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Kettlebell VO2 Max and Resting Heart Rate

Denys Carthusian

Denys Carthusian

Level 5 Valued Member
Still trying to wrap my head around the best way to lower resting HR. I just saw an FB post by Mark Reifkind about Vo2 Max snatch training and the effect it had on resting HR. He made a side comment that his understanding of the protocol was the snatch had a unique loading and rest pattern for this type of training that even the swing could not match.

My question? Has anyone experienced a sharp drop in resting HR from S&S when doing the run up to Simple?
 
My current RHR is about 48-55bpm depending on the week, my mood, alcohol I drank last week, etc. It was down to 42-45 bpm 3 years ago when I was fitter. What I found that really dropped my RHR (based on the stats from Polar) was a cyclic regime of weeks focused on hard, moderate, easy weeks with a single strenuous activity every 6-12 weeks. the RHR spiked in hard/strenuous periods, then dropped sometimes to 39bpm after a VERY EASY week following the strenuous activity.

I find the RHR directly correlated to my Vo2Max. lower RHR maps to higher Vo2Max.

saying this: I have yet to figure out how a 90 min hard run relates to a Kettlbell training regarding the RHR. I do both activities and believe/hope/NoDataToProve they complement one another. My KB journey started last January when I had to start medical steroids. (steroids->I might as well do some weights-> research -> KB is best - research -> SF Forum is bestest)

My 'strenous' runs for the past 2 years was my previous 'moderate': I'm on this mission again, following 2 years of health issues. up and up training, down and down RHR :)
 
Hello,

I'll start with a couple of questions:
What's your current RHR ? Why do you consider it is too high ?

Assuming you are about 60, I think S&S will not be the best tool to make it drop to 50 (for instance). Mine is about 48-50, mostly based on aerobic training (20 minutes daily of high end of Z2), boxing and a lot of walking. It was slightly higher when I was running S&S only (about 55-58).

VO2max training remains some sort of "high hanging fruit" of cardio vascular training. It is only a very small portion of the cardio vascular output one has. Most of it comes from LISS training, which ultimately makes RHR lower.

Kind regards,

Pet'
 
Denys Carthusian said:
Has anyone experienced a sharp drop in resting HR from S&S when doing the run up to Simple?
Click to expand...
My resting heart rate goes down almost immediately by a few BPM when I add swings back into my training after not doing them for a while - 2 sessions and my resting HR has already dropped.

-S-
 
psmith said:
How did you measure your VO2 max?
Click to expand...
I use the Polar technology to measure Vo2Max. I've had the light-monitor (strap to arm and watch) and chest-straps, they link to the watches and mobile apps. the accuracy is apparently statisctly valid, although not 100%.

For me, the main thing is to see the trend, and what can affect the trend. I'm not always interested in the day-to-day results. rather: Have I got better in the last month? why? how can I get better in the next month? how can I fit my routine around my life pressures?
more than that, the results should match my actual body/mind/soul. am I comfortable swinging that new 24kg KB? everyday, or every other day? am I able to run 10km in a good time? every week or every other week? Generally, I see a direct correlation with my reported V02Max/RHR/sleep pattern and my lived reality.

Do I need the tech in every training session? not anymore. I learnt a huge amount about Maffetone and talk-tests on this forum.
Do I need the tech to track my stats so I can review weeklly and monthly? yes.
 
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