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Kettlebell Minimalist Kettlebell Hypertrophy Program

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Here's my go at writing a minimalist hypertrophy program, done 3x per week, A/B fashion for the presses and rows:

Bulgarian Split Squat: 3 x 5, plus 1 x 10-15**
Press [or] Dips: 3 x 5, plus 1 x 10-15
Weighted Chin-up: 3 x 5, plus 1 x 10-15 [or] KB Rows: 3 x 10-15
2H Swings: 50-100 reps
Ab wheel: 3 sets

**back off set.

It loosely follows Dan John's 5 human movements, with a tad more variety to get a horizontal and vertical push/pull. It's simple because everything has the same rep range except the rows which I think work better for slightly lighter weight, higher reps.
 
watchnerd said:
I followed Dry Fighting Weight as written with 2 x 32 and it was just fine for my presses, but not for my legs.

I morphed it into 1.5 rep double pause squats per Geoff Neupert's recommendation to make it harder by increasing TUT.

Caveat: my 3 RM BB front squat is 125 kg (2 reds per side), typical "cruising weight" is 105 kg. 65 kg is my warm up weight.

A heavy BB front squat day for me is 5 sets of 3 @125 kg, or back squat triples @155 kg.
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Nice, I haven't front or back squated since like 2019... I zercher squat and I hit 250lbs for a solid double a few days ago (I believe that's 114kg's) my goal is 275lbs for x2

I generally do pistols or zercher over KB f.sqt myself, but I do think for most ppl there is merit to being under load for extensive volume
 
North Coast Miller said:
Pretty sure it was the other way around IIRC. The study I'm thinking of was mentioned in an article in Stronger by Science.
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I’ll have to dig it up now, wouldn’t be the first time I misremembered something

also for clarity, I mean 3 sets of 10 and 7 sets of 3. Sometimes the “Pavel “ notation I used gets misread.

Edit: found the study, looks like it was referenced by that SBS article in hypertrophy rep ranges.
Here is the bit I’m thinking of:
“ Moreover, personal communication with subjects both during and after the study revealed that those in the ST group generally felt highly fatigued both physically and mentally from the workouts, whereas those in the HT group tended to report being willing and able to extend the duration of training sessions”

for context the group that did 10/3 @10rm (ht) averaged 17 minutes per session and the 3/7 @3rm group (st) averaged 70 minutes per session
2 subjects also dropped out of the strength group due to joint related injury. No one from the 10/3 group had any training related issues.

journals.lww.com

Effects of Different Volume-Equated Resistance Training... : The Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research

promote marked increases in skeletal muscle mass. Although muscle hypertrophy can be attained through a wide range of resistance training programs, the principle of specificity, which states that adaptations are specific to the nature of the applied stimulus, dictates that some programs will...
journals.lww.com journals.lww.com

It is an interesting study for sure.
 
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silveraw said:
I’ll have to dig it up now, wouldn’t be the first time I misremembered something

also for clarity, I mean 3 sets of 10 and 7 sets of 3. Sometimes the “Pavel “ notation I used gets misread.

Edit: found the study, looks like it was referenced by that SBS article in hypertrophy rep ranges.
Here is the bit I’m thinking of:
“ Moreover, personal communication with subjects both during and after the study revealed that those in the ST group generally felt highly fatigued both physically and mentally from the workouts, whereas those in the HT group tended to report being willing and able to extend the duration of training sessions”

for context the group that did 10/3 @10rm (ht) averaged 17 minutes per session and the 3/7 @3rm group (st) averaged 70 minutes per session
2 subjects also dropped out of the strength group due to joint related injury. No one from the 10/3 group had any training related issues.

journals.lww.com

Effects of Different Volume-Equated Resistance Training... : The Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research

promote marked increases in skeletal muscle mass. Although muscle hypertrophy can be attained through a wide range of resistance training programs, the principle of specificity, which states that adaptations are specific to the nature of the applied stimulus, dictates that some programs will...
journals.lww.com journals.lww.com

It is an interesting study for sure.
Click to expand...
The study groups are the other way around:
- (ST) group that performed 7 sets of 3RM with a 3-minute rest interval.
- HT was...A moderate number of repetitions (target of 10 repetitions per set within a range of 8–12 repetitions) were performed with rest periods of 90 seconds afforded between sets and exercises.


As expected the ST group increased strength output over HT group, size gains comparable. It bothers me that not only did they use different loading, they used entirely different exercise selection and scheduling - they should have used the same selection.

- ST group were at their upper limits of tolerance...Two of the 10 subjects in the ST group dropped out of the study because of joint-related injuries; 1 subject experienced a knee-related issue, whereas another suffered a tendinopathy of the shoulder. The injuries occurred despite direct supervision by trained personnel. In contrast, none of those in the HT group reported experiencing a training-related injury.
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Definitely these studies indicate how tough it is to "volume equate" using different loads - personally I don't think its possible. Also demonstrate that as loading goes up, volume/ frequency should come down or you're really putting yourself in a spot. If there's one thing the research into isometrics should have made clear, muscle reacts very specifically to amount of tension, speed of contraction, duration of contraction. No free lunches.
 
Hello,

S&S can lead to a "fighter physique". RoP or RedZone may lead more towards a "classique physique".

Below the link of Pavel's article and the related thread (S&S).

Kettlebell - Pavel Macek: "Solid: In-Between Simple & Sinister"

I'm posting a thread with a link to @Pavel Macek's latest article because it's just that good. Solid: In-Between Simple & Sinister
www.strongfirst.com
www.strongfirst.com

Solid: In-Between Simple & Sinister | StrongFirst

Thoughts, tips, and tricks from my training through the space in-between Simple and Sinister. Aspects of S&S are often overlooked that are key to progress.
www.strongfirst.com

Kind regards,

Pet'
 
pet' said:
Hello,

S&S can lead to a "fighter physique". RoP or RedZone may lead more towards a "classique physique".

