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Kettlebell "Giant 1.0"

Personally, that many cleans would f*** me up. The press adds a break into them, both in the movement and by providing a fatigue limit. Just constantly cleaning for a 12 week block would leave me broken with tendinitis.
 
Hrungnir said:
Personally, that many cleans would f*** me up. The press adds a break into them, both in the movement and by providing a fatigue limit. Just constantly cleaning for a 12 week block would leave me broken with tendinitis.
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I’m prone to tendinitis in my elbow. I get it with lots of volume. This morning I did 6 sets of 10 dbl cleans with my 24’s. I’ve found that the volume has improved my clean technique to the point my elbows are fine. In fairness, they were in great shape before I started the block, though I was a bit worried, but all good. Heavy days are double 28’s and elbows are happy thankfully. I’m halfway through a month block and it’s been great.
 
Halfakneecap said:
I’m prone to tendinitis in my elbow. I get it with lots of volume. This morning I did 6 sets of 10 dbl cleans with my 24’s. I’ve found that the volume has improved my clean technique to the point my elbows are fine. In fairness, they were in great shape before I started the block, though I was a bit worried, but all good. Heavy days are double 28’s and elbows are happy thankfully. I’m halfway through a month block and it’s been great.
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You can do most things for two weeks, let’s talk after 12.
 
Thank you for all the feedback. Think I have decided to try The Giant 1.0 with a single kettlebell first, to see if it takes some toll of my shoulders.

If that does not work I might have to find a different routine with very limited pressing above head.
 
MrNoboby said:
Thank you for all the feedback. Think I have decided to try The Giant 1.0 with a single kettlebell first, to see if it takes some toll of my shoulders.

If that does not work I might have to find a different routine with very limited pressing above head.
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Better yet, take a week off first.

Then, use a single bell and do clean and push press. Even easier on the shoulder IMO.
 
Two weeks into Giant 1.0, and it's going well. I'd been feeling good, and the number of sets has been moving up nicely without overexertion.

Slept wrong last night and woke up with a very stiff upper back. Tried to do my workout in the morning, but sets of five were difficult -- as if I was working with a 6RM weight. (Last monday I did 14 sets, was expecting 15 was reasonable today). Packed it in after three sets -- felt like I wasn't able to maintain good form.

I presume I'll feel fine tomorrow morning. Which would you do:
- try to get three workouts in this week (T/Th/S) and maintain the same weekly schedule?
- just do two days this week (W/F)?
- something else?

I expect that any solution is fine, but I was curious what others experience was with similar situations.
 
Eric Wilson said:
Two weeks into Giant 1.0, and it's going well. I'd been feeling good, and the number of sets has been moving up nicely without overexertion.

Slept wrong last night and woke up with a very stiff upper back. Tried to do my workout in the morning, but sets of five were difficult -- as if I was working with a 6RM weight. (Last monday I did 14 sets, was expecting 15 was reasonable today). Packed it in after three sets -- felt like I wasn't able to maintain good form.

I presume I'll feel fine tomorrow morning. Which would you do:
- try to get three workouts in this week (T/Th/S) and maintain the same weekly schedule?
- just do two days this week (W/F)?
- something else?

I expect that any solution is fine, but I was curious what others experience was with similar situations.
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If I was in that situation I would just let my body recover and resume on Wednesday and using today's loading parameters. When I get tightness like that I typically try rolling my trapezius out with a lacrosse ball and using a heat pack to get the muscles loosened up.

IMHO the great thing about the Giant is that it's quite flexible if you have to miss a day. Since you are doing the same full body movement each session, only two sessions for one week won't really set you back a ton as far as results go. At least that has been my experience. It's a lot different from a routine where you doing some kind of split.
 
MrNoboby said:
Might be a dumb question, but I need some advice. I have been running the The Giant for a few months, but my shoulders have been acting up on my for 5-6 weeks now.

Not been able to follow the program, and even though I have taken a week off it has not helped considerably.

One of the main reasons I have been doing The Giant is because it is supposed to be good for hypertrophy and general fitness.

I considering doing a Giant structured program but with double clean only, skipping the press. So the question is, what am I missing with regards to general fitness and hypertrophy if I do 4-8 weeks of double cleans only?
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Have you had your shoulders checked out?

Are you currently doing anything proactive for them - like restoration work?

You can do Double Clean + Double Squat work. It won't have the upper body stimulus that the Presses will have, but it will make your whole body stronger and better conditioned.
 
Eric Wilson said:
Two weeks into Giant 1.0, and it's going well. I'd been feeling good, and the number of sets has been moving up nicely without overexertion.

