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Kettlebell S&S for weight loss?

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Carlo Matteo Scalzo

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Hi,

has anyone here used Simple & Sinister to lose a good amount of weight? (i.e., 20 - 30 - 40 kgs)

I know diet is a big part of it, but have you made any changes to S&S in order to focus on weight loss?
(e.g., using heavier weights, adding cardio / walking / running, etc.)

Thanks for your help!
 
Hey Carlo, Welcome, my brother does S&S 3 times/wk on average, he's raising 2 pre-teen girls and is very busy working alot of hours.

He started last Oct or so and has lost 100+ lbs so far. He has used an Atkins type diet getting his meals at Walmart. He says they're good and he saves money.

The Atkins diet isn't required to lose weight, it's just easy for him.. The best thing to do is eat in a manner you can live with happily and still lose weight. There are many possible strategies for eating but S&S works well as the base program.
 
Carlo Matteo Scalzo said:
has anyone here used Simple & Sinister to lose a good amount of weight?
Click to expand...

No surprise here: losing fat requires burning more calories than are supplied through eating.

Doing a lot of kettlebell swings can burn a few hundred calories. It's much easier to reach a calorie deficit through diet than exercise. Bigger muscles burn a few extra calories, but not as much as you'd think.

Use S&S for strength, balance, coordination, flexibility, etc. and use diet to lose fat.
 
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That's amazing, thanks Bret!

Out of curiosity, what is the "consensus" on increasing the weights while doing S&S?

I have read the book, and it seems to suggest that you gradually move up to the next kettlebell, and then stay there until you can move up again.

Is this what your brother did?

Do you know anyone who does ladders (e.g., 16kg - 24kg - 32kg) within a single S&S session?

Thanks again!
 
Smile-n-Nod said:
No surprise here: losing fat require burning more calories than are supplied through eating.

Doing a lot of kettlebell swings can burn a few hundred calories. It's much easier to reach a calorie deficit through diet than exercise. Bigger muscles burn a few extra calories, but not as much as you'd think.

Use S&S for strength, balance, coordination, flexibility, etc. and use diet to lose fat.
Click to expand...

Makes sense, although, all things being equal (e.g., diet), I do notice a difference in body composition when I'm using heavier weights (might just be the placebo effect though :) ).

As a matter of fact, didn't I read something about the fact that increasing muscle mass helps with fat burning, because muscle "consumes" more energy?

Might be mistaken though.
 
Carlo Matteo Scalzo said:
Makes sense, although, all things being equal (e.g., diet), I do notice a difference in body composition when I'm using heavier weights (might just be the placebo effect though :) ).

As a matter of fact, didn't I read something about the fact that increasing muscle mass helps with fat burning, because muscle "consumes" more energy?

Might be mistaken though.
Click to expand...

All true. Muscle mass does burn calories, just not as much as I once thought. Diet really is primary, but muscle mass is a strong second.
 
It's true that muscle has a greater metabolic cost than other tissue, even on the couch, but it must be maintained. If the body isn't needing and using muscle, it quickly dismantles it. The caloric cost isn't huge either.

Generally, research shows that people overestimate the energy expenditure of activity, and underestimate the calories of food.

A great book for this topic is Josh Hillis Fat Loss Happens on Monday. While O don't agree with his general diet recommendations for reasons of health and longevity, they are actually a small part of his message. What particular eating plan you choose isn't as important as how you implement it. There he gives great advice. He also gives good info on how exercise fits in, and some interesting KB/BW routines.
 
Carlo Matteo Scalzo said:
That's amazing, thanks Bret!

Out of curiosity, what is the "consensus" on increasing the weights while doing S&S?

I have read the book, and it seems to suggest that you gradually move up to the next kettlebell, and then stay there until you can move up again.

Is this what your brother did?

Do you know anyone who does ladders (e.g., 16kg - 24kg - 32kg) within a single S&S session?

Thanks again!
Click to expand...
If you are a beginner doing S&S just stick to the program as written. I've read the book at least 20 times and can still find things I've missed. Pay close attention to the details Pavel lays out for you and do your best to interpret them. If you still have questions you can find answers here for sure. As far as ladders go it's unnecessary for you right now and not the program as written.

My brother has stuck with his swing weights until he feels like he owns them, and then stays longer to make absolutely sure as in zero doubts. Then he works in the next weight slowly, this way he progresses stress free. He's losing weight without thinking about losing weight, if that makes any sense. He does weigh in weekly and hits an occasional plateau. The last one he figured out he wasn't eating enough so he made the adjustment and continued as per usual.

With the right program you too can get on the 'lose fat slowly' train almost without effort. It requires some due diligence and a will to change up your normal. Then trust it and knock it out like brushing your teeth.
 
Bret S. said:
If you are a beginner doing S&S just stick to the program as written. I've read the book at least 20 times and can still find things I've missed. Pay close attention to the details Pavel lays out for you and do your best to interpret them. If you still have questions you can find answers here for sure. As far as ladders go it's unnecessary for you right now and not the program as written.

My brother has stuck with his swing weights until he feels like he owns them, and then stays longer to make absolutely sure as in zero doubts. Then he works in the next weight slowly, this way he progresses stress free. He's losing weight without thinking about losing weight, if that makes any sense. He does weigh in weekly and hits an occasional plateau. The last one he figured out he wasn't eating enough so he made the adjustment and continued as per usual.

With the right program you too can get on the 'lose fat slowly' train almost without effort. It requires some due diligence and a will to change up your normal. Then trust it and knock it out like brushing your teeth.
Click to expand...

I am interested in S & S for weight loss. Brett, after a few months, any update on how it went for your brother? Carlos - how did it go for you?

I would love to hear stories on S&S that was successfully used for weight loss for inspiration.
 
Oskarand said:
I am interested in S & S for weight loss. Brett, after a few months, any update on how it went for your brother? Carlos - how did it go for you?

I would love to hear stories on S&S that was successfully used for weight loss for inspiration.
Click to expand...
I returned to my high school weight doing s&s. It was about 10 kg weight loss.

The thing is, s&s will not make you lose weight by itself. It will just assist with some calories burned but thats it, like most exercise . You have to watch your nutrition as well. The good thing is that it will help keep muscle mass and it won't make you hungry.

IMO, it would be almost impossible to be fat if you manage to do s&s with half bodyweight. So you can shoot for that!
 
Oskarand said:
I am interested in S & S for weight loss. Brett, after a few months, any update on how it went for your brother? Carlos - how did it go for you?

I would love to hear stories on S&S that was successfully used for weight loss for inspiration.
Click to expand...
My brother has stabilized at 225 to 230 lbs for now, he started at 340, now he feels like his body is needing time to readjust to the new weight, he looks healthier and his skin is adjusting as well as looking much healthier. It looks to me like he's now gaining some more muscle. He took over 16 months to get here, slowly, steadily (and boringly :)) he has transformed himself.
The mental aspect also has been profound, he's stoked with it.
Anyone can do this with patient practice, doing day to day what you do despite what life throws at you. My brother had many hurdles and life challenges unrelated to his weight loss quest, including working so much as to only have time for swings twice weekly. Steady persistence with a modified Atkins type diet along with swings and getups will work for most everyone seeking to lose weight.
 
Haven't lost any weight but when I was training S&S between 5-7 days a week, I was eating in the region of 2,900-3,500 calories a day and maintaining a fairly low body weight (around 140-145lbs/64-65kg).

No doubt if I'd reduced my calorie intake I would have lost a considerable amount of weight over time.
 
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