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Bells & Blubber

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Warm-up: pump stretch, prying goblet squat, bridge, halos.

Swings - 16kg:
10 sets X 10 reps: 1H swings
Total 100 reps: 1H swings= 100 reps

TGU - 16kg: 5 sets 1L+1R

Cool down: Brettzel, 90/90, QL, unassisted hang

Timing: all timeless.

Notes:
Managed 100 1H swings - full swings to chest level. This is the second time I’ve managed to achieve it.

Grip still limiting factor - especially in last few sets. Had a lot of power in hip snap throughout all reps but grip started to feel weak towards the end. Forearms felt pumped - something I haven’t felt before.

First time training fasted. Was easier than I expected (I was expecting to faint!)
 
Warm-up: pump stretch, prying goblet squat, bridge, halos.

Swings - 16kg:
10 sets X 10 reps: 1H swings
Total 100 reps: 1H swings

TGU - 16kg: 5 sets 1L+1R

Cool down: Brettzel, 90/90, QL, unassisted hang

Timing: all timeless, around 45 mins.

Notes:
Forearms felt slightly better today - not as pumped as yesterday. These full swing sessions are definitely longer than previous phase of doing dead stop/low swings.

Had some callus pain today during swings. This combined with existing grip issues caused some tense moments in last few sets. Will apply some manly hand moisturiser tonight.
 
Warm-up: pump stretch, prying goblet squat, bridge, halos.

Swings - 16kg:
10 sets X 10 reps: 100 reps 2H swings
TGU - 16kg: 5 sets 1L+1R

Cool down: Brettzel, 90/90, QL, unassisted hang

Timing: all timeless, around 45 mins.

Notes:
Nice 2H session. Realised I wasnt maximally contracting glutes and quads. Made a huge difference once I consciously started doing it.
 
Warm-up: pump stretch, prying goblet squat, bridge, halos.

Swings - 16kg:
10 sets X 10 reps: 1H swings
Total 100 reps: 1H swings

TGU - 16kg: 5 sets 1L+1R

Cool down: Brettzel, 90/90, QL, unassisted hang

Timing: all timeless, around 45 mins.

Notes:
Focused on Hook Grip to address sore calluses. Found this also helped with forearm/grip strain.
 
Warm-up: pump stretch, prying goblet squat, bridge, halos, dead cleans.

Swings - 16kg: 10 sets X 10 reps: 100 1H swings

TGU - 16kg: 5 sets 1L+1R

Cool down: Brettzel, 90/90, QL, unassisted hang

Timing: all timeless, around 50 mins.

Notes:
Felt good after taking 3 days off.

Added a couple of dead cleans to warm-up circuit. Want to keep this skill fresh in muscle memory.

Swings: felt good but taking extra rest between sets as talk test recovers quicker than my grip.

TGU: felt really good. Did all 10 reps without any rest.

Grip: this is starting to get frustrating. All the other components of 1H swing feel good/comfortable: hip snap, square shoulders, endurance etc. The grip at top of float feels like the KB is about to slip out of my hands - especially in last few sets. It's weird as I can do a dead hang unassisted for about 30 seconds - so grip is not all bad. Think 1H grip issue has something to do with it being a dynamic movement?
 
I wonder if it might be a good idea to post a video of your swings? Perhaps there is something going on in the movement that is causing undue demand on your grip? I know for me there was in the beginning; I had to learn to hike the bell back without allowing it to "flop" upwards toward my butt at the bottom. That little movement was incredibly demanding on my grip at the time.
 
Warm-up: pump stretch, prying goblet squat, bridge, halos, dead cleans.

Swings - 16kg: 10 sets X 10 reps: 100 1H swings

TGU - 16kg: 5 sets 1L+1R

Cool down: Brettzel, 90/90, QL, unassisted hang

Timing: all timeless, around 55 mins.

Notes:
Long session today. Intentionally slowed the TGU down.

Swings: upon (a lot of) reflection on David's comment, I tried not to overgrip in back swing and found this helped with grip preservation. Still needs work but its starting to feel better which is excellent.
 
I wonder if it might be a good idea to post a video of your swings? Perhaps there is something going on in the movement that is causing undue demand on your grip? I know for me there was in the beginning; I had to learn to hike the bell back without allowing it to "flop" upwards toward my butt at the bottom. That little movement was incredibly demanding on my grip at the time.


Thanks David.

Your comment gave me lots to think about. As my grip issues are mostly at the top of the float, I hadn't even considered examining the back swing.

You are absolutely right, at the end of the back swing the KB is indeed facing upwards. It should be at 8 o'clock position but mine is more like 9 o’clock, sometimes even 10 o'clock (yes, it sometimes smashes into my behind). I suspect this is causing me to overgrip in the backswing as I try to gain control of the wild kb. In today’s session I intentionally tried to limit the kb to 8 o’clock by doing a less active back hike (use gravity instead of muscles), ensuring my arm didn’t go beyond 8 o’clock, and loosening my grip to a hook grip in the back swing. It felt more comfortable when I made these changes.

