best workout design

Get A Crisper, Stronger, More Explosive Kettlebell Swing With These Bodyweight Exercises

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I’ve got a little secret to let you in on.

My Swing, the Center of the Kettlebell Universe – always felt a little out of orbit, so-to-speak. It just never really felt right.

Not until recently.

It always just felt a little bit – well, “off.”

Like I just couldn’t get that final hip lockout position.

Sure, I could Double Swing a pair of Beasts with ease, but they never felt right.

As you probably know, I’ve been on a bodyweight kick for the last 6 months or so. And because of that time spent on some bodyweight mastery and coordination exercises, I’m happy to report that my Swing feels virtually effortless now. Like it should.

I can finally achieve the crisp hip lockout position.

And I must say that it feels great!

The primary exercise I used was the L-Sit and variations of it.

Here’s a pic –

"L-Sit for Six Pack Abs"
Classic L-Sit - An Abdominal Killer

The other staple in my training was the L-Sit Chin Up.

(Pictured below.)

"L-Sit Chin Ups"
The L-Sit Chin Up - Another Ab Killer

These were massively powerful for my body. This is primarily because it was the exact opposite motions that my body was used to. I spent almost all my work moving from flexion to extension. So doing the opposite – moving from extension to flexion really helped me out tremendously. (More so than any joint mobility work I’ve ever done.)

The last exercise I spent a lot of time on was the Parallel Dip, again, most of the time performed with and L-Sit, which makes these monsters particularly demanding for me. Especially since I’ve got a tricky right shoulder, so I needed to get these just right.

So How Do You Incorporate These Bodyweight Exercises?

Really simple – I’d just alternate lower reps sets of moderate sized kettlebell Swings with one of the L-Sit exercises of choice.

Example:

A1. L-Sit Chins x5

A2. 2H Swings x10

Repeat 3-6 sets.

Rest as needed, where needed.

Another Good Kettlebell/Bodyweight Combo Variation To Try

Another good exercise to alternate your Swings with is any form of “Plank” – whether it’s a Yoga Plank (Push Up position), An RKC Plank, or even a Push Up.

Give one of those a shot if the L-Sit exercises seem a little too daunting.

Example:

A. Yoga Plank x 30s

B. 2H Swings x 30s

Rest 1-2 minutes.

Repeat 5-10 sets.

Why This Works

There’s a very simple reason why these bodyweight exercises work to improve your Kettlebell Swing- They activate your abdominals.

Trunk and hip flexion controlled and/or facilitated by the abs is still very freshly imprinted in your CNS, so performing a set of Swings afterwards helps integrate the “new” pattern – using your abs isometrically to tilt your pelvis “up” and “back”. (Quasi-posteriorly.)

This is what is known as “complex training” (Not to be confused with “complexes”). It’s where you insert or pair different skills together in your training session so one feeds the other. In this case, the stronger abdominal activation/recruitment helps make the Swing stronger.

So give one or two of these a shot and let me know what you think.

They make for quick but effective workouts, especially this time of year. And you’ll be making your Swing even better, which of course makes the rest of the kettlebell ballistic work even better too.

Here are some other quick and effective 15-20 minute workouts you can do this time of year too. (And the rest of the year too.)

Man Quits Using Kettlebells – Loses 15lbs. The “How And Why”…

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I really appreciate reader and customer emails because it gives me feedback on what you’re struggles are and then helps me provide you with the solution.

Here’s an email I got yesterday from Todd. I’ve posted it in its entirety so you can see the context.

And the reason I’m doing it is because this question is a Gold Mine that will answer so many people’s questions – specifically, why you start a program/workout with one intention, say, to lose weight, and you never reach your goals.

That last part is really important – SO many people embark on a journey and never reach the destination.

And it doesn’t have to be that way. You just need to put a few keys in place and remove a few obstacles. Then it’s pretty much smooth sailing.

Finally, before we dig any deeper, it’s important that we acknowledge how the mind affects the body – especially the subconscious mind – the part that really makes the decisions.

