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Kettlebell I failed a Turkish Get Up and broke my wrist

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The support here has been great, it is sincerely appreciated.

I regret not having been exposed to material about the risks of the Turkish Get Up when learning about kettlebells. To me they felt non-negotiable, and they did indeed return a lot of benefits in the six months I trained them.

I've lifted weighs most of my life and rarely got hurt. I never stopped to question the risk/reward profile on the TGU. Now, it will take me a long time to do one again with any significant weight. Maybe unloaded or 16kg is the way to go, just for mobility, not for strength.

Anyway, I get a titanium plate attached to my radius in the morning.The surgeon expects me to be able to "start risking my life with kettlebells" again in 12 weeks. No tendon or small bone damage, so I'm lucky there as well.

Be safe everyone!
 
Didn't Dan John once say, "the guy who trains himself has an idiot for a client"? No disrespect intended because most of us here do train ourselves. I just thought like many of Dan Johnisms it is funny.

Having once in a past life been to where you are now I can appreciate the story. Sinister may be in the books for some. So if you have what it takes look at the percentages. The jump from 32 to 40 is a bit over a 20% increase. That's like taking a 275 lb. bench for 5 reps and shooting for 330 for 5. That's one heck of an increase. So if you've done simple and you are shooting for sinister, you are looking for a 40% increase to what may be very close to maximum output for you. That's like the guy above working his tail off for a 300 bench and then shooting for 420. I'm not saying it can't be done, but guys who have been in the game for some time will work for a year or more just to add 5 or 10 lb. to a lift. Then to add to it there's a time limit involved.

I'm not saying it can't be done. But most likely many of us should be thrilled with 40 K standard or just simple and working in some 40 and 48 K reps.
 
I regret not having been exposed to material about the risks of the Turkish Get Up when learning about kettlebells. To me they felt non-negotiable, and they did indeed return a lot of benefits in the six months I trained them.

I've lifted weighs most of my life and rarely got hurt. I never stopped to question the risk/reward profile on the TGU.

I jerk (with barbells) weekly in the 100 kg range and I'm far, far more cautious with the TGU than I am with a jerk, where I'm on my feet the whole time and I can (and do) bail if it goes awry.

Bumper plates are nice that way.

Dips are my other "be careful" exercise.
 
Yesterday, I was working through simple and sinister, as I have been doing multiple times per week for the past 6 months. I have been progressing well and fully own the 32kg; the 40kg was moving well for swings and a getup here and there. This particular session, I completed swings with the 40, a getup each side with the 40, and had begun getups with the 32.

On my right handed rep, somewhere between getting down from high sit to floor, something went wrong. I lost balance, the bell headed toward my face, and I used my left hand to deflect. Everything happened very quickly, like crashing or falling. I reacted as best as I could.

The bell landed on my open palm while my elbow was on the floor, forearm vertical, compressing the radius. My wrist broke. At the ER, they confirmed I had a "foosh" break, or "falling on outstretched hand", like is seen in snowboard or mountain bike injuries. Ironically, I do both of those activities, but this is my first broken bone in my life.

I'm not sure of my point of this post, but I wanted to share. The getup can be dangerous. You're not invincible. The words of Dan John, in which he questions the value of heavy getups, ring loud in my mind.

I guess I'm probably out for a few months. I'll look for ways to prevent total mass loss; swings with my right hand, squats in the right rack, right hand ohp, lots of walking. That's down the road, though. Tomorrow I see a hand specialist to see if I need surgery and to get a cast.

That's my story. I'm lucky it wasn't the 40kg that fell, or my face where the bell landed, I might be dead. Small victories. f*** 2020.

Sorry to read this, man. Get well soon.
 
Just thinking about this makes my stomach turn. May you have peace as you work through the recovery.

I strained an abdominal muscle catching a rogue bell on the get down several weeks ago. That incident was my fault; I had done garden work (2 days prior) that had significantly fatigued my grip. I could feel it during my practice session but my ego got the best of me.

I used to work with an old head lawyer named Bill - good man, good lawyer. He had a saying: 'pigs get fat -- hogs get slaughtered.' That's been my mantra for years when my ego gets a little froggy. Where were you Bill?
 
I have a love - hate relationship with TGU's. Yes, they are an awesome exercise. But I absolutely suck at them. After more than four months training, I can't do a single complete TGU with the 16. I can swing the 32 one handed, but I can't do a TGU.

