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Kettlebell "Giant 1.0"

WxHerk said:
I have trained hard 5~6 days a week for years. Lots and lots of 32kg A&A snatches for most of 2020. I started The Giant 2.0 in November 2020 and rucked on off days. Since upgrading to double 28's on my second Giant 2.0 run and then double 32's for Giant 1.0 and 1.1 (start 1.2 next week) I have only done The Giant and nothing else. My results have been spectacular:
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So are you still rucking on off days? Just curious.
 
mikhou said:
I've been reading this thread for awhile and am looking forward to starting the Giant in the near future after I finish my current program. I'm just wondering if anyone else is doing something alongside the Giant. I've seen a couple of times where people mentioned running it alongside something else very minimal (maybe some pull-ups and lightweight bodyweight stuff). I've also seen once where Geoff mentioned that some run it alongside something else (seems I remember him mentioning ocr training).

I guess what I'm asking is that I'd like to keep working on bodyweight stuff (push-ups and pull-ups) and doing some low intensity running on off days (ala ocr work). However, I don't want to bastardize it so bad that it becomes ineffective.

End of the day, I probably need to stop my paralysis by analysis and just run it as is for a month first, right?
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It is really liberating, and effective, when you adjust your training outlook towards defining training seasons with focused per-season goals.

I now consider my previous mindset of trying to cover all bases continuously as lost-in-the-wilderness days.
 
mikhou said:
I've been reading this thread for awhile and am looking forward to starting the Giant in the near future after I finish my current program. I'm just wondering if anyone else is doing something alongside the Giant. I've seen a couple of times where people mentioned running it alongside something else very minimal (maybe some pull-ups and lightweight bodyweight stuff). I've also seen once where Geoff mentioned that some run it alongside something else (seems I remember him mentioning ocr training).

I guess what I'm asking is that I'd like to keep working on bodyweight stuff (push-ups and pull-ups) and doing some low intensity running on off days (ala ocr work). However, I don't want to bastardize it so bad that it becomes ineffective.

End of the day, I probably need to stop my paralysis by analysis and just run it as is for a month first, right?
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mikhou said:
So are you still rucking on off days? Just curious.
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barrak said:
It is really liberating, and effective, when you adjust your training outlook towards defining training seasons with focused per-season goals.

I now consider my previous mindset of trying to cover all bases continuously as lost-in-the-wilderness days.
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Yup. I find I do better focusing on a general full-body type movement and trying to make progress from there. If I attempt too many things...which I have been guilty of in the past, I screw it up. This is especially true as I get older!
 
I'm one session from finishing 1.2 with a pair of 20kg KBs. I would say that I have seen improvements in upper body muscle over these last three months; my shirts fit tighter and my chest measurement increased.

I'll probably test my RM with a pair of 24s over the weekend. Depending on how it goes, I might stick with The Giant, but I've been feeling a little like switching to Strong! and going through Slow and Steady for a season.
 
WxHerk said:
I have personally heard (in person) too many people say "Program X didn't work for me: I did it as written except I added this and that and these." I once heard someone say "I followed this diet protocol as written except for the alcohol part." When I replied that this person had thus not followed the program, I got a deer/headlights look.
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WxHerk said:
No, I am not. I stopped rucking right before starting Giant 1.0 with double 32's. I am considering lighter/shorter rucking than before but first want to see how 1.2 plays out.
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No worries... all you need is a bit of this and a bit of that, and maybe switch to juggling 8K bells and follow Rippetoe's nutrition plan. A slightly modded Giant! What could possibly go wrong?
 
John Grahill said:
John, you're right....the 1.2 is quite tiring! But it's also quite effective! Gives a "metabolic boost" if that's the term! Being the savage you are, I know you'll rock it!
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Oh, darn. I'm looking at those 9 rep sets and thinking "dead 'savage......' " Today was my last 8 rep of 1.1; ten set deload in 22:22. Oh, and it's starting to get Miss'ippi hot and humid down here....

@John Grahill, I'd not even have considered the advanced Giant Series without your prodding and reading of your experiences. You have turned it into something that I'm anxious to tackle!!
 
WxHerk said:
Oh, darn. I'm looking at those 9 rep sets and thinking "dead 'savage......' " Today was my last 8 rep of 1.1; ten set deload in 22:22. Oh, and it's starting to get Miss'ippi hot and humid down here....

@John Grahill, I'd not even have considered the advanced Giant Series without your prodding and reading of your experiences. You have turned it into something that I'm anxious to tackle!!
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My recommendation....in NJ winter I sweating like crazy!!! Mississippi spring time doing the 1.2...hmmm, make sure you have right guard!!!
 
barrak said:
It is really liberating, and effective, when you adjust your training outlook towards defining training seasons with focused per-season goals.