If your rational mind – the part you think is in control doesn’t match the subconscious mind, and therefore your actions don’t match the necessary steps to achieve your goals, this will lead to internal friction, which is probably one of the worst forms of stress we experience.

So identifying potential and hidden roadblocks will help reconcile the rational and subconscious minds by increasing awareness, addressing hidden questions, and answering those questions in the context of our goals.

(If I lost you there – don’t worry – just keep reading. It’ll all make sense as we go through this together.)

So here we go –

“Geoff,

I have been folloowing your e-mails for over a year now and enjoy them – I have learned a lot. I am 49 yo and have worked out all my life. I have been using kb’s for about 3 years now. I started using them wanting to lose some weight and fat – but have had the opposite happen. I have gotten very strong, but have gained weight. Was up to 240lbs. Started doing the eat-stop-eat diet about 2 months ago (I really like it). I got a respiratory infection about 6 weeks ago and could not work out for a couple weeks and then decided to take a break from the kb’s and just did some interval training on the eliptical. So not doing any kb’s for about a month and I have lost 15 lbs. down to 225 (wtf!). I enjoy the kb’s and want to get back doing them but I don’t want to put the weight back on. I was doing different workouts w/ 50 and 60lb. kb’s. What do you think was going on and what type of kb workout should I be doing in the future to continue losing weight and fat?

Todd”

Todd – thanks for writing in.

Let’s break this down into pieces to get a clearer understanding.

1. You started using kettlebells “to lose weight and fat but… had the opposite happen.”

First, I can only infer from this statement that from using kettlebells you gained weight and gained fat.

So, the “weight” could’ve been muscle, especially since you said you’ve gotten really strong.

It could also be fluid build up, which is a result of chronic inflammation.

Chronic inflammation is a result of too much stress. So, incredibly taxing workouts, like many kettlebell workouts, will just place more stress on your body, preventing a system that’s already overworked from recovering. And therefore not getting the weight / fat loss you expected.

The second thing is that some people’s appetites increase from intense exercise. And unless your faithfully monitoring all the calories that go in your mouth, there’s a good chance you were just eating more without being aware of it. I’ve seen that happen quite often when people start using kettlebells.

The third and related thing is psychological – you start working out harder or more or both and subconsciously you give yourself permission to eat more. It’s a simple rationalization that many of us don’t mean to do.

“I’m working out more, so I can eat _______.”

And unfortunately “_______” isn’t usually more salad. It’s more of the calorically dense stuff that puts weight on in the first place.

I’ve seen that happen way too often to people who start using KBs.

2. “Started doing the eat-stop-eat diet about 2 months ago (I really like it).”

I’m not sure if this had anything to do with your weight loss because you don’t say. But since you mention it, let’s both assume that it did.

There are two things going on here –

Thing 1 – You’re eating less calories per week. Over time you’ll see your weight drop. It’s just simple math.

Thing 2 – You actually “really like” the program so you’re more apt to stick with it, thus ensuring your results. And because you’re getting results, you’re liking it even more, helping you stick with it. And then you get more results. It’s a nice little positive feedback loop. And that’s the way it should be.

And because both those “things” are helping you achieve your original goal – weight loss and fat loss, from a hormonal perspective, you’re setting yourself up for success.

You’re getting into a caloric deficit.

That caloric deficit is switching on your fat burning hormones.

And because you’re enjoying the process and possibly seeing results, your reducing the production of your stress hormones, which is decreasing the effects of stress on your body, and restoring the hormonal balance between all of your hormones – bringing you closer back to the baseline we’re meant to live and function in – lean, strong, and healthy.

3. “I got a respiratory infection about 6 weeks ago and could not work out for a couple weeks and then decided to take a break from the kb’s and just did some interval training on the eliptical. So not doing any kb’s for about a month and I have lost 15 lbs. down to 225 (wtf!).”

Ok, here’s the “meat n potatoes” of this post – so you’ll want to pay close attention here.

Respiratory infections are pretty massive bugs. In order to catch something of that magnitude, your immune system has to be working less than optimally.

