Grip Improving

Today
Not Much.....
Warm Up-

-28 Kg One Arm Swings
20/20
2 sets
- 28 Kg Extreme Cleans
15/15
2 Sets
- 24 Kg Farmers Walk
2 Sets
- 24 Kg Snatches
10/10
2 sets

Work all day, Parent all night...at least I got this in!

2 is better than 1

Today
Bikram Yoga
Great Workout...again!
Still can't breath through my nose the whole time. The goal is to make it through the entire workout breathing through your nose. I'm a mouth breather so this is especially hard for me.
I'm struggling with a few positions that my hips and knee reject, but I will progress...

Kettlebells

Warm Up
- 24 Kg One Arm Swings
20/20
5 Sets
- 15 Kettlebell Push ups and Hold in Plank Position till I fail
3 Sets
- Farmers Walk
24 Kg - Till I Tire
3 Sets
- 28 Kg Two Hand Extreme Swings
Till Form Failed

Getting my grip back

Todays Focus
Basics with emphasis on grip


Warm Up

- 24 Kg One Hand Swings
20/20
5 sets
- 24 Kg Snatch and Hold for 30 sec
5 reps per side
5 sets
- 28 Kg Dead Cleans
10/10
2 sets
- 2 24 Kg Farmers Walk
till grip failed
3 sets
- Kettlebell Push Ups
- Kettlebell Planks
- 28 Kg Two Handed Swing
till form failed.

More Kettlebells

I've taken a small break from kettlebell workouts for the last month. Vacation, heat and Yoga have cut into my time. I still feel really good , just a little weak in the grip.
New Focus - Lift heavier kettlebells, re-establish my grip and get stronger.

Today-

Warm Up
24 Kg One Hand Swings
25/25
24 Kg Snatches
20/20
15/15
10/10
Terrible form at the start, got better as I got more into it.
24 Kg One Hand Swing
25/25

Pretty Pathetic just looking at this workout...Only had 20 Minutes though!

Double Up

Today
Bikram Yoga
90 Minutes
Great Workout!

Followed up with the AOS Essential Test.

Made it to the High Pull and Snatch on the left hand side and my grip failed. The kettlebell flew out of my hand.
Fail.

Its harder than I thought.
Try again Monday!

Kettlebell Club Level 1 Workshop

Good turnout. Great energy and lots of fun.

Had a 15 Minute don't drop the kettlebell workout...not too bad!

No Mental Prep

Tried the AOS Essentials test today. Thought I would walk in the garage and do it.

Wrong.

I didn't warm up, just starting doing it. I got almost all the way through the right portion of the test then realized I did one 30 second segments out of sequence...no big deal just kept going.

Then I was starting the left side and my mind was playing tricks on me. I thought I forgot the pressing segment on the right side so I just quit where I was at.

Mental Failure!

I didn't forget the pressing segment.

I didn't prepare mentally for this test. I worried more about the physical and the mental bit me in the ass.

Next time study the test better, practice in segments, get my head together and get it done.



The Essentials Test

Right Side Get Up to the standing locked out position.

30 seconds of High Pull then snatch

30 seconds of Press

30 seconds of Squats

30 seconds of Cleans

30 seconds of one handed swings

Transition drill - figure 8 to a clean ending with kbell in left hand

AOS Essentials Test

Tried the Essentials Test with no prep whatsoever.

Bad Idea. Got confused starting with the left side progression.
Failed.
Try again later.

Form and Fluidity

Bikram Yoga
90 Minutes
Killer workout!

Kettlebell Snatches

What did I learn today?
Breath in and out through the nose for Yoga.
Concentrate on the move, nothing else.
Stay in the body. Breath....

Kettlebells no different.
Well some differences...
Proper breathing techniques...sometimes you breath out through your mouth..
Concentrate of the move
Stay in the body...meaning - don't get outside and lose you sense of body awareness...."Go to Honzo" as Ron Morris says...

