weightlifting

5 Ways To Successfully Mix Kettlebells With Barbells

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You may not be using barbells right now. Don’t worry – this information is still for you because you’ll get some new ideas on how to structure your kettlebell training programs.

There seems to be so much great information about kettlebell training it’s hard for the average person to know where to start and to actually be satisfied with that starting point. Many of us come to kettlebell training from a background of barbell lifting (myself included) and recoil at the thought that kettlebells are the “only tool you need.” Limiting ourselves to “just one tool” isn’t going to happen.

There was a great thread started on the RKC Instructor forum about mixing barbell and kettlebell training together so I thought I’d post my thoughts/experiences for you to use and learn from so you can skip making the same mistakes I did.

  1. Movement Prep.
  2. Feeders.
  3. Finishers.
  4. The “Sandwich.”
  5. Blocks.

1. Movement Prep.

“Movement Prep” is now a term that’s replaced “Warm Up” in our strength training vocabulary. As the name suggests, this is work that precedes the main training goal and prepares your body for that training.

I think using kettlebells as movement prep before your barbell work is a great way to go.

Here are some exercises that I would use:

  • 1/2 Get Up (Get Up Sit Up)
  • Get Up
  • RKC Arm Bar and variations
  • Single Leg Deadlift
  • Windmill
  • 1 Arm Press
  • 1 Arm Swing
  • H2H Swing
  • Counterbalanced Pistols
  • Lunges
  • Goblet Squat

Each of these exercises allow you to check your body’s current movement ability, create space within that movement, correct imbalances between sides/limbs, and improve coordination, allowing you adequately warm up for your barbell work.

I am currently training for Olympic lifting and am using Get Ups as part of my “movement prep” (although I still call it a “warm up”).

Now obviously, we all have our limitations and our strengths so your movement prep doesn’t have to include all the exercises on the list – they’re just suggestions. Use your brains and select your exercises according to your current needs and the demands of your barbell training.

For example, if you were going to use kettlebells as movement prep for a Squat workout, your movement prep might look something like the following:

  • 1/2 Get Up x 3,3
  • Windmill x 3,3
  • Lunge w/ KB x 5,5
  • Get Up x 2,2
  • Goblet Squat x 10
  • H2H Swings x 10

And that may be it based on your strengths and weaknesses. It shouldn’t be that rigorous, but it will allow you to get your blood flowing, your heart rate slightly elevated, your muscles warm, and your CNS stimulated for the training session about to come.

The more I use it and play with it, the more I am a fan of the Get Up. I’ll probably write an extensive piece on it in the future, but needless to say, there is A TON of undiscovered benefit in that exercise waiting to be tapped by each individual willing to spend time there, which is why it’s part of my warm ups.

Gray Cook and Brett Jones put out what I consider to be “THE Primer” on the Get Up, Kettlebells From the Ground Up. Using this alone for 10 minutes before your main workouts, barbell or kettlebell, will sky-rocket your progress and give you faster results for the simple fact that you will clear out movement restrictions and overcome faulty movement patterns.

In Part 2, we’ll cover “Feeders” – what they are and how to use them.

How To Become Instantly Stronger, Part 2

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In my last post on this subject, I threw out an important equation on how to become instantly stronger. Here it is again.

Instant Strength = SG + CV + FA + DE

Today, I wanted to take a close look at “CV.”

CV stands for Clear Vision.

At first, that seems kind of obvious, but upon closer inspection, it’s not.

In order to actually become stronger, you not only must have a Specific Goal, but you must, in your mind, see yourself actually achieving that goal.

Read that again.

You must actually see yourself achieving that goal.

Think about it for a second.

How can you achieve something you can’t see clearly?

How can you direct your mind, your focus, your attention and your energy toward something you cannot see?

However, most people don’t think that far ahead.

They stop at setting their specific goal. And they believe that’s enough.

It’s not.

They fail to take the next step – arguably one of the most important steps in the process.  They don’t make a mental image of actually achieving that goal. They don’t take the time to paint that image on the canvas of their minds. There’s no color, no depth, no emotion.

And that right there is the key – emotion.

You must tie that desire to become stronger with an emotion. How will you feel once you’ve achieved that goal? How will your life change once you’ve hit that 700lbs deadlift or those 250 reps on the SSST? No one else has to know, only you. When you can come up with something tangible, something so real you can feel it in your gut, you’re onto something – something BIG.

Here’s an example from my life.