And the quickest way to suppress your immune system is to be over-stressed.

What’s this got to do with kettlebell workouts?

Hang tight, amigo, we’re getting there. It’s just really, really important you see how this process is so interconnected.

One of the things about getting sick – especially like this – is that if forces you to rest. And rest, is a great antidote to stress. In fact, rest, sleep, whatever you want to call it, is probably the best form of stress-relief there is. (Probably why God created sleep…)

So, you start resting, and you start de-stressing. Not to mention the fact that your body is in “code red” fighting off those nasty little intruders – that infection. This means your metabolism is going to increase. (Running a temperature is a manifestation of this.)

And not only that, most of us, when we’re sick, don’t feel like eating that much. So there’s a natural caloric reduction here too.

So what you have is rest + metabolism increase + less external stress imposed from not working out + eating less food than normal = weight loss.

(This in fact happened to me when I got the shingles. I literally lost 10lbs in one day. Woke up Saturday morning at 205. Got up Sunday at 195.)

Not only that, but Todd, when you started recovering, you felt well enough to do some interval training on the elliptical.

Interval training, especially intense (relative term, I know – different for different people at different times) interval training, has been shown to blunt your appetite.

And not only that, the body does appreciate “novel stimuli” – variety – as a stimulus for change.

So, you got –

An elevated metabolism from fighting an infection +

less external stress imposed on your body from doing hard KB workouts +

change in workouts (novel stimulus) +

blunted appetite from interval training =

weight loss.

Is this making sense so far?

There are a lot of “mechanisms” for weight loss all going on at the same time here – I want to make sure we unpack them all so you can see how this will apply to you…

So back to THE Dilemma –

4. “I enjoy the kb’s and want to get back doing them but I don’t want to put the weight back on. I was doing different workouts w/ 50 and 60lb. kb’s. What do you think was going on and what type of kb workout should I be doing in the future to continue losing weight and fat?”

Todd – you didn’t say what kind of weight it was that you lost. Was it muscle? Was it fat? Was it a combination of the two? Unfortunately, unless you measured you won’t know for sure. But, based on experience, my best guess is that it was a combination of both.

One way to tell if it was fat was simply to see how your pants fit. If they’re looser in the waist, you lost some fat.

And that’s good.

But I’m with you – and at this point I’m going to address everybody in the global sense of the word “you” – I think it’s really important that you continue to use kettlebells for the plain and simple reason that you enjoy them.

Please don’t overlook that.

Enjoying something is HUGELY important in achieving any goal.

(As long as it’s consistent in achieving that goal.)

It means you’re more likely to remain committed to your goal and consistent in doing the things necessary to achieve it.

And because you enjoy what you’re doing, you will in fact, decrease your stress levels.

And again, please don’t overlook that point – because all stress produces adaptation but not always the adaptation that we want.

In this case, you want to lose weight and fat. (I’d just worry about the fat – stay as muscular as possible and lose the dough on top of it, but hey – that’s just me…)

So we need to apply enough stress to the body to get that to happen without over-stressing and accidentally encouraging the opposite to happen – which is probably the reason you gained weight in the first place.

Make sense?

So how do we apply “just enough stress” to the body without getting it to do the opposite?

Simple.

Here are the steps.

1. Think about your recovery first.

I’m a big believer that regardless of how you “feel” – the average person (that’s you and me) doesn’t need to work out every day. Even for stress relief. Sure, there are ways to do that (more on that in a minute) but it’s like walking a tightrope – not much margin for error.

So, make sure you’re getting enough sleep first and foremost. Don’t even think about doing any sort of hard kettlebell workouts if you’re only getting 5 hours of sleep a night.

Seriously. I’ve been there, done that, got the t-shirt. Nothing lives there except injuries. And getting injured increases stress. BIG TIME.

So, get your sleep first.

Skip your workouts if you have to, but help your body rest and recover by sleeping 7 to 8 hours per night. No excuses.

2. Be an Underachiever.

Set aside a period of time you know you can commit to for your workouts.