Below the link of Pavel's article and the related thread (S&S).

Kettlebell - Pavel Macek: "Solid: In-Between Simple & Sinister"

I'm posting a thread with a link to @Pavel Macek's latest article because it's just that good. Solid: In-Between Simple & Sinister
www.strongfirst.com
www.strongfirst.com

Solid: In-Between Simple & Sinister | StrongFirst

Thoughts, tips, and tricks from my training through the space in-between Simple and Sinister. Aspects of S&S are often overlooked that are key to progress.
www.strongfirst.com

Kind regards,

Pet'
Click to expand...
What is a fighter and a classic type? ?
 
Hello,

@TedDK
From what I understand:
Classique physique would be old time strongmen (beginning 20 century) (like Greek status)
Fighter physique would be lean (not shredded or so)

Kind regards,

Pet'
 
pet' said:
Hello,

@TedDK
From what I understand:
Classique physique would be old time strongmen (beginning 20 century) (like Greek status)
Fighter physique would be lean (not shredded or so)

Kind regards,

Pet'
Click to expand...
So nomatter hows the diet and genes. The on program gives u the on one look. The other another look.
I dont think so.
 
Hello,

No, genetics and diet obviously comes into play… But a lot of people of people blame their genetics to hide the fact that they do not put enough attention into their diet and training. ?

Kind regards,

Pet'
 
pet' said:
Hello,

S&S can lead to a "fighter physique". RoP or RedZone may lead more towards a "classique physique".

Below the link of Pavel's article and the related thread (S&S).

Kettlebell - Pavel Macek: "Solid: In-Between Simple & Sinister"

I'm posting a thread with a link to @Pavel Macek's latest article because it's just that good. Solid: In-Between Simple & Sinister
www.strongfirst.com
www.strongfirst.com

Solid: In-Between Simple & Sinister | StrongFirst

Thoughts, tips, and tricks from my training through the space in-between Simple and Sinister. Aspects of S&S are often overlooked that are key to progress.
www.strongfirst.com

Kind regards,

Pet'
Click to expand...

I prefer the soft physique that comes from soft style... Imagine If he would do HARDSTYLE and wear tactical clothing.. ?


 
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Hello,

Like it ! Maybe some day hehe.

I currently run the Novocaine routine. Not sure I'll get there then !

Kind regards,

Pet'
 
pet' said:
Hello,

@TedDK
From what I understand:
Classique physique would be old time strongmen (beginning 20 century) (like Greek status)
Fighter physique would be lean (not shredded or so)

Kind regards,

Pet'
Click to expand...
I don't think there is such a thing like a fighter physic. That will strongly depend on the type of fighting discipline you do.
 
Exercise selection/movement pattern is going to determine what muscle groups gain mass more than others, especially so with a minimalist program. There is no way around this.
And then...nutrition. Just increasing protein will increase lean muscle mass ( a little) even if you don't train.

There needs to be a credible demand for more capacity, resources to meet that demand, plenty of downtime between, and longer periods of reduced volume every 3 weeks or so to alleviate accumulated stress and associated malaise, and give the digestive system a break.

The ideal approach will use short, brutal sessions most of the time, utilizing heavier weights to shrink training time. You can train hard or long but you can't do both.

What really differentiates hypertrophy focus from basic strength focus is glucose depletion in the fast twitch muscles. This happens the most rapidly when metabolites accumulate from the alactic pathway - inorganic phosphate buildup hinders muscle contraction. As it becomes more inefficient the body mobilizes increasing amounts of glucose to strip off those two ATP, "discarding" the rest, much of which will ferment into lactate. This triggers more hypertrophy and mitochondrial biogenesis locally in the depleted muscles, and increased activation of the Cori cycle also triggers system wide anabolism. Increased mitochondria in the slow twitch fibers improves the body's ability to convert lactate back to pyruvate, and to recharge PCr stores.

TL;DR heavier weights for some of this work better as hypertrophy depends in part on overloading the alactic pathway. Cluster Sets and Rest/Pause work best with a fixed load, Cluster allow for more volume.

If you're not in a hurry, many programs will work as long as you diligently increase loading or shrink rest periods. The gains will be primarily in the muscles most recruited by the given movement patterns. Nutrition and increased demand.
 
Would be nice to have a list with the different programs out there and a picture with the estimated results obtained by different users...
 
Eyetic said:
Would be nice to have a list with the different programs out there and a picture with the estimated results obtained by different users...
Click to expand...
The list would be LONG. Allmost any program could be tweaked to be a hypertropy program.
Dont overthink if the program is mostly for strenth or hypertrophy. Just find a program you like and work hard. If you eat alot you will gain.
 
TedDK said:
The list would be LONG. Allmost any program could be tweaked to be a hypertropy program.
Dont overthink if the program is mostly for strenth or hypertrophy. Just find a program you like and work hard. If you eat alot you will gain.
Click to expand...
I know, different people gets different results but you can get an idea of the outcome of each program is as we know how a Girevoy, waterpolo, cyclist, or every other sport player normally looks like.

Obviously ain't easy and mostly ain't exact as there are tons of other things as you said diet, rest, genetics involved :)
 
One Arm Presses & Swings will get you where ever you need to go hypertrophy-wise.

Pavel wrote in an article a few years ago:
Red zone.
5x5 One Arm Presses.
100 Swings S&S style.
Followed by 5x5 One Arm Presses.
3x a week.

At the moment I do Presses nearly every day. Either 1,2,3 for a few sets or 2,3,5,(10). Kneeling or standing. And I hike alot.
My upper body has grown alot just from the presses.

Hopefully that helps.
 
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