4/10/2007
Training Logs 4/4,4/7,4/9
4.4
-Hanging legs raises 4x6
-Light box squat 515x5x3
-KB double sumo swings 53sx3 sets-20,30,45
-One leg knee exts 2x20 per leg
-Rev hyper 3x12
4.7
-Started with Prowler first in 30 degree weather 1/3 mile 160lbs
-KB arm bars 53s 2x8 per arm
-Rev hyper 2x15
-KB work one arm swings and snatches/alternated swings then snatches with 53lbs
set 1 20 swings,15 snatches per arm
set 2 30 swings,20 snatches
set 3 40 swings, 30 snatches per arm
4.9
-Bash shirt work raw 495x3/3 board
-585x3/3 board
-635x3/2 board
-675x1/2 board
-Four board triceps work 455x5,495x5,545x5,585x3
-Pulldowns 4x8
-Chest supported rows 3x
-Seated shoulder press lockouts 135x5,225x5,315x5
Russian kettlebell power to you!
]]>Comrade, get a complete lockout, otherwise your shoulder might get hurt. Dip under an extra inch while imagining that your arm is being torn apart lengthwise. When you are starting to stand up imagine that someone is chopping your trap down.
Once you have mastered perfect Turkish get-ups see the Russian Kettlebell Challenge and More Russian Kettlebell Challenges DVDs for bent press instruction.
Russian kettlebell power to you!
]]>On some days work both arms back to back, competition style, but don’t go all out.
On other days smoke one arm with an all-out set, then take a break before working the other.
The first style is more systemically demanding; the second is more demanding on the grip and the shoulder. You will improve on both fronts and your snatch numbers will show it.
Russian kettlebell power to you!
To chin start with your palms facing forward. As you are pulling, your elbows will come in and your fists will rotate almost into the curl position. And your pecs will contract.
Yes, the pecs are good for something other than the bench press; they are pullup muscles too! On your next chin have your training partner place push against the insides of your elbows. Bring your elbows together as you are completing the chin, push against your buddy’s hands imitating the despicable peck deck machine.
Once you have felt the connection, engage your pecs without your partner’s assistance. First in chins, and then in kettlebell presses.
Russian kettlebell power to you!
]]>A fast tempo –think Tabata –cannot be beat for pure conditioning. Poprotski (1998) states that “An increased tempo delivers the trainee’s organism a greater stress which increases work capacity and builds a reserve of endurance for the normal mode.” However he urges the beginners to stay away from fast paced sets as they are likely to mess up unstable technique.
Following are the results an experiment by Voropayev (1997) who compared the gains made by two groups of gireviks in three months. One trained at a slow and medium tempo, the other went fast:
| Tempo | Snatch, % gain |
|---|---|
| Slow and medium | 18.7 |
| Fast | 37.4 |
But don’t write off slow tempo snatches yet. They are a form of interval training that will enable you to do more reps per set. If we use an analogy from pure strength training, high tempo snatches may be compared to sets of five and paced snatches to the rest/pause technique where the lifter does a series of singles. Both have earned their keep.
The simplest way to pace your snatches is by adding one, two, or three full breathing cycles when you are “resting” with the kettlebell locked out overhead.
Russian kettlebell power to you!
]]>When a person inexperienced in fighting throws a punch, his opponent gets pushed but does not get hurt. On the other hand, a person hit by a boxer will collapse on the same spot where he has been standing. The boxer knows how to direct his energy internally instead of wasting it internally. So does an RKC.
When you swing your kettlebell, don’t aim for height. Focus on digging your feet into the ground –“rooting” –and direct your force inside the kettlebell, as if you are trying to drop it with a single punch. You will build more power and get a more intense conditioning workout.
Russian kettlebell power to you!
]]>Comrades rock climbers, follow the Program Minimum from Enter the Kettlebell! The swings will develop your conditioning, the get-up will balance out your strong pulling muscles and make your shoulders resilient.
When you have become skilled at swings, soap up your hands for the last minute or two of some of your swing workouts. This will build contact strength. Make sure to swing outside as you will be dropping your kettlebell a lot.
Then add Hack squats (see my DVD Resilient) on the variety days. Vary the sets and the reps, e.g. 5x5. 3x10, 1x20, etc. The Hack squat builds leg strength specific to climbing without building heavy legs.
Russian kettlebell power to you!
]]>Practice by shoving your thumbs in your sides and forcefully pushing them out with your obliques. Push hard; Louie Simmons once sprained a powerlifter’s thumb during a demonstration!