I used to be infamous (in my own mind) for writing these fantastic periodized workouts for myself that were 6 days a week because that’s what all the champs did for their training.

I never completed any of them. My life got in the way.

The simplest and best (most productive as measured by actual results) weightlifting workouts were the ones written for me by my coach (surprise – how bout that). And they drove me crazy because the were “too easy” – 3 exercises per day, 3 days per week. Maybe 2.5 hours a week of workouts. That’s it. Massive results. But they worked so well I started doing other stuff. Stupid. Stupid. Stupid. Stupid…

But I digress – we’re talking about you…

So if you know you can “only” fit in 2 hours a week for your workouts, then you know what?

Become an Underachiever.

We’re a society of Overachievers.

This just adds to our stress levels. So do the opposite with your workouts.

You can only commit to 3 hours per week to working out?

(From experience, I bet you’re wrong – I bet you’re overestimating.)

Cut it in half and commit to 1.5 hours per week.

Why so little?

So you can actually do it. Consistently. Routinely. Effortlessly. Without mental anxiety, angst, or aggravation.

By doing so you’ll build the recovery necessary into your workouts so you can actually see the results you say you want.

And because it’s “so easy” to get the workouts into your busy schedule, you’ll actually do them all the time.

And then you’ll be building that positive feedback loop that leads you down the Road to Success –

Easy workouts + very little time commitment + consistency + enjoyment = Results!

And that’s it – just 2 steps.

Why only two?

Simple. So you remember them. And more importantly, don’t have to stress out about remembering them or whether or not you can remember them.

Some Sidenotes On Stress Relief…

Many of us, myself included, like to work out for stress relief. So my training is sometimes some sort of weird combination of training to reach strength goals and alleviating stress.

So I get the fact that workouts are stress relievers. But what I’ve found is that if I program in alternate easy activities for stress relief, I can focus on just training to achieve my strength goals. This works so much better.

(I actually achieve my strength goals sooner – which is a stress reliever itself.)

The simplest activity for me is just long walks on the weekends. A couple of one hour walks make a huge difference in my ability to handle stress. I’ll also toss in a couple of short 20 minute walks with the dog just to clear my head during the week when I need to.

Works like a charm.

Plus the extra activity helps burn extra calories and that helps keep me lean.

You should do the same.

Funny movies are great too.

When was the last time you laughed so hard you either cried or almost pee’d your pants? I’ll bet it’s been awhile.

There’s a story about Norman Cousins, a famous journalist from my grandparents’ generation, of how he cured a pretty debilitating illness by laughter.

So laughter is a great stress-reliever. Laugh. A lot.

Back to the kettlebell workouts…

What Kind Of Workouts?

Ok, so I realize I didn’t specifically answer your question about what kind of kettlebell workout you should be doing to lose fat moving ahead.

This is a simple one.

They should be –

1. Short enough to give you time to recover.

2. Fun – with variety to keep your mind stimulated and your heart engaged.

3. Frequent enough to keep your body stimulated and programmed for progress.

4. Properly designed using principles of Progressive Overload so you can track and see progress.

So that’s how I would design them if I were you.

Except, if I were you, I wouldn’t waste my time trying to design my workouts. That would only add one more thing to the “To Do” list and increase your stress levels.

Instead, I think you should pick up a copy of “Kettlebell Express!” which is my new “book” chock full of kettlebell programs – 49 different ones to be exact.

And the reasons are very simple –

1. They are short and to the point – you’ll workout for no more than 60-90 minutes per week, depending on the program you choose. This gives you time to recover.

And remember – Recovery = Results.

2. There’s a lot of variety in the programs. This means they’re enjoyable. Unless you’re a monk, most of us cannot do the same old kettlebell routine.

For many of us –

Variety = Motivation.

And Motivation = Consistency.

And Consistency = Success.

3. The thinking and programming has been done for you.

Dan John is very fond of the quote – “The client who represents himself in court has a fool for an attorney.” His point is that all of us not only need coaching but will ultimately fail if we don’t for the simple reason that we bring our own biases and blindness to the table.