I've been giving serious consideration to swapping Simple & Sinister for Red Zone, just because I hate failing at TGU's all the time. :(
 
Everything I’ve read about skydiving suggests that many more accidents happen because experienced skydivers take things for granted than because novices lack the skill to do what they’re attempting.

-S-
A former boss of mine, who was a military and civilian pilot said that exact same thing about flying.
 
I shattered my wrist by walking down a steep hill in shoes without any traction while leaving a playground with my kids. The day before I safely walked in a creek bed on slippery rocks. I had a plate put in with bone glue to hold the small fragments together. This happened in 2017 and it was a slow recovery with a scope needed six months later to clean out scar tissue. I slowly built up strength and it took awhile before I had confidence to do any arm balances in yoga. I didn't start swinging kettlebells again until the pandemic. Wrist now feels stronger than ever and even doing a 1/4 TGU has helped.

I only do a 1/4 TGU because I can't kneel on my knees. I added bent presses them to best approximate a full TGU.
 
Has anyone tried to use a fall limiter as a spotter for the TGU? I'm not 100% sure this would work, its just a thought at the moment. I train in my garage and have roofing trusses i could attach the limiter to. My idea would be to fix the limter to the trusses and then use some para cord to attach the kettlebell to limiter, if the lift fails the limiter would kick in and stop the bell from falling. Has anyone tried this? Silly idea?
 

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I have a love - hate relationship with TGU's. Yes, they are an awesome exercise. But I absolutely suck at them. After more than four months training, I can't do a single complete TGU with the 16. I can swing the 32 one handed, but I can't do a TGU.

I've been giving serious consideration to swapping Simple & Sinister for Red Zone, just because I hate failing at TGU's all the time. :(
Have you considered bent presses instead?
 
To be honest, no. I hadn't thought of that.
I’ve seen that you’ve made some progress with the TGU in the other thread? So probably it’s not the moment to try something different. But it is an interesting alternavite, typically brought up here when kneeling or something similar is an issue.
 
Has anyone tried to use a fall limiter as a spotter for the TGU? I'm not 100% sure this would work, its just a thought at the moment. I train in my garage and have roofing trusses i could attach the limiter to. My idea would be to fix the limter to the trusses and then use some para cord to attach the kettlebell to limiter, if the lift fails the limiter would kick in and stop the bell from falling. Has anyone tried this? Silly idea?
Does the limiter have a self-reeling in function? You would need that for this to work. (because you can’t push a rope) There are similar rigs used for solo climbing (but the rope needs to pull through the device somehow)
 
Has anyone tried to use a fall limiter as a spotter for the TGU? I'm not 100% sure this would work, its just a thought at the moment. I train in my garage and have roofing trusses i could attach the limiter to. My idea would be to fix the limter to the trusses and then use some para cord to attach the kettlebell to limiter, if the lift fails the limiter would kick in and stop the bell from falling. Has anyone tried this? Silly idea?

Such a setup would certainly make me question whether I was on the right path. How trustworth is the limiter? How would I test it? Seatbelts go through a lot of crash tests before they are trusted on live passengers.
 
If it’s the type used for fall protection on construction sites then it will be self reeling and these things are OSHA rated. There is no doubt to the ‘trustworthiness’ of the unit.
I see no reason at all why it wouldn’t work (under the right rigging circumstances)
About $140.00 USD
 
Reminders from S&S on the get-up:

"Keep that elbow straight at all times."

"Remember to keep your whole body tight -- "Planked." A stiff object is easier to move than a limp noodle."

"Watch out for flexing the elbow on the way down. Visualize "pushing yourself away from the kettlebell."

"Grip the handle medium hard."

"You must keep your elbow straight for the duration of the get-up."

"It takes effort to keep your elbow straight; do not be lazy."

Standards, pg 57: "The elbow on the kettlebell side is locked and the shoulder is packed."​

I really think these tips will keep people safe with get-ups! I've done a LOT of them, up to 36kg, and never had a mishap. Not to say accidents don't happen, but attention to all the book's details is very important, especially keeping the elbow straight. I did an "easy" S&S session yesterday with 10kg and had to remind myself to keep the arm straight and tight. It's really easy to have a "soft" elbow and quite common. Lock that elbow, flex the triceps! Especially on the last part of the get-down.

Stay safe, strong people!
 
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