Muscling up with Kettlebell Muscle?

Last post I was debating on what size bells to use for the program. I used the guideline of a pair of bells "you can comfortably press 10 times." Trick statement?! I can comfortably press a pair of 12s 10 times. I can press 16s many times. I can press the 20 easily for multiple singles. So I went with the 12s. Last Saturday's heavy volume day was a little rough. That day I felt fine. Sunday was fair, but on Monday I did not want to pick up the bells at all. My heart pounded at night and I did not sleep well. But I picked up a pair of 12s to tackle medium volume day. No muscle soreness whatsoever but my CNS was fried. I suffered. Rest,rest,rest. Tuesday I did nothing, Wednesday I chilled, and felt back to normal. Thursday I practiced with a pair of 8s for light volume day. It was easy to complete and my recovery was been typical. Eat,rest,hydrate.
Clients enjoy the program and stick to it easily. Actually, they don't stick to it.They want more...let's see how that plays out as work to rest ratio changes.
We all see grip attacked and beefy forearms. Doubles work and force generated with hip drive gives folks something to ponder.
Just wanted to ping a post out before tomorrow's practice.

Kettlebell Muscle

I am back to practicing multiple times per week. It has taken a full year to feel like all parts are working harmoniously again. Maybe I looked like I was moving fine, but take into account attitude towards practice (did I really want to lift a weight?), recovery time my body demanded, sleep,nutrition and the variable life throws at you. I know you can't always have things line up perfectly for each practice session, but SAFETY is the most important theme as I train myself and clients. Fatigue on the front or back side of a session indicates a lack of balance somewhere.I'd had enough risk and excitement. Anyway, many clients and I are working through Kettlebell Muscle. My experience doing a prescribed routine is slim and I look forward to having someone else do the thinking so I can just lift. I made a novice mistake and thought light,medium,heavy referred to kb size but before my heavy day I re-read the program and know that isn't so. On day one I used 12's, then 8's on light day then after I figured out the deal I went with 10's for my heavy day. So, I need to decide what to use; 10's or 12's?

Hey, it's August already!!

Looking back at a May's blog post I see that Sunday was my only dedicated training day during the late winter and early spring. That meant that the other days I was teaching and demo-ing lifts rather than practicing. If you teach a fitness physical skill,you know the deal. If you practiced with every class you taught, you'd be exhausted. Sunday practices consisted of all the pieces of the Turkish Get-Up without a kb. Visualization was a big part of this strategy before I entered the gym or even put a kb in my hand. I took this very,very slowly. I added 1/2 kneeling presses, worked Lunge and Hurdle Step correctives. Single Leg Deads and other grinds like Military presses were tackled in all their varieties. I held off on ballistics. When I added them, I went light, as in 8kgs, just like my TGU progressions. I did use a 14 pounder as I progressed through all phases of the TGU-VERY light for me! I chose my least favorite yoga asana, Ardha Chandrasana (1/2 moon) to work on single leg stance,balance,timing,confidence, and lack of it, and the awful hip rotation in the standing and extended leg. Moving from Trikonasana (Triangle) to 1/2 Moon was not pretty. I could see my foot collapsing and my knee spinning in as I moved my body weight onto the standing leg. My hips,glutes and hammies were not in good condition in terms of mobility and endurance. My toes and ankles always felt sore. I wondered if I would regain my former condition or at least get to a point where I felt good? I used the wall as a prop and Hugger Mugger's Big Blue Blocks.

I received an invitation to assistant instruct at July's Level 2 RKC and I began to work in earnest. A goal!! I walked more,added hills and started to swing a little heavier. Just 12ks. The 100 rep snatch test....overhead holds for shoulder stability. Eventually snatching the 8kg and then snatching the 12 kg. Rep scheme 5/4/3/2/1 and repeat. I wanted to hold onto the bell for 5 minutes. My reps felt sloppy. I plugged away. I noted improvement. I prepared the Level 1 and 2 skills. I started to like the Bent Press. I never thought that would happen! I did a pull-up here and there. I never remember NOT being able to do one, it's just a matter of GTG on it.No prob on that one. Pistol prep was pretty straight-forward as I had prepped ankles and hips previously and core was sewn up tight from tgus.