Which means unless you’re an expert in workout program design, your best efforts are “hit or miss.”

4. And all that means less stress for you.

Remember, Stress Management = Success.

So when you’re looking for a variety of fun, short, time-efficient stress-relieving kettlebell programs (49 of them), click here and grab yourself a copy of Kettlebell Express!. You’ll be very glad you did.

Wrap Up.

So Todd, I think that pretty well answers your question.

I appreciate you sending it in because you brought up so many good points that I know so many people have struggled with, but weren’t aware of all the underlying mechanisms and implications and how each of these things tied together.

And if you (global you – not just Todd) have any comments or questions, leave them below.

Oh yeah, almost forgot – the special promo for Kettlebell Express! ends at Midnight Wednesday night. When you want to stop stressing about which workouts to do to reach your goals, click here.

The 2 Best Bodyweight Exercise To Add To Your Kettlebell Workouts

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I’ve written pretty extensively over the last 4 to 6 months about the benefits of bodyweight training. In fact, I just finished up about 4 months of almost exclusively bodyweight training – centered around pull-up varations, pistols, and parallel dips.

I’ve gotta tell you, I haven’t felt this good in a long, long time.

I can basically roll out of bed and do a pistol on each leg. I believe this is an important litmus test – as the Pistol is a key indicator of your “reflexive stability.”

And that was something I couldn’t do before I focused on bodyweight training.

Bodyweight Exercise #1: The Pistol

For that reason alone the Pistol is my #1 bodyweight exercise you should look to incorporate into your kettlebell training.

It’s a key indicator to your overall health and performance.

I don’t care how strong you are with a bar or pair of kettlebells, if you can’t do a bodyweight Pistol – without counterbalance – you’ve got some work to do. In the long run, you’ll be stronger.

And as an addendum, you might be wondering just how strong you can get by doing bodyweight Pistols. I recently just put a pair of 24kg kettlebells in the rack and did a Pistol on each leg. (It was a 9 out of 10 on the RPE scale.) So really, the sky’s the limit.

I’ve written at length about the Pistol – click here to check the ol’ archives.

Bodyweight Exercise #2: The Chin Up

Not the Pull Up, the Chin Up. It’s performed with your palms facing you.

And there are several good reasons for this.

1. Most people type or write all day.

This places a long duration load on their shoulders, internally rotating them. The lowly Chin reverses that loading and aligns the wrists and elbows.

2. Loaded stretching and combination cinching of the front of the body.

This is actually pretty cool when you think about it. The front of the body becomes short and tight from sitting all day long. You can very easily stretch it out and then load it by doing Chins. You can also decompress the spine and increase your spine health. Once you can get strong enough you can add weight to your Chins. This will make the front of your body contract in a healthy way, unlike sitting.

Here’s an interesting side note:

We in the fitness industry say that loading the posterior chain is good for countering sitting. I agree to some extent.

But I also disagree.

You have to address the abs too. And not just all the trendy counter-rotational stuff that’s being popularized. You actually have to get some trunk flexion and rotation in there too. (If you don’t believe me, go back and study your child development…)

So the Chin Up is a way to help get this done.

3. Functional Antagonistic Balance (FAB?)

I can’t remember where I first learned this – probably Gary Gray or Vern Gambetta about 15 years ago. However, I forgot all about it until Jedd Johnson of the Diesel Crew reminded me about this in one of his bending DVDs.

Essentially, it’s performing the opposite movements to your main sporting and/or exercise/training movements.

The Chin Up is a great FAB exercise for pretty much all kettlebell training. Here’s why:

KBs.                                      v.                    .Chins
– palms pronated                                  – palms supinated
– feet loaded                                            – feet unloaded
– spine loaded                                        – spine unloaded
– posterior chain emphasis                – anterior chain emphasis
– extension dominant                          – flexion dominant
– lower body intensive                          – upper body intensive

And of course there’s my current favorite version of the Chin – a Chin with an “L-Seat.”