Snatches today.
Slow down, use the entire body, lock out out at the top get a little rest. Repeat.
Smooth, deliberate and FLUID!

Reps without Form are meaningless!

Tip of the day

Note to self - Keep door to house open from the garage on workout days.
Left the door open today. Much cooler in the garage. Only 95 degrees and 52% Humidity.
Planned an Off Day. Yesterday was light so what the heck!
Off Day work out....

Warm Up
-Clean & Jerk Set
16 Kg
5 Minutes
6,6,6,6,6
Seemed almost easier than normal jerk set?
-24 Kg Renegade Rows - Forward, Back, repeat...
-16 Kg Renegade Rows - Forward, Back, repeat...
-Kettlebell Push Ups
15/15
-28 Kg Jerk
5/5
-Double 24 Kg Kettlebell Swings
20x2
-Kettlebell Plank to Finish

Cool Down Swim
Weight 172.5

Combined Workouts?

Today
Bikram Yoga
90 Minutes
My Best Showing yet!
Still have LONG WAY TO GO?
Body not flexible enough.
I discovered I have really bad balance.


I was shot after the Yoga session. Plan was to combine Yoga and Kettlebells.
Laid down, relaxed....still shot!

Kettlebells

Warm Up
Snatches just to get going.

24 Kg Snatches
5 reps and Hold last rep in locked out position for 60 seconds.
5/5

Total workout
15 Minutes
Weight 172

Heated Kettlebells

Garage still Hot! Is Houston always like this?

Warm Up
- 16 Kg Jerk Set
5 Minutes
6,6,6,6,6
- Renegade Rows w/push ups
16 Kg
Perfect Form
Forward, Back
Repeat till form fails
- One Arm Jerk Sets
28 Kg 5/5, 5/2
24 Kg 10/10
20 Kg 15/15
- Circle Drill
16 Kg 10 reps
- Halo
20 Kg 10/10
- Extreme 2 Hand Swings
28 Kg
30, 20, 20

Cool Down
Time: 40 Minutes
Weight 172

Saturday Session

98 degrees 52% Humidity. You gotta do what you gotta do...
I just need to pace myself and not get overheated!

Warm Up
5-7 Minutes - Stretching

24 Kg
20 Two hand swings
10 One hand swings R
10 One hand swings L
10 Darcy swings

2 Arm- 16 Kg Jerk Set
6 Minutes
6,6,6,6,6,6
Trying to get to 10 Minutes.

24 Kg
One Armed Swing
25/25

16 Kg Snatch set
15 Sec on/off
7 reps per
10/10
140 Total

20 Kg Snatch Set
15 Sec on/off
7 reps per
5/5
70 Total

Renegade Rows
with Push Ups
Forward/Back repeat, repeat, repeat...

28 Kg 2 Hand Extreme Swings
30/20/10

Stretch/Swim
Time 45 Minutes

Bikram Yoga Day

I'm used to it. 110 degrees just like my garage. 26 positions and I can do maybe half of them. My body is too tight, not from kettlebells but from ignoring my knees and hips for years. This is why I'm trying yoga...

Workout -

Bikram Yoga
90 Minutes
Hard Work

Feels Good!
Tomorrow back to the Kettlebells and the 110 degree garage.
I can't wait!

Back to 102 degree workouts

Houston is fricken Hot! Garage is hotter. I'm gonna find a church inside the inner loop, rent some space 3 days a week and start some classes there. I can't take the heat of summer....

Today

Warm Up

Jerk Set 5:00
7,7,6,6,6
2 - 16 Kg
Have not done this in more than a week. Felt good.

24 Kg One Hand Swing
25/25
Using too much arm on these.

16 Kg Bear Crawls
With a new improved blank position. Back is parallel to the floor.
Forward - Back. Repeat, Repeat, repeat! Get the most out of each move.

