Kettlebell Not so Simple and Sinister

[Bigtim27]

Today was day 1 of Simple and Sinister and it was not so easy. The swings went ok although I think I underestimated how taxing 100 one arm swings are when you’re not exactly in shape. The get ups were a mess. I need to really work on them. 1 day down sooooo many more to go!

 

[John Locke]

maybe you can start with 2 hand swings instead og one arm ones

 

[Steve Freides]

@Bigtim27, welcome to the StrongFirst forum. Always better too little than too much, especially when starting out. Try doing only 20 swings instead of 100, or doing only 2-handed as @John Locke suggested and, even then, do fewer. A lot of this:

A Conversation with Pavel Tsatsouline About Improving Calisthenic Performance and Failure

Pavel Tsatsouline was instrumental in building a revolutionary fitness programming method from Russia to the U.S. in the late 1990s and early 2000s

www.military.com

would be applicable to your situation.

-S-

 

[LejonBrames]

I believe in the book he says not to start with 1 hand swings immediately. I can't remember if it's emphasized as much in 2.0, but it was certainly the case in the first edition.

 

[offwidth]

@Bigtim27
Also, welcome.
You've made an important first step. Take your time and safely enjoy the journey.
It's important to learn good technique from the get-go. It's safer, and it will enhance your experience and progress.
Much easier to learn good technique than to unlearn it...
I often advise folks to take a SF KB course, or work with an instructor. More challenging to do during these strange times, but there are some instructors who will work with a person online, and that might be an option for you.
Again, welcome...

 

[Mo04]

I started Simple & Sinister this week.

So far I've been sticking to 2H swings: 5 sets of 10 reps, so only 50 swings in total.

I'm planning to increase this to 7 or 8 sets in a week or so. So 70 or 80 swings in total.

And then finally to 10 sets about a week after that (100 swings daily).

Once I've comfortably done a week (or two) of 100 reps of 2H swings, I'll start swapping a few 2H swings with 1H swings in each set - every week trying to do a few more 1H swings than the prior week.

 

[Chrisdavisjr]

When I first started out I was following the Program Minimum laid out in Enter the Kettlebell: setting a timer for 12 minutes (10 minutes would be plenty of time, though) and doing as many decent quality sets of swings as I could within the time. Never more than 10 swings per set and taking as much active rest (light jogging on the spot or just walking, depending on how I was feeling) as I needed to ensure that the quality of the repetitions was consistent.

I know that S&S has superseded the older book but I found that focusing completely on rep quality and not counting sets was very useful to me in the early days to ensure that I wasn't wearing myself out or compromising the quality of my movement in order to get the workout finished. I'd recommend it to beginners who are still getting to grips with the form or anyone who's pushed for time.

 

[KimoSabe]

I think you should read the book again. You're not supposed to start with 10x10 swings and 10 getups if you're a beginner or out of shape.

 

[GeoffreyLevens]

focusing completely on rep quality and not counting sets was very useful to me

Words to live by/train by...always! I think even for seasoned veterans unless training specifically for a flat out, max effort in something. And sort of max effort output is for competition, not sustainable for the long haul.

 

[Oso Rojo]

Today was day 1 ...

Tomorrow is day 2! I started the same way. I know a lot of people are saying go back and read the book. One thing I've learned over the last 18 months is that everything is negotiable. I learn the get up from watching a teacher hammer on the leg sweep. Now you see that most people are moving the foot in stead. I still love Pavel quote on Enter The Kettlebell, "From here, how you get up is your business." I may have miss quoted a bit but the intent is correct.

Make sure your form is correct and keep consistent. Remember that progress is made in bed and at the table. Get your rest and keep your diet on track to support you in this journey!

 

[Markos]

I've been at this for a little over a month.

Got to doing 10/10 2H swings @ 50 lbs and feeling pretty good about it, plus 10 GU's @35lbs

So I felt like this was a good time to have a certified SFG come and help. He teaches me 1-handed swings and recommends I use the 35lb and try to meet the timed standard before moving up.

