Recently in Kettlebells Category

If you've wanted to try working out with kettlebells, or try CrossFit-style workouts without joining the gym by the month, try my class. I'm offering a six-week, 12-session class for $125. In each class I'll teach a few new exercises and then we'll do a group workout. Start date: Monday, Feb. 11 End date: Thursday, March 20 Times and days: Mondays and Thursdays, 7:00 PM Location: CrossFit Seattle in Fremont To sign up, email me at: fran at crossfitseattle dot com Here's the PDF flyer for the kettlebell class.

Dave lined up one of each size of kettlebell in order of increasing size: 8 kg, 12 kg, 16, 18, 20, 24. Workout: Do 10 two-hand swings with each kettlebell starting with the smallest, then go back to the start. Do 10 one-hand swings (5 per side) with each, go back to start. Do 10 cleans (5 per side) with each, go back to start. Do 10 clean/front squat (5 per side) with each, back to start. Do 10 clean and press (or push-press) with each, go back to start. Do 10 two-hand swings as a cooldown (and appreciate how easy it is compared to the harder drills). I got as far as doing all the cleans and front squats as prescribed but fell apart slightly on the clean and push-press. I did that with the 20 kg three times per side, and with the 24 kg, twice per side, with a short break in between where I set the bell down. I was really happy to be able to get the 24 overhead at all, especially with my weaker right shoulder, let alone twice.

How many kettlebell jerks or push-presses can you do in ten minutes? Change hands or rest as often as you want. I managed 215 push-presses with 12 kg last night and my shoulders are still tired.

Five ladders to 3 reps: Clean and 1 squat with 2 16-kg kettlebells Clean and 1 press per side with 1 16-kg kettlebell Clean and 2 squats Clean and 2 presses per side Clean and 3 squats Clean and 3 presses per side Five times though. Rounds 1 through 3 went as planned. Round 4: Failed on second press with right arm. Completed the rest of the presses in that ladder with 12 kg instead of 16. Round 5: went back to all 16 kg but push-pressed instead of pressing. My right shoulder/back/whatever does the pressing is still noticeably weaker than the left but it's a lot stronger than it was in the summer.

As a warm-up, we ran around the neighborhood, stopping for push-ups and squats and to carry each other a short distance uphill on our backs, and then did just a few track drills (high-step skipping and broad jumping). The workout was single-kettlebell snatches and single-kettlebell front squats. Organize yourselves in pairs. Men use a 24-kg kettlebell for the squats and a 16-kg for the snatches. Women use a 16 for the squats and a 12 for the snatches--I think. It was either that or women use a 12 for both. I used a 16 for both. Partner 1 does 20 snatches while partner 2 does 20 front squats. Change hands on both whenever you want. When you're both finished, switch. Partner 1 does 20 front squats and partner 2 does 20 snatches. Go through this five times. There were a lot of pairs in the 5:00 class but Bruce and I finished well ahead of the rest in 10:42. We both pushed really hard and I felt fantastic--when we stopped! Even while doing 10 snatches per hand, I felt a sense of having the capacity to keep going even though I was gasping for breath and my legs were tired. Twice recently I've challenged myself specifically to not stop during a workout. Maybe the capable feeling I had tonight was an early result of that. Not that I didn't stop at all, but the stops were few and came near the end. I was glad to feel so strong during the workout and so exhilarated afterward. During the day today I felt sluggish and not very tough.

Home workout today in the basement: 12 push-presses with 2 x 12 kg kettlebells 12 deadlifts with 1 24 kg kettlebell x 6 rounds, then 1 set of 40 push-ups. But no stopping to rest. If I stop to rest, I have to add two rounds. I stopped to rest once per round of PPs starting in round 4. So I did eight rounds and the 40 push-ups. Time: 17:02. The eight rounds took about 12:40 and the push-ups took the remaining four and a half minutes. (I did the first five, then did the rest in twos and singles!)

100 kettlebell swings (16 kg) 40 dumbbell push-press (20 lbs X 2) 20 pull-ups 40 V-ups 40 push-ups 20 pull-ups Row 1000 meters Time: 19:50 After the workout I cleaned up, had a snack and then met a new kettlebell training client. He's my third personal training client. It's really fun to teach this stuff, especially to someone who is so enthusiastic about wanting to learn it. He owns three kettlebells that he just bought last week and wants to use them safely on his own.

16 kilos 136 reps total 10 each side until 120, then 6, 6, 4

Last weekend I was Tom Corrigan's assistant for two two-hour introductory kettlebell classes at a fitness equipment store in Lynnwood. We had six people on Saturday and four on Sunday. In both classes was one person who'd been to Cappy's Boxing Gym (where I went for three years pre-CrossFit) and two people who knew quite a bit about CrossFit or had tried it. It was fun to connect with all of these people who are interested enough in fitness to buy their own kettlebells and come to the class. And classes are a confidence builder because I see that I'm able to talk about technique and people respond positively. Tom C. says that to build up to a heavier kettlebell lift--for example my wanting to snatch 24 kilos--I should do this: -Perfect the form by doing the lift for high reps (like 50-plus) at a light weight; -Do heavier presses -Do the high one-arm swing with the slight bend at the top (i.e., the whole snatch except the finishing punch-through) with the heavy weight that I want to snatch. For me that means many snatches at 12 kilos (I can already snatch 16), presses with the 16, and high one-arm swings with the 24. I'll work on those on days I don't go to the gym, starting two days ago and today. Turns out I'm not so close to snatching the 24, because it's hard for me to control it during the high one-arm swings with the elbow bend at the top. By the time I try that, I've already done a bunch of snatches with the 12 and presses with the 16, and besides the fatigue, the 24 is hard for me to grip with one hand. Its handle is thicker and my hands are sweaty by that time. Still I think with good form I can work up to it. After all, when you punch through and finish the snatch, there's no grip issue. The grip problem comes when controlling the change of directions on the top and bottom of the swing. It also turns out my endurance isn't what I wish it were. I've been snatching the 12 kilos for nowhere near 50 reps per side. Today I did sets on right and left with 5-second breaks. The sets were 10, 10, 6, 10 snatches. I'll solve these two problems by doing the high swings with the 16 for a while; and by continuing to add sets of snatches with the 12 instead of psyching myself out by saying I'm going to do 30 without stopping. I'm happy with my pressing strength for now and feel confident I can improve it. My right shoulder, after three Active Release Therapy sessions, is a lot more reliable and solid. I did five sets of two 16-kilo presses per side today. I finished with two sets of 10 suitcase deadlifts, holding a 16 on one side and the 24 on the other side. It was a good workout and fun to do it in the backyard while looking at my flowers.

Apparently it's not being called the Turkish get-up any more, according to the RKC guys last month. I do like the sound of Turkish get-up, though--it adds a little extra splash. Whatever you call it, there's an excellent instructional video here.