Kettlebell Push Ups

28 Kg Extreme Cleans
15/15

28 Kg Finishing 2 Handed Swings.
Till my form failed

Swim/Stretch

Less than 40 Minutes

Week at the USA Kettlebell School in Mpls

On vacation in Minneapolis so naturally I attend class at Ron Morris' USA Kettlebells. Ron is in Sturgis and other places, so class in Run by his own "Certified Trainers". It's really not that different without Ron, except maybe the humor and the focus Ron brings.
Class was run by RKC Barb and assisted by Ron's "Certified Trainer" Angie F. The focus was all about form and the absence of ego. When you talk about ego I always think its about grabbing too much kettlebell to show that you are strong and brave. Its also about grabbing too light a kettlebell to "look good". So I tried to grab what I call the appropriate size kettlebell.
There was a very good turnout, about 25 people. Some new, some veterans and some in between. As I wrote before, the class was all about the form. Swings, cleans and some combinations. At USA Kettlebells the combo of choice is the "Man Maker". So many different combos can be combined in this drill - its awesome. What's really great about it, is that everyone should be able to do them, even beginners!
It's nice to go to classes to get some pointers. I found that sometimes I do not get my shoulders completely over the kettlebells and on the Swing with very light kettlebells my form takes a break.
I also brought a friend to class. It was his first time swinging a kettlebell. He is strong, but lacks the stabilizer muscles of the core. Do you think he needs to swing kettlebells?

I decided to wrap up the entire week with one posting. Everyday we did something different, but stayed with the core drills. Swings, Cleans, Presses, Rows and Bear Crawls with some kettlebell push ups and planks.
The cool things about this school is that people of all abilities can co-exist. There is no ego or talk about how heavy, or how many reps you can do. They don't even talk about different styles of lifting.
What they do talk about is safety and form. The use of proper form on every rep, every move is the essence of USA Kettlebells. Without proper form, your just wasting your time and possibly risking injury!
The classes are a little different. They don't count reps at all so the "workouts" are done by time and the duration of the exercise is up to the teacher. You don't know when the drill will end so what you do, is you go to what they call "Hanzo" (Your inner energy) and keep your form. You quit when your form fails or the teachers says stop. Its hard to prepare yourself for this kind of workout. You have no direct control of the exercises, so you just stay within yourself and focus on your form.
I discovered through the use of light kettlebells that I have no hip snap on the swing. Well if I don't have a hip snap, I'm using the wrong muscles on the swing. This has a carry over to almost every other move with the kettlebell. I'm wasting the most important part of the swing (The initial hip movement) so I never benefit from the energy the lower body creates.
Carry this to the clean, the snatch, the jerks etc. and I'm not using my lower half to it's potential.
Anyway to sum up my experience at Ron's school... He's got it going up there. He was not even there...and the school was great! The teachers were fantastic and the workouts were challenging. 25 to 30 people everyday, that alone shows you what they have going.
The key for this school is that Ron and his teachers care about everyone who steps through the door, but they do ask for a couple things in return.
1) Take responsibility for your own well-being.
2) Make a commitment to improve your own well-being.
Its that simple - Ron and his teachers will take care of the rest!

Another Try

I've been trying some alternative forms of exercise to complement my Kettlebells, LA Fitness Yoga - just stretching, Dahn Yoga - good Ideas, but in practice not right for me. My final option was The "Hot" Bikram Yoga where the room is over 100 degrees.
I tried it today and it was fricken hard. A full hour and a half, 26 positions of which my body failed on several. I have some mobility issues in my left shoulder and also my hips and knees are very tight.
This inadequacy has affected my form on certain kettlebell moves. Enough so that I have to do something or my progress will be stifled.
A couple months of this and we will review my mobility issues.

Todays Workout -

Bikram Yoga
1.5 Hours
Never have I sweat so much!
Made it through class! Did evey move as good as I could.
Learned a thing or two about breathing and how that affects my strength.
Just about passed out twice!
Will add 2 to 3 sessions of week to my kettlebell routine.