all posts post new thread

Kettlebell Minimum effective dose

Status
Closed Thread. (Continue Discussion of This Topic by Starting a New Thread.)
Thanks, Abdul... it's a tricky thing, the more I think about it, and something you can learn a lot from by looking both directions, backwards and forwards.

What I mean is, if you discover one day that you're not recovered (several of the "negatives" on the list) then you think back and try to figure out why. Was it the training the day before? The cumulative training load over the past week? Or something non-training related -- not enough sleep, poor diet, life stress? Then, with this information, you make changes going forward, for better recovery based on what you want to do in the future. Armed with this, you can do a challenging and effective training session and still be assured that you will recover as you want to for the next one, and the whole cycle builds upon itself to get you better results from your training program.
 
Anna C said:
Thanks, Abdul... it's a tricky thing, the more I think about it, and something you can learn a lot from by looking both directions, backwards and forwards.

What I mean is, if you discover one day that you're not recovered (several of the "negatives" on the list) then you think back and try to figure out why. Was it the training the day before? The cumulative training load over the past week? Or something non-training related -- not enough sleep, poor diet, life stress? Then, with this information, you make changes going forward, for better recovery based on what you want to do in the future. Armed with this, you can do a challenging and effective training session and still be assured that you will recover as you want to for the next one, and the whole cycle builds upon itself to get you better results from your training program.
Click to expand...
Awesome points, Anna. This is a big part of the reason why I put in how I feel at the end of my workout log (and another good reason to keep a workout log!), so I can track these kinds of things and see what has the most effect on my training motivation and intensity, and adjust accordingly.
 
A weird thing is that by tacking on one cycle of ROP before my S&S workout, I feel even more energized and feel like I recover quicker. Weird, weird, weird, weird weird! All this stuff is WEIRD!
 
@Anna C I agree awesome post! Everything you have stated about recovery I have found true for myself. My first "oh-oh, should this be a light day perhaps?" in my S&S practice is when the 12kg bell feels more like 20kg for my goblet squats. I give myself a bit of time and like you said sometimes a bit more warming up helps, or I will just do the work out, with more rest between swings and such, and call the next day a day off if I get up and feel sluggish.

And I find sleep quality is HUGE on my recovery from exercise! When I am on evenings (till midnight) on various days in my schedule (over a 14 day period) I find I need to do S&S a bit less, and sometimes feel a bit more tired when I do it (like my swings yesterday, definitley needed longer breaks between sets but still felt really good when my workout was over). Overall though, I am finding that 4 days a week is when I am making the most progress.
 
Chris Beasley said:
How do you guys gauge adequate recovery? I do not have my copy of S&S handy at the moment, but I believe it mentions that you aren't too sore or tired the next morning as a main indicator. But, I'm always tired when my alarm goes off at 5 AM :) Just curious what indicators you guys find reliable for yourselves.
Click to expand...

Retired US Navy SEAL commander Jocko Willink wrote in the book "Extreme Ownership: How US Navy SEALs Lead and Win," which he cowrote with his former platoon commander Leif Babin.

Discipline starts every day when the first alarm clock goes off in the morning," he writes. "I say 'first alarm clock' because I have three, as I was taught by one of the most feared and respected instructors in SEAL training: one electric, one battery powered, one windup. That way, there is no excuse for not getting out of bed, especially with all that rests on that decisive moment.

He explains:

The moment the alarm goes off is the first test; it sets the tone for the rest of the day. The test is not a complex one: when the alarm goes off, do you get up out of bed, or do you lie there in comfort and fall back to sleep? If you have the discipline to get out of bed, you win — you pass the test. If you are mentally weak for that moment and you let that weakness keep you in bed, you fail. Though it seems small, that weakness translates to more significant decisions. But if you exercise discipline, that too translates to more substantial elements of your life ...
 
Boosh32 said:
Retired US Navy SEAL commander Jocko Willink wrote in the book "Extreme Ownership: How US Navy SEALs Lead and Win," which he cowrote with his former platoon commander Leif Babin.
Click to expand...

