Thursday 1/29 (AM)
Spinning Bike (24 Minutes)
Just a little easy cardio to move some blood through. Maybe swings and lat pulldowns tonight.
Thursday 1/29 (PM)
A1. KB Swing 10x88
A2. Lat Pulldown 6x110, 120, 130, 140, 150, 150, 150
A3. Chest Press 6x110, 120, 130, 140, 150, 150, 150
Seven rounds.
B. KB Clean-N-Press 1x88
Four singles with each hand (eight total).
Friday 1/30 (AM)
Kettlebell Medley (20 Minutes) plus a 5-minute finisher…
I didn’t have any singular inspiration for today’s workout, so I just put all the toys out (26, 35, 44, 53, 88) and did stuff with each one. A few snatches with the 26, a bunch of one-armed swings with 35, 44, and 53, some two-armed swings with the 88. After about 20 minutes, I decided on a 5-minute finisher: clean and pressing my EZ-curl bar (loaded to 115 pounds of Standard plate, which is all that I have, haha) continuously without letting go of the bar. I completed 25 reps (I think) in the 5 minute time window.
Friday 1/30 (PM)
KB Snatches
40x26
40x26
20x35
20x35
20x44 (PR!)
20x44 (PR!)
40x35
40x35
100x35
This is, like, my favorite workout ever. Simple, fast, brutally effective.
Saturday 1/31 (AM)
A1. KB Snatch 20x26
A2. Chest Press 5x110 —> 200 (increase 10 lbs per set)
Ten rounds.
Note: I did a bunch of light snatches. I think this has three benefits:
-
technique experimentation: with the light bell I can play around with different swing arcs, different internal cues, etc and see what feels like a really comfortable groove.
-
conditioning: if I intend to compete in KB sport I need to have not just good “cardio” (which I already have from my distance running time) but the ability to stay in a groove of continuous snatching for 5 (or 10) minutes.
-
building tolerance for the movement: I am no expert but can imagine that heavy KB snatches and presses will be stressful on the connective tissue in elbows and shoulders. I hope that doing some high-volume light work will build a tolerance for that.
[quote]ActivitiesGuy wrote:
Friday 1/30 (PM)
KB Snatches
40x26
40x26
20x35
20x35
20x44 (PR!)
20x44 (PR!)
40x35
40x35
100x35
This is, like, my favorite workout ever. Simple, fast, brutally effective. [/quote]
That sounds awful! My arms would fall off a quarter of the way through it. Nice work!
^^^I agree. AG, these workouts of yours have evolved from sounding challenging-but-doable to sounding ‘no-thanks-I’ll-pass.’ You are becoming a metcon badazz, brah!
Thanks for the compliments, guys. I still have a LONG way to go (y’all know those weights are pounds, not kilograms, right?) but I am pleased with the rapid progress. I didn’t expect to nail the 100x35 this quickly, and the speed of improvement suggests that a 100x44 might be in the offing in the months to come, and hopefully 100x53 by the end of the year (which would be enough to pass the snatch test for an RKC Level One certification).
I drifted for awhile (in the fitness sense) between spring 2013 and January 2015. I had been distance-running competitively for most of 2008-2012 (best times of 18:20 in the 5K, 38:30 in the 10K, and 1:27:10 in the half-marathon) and sorta burned out on it in summer of 2013, although it was more a physical issue than a mental one. I didn’t really want to stop running, but my body kept telling me NO with an assortment of minor maladies that made running much less enjoyable. So, as you’ve seen through my logs since I started here last spring, I spent some time fucking around with “Well maybe I’ll just do tons of yoga…and maybe then I’ll work on getting my bench press up…no, maybe I’ll try to be a pull-up god…”
I think kettlebell sport is the first thing that’s REALLY spoken to me as a “truly focused goal” since the end of my running. I still figure on 1 or 2 weekly yoga classes for health/flexibility/sanity, and the occasional session on my spinning bike for some non-impact cardio work, but long KB cycles just might be the ticket for me in terms of competitive sport.
As much as I trained for it, I was/am/always will be too big to become a really good runner (and I don’t think THAT much running is ideal for longevity/health anyway), and kettlebell work just seems like a great fit for my life. No need for gym membership, travels anywhere, etc.
Anyways, I digress into some self-reflection. Thanks for the compliments, and I’ll strive to keep improving in this arena
Sunday 2/1 (AM)
Bikram Yoga Class (90 Minutes)
Have spent the afternoon in the kitchen making some pretty epic food for the Super Bowl. Planning to do a little KB work and then settle in for the game 
Sunday 2/1 (PM)
Kettlebell Medley with Lat Pulldowns
KB Clean-N-Press 2x26
KB Clean-N-Press 2x35
KB Clean-N-Press 2x44
KB Clean-N-Press 2x53
KB Clean-N-Press 2x88
Lat Pulldown 6x150
Six rounds of that and then:
KB Snatch 40x26
KB Snatch 30x35
KB Snatch 20x44
KB Snatch 10x53
First time snatching the 53. Little rough but still pretty cool to get that overhead. I did these last 4 sets with no rest, so it was nearly 100 straight reps. Pretty cool
Then my dinner…a meatza!!!