Slept wrong last night and woke up with a very stiff upper back. Tried to do my workout in the morning, but sets of five were difficult -- as if I was working with a 6RM weight. (Last monday I did 14 sets, was expecting 15 was reasonable today). Packed it in after three sets -- felt like I wasn't able to maintain good form.

I presume I'll feel fine tomorrow morning. Which would you do:
- try to get three workouts in this week (T/Th/S) and maintain the same weekly schedule?
- just do two days this week (W/F)?
- something else?

I expect that any solution is fine, but I was curious what others experience was with similar situations.
Click to expand...
What I did for a tight upper back before having a hot tub and massage jets is to hang from a pull up bar after training. Light foam rolling can help as well. I still hang from a pull up bar but if you can get access to a hot tub and massage jets, that really helps I do it every morning or right after a lot of physical work.
 
Has anyone done their own 1.3 version or 1.4 where you follow the same rep sheme and keep going up in the number of reps?
 
Geoff Neupert said:
Have you had your shoulders checked out?

Are you currently doing anything proactive for them - like restoration work?

You can do Double Clean + Double Squat work. It won't have the upper body stimulus that the Presses will have, but it will make your whole body stronger and better conditioned.
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Thanks for reaching out.

Yes, I have bought a couple of resistance bands and am doing some mobility and light resistance training with them. I am also trying different mobility exercises for shoulders and neck.

Based on some of the other recommendations here, I decided to give The Giant 1.0 a try, but with a single bell and push presses. I have only done one session, but it felt much better and was quite enjoyable. I only did 20 minutes, and then I ended the session with some heavy double bell cleans.

My plan is to do that every session to compensate for the single bell and push press versus strict press. Do you think this is a viable solution while I continue to work on my shoulder?
 
MrNoboby said:
My plan is to do that every session to compensate for the single bell and push press versus strict press. Do you think this is a viable solution while I continue to work on my shoulder?
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It sounds like a plan.

Remember shoulder issues are also caused by:
  • Poor breathing mechanics
  • Weak deep abdominal stabilizers
  • Immobile thoracic spine
So make sure you address those too.

Hope that helps.
 
MrNoboby said:
Thanks for reaching out.

Yes, I have bought a couple of resistance bands and am doing some mobility and light resistance training with them. I am also trying different mobility exercises for shoulders and neck.

Based on some of the other recommendations here, I decided to give The Giant 1.0 a try, but with a single bell and push presses. I have only done one session, but it felt much better and was quite enjoyable. I only did 20 minutes, and then I ended the session with some heavy double bell cleans.

My plan is to do that every session to compensate for the single bell and push press versus strict press. Do you think this is a viable solution while I continue to work on my shoulder?
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Told ya!
 
At what point are the sets too large?

Reason I ask is I am doing it as a rehab for my shoulders and I’m up to 100 reps each workout (week 2 of 1.1), but don’t want to jump 15lbs per KB yet as I’m still hesitant. Also fixing other stuff and jumping up 30lbs (combined) wont help the other stuff I’m working on. This is working, pain free and not interfering with other areas in rehab, so want to keep a good thing going.
John K said:
Yes, works well.
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Westtxco said:
At what point are the sets too large?
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When your lungs and not your muscles are the limiting factor. As far as I'm concerned, Giant is either primarily a strength or size training program. If those are no longer being trained due to the size of the sets, then the sets are too large and the weight is too light.
Westtxco said:
Reason I ask is I am doing it as a rehab for my shoulders and I’m up to 100 reps each workout (week 2 of 1.1), but don’t want to jump 15lbs per KB yet as I’m still hesitant.
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I would suggest looking into smaller jumps if you are still involved in rehab.

I would suggest, if cleared by appropriate medical providers, trying a single rep with that heavier weight and seeing how that goes. Depending on what exactly is/was wrong and where you are in the rehab process, Giant may not be the best fit for where you are with your given weight jump limitations.
Westtxco said:
Also fixing other stuff and jumping up 30lbs (combined) wont help the other stuff I’m working on. This is working, pain free and not interfering with other areas in rehab, so want to keep a good thing going.
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I am not sure what this means.
 
Thank you. Maybe I will consider 3.0 with the next size up in single format. I can press it multiple times but have been avoiding it. I appreciate the feedback.
 
Bkb said:
Told ya!
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For sure! Using a single bell for the push press is definitely less taxing on the shoulders. I've even shortened the time and included supplementary exercises. Hopefully, this will help strengthen the shoulders when I return to using doubles in the next round of the Giant.
 
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