I'm reading this book right now and I'm finding it a great read with lessons for military, business, and life.

Funny enough, I just watched his video on getting up with the alarm clock last night.
 
I am a big Jocko fan too but I'd like someone to ask him a question.

He preaches discipline constantly. He also says he does not get enough sleep. He wakes every single day at 4:30 or earlier. He cannot bring himself to go to bed earlier or sleep later.

How's that for discipline as far as the most important human function (sleep)?
 
Gosh we are all so similar on these forums! Like meets like! I also have 3 alarm clocks!
 
MattM said:
He preaches discipline constantly. He also says he does not get enough sleep. He wakes every single day at 4:30 or earlier. He cannot bring himself to go to bed earlier or sleep later.
Click to expand...

I keep a hammer next to my bed for the cathartic appeal of smashing my alarm clock to bits. Always up for more time in my scratcher of a morning. I'm not a morning person, a total failure. But I'm cool with that, I'm more a creature of the night. If you go to bed before 2am you are a total wimp by the way.
 
Boosh32 said:
The moment the alarm goes off is the first test; it sets the tone for the rest of the day. The test is not a complex one: when the alarm goes off, do you get up out of bed, or do you lie there in comfort and fall back to sleep? If you have the discipline to get out of bed, you win — you pass the test. If you are mentally weak for that moment and you let that weakness keep you in bed, you fail.
Click to expand...

MattM said:
He also says he does not get enough sleep. He wakes every single day at 4:30 or earlier. He cannot bring himself to go to bed earlier or sleep later.
Click to expand...

One of my life rules is: "Set the alarm for the time you want to get up and get up when it rings. The snooze button does not exist."

I don't consider this a matter of discipline but of practicality and logic. Why would I want to wake myself prematurely out of a sound sleep if I'm not going to get up? I wouldn't ask my wife, "Honey, I don't have to be up until x:00, but could you make a loud noise and wake me half an hour before? Then could you do it again eight minutes later -- and then a few times in a row after that?"

I get up at 4:00 every workday and I don't get enough sleep. Also, not a matter of discipline or point of pride. I have to be at work early, don't like to feel rushed, and like some quiet time to shower, dress, walk the dog, make and eat breakfast, have coffee, read the newspaper, and mentally prepare for my day. Maybe some would consider this discipline, but I look at it as doing things the way I prefer (as opposed to discipline being forcing yourself to do something you would prefer not to do).

I don't think there is any moral dimension to waking up in the morning. I would not like to live my life with the mindset that every moment and decision is a test that I have to pass by forcing myself to make the less pleasant choice.
 
Steve W. said:
I would not like to live my life with the mindset that every moment and decision is a test that I have to pass by forcing myself to make the less pleasant choice.
Click to expand...

Nice!.....put that one on a motivational poster!!
 
Oh, and to the OP:
If you can't do a full session on some days, can you do SOMETHING (a few sets of goblet squat or a few sets of swings or a few get ups)?

Doing a little something on a consistent basis can add up to a big boost to progress (or be solid maintenance all by itself).

@Marino's idea of squeezing in little training "snacks" whenever able is also a great strategy. Depending on circumstances, it can be possible to accumulate significant volume this way.
 
Steve W. said:
Doing a little something on a consistent basis can add up to a big boost to progress (or be solid maintenance all by itself).
Click to expand...

Been reading up on Dan John´s work quite a bit and must say he has a very sound approach to this.
 
@Steve W. - Another interesting idea. Do you think that it would work to throw in a few moderately heavy sets of snatches on days when I have minimal time? I know that it is a different "groove" but it would assist my hip hinge and still build a little overhead strength.
 
jhpowers said:
@Steve W. - Another interesting idea. Do you think that it would work to throw in a few moderately heavy sets of snatches on days when I have minimal time? I know that it is a different "groove" but it would assist my hip hinge and still build a little overhead strength.
Click to expand...

Sure. Snatch is actually a great choice because it works both the explosive hinge and the overhead support.
 
Status
Closed Thread. (Continue Discussion of This Topic by Starting a New Thread.)
Back
Top Bottom