Conditioning Research

They are even doing studies on the swing now.....although I am not actually that sure that there is much to it, whether what they are measuring actually matters MECHANICAL DEMANDS OF KETTLEBELL SWING EXERCISE Abstract The aims of this study were to establish mechanical demands of kettlebell swing exercise, and provide context by comparing them to mechanical demands of back squat and jump squat exercise. Sixteen men performed two sets of 10 swings with 16, 24, and 32 kg, two back squats with 20, 40, 60 and 80% 1RM, and two jump squats with 0, 20, 40, and 60% 1RM. Sagittal plane motion and ground reaction forces (GRF) were recorded during swing performance, and GRF were recorded during back and jump squat performance. Net impulse, and peak and mean propulsion phase force and power applied to the center of mass (CM) were obtained from GRF data, and kettlebell displacement and velocity from motion data. Results of repeated measures analysis of variance showed that all swing CM measure...

Dan John has talked a lot about Goblet Squats and their value in patterning the squat.  I found this video of a strong set. Deep, straight back. (but crap shoes as Pieter points out in the comment below) EDIT - For what it is worth the video below is what Dan John himself in his new book (Dan has just posted a link to a free ebook  - The Coyote Point Kettlebell Club ) points to to explain the move.  You will see it is more of a mobility move / stretch.

Interview with dr mc schraefel - kettlebells, z health and more! For quite a while now I have been reading the fascinating blog ( begin 2 dig ) of someone who was only iden tified as “mc”. mc (a he or she - for a while I wasn’t sure) addresses physical culture and movement issues with a depth that you rarely come across. With some tenacity she really resear ches in depth and then explains her findings clearly so you can apply them. It is a fantastic resource. I was very happy to find out that my friend Rannoch (whom I also interviewed here ) is hosting mc for a seminar at the end of the month . Rannoch suggested that I do an interview to dig a little more into mc and her approach. I think you will like this interview - we go through some interesting material and - as ever - mc puts things in a clear way with great enthusiasm. mc, I’ve been reading your material for a while now and it will be great to be able to meet you. I’m looking forward to the seminar . Me too on...

Who says that you can't train when you have kids? Hat tip Rannoch at Simple Strength

In the past weeks I’ve had a couple of interviews on this blog that I have really enjoyed putting together. The interview with Erwan Le Corre contains some inspiring material that really challenges how we think - not just about exercise but about our whole attitude to life. It was also fun to interview Brad Pilon and get some more of his thoughts on intermittent fasting . Today I am turning to someone closer to home for an interview. I first met Rannoch Donald in December 2007 when I went to one of his kettlebell workshops. Then last summer he invited me start his Combat Ready fitness classes – conditioning sessions attached to the Edinburgh Krav Maga Club. I loved it and as a result have started to take Krav Maga classes too. I always enjoy talking to Rannoch. He is a motivating enthusiastic coach. His interests are as broad as mine and we have shared a few DVDs and books. In this interview we talk about kettlebells, mobility, getting older, martial arts vs self defence and...

Today was another Kettlebells Scotland Workshop - mobility, bodyweight drills, squats, presses, windmills, snatch, clean and jerk. Then some workouts - a six minute timed set of jerks, then a typical Rannoch circuit of pushups, squats, swings and snatches. A good session - I always learn things from Rannoch . Lee also gives some commentary A few things I noticed about myself: Mobility work is getting more important to me - fitness for the long term; I was holding back on some of the workout sessions - I did not want to be too wrecked for tomorrow's Krav Maga. Remember the post I did about avoiding exhaustion : How useful in real life is such soreness? If a training session leaves you exhausted immediately after it and almost crippled with soreness the next day, is that a practical or useful way of training for everyday life? In light of my recent thoughts about posture I was spending a lot of the session looking at my colleagues and how they were standing. I was trying to...

