
Russian kettlebell power to you!
Posted by james at 1:00 AM | Comments (403)
December 18, 2006
Less choice, greater results with kettlebells
"Why I like Kbells: you have so little choice," tells me Com. Dan John. "Dumbbells go up in many gyms by ten pounds, some five, some even a pound at a time. A thousand machines for bench presses...a million combos.
Stop! The brain can only take so much!"
“With kettlebells, I have really only up to three choices...often only one...for an exercise. The 53 is a perfect choice for snatches, but I "could" use 70. That is a 17-pound could!!! So, I have to back off the reps, tighten my butt...you know the drill.
“Less choice: less mental RAM going out the door. The more you choose, the less you have left over to push the workout. Those leg innie and outie machines can convince you that you are working your legs. You're not...but you can use your brain to convince you that you are...
“Double kettlebell front squats are too light? Move up a size...that's about a 32-34 pound jump.
“No choice. More work.”
Russian kettlebell power to you!
Posted by james at 9:02 AM | Comments (1)
December 11, 2006
The Turkish kettlebell press
I don't like traditional seated presses. When you sit on a bench or stool with your feet planted it becomes easy to arch your back and tweak it. And the press turns into an incline bench press, with less stress on your shoulders and more on your pecs. I have shown one alternative on my DVD More Russian Kettlebell Challenges. Here is another.
Sit on the deck cross-legged. In Russia we called this style of sitting “Turkish”, hence the name for the drill. Grip the handle of the kettlebell sitting in front of you with one hand and the body of the kettlebell with the other, and lift the kettlebell into the rack position. Let go with one hand and press the kettlebell overhead.
Make sure not to let your tail tuck under during the set; keep your back straight. If you have a history of back problems clear the Turkish press with your doc.
The drill does not tire out your legs, unlike the strongly rooted standing kettlebell presses. This makes it a good choice for a high volume upper body workout, especially if you are about to do leg exercises next.
Here is an example of an effective pressing workout for a girevik who can press a 40kg ‘bulldog’ a couple of times:
1. C&P 24kgx3/3
2. C&P 32kgx3/3
3. C&P 40kgx1/3
4. Turkish press 24kgx5/8 (reps/sets)
Another option is to do heavy C&Ps or MPs on one day and high volume TPs on another.
Note that although the Turkish press is harder with a given size kettlebell than the military press, you should never abandon the MP completely. The MP develops rooting and bracing, skills essential for sports and martial arts. Where the Turkish press develops just the arm and shoulder strength, the clean and military press develops full body strength. So treat the Turkish press as an assistance exercise, not a primary lift.
Russian kettlebell power to you!
Posted by james at 9:15 AM | Comments (3)
December 4, 2006
More power to your Secret Service kettlebell snatch numbers
Speaks the US Secret Service kettlebell snatch record holder:
"Lately, I have been doing heavy double swings with 32kg kettlebells. I normally do sets of ten and then immediately move to one arm snatches with the 24kg bell. By doing the heavy swings, the muscle memory for a powerful hip thrust is still fresh in my mind. It's amazing, the bell simply flies over my head and after twenty reps with both arms, I'm barely breathing!”
You will find the complete USSS kettlebell snatch training plan in my book Enter the Kettlebell!
Russian kettlebell power to you!
Posted by james at 8:50 AM | Comments (2)