Scotland part 1 – kettlebell competition

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Although I have been using kettlebells for many, many years – one of the first in the UK back in 2000/2001 - I have never really trained much for the competition side of it – Girevoy Sport. I put this right at the weekend and decided to compete in the Scottish championships in Glasgow.

Fantastic turnout and event!

The weekend had multiple agendas and was a combination of kettlebells and nutrition workshops that will be discussed in part 2. The reason I have never really taken to GS in the past is on multiple levels. I always enjoyed training for strength and endurance as separate events and never really combined these. I have also been competing in weightlifting for the last few years and the different energy system work really adds a lot of training time to the gym routine. However, I gave it a go and put myself on the line to get a decent baseline figure to check progress.

Now and then you find world champions at these events!

I decided to compete with the 16kg for the very simple reason that I have had a minor disc injury for 20 years and the double rack is the only position in any of my training that aggravates it. A pretty good reason to avoid GS until now! The other reason is that not being able to get both elbows to iliac crest means that the platform for rest is not present and the weights slowly fatigue the posterior section of the shoulder girdle in around 2-3 minutes. Having little expectation I racked the 16s and did my first 10. It did not feel too bad, but after a minute or so I knew that putting them down early was a very wise option and so at 30 reps they went back on the floor. Trying not to be hard on myself I would regard this performance as awful at best and I was not happy. My only option was to make some impact with the snatch and get some good number as it is my best event.

Off they go and Anna Plumridge of BoxBellFit.com got a Gold!

After the generous gap between events I got on the platform and started on my left hand as the timer began. I got the full 5 minutes left hand and with 85 reps switched sides. I did manage the full 10 minutes for possibly the first time and got 100 on my right. There were a few extra, but these were no counts as the fatigue made fixation quite tough at about 9:30 and so a few dropped short of the mark. 185 snatches was a PB for me and I was very happy with that. What made it event better is that it was enough to pull my score up for a bronze medal in my group and really made the day worth it.

Me with my bronze and some strange fingers that I hid away.

It taught me a lot about myself and also really encouraged me to take it further as most of the lifters I spoke to mention the jerk is much easier than snatch – same as Olympic lifting I guess – and with a jerk at rank 4 (16k 55) and snatch nearly CMS (32k 60) it is safe to say the foundations are there to make this an enjoyable journey.

Me, Russell Pearcy of KB3training.com. Steve Gordon of Tunovakettlebells.com and Anna.

Alexander Khvostov - world champion and elite lifter with the best coach in the world - Sergey Rudnev.

There is a shedload of trigger point, stretching and fascia release on the cards in order to get the elbows to rack eventually and also using the heavier weights will help pull the arms down lower on the torso. Like many things in life, you really understand what it is all about when you go out there and actively rise to the challenge. It was fun, it was educational and it will be repeated very soon. Now the real training begins as the analysis is complete and the program will take me forwards for future goals.

Big Heavy Kettlebell Training

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Heavy, hard work and hands hurt!

I think this type of 10 minute strength work will stay in the program once a week!

Kettlebell Pentathlon - see what you are made of!

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The kettlebell pentathlon was designed by Valery Fedorenko in order to assess the strength and conditioning of participants. It is a paced event that has a fixed number of reps per exercise per time slot. 5 events are performed for 6 minutes with a 5 minute rest in between for a total time of 50 minutes.

The aim is to increase your overall score by increasing the weight you use for the exercises as the reps are fixed. Your score increases when you move up a kettlebell for some or all of the exercises as each weight has a corresponding number that creates your total score -

8kg - 1

12kg - 1.5

16kg - 2

20kg - 2.5

24kg - 3

28kg - 3.5

32kg - 4

36kg - 4.5

40kg - 5

44kg - 5.5

48kg - 6

So 120 cleans with the 16kg kettlebell would give you 240 points to your total. Go up to the 20kg next time and you will get 300 points and so on.

There is rumour that the table goes up to 72kg and it would be interesting to see this lifted for 6 minutes!