Great photo of the TGU from Mountain Athlete . You can see the impact on the core....

from Dave

This takes quite some balance, not to mention leg strength (spotted on Chasing Strength )

.....in some passionate corners of the internet, there is a strange and at times almost theological debate ongoing regarding the "correct" way to lift a kettlebell. The standard (hard style) swing is as follows: The other (GS) swing is as follows: Scott Sonnon has posted quite a nice balanced analysis of the different approaches Round or Flat Back to Lift? Moynihan Institute makes some typically robust comments: Apparently some of the kettlebell enthusiasts from the salad days traveled to Eastern Europe only to discover that people there lift kettlebells differently, maybe even more efficiently than they were taught by Pavel. This set off a revolution of sorts. Some have chosen their camps and gotten on with life. Others are not content unless they are flinging shit and prodding the monkey with a sharp stick. Most rational people don’t give a flying f*** because they realize that kettlebells are simply 1 out of about 9,000 different tools at their disposal to get fit. The...

almost a 32kg bottoms up TGU...... from Rif

Ok, I know there are those out there that can go heavier or use different (!) weights . But from a woman this is pretty impressive (especially when I still struggle with the 24kg) Credit to Dr Mark (and Rannoch )

more swing doctrine... Anyone else heard of Captain Swing ?

Jeff Martone has done a series of videos recently on the Crossfit site demonstrating kettlebell exercises. I have already pointed to the Turkish Get up tutorials . Here he takes the basic kettlebell swing (which I showed him demonstrating here ) overhead, into what Crossfit call an American Swing. The basic swing taught by Pavel and others sees the kettlebell stop at around shoulder level, what Crossfit call the Russian swing. Their contention - explained in this article (pdf) - is that: When we swing the kettlebell to overhead, the American swing, we nearly double the range of motion compared to the Russian swing and thereby double the work done each stroke. For any given time period, the power would be equivalent only if the Russian swing rate was twice the American swing rate. One thing I've noticed is that if you do a swing with a dumbbell, for me the natural end point is with the bell overhead, possibly received with a slight dip in the knees or even a split stance. That ...

I've posted a couple of tutorials before on the Turkish Get Up (TGU) here and here . Scott Sonnon has just posted another variation which is specifically aimed at developing speed-strength. He trains fighters, so that is a particularly useful fitness element. The describes the move and its context in a blog post here . The video below shows the style: I like the shin roll to the squat.

This is nothing earth-shattering, but I thought that there were some interesting ideas in this video:

The Kettlebell Bible I mentioned a few months ago that I had bough some Kettlebells from Stan Pike at Intense Fitness . They are well made and I am enjoying training with them. It was refreshing to be able to buy them from Stan as well, stopping off at his house on a trip down south, and have this great bear of a man explain a little bit of technique to me in his garage gym. If anyone in the UK (especially Scotland or northern England) is thinking of getting some kettlebells - or indeed any other toys - then check out Stan. Normally in the world of the interweb, kettlebells are associated with a certain Russian and to be fair - wherever you stand on Dragondoor's marketing - Pavel has been responsible for reintroducing this tool to the West in the last 10 years or so. And Pavel's books and DVDs are good - especially at teaching basic technique in detail, with lots of hints and cues to get you going. "Enter the Kettlebell" is an excellent and elegantly simple m...

A while ago I posted a couple of videos giving a tutorial for the Get up. Here is another utilising a slightly different technique that I am finding is a bit easier on my knees.

Here is a nice tutorial from Jeff Martone on the kettlebell swing ("RKC" style for those that get wound up about such things): Jeff has also written a nice article explaining what he is doing: Kettlebell Basics Drills for Improving Your Swing For the reasons explained here , Crossfitters tend to take the bell a bit higher as shown below:

I've been trying to master this exercise recently for the "core" strength and balance it brings. Really hits the hamstrings too and promotes shoulder stability. Or so I am told... However, one question I have is "is this functional?" I am trying to think through whether this has an real world application. I am thinking that it does - not that this is an everyday movement pattern, but that it strengthens aspects of everyday patterns and adds stability and balance....Any ideas? First of all demonstrated by Anthony DiLuglio: Then by Steve Cotter