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Bodyweight Kettlebell training for explosive strength?

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movestrength

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I am doing a lot of exercises on the rings lately, time under tension exercises. Dips, crucifix and levers are my go to exercises when I do the rings. I also couple it and mixed martial arts training which involves a lot of sprawling, punching, kicking, jumping, foot drills, etc.

Would adding kettlebell routines develop more explosive power and is the kettlebell book by Pavel the bible of kettlebell training?
 
Hello,

Yes. Snatches, C&J are very good for power. Swings also but I found less transfer with them as far as punching goes (but it does wonder for the kicks)

Kind regards,

Pet'
 
I am doing a lot of exercises on the rings lately, time under tension exercises. Dips, crucifix and levers are my go to exercises when I do the rings.

Time Under Tension

This protocol is primarily geared toward Hypertrophy Training more so than increasing Maximum Strength and does little for increasing Power.

Rings

Rings are a good training tool. Rings increasing strength in the Stabilizer Muscles to a greater degree than in the Primary Movers.

The greater the stability in a movement, the greater the involvement and development of the Primary Muscle; the less involved and developed the Stabilizer Muscle.

Also, the greater the stability in a movement the greater the amount of Power displayed and developed.

As per Dr Fred Hatfield, "You can't shoot a canon from a canoe"; it needs a stable foundation to launch from.

Would adding kettlebell routines develop more explosive power

Power

The foundation of Power is build on Maximum Strength; stronger muscles are able to exert more force.

Training loads of 48 - 62% for Traditional Exercise like Squats, Presses, etc. (with a Barbell or Kettlebell) develop Power.

Olympic Movements (Cleans, Jerks, Snatches with a Barbell or Kettlebell) training loads of 70 - 80% of 1 Repetition Max is optimal.

It is had to measure a Kettlebell 1 Repetition Max. However, research by Dr Bret Contreras determined that Heavy Kettlebell Swing are needed for development of Power; a Kettlebell Swing of approximately on third to 100% of your body weight.
 
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Thank you for the reply, pet' and Coach Kenny.

Which exercises would have the most transference to the Olympic lifts? I currently don't have any access to barbells and only bodyweight and rings but l could buy a kettlebell in the meantime until the gyms open which could be October.
 
Hello,

@LvlUpStr
You are welcome.

Depending on the delay deliveries, you'd better order a kettlebell. That way you could perform the O. Lifts. Indeed, both of them (C&J and snatch) require hip work, which unfortunately is always harder to train with bodyweight only.

Nonethless, if you can train outside, you can not go wrong with sprints and / or hill sprint. This will build tons of power. When you do the sprint, start "as a sprinter" (no standing straight, but with hands on the ground).

If you have resistance band, a "pull through" is great (similar to a swing / DL). Hip thrust with bands are good tool too. If down with bodyweight only, then, maybe a one-legged version can do the job (explosive concentric and slow eccentric). It will give you the time to either get a bell or wait for October.

As far as core is concerned, I would do Hanging Leg Raises (assuming you can hang from something). Ab wheel is great. If you do not have this tool, the "inchworm crawl" is interesting (link at the end of the post). Otherwise, you can not go wrong with HardStyle Plank, or Dragon Flag or LSit.

Regarding the arm / shoulder / upper body, if you know how to perform a muscle up:
explosive chin up -> controlled transition -> explosive dip
Then you get down slowly. Rest a while and repeat once your are fresh. Here, I talk about the muscle up to build shoulder strength and stability. However, if you are not really sure, drop it and just do the explosive pull and the explosive dip.

Kind regards,

Pet'

 
Thank you for the reply, pet' and Coach Kenny.

Which exercises would have the most transference to the Olympic lifts? I currently don't have any access to barbells and only bodyweight and rings but l could buy a kettlebell in the meantime until the gyms open which could be October.

There are really two that carry over well.

  • KB dead clean (i.e. from the floor, not from the hang or swing, as is typical for KB style)
  • KB jerk

Do both with 2x KBs. The specific mechanics are different, but the gross muscle patterns aren't that far off from the BB versions. I use them in my off season for conditioning and it doesn't interfere with my BB technique.

The KB snatch, on the other hand, is nothing at all like the BB snatch.
 
The 3rd variation in this video, at :30, is a dead clean. Also see text in the video description.



It's interesting to see your difference in grip. You're so smooth!

I use competition bells, so end up with a bit more of a spear-hand upon racking.

One minor note for the OP:

I do as demonstrated in both of the videos up to 32 kg, namely, a power clean.

At 40 kg I start doing squat cleans.
 
Hello,

@LvlUpStr
You are welcome.

Depending on the delay deliveries, you'd better order a kettlebell. That way you could perform the O. Lifts. Indeed, both of them (C&J and snatch) require hip work, which unfortunately is always harder to train with bodyweight only.

Nonethless, if you can train outside, you can not go wrong with sprints and / or hill sprint. This will build tons of power. When you do the sprint, start "as a sprinter" (no standing straight, but with hands on the ground).

If you have resistance band, a "pull through" is great (similar to a swing / DL). Hip thrust with bands are good tool too. If down with bodyweight only, then, maybe a one-legged version can do the job (explosive concentric and slow eccentric). It will give you the time to either get a bell or wait for October.

As far as core is concerned, I would do Hanging Leg Raises (assuming you can hang from something). Ab wheel is great. If you do not have this tool, the "inchworm crawl" is interesting (link at the end of the post). Otherwise, you can not go wrong with HardStyle Plank, or Dragon Flag or LSit.

Regarding the arm / shoulder / upper body, if you know how to perform a muscle up:
explosive chin up -> controlled transition -> explosive dip
Then you get down slowly. Rest a while and repeat once your are fresh. Here, I talk about the muscle up to build shoulder strength and stability. However, if you are not really sure, drop it and just do the explosive pull and the explosive dip.

Kind regards,

Pet'



Thank you for the replies above regarding the kettlebell technique, this is something I will study in detail in the meantime while I don't have any kettlebells.

I have formulated my training into two types, the first part of my workout will focus on the power aspect and the second part on time under tension on the still rings.

Exercise
Day 1 Upper Power
Bear Crawls
Plyometric Push ups
Agility Ladder Drills
Agility Ladder Training
Climbing
Day 2 Lower Power
Sprints
Broad Jumps
Kneeling Jumps
Timed Shuttle Run
Agility Ladder Drills

Power training will be at the start of the workout and will be done in fast intervals with low repetitions to keep each segment of the training at 5 minutes.
5 x 50m sprints, 5 x 3 Broad Jumps, etc.

The second part of my workout will focus exclusively on time under tension with holds up to 60 seconds.

Exercise
Day 1 Strength
Ring Crucifix
Pike Stand
Ring Dips
Archer
Skin the cat
Day 2 Strength
Levers
Maltese
RTO Ring Pushups
Ring Pullups
Ring Chinups

On the rest days twice a week, I will focus on flexibility and mobility.

These workouts will be done four times a week.

On the spare day, I will do a more fun workout which could include animal walks, movement training or gymnastics skill training. What would be an example of a movement or skill type workout with an emphasis on balance? Crow pose? Handstands? There is also a grind rail at the park which I can do balance exercises on.

Thank you for the replies.
 
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