The exercises and reps per minutes are as follows -

Single arm clean - 20rpm

Single arm long cycle press - 10rpm

Single arm jerk - 20rpm

Single arm half snatch - 18rpm

Single arm push press - 20rpm

You can change hands as often as you wish, but cannot put the kettlebell down!

The rpm is the maximum reps. If you find you still had more in the tank then use a heavier bell. However, this tests how you deal with accumulated fatigue and a very brief relative recovery. You only have 5 minutes before you go again for what should be a near maximum effort. Performing too heavy on the first exercise will short change you for the remainder of the event so always go through the entire routine with a lighter weight to complete it and get an idea of how you perform based on the demands.

A video to explain the entire event is below -

The overall aim of the pentathlon is really to test yourself against the only real competitor that matters - yourself. Has your training improved you! It is also a great way to get a very different energy system workout compared to traditional GS with the biathlon and can be used for specific work capacity to develop a weaker event. Like anything, you get out what you put in and it could be personalised for whatever you are specifically training for with some imagination!

There is a rankings table so you can compare your superhero status and motivate yourself to get better -

For Men 

Low - less than 720

Average - 721 - 900

Good - 901 - 1080

High - 1081 - 1260

Extreme - 1261 - 1440

Superhuman - 1441 +

For Women

Low - less than 360

Average - 361 - 540

Good - 541 - 720

High - 721 - 900

Extreme - 901 - 1080

Superhuman - 1081 +

Have fun and feel free to post your scores below!

3/10/2012 - First Attempt 1320 points using 24/20/20/20/16 - really enjoyed it!

10/12/2012 - second attempt 1500 points using 32/20/20/20/20 - rank superhuman - very happy!

Heavy kettlebells - 48kg snatch test

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Many years ago, much of my training was based on strength and endurance for kettlebells. I hardly ever trained sport style and just liked to increase the numbers and weight lifted in sessions. After the 2 competitions for strongman and weightlifting pass in just over 2 weeks it will be a 100% return to heavy kettlebells, endurance work and kettlebell sport as I realised just how much I miss this sort of training. The weightlifting will continue and the numbers gradually increase, but the main aim will be to get the kettlebells flying again like the good times!

Strongman Competition

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You guessed it - there is a strongman comp and it is in 3 weeks and I am going in for it.

I competed 2 days ago and just had a double session as the work does not do itself!

Session 1 was the standard weightlifting with a return to deadlift. Session 2 consisted of grip endurance as that is what farmers walk is about more than strength - how long can you last!

I worked the light hand grippers to warm up and then went up to a number 1 for about 20 alternate reps. This progressed to some block weight timed holds and then some lighter grippers for sets of 10. I sold my steel log and farmers walk bars so I will have to make do with what is to hand. I held a pair of 24k bells for 1 minute to replicate the farmers endurance and finished up with some bar hangs and more grippers. Nothing heavy, just laying solid foundations.

A week after the comp is the British single arm champs and my eye is on the left hand barbell snatch record at a lighter bodyweight. I am then training for another 25 records so keeping busy :)

Training updates

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I have never been one to live by the recommendations that clever people put on a piece of paper after studying other people for a length of time. Science is a great asset, but an abstraction of life and far from perfect when humans replace numbers and predictable outcomes. Any strength coach will tell you strength begins to subside after about 1 week off from training. However, I am not one to conform or follow the herd and have demonstrated time and again how physiologically and psychologically refreshing the odd week or two off from training can be. The last 3 times I did this I actually came back and achieved several personal bests in strength and power based activities. It is also important not to underestimate the effect that allowing a full recovery of minor injuries and niggles can have on the general feeling of well-being and freshness to "get at it". After all, there is no such thing as a healthy athlete - think about this one! Routine is good, but everything in moderation - even moderation!

