Kettlebell Kettlebell STRONG (Neupert)
- Thread starter bgn
- Start date
DGA
Level 1 Valued Member
Phase I Results:
Start: 18kg x 4
Finish: 18kg x 8
I almost postponed max day until tomorrow. The bells felt heavy while carrying them out to the back yard, so I knew it wasn't going to be my best day. However, after getting warmed and ramped up, I felt fine. In the end it was lack of mental discipline that limited me.
I was aiming for at least 8 reps, but was hoping for 10. I think I could have cranked out another rep or two had I maintained discipline. I got anxious and started rushing, and as the reps went up I was not keeping tension. I was either not getting tense enough in some areas, or letting it go during the movement. It also didn't help that my breathing pattern changed up after the 4th rep - I was taking an extra breath that I wasn't used to.
I rested for 5+ minutes afterwards and put up 20kg x 4. I rested 5 more minutes and did 22kg x 1 (I only tried for 1 rep with that one).
Start: 18kg x 4
Finish: 18kg x 8
I almost postponed max day until tomorrow. The bells felt heavy while carrying them out to the back yard, so I knew it wasn't going to be my best day. However, after getting warmed and ramped up, I felt fine. In the end it was lack of mental discipline that limited me.
I was aiming for at least 8 reps, but was hoping for 10. I think I could have cranked out another rep or two had I maintained discipline. I got anxious and started rushing, and as the reps went up I was not keeping tension. I was either not getting tense enough in some areas, or letting it go during the movement. It also didn't help that my breathing pattern changed up after the 4th rep - I was taking an extra breath that I wasn't used to.
I rested for 5+ minutes afterwards and put up 20kg x 4. I rested 5 more minutes and did 22kg x 1 (I only tried for 1 rep with that one).
Last edited:
DGA
Level 1 Valued Member
I used to post here years ago, but my account was apparently deleted at some point.
peris633
Level 5 Valued Member
I have just completed phase 2 and started out with a 28kg rep max of 3.I. My rep max at the end of the phase was 9.I may have been able to 10,but I think it would have been ugly. I have decided to go to phase 1 with 32k.So I did a test today and got 3 reps with 32 kg.Then kept going with 9 sets of singles
It felt solid.Does anyone think I will run into trouble with this weight or should I continue with the program?
It felt solid.Does anyone think I will run into trouble with this weight or should I continue with the program?
blad51
Level 8 Valued Member
I have found that one should take Geoff's recommendations for which bell(s) to begin a program very seriously. If you error, it is better to error on the conservative side and go with a lighter bell(s).
I was in your very same position 4 weeks ago. I finished Maximorum with 28k bells. On my rep max test I expected to get at LEAST 12 solid DCP reps with the 28s. I then planned to begin another round of Strong with 2x32 bells.
Well....
On rep max test day I got 10 solid DCP reps and an ugly 11th rep with the 28s. I waited 10 minutes to test DCPs with the 32s. I got 3 reps and an ugly clean on the 4th rep. The clean was so bad that I didn't even try to press the bells.
I was disappointed.
I really wanted to start Strong with the 32s. I decided to trust Geoff's advice. I decided to run The Giant with the 28s.
I am really glad I chose the Giant rather than to run Strong with bells I wasn't ready for yet. I am really enjoying The Giant and I am making additional progress with the 28s.
Chris Mills
Level 6 Valued Member
I would definitely do P3. You have already squeezed a LOT of gains going from 3-9 reps. The gains will (presumably, I suppose it depends how “newbie” you were when you started) come much slower now. You will have very little margin for error on sets of 2, let alone 3. Need to be able to survive bad days, would be my thought.
solarbear
Level 6 Valued Member
You could try something like 5 ladders of 1,2 reps. Increase by a ladder per workout till you hit 10. Would take a couple of weeks. Then you could either try Strong or start changing the ladders to 1,2,3 one ladder at a time.
blad51
Level 8 Valued Member
I agree with the "newbie " or new to double Kettlebell gains. It took me some time to realize that my initial progress was due to other factors like improvement in technique in ADDITION to strength gains. I initially believed I was only making raw strength gains and the rapid gains would continue at the same pace with the heavier bells.