I now consider my previous mindset of trying to cover all bases continuously as lost-in-the-wilderness days.
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Right and my focus is actually seasonal. Giant series will go until late June-July when it gets too hot. Summer will be about getting outside and bodyweight, rucking and pullups in particular. Fall back to more ballistic KB routines then heavy in the winter again. Winter used to be for barbell work pre-virus, changed it to Giant. Rise and repeat for decades.
 
guardian7 said:
Right and my focus is actually seasonal. Giant series will go until late June-July when it gets too hot. Summer will be about getting outside and bodyweight, rucking and pullups in particular. Fall back to more ballistic KB routines then heavy in the winter again. Winter used to be for barbell work pre-virus, changed it to Giant. Rise and repeat for decades.
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Sounds like a good plan. I don't really train with barbells too much anymore. I find the kettlebell groove for pressing to be comfortable on my joints. They are also easier to store in my garage!
 
WxHerk said:
I have trained hard 5~6 days a week for years. Lots and lots of 32kg A&A snatches for most of 2020. I started The Giant 2.0 in November 2020 and rucked on off days. Since upgrading to double 28's on my second Giant 2.0 run and then double 32's for Giant 1.0 and 1.1 (start 1.2 next week) I have only done The Giant and nothing else. My results have been spectacular:

Definite muscle gain and strength has shot up! Why? Because I am doing The Giant as written with nothing else!!

I have progressed from 71 reps on my first 32kg session (an 11 rep set, followed by 15 four rep sets) to 105 and then 104 reps in my final two 30 minute Giant 1.1 sessions (7x15 and 8x13). This was in just over two months. Plenty of rest, plenty of protein, no extra work.

I have personally heard (in person) too many people say "Program X didn't work for me: I did it as written except I added this and that and these." I once heard someone say "I followed this diet protocol as written except for the alcohol part." When I replied that this person had thus not followed the program, I got a deer/headlights look.

At first, I was uneasy training only 3 days (sometimes 4) a week. But, the only way to offer honest feedback on a program is to do it as written!! @Geoff Neupert 's programming is legendary. @John Grahill 's work ethic and output are also legendary. I trusted them 100% from the get/go and cannot be happier.

I am 57 years old, 5'10~11" and 217 lbs with too much bodyfat. Some might say my best days are behind me, but they are talking and I am doing. But, Lord, would I have LOVED to have had this sort of resource 30+ years ago!!

We are always reading, seeing, hearing "trust the process." I can say from personal experience "trust The Giant process" and you will be pleasantly surprised with your results.
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@WxHerk this is so good I've book marked it. I've completed 1.0, 1.1 and 1.2 with 2 x 24kg and now 2 weeks into 2.0. I've slowly been adding more extra stuff in, not high volume but just stuff I like such as bent press for singles and crawling for time 10 mins etc. This is a timely reminder for me.
Giant, OS, walking (occasionally loaded) and rest .
 
Hello I'm wondering if I may be able to get some help with a couple questions.

I'm currently in week 3 of dry fighting weight. I've purchased the Giant with the idea being that it will be good to move onto it afterwards.

Now currently I've got 2x16kg kettlebells that I'd say were about my 8RM so I'm thinking of running through another cycle of DFW anyway to push that 8RM up to a 10RM and I'd also like to carry on burning away a bit of lockdown weight I've accumulated around my middle. I'm pretty confident another cycle of DFW will deliver on both goals as it's been great so far.

My first question was then, does that sound like a good idea? Ideally I'd then move on to the Giant and a calorific surplus to start building some muscle.

The second one was, will I (or my legs) miss the double front squats?

A shout out to Geoff and DFW too. Made more progress in 3 weeks in terms of technique and feeling like I'm actually achieving something than in the previous year of trying to adjust to training at home with various bodyweight and other kettlebell stuff. The simplicity is really working for me and can almost feel the bells getting lighter each session.
 
Scrumdog said:
Hello I'm wondering if I may be able to get some help with a couple questions.

I'm currently in week 3 of dry fighting weight. I've purchased the Giant with the idea being that it will be good to move onto it afterwards.

Now currently I've got 2x16kg kettlebells that I'd say were about my 8RM so I'm thinking of running through another cycle of DFW anyway to push that 8RM up to a 10RM and I'd also like to carry on burning away a bit of lockdown weight I've accumulated around my middle. I'm pretty confident another cycle of DFW will deliver on both goals as it's been great so far.

My first question was then, does that sound like a good idea? Ideally I'd then move on to the Giant and a calorific surplus to start building some muscle.

The second one was, will I (or my legs) miss the double front squats?