Anyway, with my rest period over - this was not self inflicted rest but acute bronchitis with antibiotics and an emergency Doctor trip so it will qualify as time off - I had my first session for nearly 2 weeks. Not that the rest was planned based on 3 competitions over the next 2 months and events that will require a lot of work for improvement. If lucky, I can possibly get back to where I was in 4 weeks for the first one and maybe peak for the last 2. 

Something I have missed is my martial arts training as I have my foundations firmly in that area. So I decided that even though it was a weightlifting session session followed by kettlebells I would use a traditional Taekwondo warm up of bodyweight exercises, kicking drills, raising kick actions and some dynamic stretching. However, the principle of specificity and dynamic correspondence would surely say that this was all wrong and like a boxer swimming 10 lengths to prepare for his fight. Honestly, I do enjoy the fitness industry and the many people I have met and trained and many good friends that I have been blessed to meet from all areas of fitness, education and business. What does grind me down is the abundance of sheep that are not afraid to think for themselves, but do not even realise thinking was an option. Fervent adherents to the next guru, snake oil and shiny new exercise tool that appears and constantly making enemies with the one-upmanship so prevalent in an industry of many chiefs and few Indians. Everyone is no.1 one or at least has an expert as a Facebook "friend" and so excellence is qualified through association. Once again, I do love working in this industry and am seldom one to moan and grumble. Even less seldom to engage in the trivial activities that appear to be daily life for trainers desperate to climb the ladder using other people's heads as their hoist up to success. So how did it feel? Well, it was actually the best warm up I have ever done for a weightlifting session. I was fresh, springy, alert and not fatigued and more importantly, the raising kicks provided more than adequate stretching and activation of the whole lower posterior chain while maintaining sufficient explosive power. One key thing here is to realise the difference between doing something because you think it is right and doing something because you know it will have a desired outcome - and it worked for me; an individual and not a randomised control statistic that got buried with a mass of other participants that have never trained frequently for more than 2 weeks. 

The workout post warm up was working up to a 60kg snatch for 10 good consecutive reps as I knew heavier and harder would impact future sessions with increased recovery time. Then followed 3 sets of front squats with the same weight from power cleans and deadlifts with strict form. The session ended with 100 x 16k snatches alternating every 10 reps for a nice finisher. Thoroughly enjoyable session and looking forward to the competitions!

I guess the take-home message here is what I hear other people tell me about many experts in the field - think for yourself, dare to be different and never stop questioning.....

Kettlebell snatch training

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Kettlebell snatch today - went for the pyramid approach of 16/20/24/20/16. Not about numbers. Holding stability in the lockout for endurance and recovery. Working on tempo for heavier weights and testing an angled descent to see if force production is less and grip is less fatigued. Knew the MSc would come in handy!

Kettlebells

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One goal on my list is the 1000 rep snatch test with a 16kg kettlebell. I did 300 today in 14:42 with a 10/10 split and no rest. Not the best idea after a snatch test with a 40k in the same week as the hands soon started to squelch and the biceps were getting tired. Apart from that the rest of the body is good for 500+ so bring it on. Also featured as a good cobweb remover after a few days off from training. Back to the weightlifting Tuesday and trying to get 5 straight on the 72.5kg snatch to move up a step.

Training updates

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May as well post my training here as it saves putting it on a board that constantly needs cleaning or in a notepad that can go missing!

Weds

Snatch training weight is now 72.5kg. The new rule is lift it 5 times and it goes up 2.5kg. Probably the most unscientific approach to periodisation and progressive programming. However, it works for me and that is all that counts. The aim for me now is consistency. It is no good having a PB of 92kg and not being able to lift 75kg in training and so this method aims to close in on a smaller target area and raise the weight when competency is shown at the current weight. Basically when I get 72.5kg 5 times in any session - I had 4 today - then it is 75kg for the next session and so on.

Finished with 5 minutes of 20kg KB snatches for work capacity based on another training goal. Ended the session teaching my 3 year old son how to jump mini hurdles, hit and kick a pad and do some bodyweight exercises - thoroughly enjoyed it!