Monday 2/2 (AM)
Spinning Bike (24 Minutes)
Back felt a little stiff this morning so I decided to just pump some blood and get my heart rate up a bit.
KB work later tonight if I’m up for it.
Monday 2/2 (PM)
KB Snatch 20x26
Lat Pulldown 5x110
KB Snatch 20x26
Lat Pulldown 5x120
KB Snatch 20x26
Lat Pulldown 5x130
KB Snatch 20x26
Lat Pulldown 5x140
KB Snatch 20x26
Lat Pulldown 5x150
KB Snatch 20x35
KB Snatch 20x35
KB Snatch 20x35
KB Snatch 20x44
KB Snatch 20x44
KB Snatch 20x44
Getting better with the 44 pounder. Progress continues apace.
Tuesday 2/3 (AM)
KB Snatch 100x26
KB Snatch 100x26
KB Snatch 100x26
KB Snatch 100x26
Started a set every 6 minutes (basically figure a set takes about 5 minutes and then about one minute rest).
Doing this to build work capacity, tolerance for high-volume snatches, and work on my form. I want to be careful about developing bad habits with a light weight, though, so I really try to focus on QUALITY of reps here, not just mindlessly tossing the weight overhead.
Next stop: 100x44, hopefully within a couple months. I may attempt multiple sets of 100x35 in a single workout before attempting a 100x44 set.
I like the progression and build up you are using for your snatches and quite honest a little jealous of it. I bought my 55# so I could do the 10k swing challenge and never dreamed of wanting to do snatches and all of the other KB movements. When I was training for the 5 min test I accumulated several little nagging injuries (elbows, wrist, hands etc.) just because I was going all in with the 55# KB for up to 12 mins at a time. Looking back I wished I had the smaller bells (or even the 35# for my wife) to build work capacity and technique as opposed just winging it with the 55. Keep up the good work you are making great progress!!!
[quote]jblues85 wrote:
I like the progression and build up you are using for your snatches and quite honest a little jealous of it. I bought my 55# so I could do the 10k swing challenge and never dreamed of wanting to do snatches and all of the other KB movements. When I was training for the 5 min test I accumulated several little nagging injuries (elbows, wrist, hands etc.) just because I was going all in with the 55# KB for up to 12 mins at a time. Looking back I wished I had the smaller bells (or even the 35# for my wife) to build work capacity and technique as opposed just winging it with the 55. Keep up the good work you are making great progress!!![/quote]
Hey, I was like this for awhile. I just had a 45-pounder and totally winged it, basically just a fun toy that I used whenever I felt like it.
Once my GF got into things, that was the impetus for even buying lighter bells, but it had the pleasant side effect of giving me some technique/volume-building tools. I feel like the 26 and 35 will always have some value to me in that regard, even as I progress to snatching the 44/53.
It’s also been really neat to see my GF so enthused by them. She texted me her workout from this morning:
20 swings x 20
20 swings x 25
20 swings x 35
15 swings x 45 (a PR for her)
Repeated 4 times. Now that’s doing some work! For a girl who was almost scared to pick up a 45 a few months ago…let’s just say she’s found the kettlebell a worthy addition to running-and-yoga!
[quote]ActivitiesGuy wrote:
[quote]jblues85 wrote:
I like the progression and build up you are using for your snatches and quite honest a little jealous of it. I bought my 55# so I could do the 10k swing challenge and never dreamed of wanting to do snatches and all of the other KB movements. When I was training for the 5 min test I accumulated several little nagging injuries (elbows, wrist, hands etc.) just because I was going all in with the 55# KB for up to 12 mins at a time. Looking back I wished I had the smaller bells (or even the 35# for my wife) to build work capacity and technique as opposed just winging it with the 55. Keep up the good work you are making great progress!!![/quote]
Hey, I was like this for awhile. I just had a 45-pounder and totally winged it, basically just a fun toy that I used whenever I felt like it.
Once my GF got into things, that was the impetus for even buying lighter bells, but it had the pleasant side effect of giving me some technique/volume-building tools. I feel like the 26 and 35 will always have some value to me in that regard, even as I progress to snatching the 44/53.
It’s also been really neat to see my GF so enthused by them. She texted me her workout from this morning:
20 swings x 20
20 swings x 25
20 swings x 35
15 swings x 45 (a PR for her)
Repeated 4 times. Now that’s doing some work! For a girl who was almost scared to pick up a 45 a few months ago…let’s just say she’s found the kettlebell a worthy addition to running-and-yoga!
[/quote]
REALLY good for her!! My wife is a Les Mills BodyPump enthusiast and have been begging her to get back to her KB work to go along with it. She tweaked her back going for 100 swings with the 35 in 5 minutes and she got a little careless and has been hesitant with KB’s since then. Your girlfriend will be swinging that 88 before you know it!
Tuesday 2/3 (PM)
A1. KB Swing 10x88
A2. Lat Pulldown 5x150
A3. Chest Press 5x150
Five rounds.
B1. KB Clean-N-Press 1x88
Twelve singles (six per hand).
Really pleased with how those clean and presses felt. Much more solid than previous attempts with the 88.
Very noticeable improvement around the bicep, shoulder and chest