Kettlebells for subversive prep!

[the_guy_with_the_gun]

Some of you may be familiar with kettlebells. I get mine from DragonDoor.com because I like the attitude in the company. Quality is high, product consistency is excellent, price is worth it. The downside of dragondoor is that the site is laid out in the formulaic internet sales through testimonials scheme, and much of the training material seems ultra simplistic. Once you know what you are looking for, you can find it all on youtube for free.

Now, for why I like them:

For those of you who have been around for a bit, you may recall I have something of an anger problem (faulty wiring). After years of breaking things, trying Arnold style workouts, modifying diet regimens and work circumstances, I have found a simple tool (props LATOCers!) that addresses the gripes I have had with other methods.

• I dont diet. Gotta be honest about me.
• I wont travel to exercise. I want to exercise wherever I am
• I enjoy other people watching me play with weight they cant lift
• I work in IT. I think its funny when my co-workers say: I dont have time to exercise, and I respond by placing a 1 pood (16kg, 35 lbs) kettlebell on my desk and saying, wow, I wish there was more time in the day. Then ripping out ten clean and press exercises on each arm and going back to work.

I started 4 months ago and my results are typical:
for the first month, I thought I was going to die. I hurt all over, because I wanted to exercise, not do the requisite stretching and training.
After that, I started in earnest: My posture improved and my complaints against body armor started to go away. My relatives and friends noticed that my posture was greatly improved.

Then I got a bigger bell, 24 kg, and found that most of my daily aches and pains (after a few combat tours, they tend to accumulate) started resolving themselves, especially the joint pains. I am frequently exhausted the next day, but I am no longer in pain. Because the 24kg bell is the testing standard for males, I got a 32 kg bell. It is probably the best bell I have gotten so far, as I have had to make no effort to smooth out the handle with 60 grit sandpaper. Now, at 32 kg the basic strength techniques are finally stressed, because if you suck at them, you live in a world of pain

The nice thing about the Kettlebell is that it gives you a strong idea of when you are overtraining (preparing to injure yourself) as opposed to making yourself stronger. I would love to start this thread because I have yet to find a tool for taking non-athletic persons to athleticism. Respond if you like, or hate, or have input.... about this excellent doomer prep tool!

Thanks,
_guy_

[uberdoomerReborn!]

Sorry I missed this post originally.

Care to share your basic routine (just listing the name of the moves would be great) and times per week training? I'm about to jump on the kettlebell wagon myself! Just watched Pavel's video "Enter the Kettlebell"... the only problem is he only teaches technique and illustrates moves in that video and doesn't talk about sets/reps/times per week.

I am familiar with concepts like NOT going to failure but don't know a lot else in terms of structuring a workout regimen.

[the_guy_with_the_gun]

Sure thing for workouts:

Basic (Program Minimum) Workout

• Learn the Turkish Get Up and practice it 2x a week for five minutes
• Learn the Swing Swing until you think your heart will explode, jog it off, and swing some more for 12 minutes, 2x a week

Once you are comfortable with these exercises and are having fun with your swings, start the RoP workouts. I say fun with your swings meaning that when you feel the bell go weightless at the top of your swing, it becomes somewhat magical and feels right. You will know it when you get it. The quickest way to get there is to get two bells of different weights and do towel swings with both of them until you are floating the bell on the towel. You will notice a big improvement in your swings immediately. All this is in the Enter the Kettlebell video.

The Advanced (Rite of Passage) Workout is simple and brutal

The first objective is to learn how to Clean and Press. After Learning the Clean and Press, Learn the Snatch. It works better this way, because the snatch is somewhat more complicated and builds on the bottom half of the C&P. The next little piece to understand is periodization or cycling. The Rite of Passage goal is simple: Pass the US Secret Service Snatch test by snatching a 24kg bell 200 times in 10 minutes. To work up from the Program Minimum to the RoP workout, learn the C&P and the Snatch and get good at them by practicing after you have stretched out and before doing your Program Minimum workout.

The workout is a five-week cycle that focuses on swings and the C&P. The week is broken into 3 mandatory workouts and two supplemental workouts. Monday is a light day with the C&P and Snatch. Tuesday is a skills practice day that I take a light bell (16kg) and just swing around for fun. I also practice hand to hand swings and some of the more esoteric exercises (windmills and such) just for fun. This is a light workout, and if I break a sweat I am going too hard. Wednesday is a medium workout with the C&P and swings to about 70% of your maximum ability. I do this by breaking up my lifts throughout the day, and stop when I don't particularly want to do more. Simple. Thursday is another skill day. Use the heavier bell if you have one for Loaded Cleans (the bottom half of the C&P), and maybe some heavier swings or snatches. Again, just skills, if you break a sweat, you're probably going too hard. Friday is Off. Saturday is balls to the wall... 90% max C&P and swings. I use a Tabata timer I have on my phone (it is a Google app, I'm sure there is one online someplace) and try to go 8 rounds without stopping, crying, or hurting myself.