I’ve always wanted to compete at the National Championships in Weightlifting. I qualified to go in 2000 but through being stupid, I failed to go. To say I was disappointed, would be an understatement. Inside, it felt like something died. I had trained so hard to get there and was ready to peak – to pull out a new total, but I never had a chance. I mourned that “loss” for weeks.

Ever since then – and here it is 10 years later – I still have a deep desire, a passion – maybe even an obsession – to get to the Nationals. No matter how hard I try to walk away from weightlifting, I feel the strong pull back – like there’s some unfinished business. No matter what obstacles stand in my way, I am determined to overcome them. I can see in my mind’s eye what it would look like, feel like to be there competing.

As a result, my training has a specific goal – currently it’s to put on as much functional muscle mass as possible – stopping at 240lbs and then re-evaluating. (By functional muscle mass, I mean muscle in all the “right” places for the sport of weightlifting.) How am I doing so far? I’m up 13lbs in the last 5 weeks.

I can see and feel both in my mind and in my body what it feels like to lift big weights, partially because I’ve lifted them before.

Dr. Maxwell Maltz, in his book, Psychocybernetics, details a process called the “Theatre of the Mind,” in which he recommends among other things, you envision the richness of the colors, textures, and emotions of achieving your goal, and then literally play it back in your head repeatedly like a movie.

I strongly recommend you pick up Dr. Maltz’s book and work through this process.

Now imagine how much stronger you will be in 30 days, or 3 months by pairing your Specific Goal with Clear Vision.

Can you see more of it yet? Is it becoming more of a reality?

It should be.

Don’t worry if it’s not. You may just need some FA, which we’ll be discussing next time.

Raw Power And Athleticism Defined…

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It’s no secret – I LOVE the sport of Weightlifting.

Arguably my all-time favorite lifter is Anatoli Pisarenko. He was the Soviet Super Heavyweight who ruled the world between 1982-1984.

He redefined the Super Heavyweight.

He was lean and powerful.

Graceful almost.

Watch this video and watch his body positions. Absolutely amazing!

He Clean and Jerked 583lbs at a bodyweight of around 270lbs.

What can you learn?

The “Law” of Training Results, Part 3

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Everyone wants it now.

Scratch that – we all want it yesterday.

But that’s just not how things work.

That’s just not the way nature is set up.

When a farmer plants his seeds to grow a new crop, he doesn’t cover them over and expect that overnight, or instantly, that new crop will appear. That’s just foolishness!

But that’s the way many of us approach training. We expect instant results instantly. That’s why the weight loss industry is a multi-billion dollar industry – people want that “magic pill” or “easy” button like in that Staples commercial.

And that brings us to the Third Law of Training Results – the Law of Delayed Gratification.

The harvest is in a different season from the planting.

No matter how you shake it, cook it or sell it, in this world of low-cost, long-term  financing, you must work for you training results. And here’s the worst part – you have to wait to reap their benefits.

In the sport of weightlifting, there are several periods of training that lead up to competition. Each training phase is built on the other, all with the intent to hit a new PR at the big meet. But, the training has to be done to ensure, or at least stand a chance of hitting a PR. In fact, elite weightlifters often wait, train, and prepare for 4 years – a long training cycle based around winning an Olympic Gold.

But it doesn’t matter what you do, if you do something, you will see results, just not immediately. This is called adaptation or the training process. Your body works to do better what you ask it to do. Please note that it is a process.

Your training should be set up to facilitate your long term results.

This requires what is known as “backwards planning.” This is the idea of starting with the end in mind and figuring out the steps required to get from where you want to go to where you want to be. (For more on how to successfully implement backwards planning check this out – it’s free.)

For example, a farmer plants a crop and expects a certain result – wheat for example. (Hey, I grew up on a farm, so we’ll go with what I know, ok?) There is a set time period – a maturation process before he can harvest the wheat. He has to rely on nature – rain, sun, etc. – to do its part, and if it doesn’t he must step in with irrigation methods and so on.

In the same way, you must ensure that the methods you use, reps, sets, speeds, loads, implements, etc., line up to produce a certain outcome – the outcome you want.

And what’s the best way to do that?

Model it.

That’s right – find someone who’s gone before you and been successful at what you want to accomplish and follow their path. Or get a coach who’s helped people do what you want to do.

(About this time you might expect me to offer to coach you – I won’t – sorry just too busy right now…)

But remember, you need a starting point in your process and that point is where you are now. You need to identify that point in time and take some down some data. Have you planted the right seed? Have you plowed deep enough? Have you been mindful with the training process to date? Are your expectations in line with reality?