Well let me say these 1H swings are no joke. I am much more sore in places I've never been sore before when I was doing the 2-handed @ 50 lbs. Wow. Grip, feet, glutes... Time to stretch.

 

[Markos]

I mean now I know why people train 3x/week. Just started on these 1H's last week and I really felt like 4 sessions in 7 days was all my body could handle.

Kinda pushed out the schedule for how long it'll take to meet simple standards. But we'll see...

 

[Oso Rojo]

In the lighter weights I could swing every day. But as things got heavy I was able to get the workout done but I just wasn't recovering enough for every day. I'm at 40kg right now and it beats my old body down hard. So I moved to 3 days a week to aid recovery. For a young kid they could stay everyday with heavy bells but us older guys need recovery time, hahahaha.

 

[jhpowers]

@Oso Rojo I'm curious. How old are you? I'm 51.

I did S & S a few years ago and got to simple, but even with the 28 & 32 kg. I felt like training 5-6 times a week left me feeling beat up. I've been doing other things and am just restarting S&S, but am wondering about the frequency.

 

[mar2safety]

@Oso Rojo I'm curious. How old are you? I'm 51.

I did S & S a few years ago and got to simple, but even with the 28 & 32 kg. I felt like training 5-6 times a week left me feeling beat up. I've been doing other things and am just restarting S&S, but am wondering about the frequency.

I achieved Simple Timeless last month. At the start of S&S with the 16kg I could train 5/6 days a week no problem. As the weights progressed, my recovery time increased. By the time I was using the 32kg exclusively I was down to 3, maybe 4, days a week. All the time I kept thinking (it's the long-game), no need to rush, if I needed more recovery I took it.

A big game changer for me was using a HR monitor. I used that instead of the 'talk-test'. After a set I would rest until my HR was below 100. I could easily pass the talk test at that point. I religiously did this from the start until Timeless Simple. The overall time a session took was a good indicator of needing recovery. If a session took 5 mins longer than usual, it was a good sign I needed a day off.

 

[Nacho]

This is an update video for my one arm swing form for the 32 kg.

@Oso Rojo I'm curious. How old are you? I'm 51.

I did S & S a few years ago and got to simple, but even with the 28 & 32 kg. I felt like training 5-6 times a week left me feeling beat up. I've been doing other things and am just restarting S&S, but am wondering about the frequency.

Im 34 and with 28kg I could do 5-6 sessions a week if using 2h swings every other or third session, but once the 32kg only joined the game, I had to cut the frequency bit by bit. There is something about that bell...

 

[Oso Rojo]

@Oso Rojo I'm curious. How old are you? I'm 51.
/QUOTE]
Just turned 58, been swing for S&S about 16 months. I've got a busted knee healing so the TGU was/is still back at 24kg. I don't know if I'll get to 48kg, but 40kg is getting better and better. I definitely can't jump weight up here as I could down in the 20s.

 

[Bigtim27]

Today was day three. Much better than day 1. Today I did 100 2h swings with my 28kg and it went well. I wouldn’t say it was easy but it wasn’t hard either. My get ups are still a work in progress. I can do them with a 16 kg I’m just having a hard time transitioning with sweeping the leg under.

 

[offwidth]

Today was day three. Much better than day 1. Today I did 100 2h swings with my 28kg and it went well. I wouldn’t say it was easy but it wasn’t hard either. My get ups are still a work in progress. I can do them with a 16 kg I’m just having a hard time transitioning with sweeping the leg under.

Have you tried dialing in your TGU technique with a shoe, prior to moving to a KB?

 

[LoneRider]

Safety first, man.

Look at the chapter titled Don't Work Out, Practice chapter: It prescribes, post a good warm-up, 10-15 minutes of practicing each lift with 5-10 reps of swings and singles of getups. Try that out.