My technique is still improving with the high rep sets of The Giant. I have really learned about how to keep my technique dialed in for the clean portion of the DCP during my late set lifts.
peris633
Level 5 Valued Member
I appreciate all the thoughts and advice ,although I am not exactly a "newbie". I actually did phase 2 with 32s about 5 years ago.I eventually had a severely pinched nerve in my neck which caused my right arm to lose about 20% of its strength and muscles to shrink.I slowly recovered from it ,then I got COVID pneumonia,lost 20 pounds in 5 days and nearly died from it. But the right arm is at least 95% of my left,finally.I did phase 2 with 28s earlier this year,but struggled.Then I did Giant X with 24s.I did phase 2 again with the 28s and did much better this time. I think some of my strength returning is old muscle memory. I now 63 years old and am just being more cautious .I will take my time with it.If I hit a roadblock,just back up a little before charging forward.
.
.
Chris Mills
Level 6 Valued Member
Phase 1, Day 1 in the books. Had not done KB C&P's in a couple of years (though have had a few smatterings of consistency doing them with a barbell) and after a block of Giant 1.0 with the 32s, tested the 40s today and surprisingly (very surprisingly) got 4-decent reps. On my last run through this program, I only made it to about the 4th session of P2, and got sidetracked (by an injury, or I got sick, or both; I honestly can't remember). I'm going to stay singularly focused on getting through as much of this as I can (it is really hard to imagine that I'll be doing multiple sets of 6 on a tight clock, but I'll keep charging at it until it proves futile).
DGA
Level 1 Valued Member
I'm in need of some advice. I threw caution to the wind and chose the "Short Course" for phase 2. It was tough, but I was hanging on and thought I could make it through, until I got to week 3.
Monday was hard, but I completed it using the max prescribed rest period. On Wednesday I made a note that I thought I might not have been fully recovered. I got through the Wednesday workout, but the last rep of the last few sets were an ugly grind.
By night time on Wednesday, my lats were on fire. I felt a bit better the next morning, and worked on recovery throughout the day (electrostim, stretching, OS resets, hot shower...). By Friday I was feeling well enough that I could get it done, but failed on the last rep of the 3rd set.
So now I am wondering what to do. FYI, the reason I am doing Strong is because I wanted to run the Giant with double KBs and needed to get trained up on technique first.
It seems like my options are:
Monday was hard, but I completed it using the max prescribed rest period. On Wednesday I made a note that I thought I might not have been fully recovered. I got through the Wednesday workout, but the last rep of the last few sets were an ugly grind.
By night time on Wednesday, my lats were on fire. I felt a bit better the next morning, and worked on recovery throughout the day (electrostim, stretching, OS resets, hot shower...). By Friday I was feeling well enough that I could get it done, but failed on the last rep of the 3rd set.
So now I am wondering what to do. FYI, the reason I am doing Strong is because I wanted to run the Giant with double KBs and needed to get trained up on technique first.
It seems like my options are:
- Pretend my Friday workout never happened and finish out the Short Course with a 2 day/week schedule.
- Switch over to the same week of "Slow And Steady"
- Switch over to a different week of "Slow And Steady" (since I was doing much higher volume/intensity than the equivalent week)
- Switch to the Giant
- Something else?
Halfakneecap
Level 6 Valued Member
DGA
Level 1 Valued Member
So I went with option 3, but I only jumped ahead one week, where the 5s first get introduced. Today was 3s, and I decided to take it as easy as I could by using the maximum prescribed rest periods for Phase 2.
Well, even with "taking it easy", today felt pretty hard. Apparently I have still not fully recovered from last week and it is fortunate I did not try to go with option #1. Even if I had made it all the way through, I could not have kept up with Phase 3.
Well, even with "taking it easy", today felt pretty hard. Apparently I have still not fully recovered from last week and it is fortunate I did not try to go with option #1. Even if I had made it all the way through, I could not have kept up with Phase 3.
Chris Mills
Level 6 Valued Member
Finished P1, session 11 today. Last of the singles. Did them OTM, but could have done them faster. Pretty easy. Confident about first session with triples on Thursday...... interesting to see if confidence is misplaced.