For example, if you want to pack on some muscle using Return of the Kettlebell, have you first completed Enter the Kettlebell? There’s a reason Pavel recommends doing so – ETK shows you the basics for RTK.

In the same way, if you want to Snatch the Beast for sets of 10, have you done the necessary prep work? Is your Swing strong and crisp? Can you lock your arm out over your head with your elbow straight and your shoulder packed? If not, remember the Second Law – The Law of Increasing Returns. You will reap more than you sow – both good and bad.

So where does all this leave us?

Mindfulness.

Be mindful about your training.

Have a direction.

Have a plan.

Follow the plan – and hopefully it’s modeled off of a successful one. There are plenty out there but just model the right one.

For example, want to get really strong? Model a strength athlete.

Want to get ripped and see your six-pack? Model a program by a guy or girl with a six-pack who has helped others to get the same.

Want to use the kettlebell cause it’s time-efficient and you can train at home? Follow a program like that.

You get the point.

Whatever you choose, make sure you follow it all the way – because you will reap what you sow and more than you sow, both good and bad, and the reaping is in a different season from the sowing.

The “Law” of Training Results, Part 1

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There’s a lot of talk lately about training results. And that’s a great thing. It’s getting people excited about training again.

But really, there is nothing magical or mystical about getting results from your training.

To get results from your training, you must simply follow the Law of Compensation, which is comprised of three parts.

The first part is the the Law of Sowing and Reaping. (Yeah, sounds like I’m a farmer, but in a way, we all are…)

This law simply states that whatever you sow or plant, you will reap in like manner.

For example, if you want to get strong, you must actually exercise against a form of resistance to get stronger.

But let’s take a closer look…

Sowing. This is the idea of planting, or investing, time, energy, or money, or some combination of the three. Sowing is not done haphazardly. When a farmer plants a crop for future harvest, he must first know what crop he wants to harvest. He must then know where he wants to plant it. He must prepare the land for the sowing. Usually the preparation time takes longer than the actual planting. I remember as a kid, growing up in England on a farm, watching the tractors repeatedly till the fields with bigger and bigger tills, creating massive furrows, to plant sugar beet. The way they prepped the fields for barley or wheat were different. They used different plows and different tractors. (Usually smaller in each case.) The preparation was specific to the desired outcome. Sure, on the surface, it looked very similar, but the details varied.

The same is true with your training program. You must prepare your body for the desired outcome. Which of course means that you must have a desired and specific outcome in mind.

For example, I still have the dream that I’ve been chasing for the last 10 years of competing in the Weightlifting National Championships. (I qualified in 2000, but failed to go.) I am prepping my body to be able to withstand the rigors of weightlifting training. I am using both kettlebells and barbells to do so. And I am using a series of checks to not only guide my progress, but make sure I stay on track and keep moving forward.

Let’s say your goal is to press half your bodyweight in one hand, which is a measure of strength we use in the RKC to achieve your RKC2 standard. You need to make sure your body is able to press. You must have a standard of measuring it’s ability. And then once you can press, you must make sure your pressing in the most efficient manner possible, which is what we teach you how to do in the RKC and through Pavel’s various texts.

Then you must have a method of overload that will get you stronger. But, that is the least important part of the whole equation. You must first prepare your body for effective force transfer to the arm that will be doing the pressing. Mastering, or at least being able to “own” the Get Up is a great place to start.

Reaping. This is the actual harvesting. In most cases, what you harvest or reap, is the manifestation of what you planted. For example, if you want to grow an apple orchard, you have to plant apple seeds, so that they can grow into the actual apple trees. You wouldn’t expect to yield orange trees if you planted apple seeds. To do so would mean you are out of touch with reality.

The same thing holds true with your training program. In order to achieve a desired result, you must first have planted the “seeds” for that result. That includes not only the actual planting of the seed, remember, but also the preparation of the “ground” for that seed to grow in. Let’s use me as an example again, since I don’t know what it is that you want to accomplish. I want to compete again in Weightlifting. I must have a very strong core, healthy mobile, but stabile shoulders, and I must have mobile hips. To say that I should just start squatting, cleaning, snatching, and jerking without ensuring these things are in place, would be to reap not just heavier squats, cleans, jerks, and snatches, but also some injuries too. (Ask me how I know that… 🙂 )

So in order to reap exactly what we want, we must be very deliberate in the preparation of the sowing process.

In order to start seeing progress, or results in your training again, make sure you are very deliberate and precise in mapping out your training goals and how you plan on achieving those goals.

Next time, I’ll talk about a process that will help you do just that.