In the ETK video, Pavel talks about safety. This is important. Because the Kettlebell is so simple, it is easy to forget that it is, in fact, a cannonball with a handle, and can do serious damage to you, innocent bystanders, your floor, or your walls if you don't pay attention.   

Thought I ought to explain it first, now for the simple Rite of Passage Table:

Monday
C&P 50% 3 sets x 1 rep each arm
Snatches 5-10 minutes at 50% exertion

Tuesday
Swing a light bell for fun... play with it. Checkout the RKC 2006 video if you want some ideas

Wednesday
C&P 70% 3 sets x 1,2 reps each arm
Swings 5-10 minutes at 70% exertion

Thursday
Loaded Cleans 5 sets of 5 reps with a bell heavier than the one you press on Wednesday
Swing or Snatch 1 or 2 sets x 10 reps with a heavier bell than you use on Mon, Wed, and Sat

Friday OFF

Saturday
C&P 90% 3 sets x 1,2,3 reps per arm
Swings ALL OUT 5-10 minutes

Sunday OFF

Each week, add another set to the C&P until you are doing five sets, then add another rung on the ladder (1,2,3,4,5) Until you are doing 75 C&P with each arm on Saturday.
After that, pick up the next heavier bell and start at the first Monday workout (above).

That pretty much covers anything in the Enter the Kettlebell workouts, and most of the questions you might have past this are answered at the dragondoor.com forums, where there are some truly primal Comrades. Keep in touch and let me know how its going!

[uberdoomerReborn!]

Awesome info, thanks for the detailed response! I'm definitely going to come back to this as a reference as I proceed. Looks like I won't get a kettlebell(s) until Christmas at the earliest, but in the mean time I want to compile enough info about it to hit the ground running (or swinging!) as soon as I can....

Thanks again, and when I actually get one to use for a few weeks I'll let ya know how it goes.

[the_guy_with_the_gun]

Hey, uber,

get started now with the wall squats and yoga stretching... it will help a ton when you start the swing program! I had to redo almost two weeks when I started because I kinda skipped it My pain, just wasted training time. Also, the box squat and the box squat to vertical jump will give you a tremendous advantage when you actually get your hands on your bell, as they teach the squat back and the explosive pelvic action you want on the top when your knees, hips, and shoulders come into alignment.

Also, it really loosened up some back problems that I acquired about a decade ago, very much to my surprise!

[uberdoomerReborn!]

Good advice... I'll give those a go, although I think I should be good on 'em.... I went through 3 months of P90X and 2 months of a program called Insanity:
http://www.beachbody.com/product/fitness_programs/insanity.do?code=BBCOM_INSANITY_REDIRECT

TONS of bodyweight work, mobility work, flexibility, yoga, intense cardio, and general craziness.... both programs are great and have gotten me in the best shape of my life, but I wanted something different that can crank things up a notch, and by all indications that would be kettlebell work. So, I think I'm well prepared for 'em, but I will certainly make sure I have my ducks in a row before I start. I was in horrible shape last year at this time and I have been feverishly correcting that the past 7 months. Thanks again for the input, and I will certainly ping you once I get going (and inadvertently send a cannonball through the ceiling!).

[uberdoomerReborn!]

TGWTG,

FYI, I got the 16kg kettlebell today... it came with a DVD with some basic moves, including the Turkish Get Up and the two-hand (and alternating hand) swings...I practiced those several times.

Wow, what a blast! I think I had the equivalent of a cardiovascular orgasm doing the Turkish Get Up a few times followed by the swings. I don't think I've ever felt quite the combination of full-body muscular fatigue, windedness, and sweat in such a way that is both exhausting yet relaxing.

Here's another thing I noticed...when your form goes to hell, you immediately sense it and know to stop. I don't feel this way with a lot of resistance exercises, but there's something about the kettlebell that really draws attention on any flawed movements.

Obviously I haven't advanced to Rite of Passage or anything like that...I'm just learning the basic movements and making sure I'm comfortable with that, but thanks for starting this thread! I really do hope anybody here wanting to get in shape gives these things a shot.

[the_guy_with_the_gun]

Welcome, Comrade Uber!

[Katie]

Great idea.  I'm going to get a 10 lb one from Dunham's and try it at work!  Call it a stress relief break and stretch from the computer.  I'll check out the preparation, stretching stuff first.  I'll check in once I get going and let you know if I start to look like the women in the videos on youtube  .