A Different Kind of Tabata

I got my weekly "Minute of Strength" yesterday where Anthony DeLuglio reviewed some cool Tabata type routines. I warmed up today with his snatch Tabata. 4 minutes of 12kg snatches. Here's the breakdown: 20 seconds of snatches on the right. On the last one, hold it overhead in a perfect lockout for 10 seconds...this is your rest folks! Next, snatch for 20 seconds on the left, with a 10 seond rest in a perfect overhead lockout. And so it goes for 4 minutes total. I thought it was a great warm-up which lead me into DOUBLES, DOUBLES and more DOUBLES! Double cleans, double clean and presses, double squats, double squat to overhead press. It's amazing how effective doubles can be especially if you don't do them frequently. My butt was thoroughly kicked!

1000 Swings

On my way to 1000 16kg swings. I set out to do 700 this morning, my previous record was 600. When I hit 700 I still felt pretty good, so I went for 750. When I still felt good, I went for 50 more. It feels great when you set a goal and meet it and even exceed it. I mixed it up by trying my first 200 in sets of 20. This got to be hard so I adjusted to the next 100 at 10 sets of 10. This was easy, so I tried 6 sets of 15 and 1 set of 10. These felt the best so i stuck with this for the duration. Next up....900.

"Enter the Kettlebell" Quotes

I'm re-reading Pavel's "Enter the Kettlebell" for the ?th time. There are so many great quotes in this book, just had to share some.

"The sales cliche' about 80 percent of the business-or more-coming from 20 percent of the clients applies to kettlebell training: these two moves (swings and get-ups) will give you the biggest bang for your kettlebell buck."

"Don't try to get yourself smoked: this will come soon enough." (about the TGU)

"If you don't have good judgment, forget Kettlebells and go take a Pilates class."

"Don't chase ever heavier kettlebells just for the heck of it: keep your goals in mind"

If your new to Kettlebells or have been using them and have never looked at "Enter the Kettlebell" I suggest you get a copy. This book will give you the most useful information you can get your hands on. Buy it directly from this site at the link to the left DragonDoor.com.

New Workshop Started Today

New workshop this am with 4 students. We worked on swings for the majority of the hour. All four students had never even picked up a bell. Most common problem...Hip Snap, or lack of I should say. Worked on wall squats, box squats (but just tapping the bench), and the clipboard behind the butt (hit the board with the bell). Not bad progress for 1/2 hour. Cleans were next, guys did a great job and worked with a some pretty heavy bells. Had to cut class short with a phonecall from the school nurse....sorry guys, hope you can come back next week for more torture!

Success Story and Beyond!

I had to share this page from the folks at Art of Strength. This story really hits home and makes you want to shout out to everyone a simple fact...KETTLEBELLS WORK! Kudos to the folks at Punch gym for giving this woman the tools for success and an even bigger kudos to her for making it work. I love how she describes her "ah hah" moment when she feels her firm torso and abs, just like Brett Jones described it at RKC in April 09...the sudden realization of all the benefits of Kettlebells, like an epiphany. And the before and after pics speak for themselves. Read it and Enjoy...

http://www.artofstrength.com/womens-page/womens-page-54.aspx

TGU Breakthrough Moment

I was working with my client Rownak today and we had a breakthrough moment. She has really struggled with her Turkish Get-up. Last week we tried "naked get-ups" (no weight) and shoe get-ups. She still struggled with these and was barely able to get herself up onto her elbow. She kept insisting that she didn't have the core strength to succeed. This week we stripped it down again....we repositioned her foot to give her better leverage. We looked at her shoulder stability and arm lockout...she came a long way there. Ok, she picked up the 4kg and gave it a shot. She kept collapsing back and insisted the weight was too heavy. One more try for Ro...we looked at her breathing, or lack of I should say. She had been holding her breath in most attempts. Went through the TGU breathing pattern and we gave it one last try.....and there it was, the breakthrough moment, it all came together. She did ten on each side (only up to the elbow, but it's progress). I can't stress enough the importance of breathing for Kettlebell success and it was proven yet again today!

500 SWINGS

I did 500 swings today as follows... 1st 100: 25 x 4, 2nd 100: 20 x 5, 3rd 100: 25 x 4, 4th 100: 20 x 5, last 100: 40, 30, 20, 10. I used a 12 K bell and finished in 30 minutes. Next time I think I'll switch off my sets with a 12 and 16 K. A nice basic and quick workout.

BodyWeight Training

today I tried and completed a fantastic bodyweight workout put together by Sr. RKC Brad Nelson. It's a series of pretty intense bodyweight excercises performed for a total of 300 reps. I did it in 20 minutes. It was a nice change from some of my other routines. Check it out on Brad's Blog as well as tons of other cool stuff....

http://bradrants.com/blog/workouts-training/bodyweight/

Enter the Kettlebell...back to basics

With less time this summer (kids home from school) I decided to revisit "Enter the Kettlebell" and get back to basics. I'm a big fan of keeping it simple. I've been doing C&P ladders with 16kg bell. I'm up to 3 rungs for 4 ladders. Been doing pullups in between each rung. Finishing the workout with 100 snatches (Monday) and Double Squats (Weds). I'm feeling stronger just after two workouts and it's helping me toward my bodyweight pullup goal. For any of you just starting out, I highly recommend one of Pavel's best...."Enter the Kettlebell".

TABATA!

I tried Tabata last Friday for the first time. Tabata is one excercise performed continuously for 20 seconds with a 10 second rest between rounds for a total of 4 minutes. I used two 8 kg bells and performed thrusters. To quote Dan John from his book, Never Let Go, "The tabata progam might be the single best fat-burning workout I know. It may be only four minutes, but I keep sweating and breathing hard for a long, long time afterwards." If you try it, make sure to keep track of your reps for the next time you try it. I achieved 51 reps in 4 minutes, next time I'll go for more....

I am now officially an RKC

Just heard from Senior RKC Brad Nelson that I have passed and earned my RKC designation. I've been working with Mandla Nkosi of Boston Kettlebell for the last 2 months on mobility issues using R Phase Z Health. For any of you out there in the Boston area, Mandla is the man for joint mobility. I don't think there isn't an issue he can't identify and fix. For more info, visit his site www.bostonkettlebell.com

Friday 6/5 Class

I worked out with my client Marcus today. Marcus is a Brazillian Capoeira instructor who has recently added Kettlebells to his workouts. We worked on Renegade Rows, Crush Curls, Double Swings, High Pulls, Farmers Walks, Lunges and Goblet Squats. Great workout!

What is a Kettlebell?

Below are the answers to some common questions about kettlebells:

• What is a 'kettlebell'?
• Why train with kettlebells?
• Who trains with kettlebells?
• Am I kettlebell material?
• How do I learn to use the kettlebell?
• What is the right kettlebell size for me?
• "Kettlebells are like weightlifting times ten."

Go to : http://www.russiankettlebells.com/ to find the answers.

Z Health Practice...

Today is my first day at this....Here's what I'm currently working on: I'm practicing R Phase Z Health to increase shoulder and T-Spine Mobility so I can achieve perfect overhead lockout on my presses, Getups and Snatches. I am practicing my double swings, double clean and presses and double racked squats. I'll be filming my excercises next week to hopefully earn my RKC. Keep your fingers crossed for me!