This is where you raise your legs so they’re parallel with the floor and then hold them there throughout your set. Great stretch on the lats, great load on the abs.

How To Incorporate Chins And Pistols Into Your Kettlebell Workouts

There really is no right way. But here are some simple ideas.

1. Work the Pistol and its variations before all ballistics work.

Treat it like practice and you’ll actually open up your hips and make your Swings, Snatches, and Cleans that much better.

2. Work the Pistol in combination with the Get Up.

Do a set of GUs, then work Pistol variations. Go back and forth between them. Each will make the other better.

3. Do a set of Chins after all upper body kettlebell work, like Presses.

This is a great pairing for double kettlebell work.

4. Do a set of Chins after all ballistics work.

Again, another great pairing with exercises like the Double Swing or Double Front Squat.

There are some ideas to get you started.

Feel free to leave your comments below.

How To Keep Going With Your Kettlebell Workouts When Life Overwhelms You

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I’ve got to admit something here – normally, I think I’ve got my stuff together. I know where I’m going, the direction I’m heading, my goals, what I want to achieve, etc.

But lately, I’m a little overwhelmed.

This time in life is supposed to be joyous – the expectation of your first child. Hooray! Or so it’s supposed to be. But it’s not as joyous as it could be.

I have all kinds of concerns and burdens which I’m trying to work through, around, and over.

You may be able to relate on some level.

There may be a situation you’re facing that, for lack of a better term, just feels overwhelming. There’s lots of uncertainty and maybe some anxiety. Or lots of anxiety.

There are two things that are helping me right now that I’d like to pass on to you. The first I’ll touch on and the second I’ll elaborate on.

1. Trusting God. You may not be religious, spiritual, or whatever. That’s your choice and as far as I’m concerned, we can still be friends. But for me, trusting God with the daily activities of my life and my future gives me peace of mind.

2. Using Training As An Anchor. I have come to realize lately, in the past year or so, how much I need to move to release physical energy. And the less intense the activity, the more I need to move. So finding the balance between the two has been critical.

If I train to hard, I can’t recover physically, but I still need the emotional outlet of blowing off steam.

I only finally just realized this about myself in the middle of last week – or maybe I finally was just honest enough with myself to admit this, I don’t know. I had a deep moment of introspection after my last blog post about what I was currently doing. I looked into the future and asked myself how I could possibly continue this once the boy was born. My honest assessment was that I didn’t know how I could. There would be too much opportunity to blow off the training – especially the longer, heavier days.

Regardless, I came up with a conclusion that is just working spectacularly for me in my current situation. It has given me a deep peace knowing most importantly that it is both maintainable and flexible. And I’d like to tell you about it – I’m pretty sure it’ll help you.

It meets all my requirements –

  • It lets me train/move every day to expend energy
  • It allows me to focus on my big goals – Big Press and Big DL
  • It allows me to screw around with some odd lifts
  • It regulates intensity based on how I’m feeling on any particular day
  • It allows me to move around and goof off (read: release energy) multiple times through the day if I should so choose
  • It re-enforces quality movement
  • It keeps fatigue levels super low
  • It maintains/holds my interest

It’s Pavel and Dan John’s Easy Strength, NE (Neupert Edition)

I won’t share the details of Easy Strength with you, because that’s Pavel and Dan’s thing and I honestly feel that would be disrespectful to them. (Rumor has it they have a book coming out sometime in the future with all the details and a ton of other great stuff in it…) But I will tell you that the framework, or the background for the program is the “Grease the Groove” methodology (GTG). (If you’re unfamiliar with GTG, get a copy of Naked Warrior for the full and detailed explanation.) The short story is practicing a lift frequently without fatigue or going to failure allows for greater strength gains in shorter periods of time.

That being said, I’ve come up with 3 lifts that I do every day – Barbell Press, Deadlift (or variation), and KB Snatch.

That’s it. 9-10 reps of each.