A shout out to Geoff and DFW too. Made more progress in 3 weeks in terms of technique and feeling like I'm actually achieving something than in the previous year of trying to adjust to training at home with various bodyweight and other kettlebell stuff. The simplicity is really working for me and can almost feel the bells getting lighter each session.
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If your interest is to run the Giant 1 series and/or 2 which utilizes a 10RM, it has been suggested to run the Giant 3.0 with a 7 or 8 RM for a cycle or two in order to make it a 10RM.
 
Scrumdog said:
Hello I'm wondering if I may be able to get some help with a couple questions.

I'm currently in week 3 of dry fighting weight. I've purchased the Giant with the idea being that it will be good to move onto it afterwards.

Now currently I've got 2x16kg kettlebells that I'd say were about my 8RM so I'm thinking of running through another cycle of DFW anyway to push that 8RM up to a 10RM and I'd also like to carry on burning away a bit of lockdown weight I've accumulated around my middle. I'm pretty confident another cycle of DFW will deliver on both goals as it's been great so far.

My first question was then, does that sound like a good idea? Ideally I'd then move on to the Giant and a calorific surplus to start building some muscle.

The second one was, will I (or my legs) miss the double front squats?

A shout out to Geoff and DFW too. Made more progress in 3 weeks in terms of technique and feeling like I'm actually achieving something than in the previous year of trying to adjust to training at home with various bodyweight and other kettlebell stuff. The simplicity is really working for me and can almost feel the bells getting lighter each session.
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+1 to @John Grahill : Giant 3.0 to build your 8RM up to a legitimate 10RM. After 3.0, you'll likely hit 11 or more which will make Giant 1.1 and 1.2 a lot more doable. By the time you finish 1.2 you will be lusting for heavier bells with which to start the whole thing over. You are in a great position to get a lot stronger, drop the weight you mentioned, and put on some lean beef.
 
John Grahill said:
If your interest is to run the Giant 1 series and/or 2 which utilizes a 10RM, it has been suggested to run the Giant 3.0 with a 7 or 8 RM for a cycle or two in order to make it a 10RM.
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WxHerk said:
+1 to @John Grahill : Giant 3.0 to build your 8RM up to a legitimate 10RM. After 3.0, you'll likely hit 11 or more which will make Giant 1.1 and 1.2 a lot more doable. By the time you finish 1.2 you will be lusting for heavier bells with which to start the whole thing over. You are in a great position to get a lot stronger, drop the weight you mentioned, and put on some lean beef.
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I have no experience with DFW and I only started 3.0 this week. Still, I'm not so sure that DFW isn't the better approach to progressing a 5RM C+P to a 10RM. The interlacing of C+P and DFSQ seems to have a similar synergy to ROPs presses and pullups... More reps with a 5RM and a fat loss effect as a bonus.

Would like to hear from those experienced with both programs.
 
barrak said:
I have no experience with DFW and I only started 3.0 this week. Still, I'm not so sure that DFW isn't the better approach to progressing a 5RM C+P to a 10RM. The interlacing of C+P and DFSQ seems to have a similar synergy to ROPs presses and pullups... More reps with a 5RM and a fat loss effect as a bonus.

Would like to hear from those experienced with both programs.
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Maybe. Or maybe it's the old "if you wanna get good at something do a lot of it" which is why I'm not sure I fully agree. Admittedly you may be right but inherent differences do exist. My take on DFW is different than many have espoused here. I view it as using heavy weights in an effort to promote fat loss. It also says that it shouldn't turn into a metcon. I've seen where people have done the front squats immediately after the c+p's, turning it into a superset of sorts or a complex which in my mind is not the intention of DFW. Again I may be wrong.

I just think since you'd get more clean and presses with the 3.0 Giant it would most likely yield a higher RM upon completion.
 
John Grahill said:
Maybe. Or maybe it's the old "if you wanna get good at something do a lot of it" which is why I'm not sure I fully agree. Admittedly you may be right but inherent differences do exist. My take on DFW is different than many have espoused here. I view it as using heavy weights in an effort to promote fat loss. It also says that it shouldn't turn into a metcon. I've seen where people have done the front squats immediately after the c+p's, turning it into a superset of sorts or a complex which in my mind is not the intention of DFW. Again I may be wrong.

I just think since you'd get more clean and presses with the 3.0 Giant it would most likely yield a higher RM upon completion.
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You're probably right.

Today was an interesting one;

After not being able to a press a single 16K until two weeks ago (coming from a shoulder injury), today was 3.0's Day 3 of Week 1 with 16K+16K. I replaced a couple of reps with 16K+20K, alternating arms, and both went up with no issues. My best press ever was a single, and shaky, 24K... and that was over two years ago!!!
 
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