all posts post new thread

Kettlebell Heavy vs. light or the wrong terms

Status
Closed Thread. (Continue Discussion of This Topic by Starting a New Thread.)

November Delta

Level 1 Valued Member
I'll have to come back for introductions. I don't have much time now.

I won't name the program to avoid giving too much away with my question but you can buy the program here.

situation:

20 minutes total workout time
Heavy day = ladders 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
light day = ladders 1, 2, 3
Do as many as you can in 20 minutes.

Question:
If you do 30 reps (2 ladders, 5 rungs) each arm on heavy day and 36 reps (6 ladders, 3 rungs) each arm on light day, is it still "light" day?

Am I using the terms heavy and light (and medium) incorrectly?
 
Hi @November Delta , Welcome to StrongFirst community!

It all depends on your goal... which you haven't shared ;)

For me heavy / medium / light usually refer to the main variable of the program. So if you use the same weight for both days and go for max reps I would say the terminology is somewhat confusing to me.

In intensity based programs I would expect the heavy day to be with the most weight, on volume based programs (which is often where one uses ladders) I would expect the heavy day to have the most volume.

I don't have allot of experience with density&volume based programs but I did some RoP type swings and than you usually with % of max reps possible for the "heaviness". For eg. light day would be around 60% of AMRAP, medium 70-80% AMRAP and heavy 85-90% AMRAP. If you do as many reps as possible with same weight each day you only have heavy days...

You can say that 1-5 ladders are harder than 1-3 ladders in it is a form of intensity (or density maybe??) variation... Once again - goals...

My 2 cents...
 
It is a one-bell program (32 kg). It is what I am calling a "dad workout". That is, 20 min, three times a week. My number one goal is to get the session in (to enable me to do "dad stuff").

Would this type of load/density scheme be what they might be referring to when using the term "wavy".
 
@November Delta, welcome to StrongFirst!

Take a hint from the Rite of Passage program in Enter The Kettlebell - go Light, Medium and Heavy instead for your 3x/week sessions.

Question:
If you do 30 reps (2 ladders, 5 rungs) each arm on heavy day and 36 reps (6 ladders, 3 rungs) each arm on light day, is it still "light" day?
No, I don't think it's still a light day. Measure Heavy and Light, using a single kettlebell, by the volume you get done in 20 minutes instead. My suggestion is simple - use a 12345 day as your metric for Heavy, and keep the number of sets constant on the other days. If you only manage 2 ladders on Heavy Day, then Light Day is 2 ladders of 123 - to do otherwise defeats the purpose, IMHO. You only want a single day each week when you push the movement you're doing hard, and rest should leave you feeling pretty fresh.

-S-
 
Looks like one of Geoff's programs.
The light day only has rungs of up to 3. What makes it light is that you should be able to produce more ladders of high quality reps because you are working at a lower percentage of what you can do per set. you'll recover faster between ladders.
The ladders to 5 will cost you more recovery time because you are working at a higher percentage of what you can do in a set, and maybe result in a bit more metabolic damage. I don't think your results are too unusual.
 
Hello,

It does not really sound like a light day. In both cases, you have to be at your max during 20 minutes. Heavy day only splits differently sets / reps.

This is a principle called (in french) "increasing density". It is based on the idea that, for the same time, if you do more reps than in your previous training, you have built muscle.

As a "light day", I would use a lighter bell for e.g.

If it is a three times a week, you can increase intensity in each session : light - medium - heavy using variations on your ladders

Kind regards,

Pet'
 
Another important thing is your ability to recover. The conditioning level of an individual is not defined by how much work he can do, but from how much work he can recover from (@Bro Mo reminded me that in one of his posts).

The thing about light/medium/heavy days is promoting recovery and keeping both quality and total volume of work as high, and as maintainable, as possible (no injuries or burnout).

If you recover well, have high levels of focus and energy and your training supports your goals than all is well...
 
Status
Closed Thread. (Continue Discussion of This Topic by Starting a New Thread.)
Back
Top Bottom