And then I “play” with stuff throughout the day. BUPs, finger lifts, lunges, chins, GUs, that sort of thing. I typically give myself the opportunity to mess around 5-10 minutes at a time on days when I’m home in front of my computer.

The GTG gives me a structured framework that allows me to know for sure that my strength work is getting done. Plus, and more importantly, it remains a constant with all the change that is occurring in my world and all the change that is about to take place. And there’s also variety – some fun stuff that I just feel like doing.

So far, the mental angst of missing out has been kept at bay.

The fear of being able to train upon the arrival of my son has also been kept at bay. 27 reps per day? That’s easy to do – it only takes 15 minutes – maybe 20 at max. I can find that on any day. And, because I’m constantly varying the intensity levels based on how I feel and letting my bar speed be my determining factor, then all I really have to do is show up. And absolute worst case scenario is I can’t pop over to the studio to train, so I just move some of my equipment home for a little while.

If I were only doing this with my kettlebells, it would be even easier. I’d keep 1 light, 1 medium, and 1 heavy kettlebell at home and mess around with this daily. I’d give myself somewhere between 10 and 20 minutes per day. Anyone and everyone can find that amount of time to train/workout.

So, that’s how I’m using my training as an anchor for my day. And that’s how I’m beating off the overwhelm – by burning off excess energy through both regulated and random movements. If you’re going to apply this to your own life here’s what I’d do:

  • Pick the amount of time you can afford each day – 10 minutes is about the minimum – we can all find that .
  • Pick 1 or 2 exercises you want to focus on – 1 upper – the Press, 1 lower – the Goblet Squat – would be my suggestion or just 1 total body exercise – Clean and Press or Snatch or Get Up.
  • Pick the time of day that will fit best into your currently overwhelmed schedule.
  • Commit to doing it.
  • Do it.

It’s really that simple.

The peace of mind I’m feeling from having this set up is phenomenal. I hope you experience the same.

The REAL Kettlebell Workouts Strength Cycle – The Details

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Let me just clear the air here – if I had to do Swings and Get Ups for the rest of my life, I wouldn’t.

Although it is chic to do “just” those two exercises, there are so many more exercises you can do and should do.

Yes, the Swing and the Get Up form the foundation for the RKC system of kettlebell training, which obviously, I’m a big believer in. And yes, I think we should all practice them, and yes, they are hugely important. But if they are the only thing you spend your time doing and focused on, you are missing out in a big, big way.

I’ve recently started Snatching again with my kettlebell after a long, long absence. And what a fantastic exercise that is! When done for higher reps and heavier weight, you feel literally every muscle in your body the next day, especially all the muscles on the backside of your body.

Of course, you need the pre-requisites – shoulder stability, hip mobility, lumbar spine (core) stability in order to fix that bell overhead safely. (That’s where a season of Swings and Get Ups comes in.)

Sure, you can just jump right in and do anything you want anytime you want but you’ve gotta know up front that if you haven’t done the pre-req’s yet, you will pay for it somewhere down the line.

That’s why in my last post I suggested the following model to use in order to make constant progress:

  1. Structural
  2. Strength
  3. Fat Loss
  4. Hypertrophy
  5. Strength

Yes, I know, sounds complicated and kettlebell workouts are intended to uncomplicate/decomplicate  workouts. But this really isn’t that hard to do – just put one point on a finger on each hand – 5 fingers, 5 points (and one that repeats itself). Not that hard.

Let’s take a closer look today.

1. Structural.

This one is the one that no one, including myself, ever wants to do. I just want to skip ahead and do the “strength” portion. But if we really think about this one – it is a strength workout. In fact, it may be a harder, more challenging strength program than anything you’ve done in a long, long time.

You’re looking for, discovering, and fortifying your weaknesses with the whole intent on bringing your whole body as a system up.

For example, let’s say you want to improve your Pressing strength. Yes, you could do all kinds of fancy isometric work, attach bands to your kettlebell, do “stacked” Presses, and the such – and they’re all good things, in and of themselves, but have you checked your foundation? If your hips are immobile, you’re not going to be able to root to the ground as much as you should, and your ability to generate force and transmit that across your middle up into your arm to press the weight isn’t going to be as strong as it could be, so why not start there?