Once you got it, clean the kettlebell and pause without losing tension. The moment you start the press push your sides out. You will get an instant strength boost.
Read The Naked Warrior and learn many similar instant strength techniques.
Russian kettlebell power to you!
]]>Clean the kettlebell from a slightly wider than the shoulders stance. The exact moment you start pressing “spread the floor”. Greater stability and muscle recruitment will deliver a heavier and stricter press.
For detailed press instruction refer to Enter the Kettlebell!
Russian kettlebell power to you!
]]>The crush grip is essential for strict military presses. Not only does gripping the handle up your strength through the phenomenon of “irradiation” (see Power to the People!), the pressure on the thumb pad activates the mechanoreceptor or “button” responsible for recruiting your biceps. The long head of the biceps flexes the shoulder and assists the press.
This does not apply to push presses, tempo presses, and jerks that use the legs or/and the rib cage to start the movement and only need strong triceps to finish the press. You may open your hands. Ditto for the snatches.
Keep your fist closed to connect the load to your biceps and get a more comprehensive stabilization training effect for your shoulder in get-ups and windmills. You don’t have to crush grip the handle as the kettlebell is relatively light. Remember that GUs and WMs are exercises, not lifts.
Crush in bent presses as you need the extra “guy wire” of the biceps for stability in this heavy lift.
Russian kettlebell power to you!
]]>This exercise has a different strength curve from the standing calf raise. In other words, “it hits the muscle from a different” angle. This makes it a good plateau buster if your calf progress has stalled.
Russian kettlebell power to you!
]]>This technique will allow you to do more reps with a heavy weight (it’s too awkward for singles or doubles). You may do a couple of sets of five propped up presses on your Enter the Kettlebell! variety day.
Russian kettlebell power to you!
]]>"I have been swinging kettlebells for about 1-1/2 years now and I don’t remember having a sinus infection in the entire time. In addition, I stopped taking the allergy medications about a year ago. (I was taking an anti-inflammatory for knee pain and did not want to take more than one medication.)
"I have spoken to several health care professionals about this phenomenon and everyone is in general agreement. I am having less sinus problems because of the specific breathing REQUIRED by kettlebell lifting.
"In order to pressurize the abdomen for heavy lifts one must FORCEFULLY inhale through the nose. In order to put air into the lungs when a heavy kettlebell is overhead one must FORCEFULLY inhale through the nose. This SNIFFING technique aerates the many tiny passages in the sinus cavity. In addition, phlegm that would otherwise stay in the sinuses is pulled down into the throat and cleared out.
"Less sinus infections and NO ALLERGY MEDICATION is like a miracle for me. Perhaps it is merely a strange coincidence but I don’t think so. If you have allergy problems GIVE KETTLEBELLS and kettlebell breathing a try. Everyday I am more amazed by the benefits of practicing with kettlebells!
Russian kettlebell power and health to you!
]]>Do three all out sets of kettlebell snatches. As many reps as you can
with one arm, one hand switch, and as many as you can do with the
other. The standard snatch test as seen in The Russian Kettlebell
Challenge. Rest for five minutes between the sets. Don’t rest
passively, keep moving to help your heart.
Keep a record of how may reps you maxed out with on your first set and
how many total reps you have managed between three sets. You should PR
in weeks two and three.
After three weeks switch to a different routine, ideally one that keeps
your snatch intensity in the 70-80% range. Revisit the above workout
every few months and change the size of the kettlebell every time.
Russian kettlebell power to you!
Pavel Tsatsouline
PowerbyPavel.com
In the same vein, dumb strength is wasteful. Focus and guide your effort and the effect of your strength will be multiplied. Dr. Stuart McGill has coined the term “steering strength” to emphasize this point.
In Enter the Kettlebell! I explained that in the perfect clean the kinetic energy of the kettlebell is redirected straight down to your feet the moment you rack the kettlebell. The poor alternative is getting knocked back.
You should do the same with your snatches. Even though your arm and shoulder are moving back as you are finishing the snatch, the kettlebell should not be wrenching your shoulder back. Redirect the momentum of the weight straight down to your shoulder socket and then straight into the ground as you punch up. In other words, “tame the arc” not only when the kettlebell is in front of you, but also at the very lockout.
If you have performed the technique correctly even a heavy kettlebell will pause motionless at the top and so will your body. With no effort to stay balanced.
Russian kettlebell power to you!
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