Kettlebell Brand new here

[BillCore]

I am brand new to kettlebell training. I just ordered the simple and sinister book. I have a 30 lb kettlebell. I assume I will need more than the one 30 pounder, and want to have it ready to go so I can start as soon as I get the book. What else will I need to get started on a good path?

 

[Steve Freides]

@BillCore, welcome to the StrongFirst forum. You have what you need to get started - just start following the program as outlined in the book, and when you feel ready for something heavier, come back here and ask for a recommendation for the next size to get.

The only other possible thing you'll need is some sort of mat or other thing to give you a suitable surface on which to train. I can't think of anything else, really.

Well, one other thing - some in-person instruction.

-S-

 

[Jan]

@BillCore : Welcome to the forum
As @Steve Freides mentioned, try to get in touch with an SFG instructor. Learning from a book is a great start, but the swing and get up, the two exercises from S&S, are so rich in detail, that in-person training is recommended.
Good luck on your journey, and enjoy

 

[BillCore]

Thank you both. So, I only need the 30 lb bell to start? I thought I would need more than one weight to begin. I know I will eventually grow into heavier weight, but want to be prepared for the beginning of the program.

I have a mat ready to go.

And I looked for an SFG instructor, but there is only 1 within 100 miles of me, and he is about 1.5 hours away. I may set something up some weekend, but will likely get started with the book and my own due diligence (albeit slowly).

 

[Andy L]

@BillCore welcome. S&S is a brilliant program, it has done a lot for me. I find the book really comes to life when you get some training under your belt so enjoy the process.

Andy

 

[Hasbro]

Welcome Bill,
You’ll get more mileage than you think out of that 30 pounder especially if you’re starting from scratch. One of the biggest mistakes I see are people moving up in weight too soon and treating S&S like a race.

Two of the most appealing qualities of S&S is its simplicity and minimalistic nature but don’t let that fool you. Technique is EVERYTHING and in my opinion it’s difficult to learn all the little nuances from reading the book. If you can’t get personal instruction from an SFG then the next best thing would be videoing yourself and posting on the forum. There’s lots of highly qualified SFG instructors on here that will give you invaluable feedback on your form saving you from bad habits and injury. And post your form as soon as you can. Once bad habits are ingrained they're much harder to break.

A few other tidbits of advice.....
Read the book several times
Watch YouTube video’s from the Strongfirst channel
Quality before quantity
Check out the article section on this site
Look at the Kettlebell portion of the forum and drown yourself in past post. You’ll learn a TON from doing that!

 

[BillCore]

Also, i ordered the Simple and Sinister book. Should that be the first one? Or should i have started with Enter the KB?

 

[Chrisdavisjr]

Also, i ordered the Simple and Sinister book. Should that be the first one? Or should i have started with Enter the KB?

S&S is a lot more beginner friendly as the instruction of the two basic moves (the swing ad get-up) is more in-depth than in ETK. ETK's a great book, but is more focused on getting the reader to the level where they can ace a 10 minute snatch test (200+ reps in 10 minutes) and press a kettlebell that's roughly half their bodyweight; The swing and get-up in ETK are treated more as an 'appetizer' rather than the 'main course'.

If you really enjoy S&S and want to take your training further, I'd recommend picking up a copy of ETK but it's by no means essential if all you're looking to do is reap the maximum benefits from a minimal program.

 

[Sean M]

Welcome! Pour over the book, follow the outlined progression, and enjoy yourself! Don’t worry about a heavier bell for a bit - lots of practice with the one you have now, first.

 

[User 7569]

Also, i ordered the Simple and Sinister book. Should that be the first one? Or should i have started with Enter the KB?

S and S is a great beginner program, but then again so is the "program minimum" from ETK.. both great EASY STRENGTH type programs

Right of Passage is something you will probably not be ready for, for the time being, until after you follow a "simple and sinister" type training program with swings and get ups

focusing on learning the goblet squat, the swings, and the get ups is much more important than any particular program you follow right now. the programming will take you further and progress you once you hold the basic skills.

of course you will learn all this after reading.

don't be fooled by the brevity of S and S.. quite a lot there

 

[offwidth]

@BillCore
Also, let me add my welcome.
All good advice given thus far.
The only thing I might add is... keep a training log. And if you want, keep one here on this forum like many of us do. There are two options. Public, and Members.

 

[BillCore]

Thank you all for the great information. I will definitely take most of it into consideration as I start.

I was able to "preview" the book as part of my order, and it says as a "regular gentleman" I should start with two Kettlebells, a 35lb and a 53 lb. However most here say just the 30 I have is good to start....thoughts?

 

[Maine-ah KB]

Hi @BillCore yeah a 30lb kettlebell will be plenty to start. if your starting with 2 handed swings work up to 100 full power, then work on 1 arm swings you'll be set for a while. Tgu can be fully explored with a weight your comfortable with. my guess is that you would be good for 2-5 months before you really need. I'm assuming of course that you don't have any other weight training in your back ground, if you do then it'll be in the 2-3 month range if I were to guess (and it is a guess)
Regardless Welcome to SF

 

[WhatWouldHulkDo]

I was able to "preview" the book as part of my order, and it says as a "regular gentleman" I should start with two Kettlebells, a 35lb and a 53 lb. However most here say just the 30 I have is good to start....thoughts?

Don't stress out about it. I started with a 30, and it was great for learning the movement patterns. You don't need a whole lot of weight to find out where you might need to build up some stabilizers. And when it starts feeling easy, get another bell. Unless you're pretty strong already, I'd anticipate you'll probably want a 20k someday.

Don't worry about starting out perfectly. Just start.

 

[Oscar]

@BillCore

I was able to "preview" the book as part of my order, and it says as a "regular gentleman" I should start with two Kettlebells, a 35lb and a 53 lb. However most here say just the 30 I have is good to start....thoughts?

I agree with the advice of starting with the 30 lb KB you have, but I would buy a 53 lb shortly.

I also started with 30 lb, and was able to progress to one hand swings quite fast, since the weight was low. It was too light for 2 HS. However, I think that doing 2 hand swings with 53 lb is better, and is more or less as difficult as 1 HS with 30 lb. In fact, when you read the book you'll notice that the program doesn't have males swinging less than 53 lb (24 kg).

The progression in the book for swings is (for males): 2 hand deadlift 24 kg 》2 hand swing 24 kg》mix of 2 hand and 1 hand swings 24 kg 》1 hand swings 24 kg.

So, if I had to start again, I would learn the technique of deadlift and 2 hand swing with the 30 lb until form is safe, and then straight to 53 lb as outlined in the book. Just my experience.