F91A1806-6A1E-473F-ABF1-0BF4E4D317A5.png
(grey circle = ideal, green circle= me)

On the opposite side of the spectrum I noted what the kb was doing at the top of upswing - the float. Normally, it should end at 3 o’clock. However, I noted for me my arms stop at 3 o’clock (good), the bottom of the kb carries on further to about 2 o’clock, sometimes even 1 o’clock. This again is causing me to over grip as I try to bring the kb back into control. I’m going to try dialling down effort in my hip drive from 90% down to 80% - see if that helps.

0943FA3A-6F67-4986-898C-D45061C4FB76.png
(grey circle = ideal, green circle= me)

I’m pretty sure I have the same issues with my 2H swing. The two hands can more easily bring the kb into control so I don’t notice as much.

Thanks again for your advice. It is appreciated.
 
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Warm-up: pump stretch, prying goblet squat, bridge, halos, dead cleans.

Swings - 16kg: 10 sets X 10 reps: 100 2H swings

TGU - 16kg: 5 sets 1L+1R

Cool down: Brettzel, 90/90, QL, unassisted hang

Timing: all timeless, around 55 mins.

Notes:
2H swings today.

Focussed on keeping the KB at 8 o'clock in back swing and at 3 o'clock in top of upswing.
Intended to achieve this by dialling down effort from 90% to 80%. In practice, I think it ended being more like 70% effort - possibly because of 2H swings. Consequently, didn't need much rest between sets - sometimes just 20 seconds rest.

Grip was mostly good - only struggled on last rep of the last set. Used hook grip throughout the full movement from back swing to upswing.

Slowed the TGU right down. Feels so good afterwards. The slower the TGU, the more I feel I have benefited from it after the session - I get the nice sensation of stiffness in the muscles.

Sessions feel really long nowadays. I think it's due to long warm up and cool down.
 
Warm-up: pump stretch, prying goblet squat, bridge, halos, dead cleans.

Swings - 16kg: 10 sets X 10 reps: 100 1H swings

TGU - 16kg: 5 sets 1L+1R

Cool down: Brettzel, 90/90, QL, unassisted hang

Timing: all timeless, around 55 mins.

Notes:
1H swings today.

Like yesterday, focussed on keeping the KB at 8 o'clock in back swing and at 3 o'clock in top of upswing. To achieve this used about 70% effort in the hip drive.

The 70% exertion helped maintain hook grip throughout the swing and grip felt a lot more in control. Needed less rest between sets.

Think it might be time to think about purchasing a 24kg kettlebell - a challenge in current pandemic climate. Initially for the TGU. Eventually for the the swings once they are 100% comfortable 100% of the time.
 
Last edited:
Warm-up: pump stretch, prying goblet squat, bridge, halos, dead cleans.

Swings - 16kg: 10 sets X 10 reps: 100 1H swings

TGU - 16kg: 5 sets 1L+1R

Cool down: Brettzel, 90/90, QL, unassisted hang

Timing: all timeless, around 55 mins.

Notes:
70% effort on hip drive. Shorter rests. Sometimes, no rest between swing sets.

Noticed my hinge is not as deep as before - guess it is linked to the 70% effort.

Grip felt good.
 
Warm-up: pump stretch, prying goblet squat, bridge, halos, dead cleans.

Swings - 16kg: 10 sets X 10 reps: 100 1H swings

TGU - 16kg: 5 sets 1L+1R

Cool down: Brettzel, 90/90, QL, unassisted hang

Timing: all timeless, around 55 mins.

Notes:
Was supposed to do 2H swings today but as I wasn’t happy with previous few 1H sessions I wanted to nail 1H swings today.

Main concerns about the 1H swings: shallow hip hinge and only 70% effort. I felt I was no longer benefitting from doing the swings.

Today I went back to deeper hinges and 80-90% hip drive. I used the non-working hand to stop the kb from exceeding the 3 o’clock position - usually the non-working hand just lightly taps the kb at the top of the float, today it actively stopped the kb from going any higher.

Really enjoyed 1H swings today. Grip didn’t feel overly stressed.

TGUs: 10 mins of continuous getups - each slow Get Up taking about 45 seconds to 1 min. No rest between sets.
 
Warm-up: pump stretch, prying goblet squat, bridge, halos, dead cleans, dead snatches.

Swings - 16kg: 10 sets X 10 reps: 100 2H swings

TGU - 16kg: 5 sets 1L+1R

Cool down: Brettzel, 90/90, QL, unassisted hang

Timing: all timeless, around 55 mins.

Notes:
Added a few dead snatches to warmup. Don’t want to forget how to do them.

2H swings today. Felt good.
 
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