Here’s a good little sequence that will help you out:

Perform some Presses first, not too heavy, not too light, then perform the following:

1. Hip flexor stretch

2. RKC Plank

3. Tall kneeling Press

4. Press again. Check and see how the movement feels compared to the earlier sets of Presses.

There are a ton of sequences you can use, based on your own current limitations, and you should find them. The point here is to do them with the expectation that you are investing in your own “strength portfolio” and that you will reap the results in the near future.

What kind of results can you expect from using this type of programming? I don’t know for sure because I don’t know your situation. But I recently had a client crush his old PR in the Press after 6 weeks of not pressing and training 2x per week. He struggled to Press the 32kg, barely getting it up on his left and now easily banged out 3 reps with the 32kg on his left and could’ve gone to 5 reps on the right if I had let him. We focused on a program very similar to this.

2. Strength.

There are so many good program designs for this – pick one. Do it for 4, 6, 8 or 12 weeks. This is where you really focus in on cementing in all the constructive work you did in the previous phase. Simple enough, right? The key for some of us will be actually sticking to a program long enough to make substantive, measurable progress.

3. Fat Loss.

Believe it or not, getting leaner will actually help your strength levels. Considerably.

The science is now clear, the leaner you are, the leaner you can stay, and the stronger you can get, both absolutely and relatively speaking. Want your 1RM to go up? Get leaner. Want to do more Pull-ups? Get leaner. There’s a direct correlation between all of it.

Leanness is the external manifestation that most of your internal processes are functioning correctly. Hormonal processes are for the most part balanced. For example, your body is now able to regulate the production of insulin – the very powerful hormone for building muscle and packing on fat – which shuttles glucose into the muscle cells. It’s also now better able to regulate your testosterone levels, helping you get stronger, and pack on more lean muscle tissue.

I could write a whole article on why you should get leaner to help your strength levels and maybe I will some time, but for now, just do yourself a favor and drop some body fat if you haven’t already. Guys should get down to under 15% and women should get down to under 22%.

It’s easy with a little commitment and the right program.

4. Hypertrophy.

Muscle gain. I wrote a whole book outlining the reasons why you should focus on gaining muscle and how to do it with your kettlebells. The bottom line is this – and here’s another area where the science is clear: Increase lean muscle mass increases your absolute or maximum strength potential.

Want to get seriously strong? Gain muscle.

There’s good reason that the absolute strongest men in the world are the biggest. Extra muscle helps you get extra strong.

You don’t have to focus on gaining 25lbs of muscle or convert to being a bodybuilder and spend 2 hours a day in the gym doing body part splits or any of that. Kettlebells lend themselves nicely to packing on slabs of functional muscle when you program them correctly. Just eat a lot and do more work in the same amount of time. Or more work in less time. Simple.

Think of a hypertrophy cycle as yet another investment in your long term strength portfolio.

5. Strength.

And now we’re back to strength again. You just spent some time packing on some new muscle, now let’s integrate it into the strength plan. Because really, it’s all about strength. And really, these 5 cycles are part of one big cycle – the Strength Cycle.

At this point, I suggest you really focus in on some neural training. Keep your reps low and your sets low: 2-3 sets of 2-3. Frequently too. 2-4 times per week. Rest a lot. Making the transition from the hypertrophy cycle, you’ll also experience a rebound effect and see a little extra muscle growth as you drop the volume and density work.

How do you get started on this cycle?

Simple. Decide where you want to go, and analyze where you are now. Then jump into the appropriate phase of training. Just be honest with yourself. If you have a nagging shoulder injury, you should make fixing that your first priority, because it will affect everything else.

What am I doing?

I’m making the transition from Phase 3 to 4 – from fat loss to hypertrophy: Maintaining fat loss and exploring some new ways to pack on some muscle.

Give this 5 step cycle a shot and let me know how you get on.

Feel free to leave your comments below.