Level 2 skills involve a lot of timing for correct execution. As you would expect,time spent practicing those skills at the Cert was HUGE. I was a little bummed not to participate and get the motor upload of all the juicy teaching presented. On the other hand I was able to watch highly skilled KB athletes hone their skills under the guidance of other dedicated instructors. Everyone there was SO STRONG!! The pull ups that the ladies performed were solid. They floated up to the bar. Up to the sternum. Inspiring. The women in my team used 2 16 kg bells despite the fact that they are small ladies. They used 20's also.

The structure for the L2 was a little different than when I attended. There were formal teams each with instructors and assistants instead of one mass of people. This was good for participants. The candidates were also better prepared with their fundamental skills. Most difficult moments were for the men who had to press 1/2 body weight and complete a pull-up with a 24kg (or 16kg if weight over 220 lbs) hanging off one foot. Level 2 also involves shoulder mobility overhead as well as T-spine and hamstrings, so the challenge was lined up from the get go.

Lookin at Lucky...Lucky 5/13,that is!

Thank you to Darla and Pam from Louisville's daily newspaper,The Courier-Journal, who came last Thursday morning to observe one of my Kettlebell classes taught in the Highlands at Louisville Collegiate School. It was a proud moment for everyone and I was very pleased with how the article turned out. The response has been overwhelming,but I'm not complaining! Kettlebells have been rumbling around Louisville for several years, and now more people will know where to seek qualified instruction.

Just in case you didn't catch the connection, The Preakness was this weekend and Bob Baffert's horse "Lookin' At Lucky" won the race. The number has nothing to do with his horse,rather the day the article was published, a lucky day for me,my current students and incoming students. When you go to my website,you'll land on the schedule for my classes. Click Class Descriptions tab to check out the offerings.

Talk Derby to me...

Today is Oaks Day. That's the horse race the day before the Kentucky Derby. Liberal leave for employees, lots of crazy partiers in town for this year's predicted Muddiest Derby Ever. People are happy and lots of yard parties to see during an active recovery bike ride this morning after I tutored. I took a huge walk yesterday, about 7 miles, and basked in the sun during a Brettzel break. I was reflecting on the gorgeous weather and how everyone really deserved it after enduring such a rough fall and winter with two major power outages during a windstorm and icestorm...then I realized that that had happened the year BEFORE last...so, I guess I will call 2009 my "lost year."Lost at sea and what have you. I ate ice cream in 2009, so am a bit like a jelly donut, squishy in the middle. Nevertheless, I was surprised to easily move through 4 pull ups when I went by the swim club to pay my yearly dues. Hmmm, I have not been training them at all, so WTH?!

Sunday is the day I identify as my own training. I am working through the RKC classics and needed correctives. Ellen Stein will be in town this weekend and the opportunity to have an RKC check my technique could not come at a better time. Do I only train once a week? No, but I teach 8 classes a week and insert light practice here and there.

Biggest disappointment is not attending yoga as consistently as I could and should. Either I "did not sleep well" or "slept so well I must need more sleep." Super lame. I own up to the fact that my mind is my worst enemy when it comes to this topic. I'll get up to train other people at 6 am but not pursue my practice? That's a WTH effect struggle.

Hoping to see many of you in July at the L2.

Butter me and take a bite, I'm toast.

4/19/2010!!
Warm up: Rode my bike to practice,foam rollered,ankle mobility at the wall.
Snatch day. Gym Boss set for 5 minutes of work and 3 minutes of rest.
8 kg:20/20,15/15,5/5+5
10 kg: 6 (10/10)
12 kg: 15/15,15/15,10/10,10/10,5/5,5/5
16 kg: 5/5 OH hold
Brettzel
12 kg: 2 (10/10)
Total: 325
Cool down: Surya Namaskar A and B,Supta Padangusthasana A, Utthita Hasta Padangusthasana A,B & C. Virasana.
I pretty much went from zero to hero on the snatches. Let's not talk about the 16 kg. This time last year I could not even lift a kb.
Hi everyone out there in Bloglandia.

No time for fools

Training has been going great. Lots of activity; cycling,walking,kbs,yoga-sometimes twice a day. Car shopping yesterday. Gotta get to class!