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Kettlebell Preserving muscle on S&S?

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Giant - which I now realize I bought. Is a clean and press program. Is that enough?

I like to add more leg work to the Giant in the form of KB front squats, but I have a sport-specific needs to make sure my squat doesn't degrade.

Lots of other forum members seem to make Giant their main routine as written.
 
I like to add more leg work to the Giant in the form of KB front squats, but I have a sport-specific needs to make sure my squat doesn't degrade.

Lots of other forum members seem to make Giant their main routine as written.
I still play in a competitive men’s softball league. Leg work is important to me for sure. Seems like adding front squat makes sense. The clean hits the posterior chain with the swing part of it.
 
I still play in a competitive men’s softball league. Leg work is important to me for sure. Seems like adding front squat makes sense. The clean hits the posterior chain with the swing part of it.

Dry Fighting Weight has squats built into the programming if you want something a bit more 'off the shelf'.

 
Looking into Dry Fighting Weight. It’s clean and press and front squat. I would add chin-ups and push-ups once a week but would that cover it? I think it could. Has anyone done dry fighting weight?
Easy muscle is a good option that is similar to the Giant but includes other exercise options like squats, chin-ups, or ring dips.
 
Giant - which I now realize I bought. Is a clean and press program. Is that enough?
Dude honestly, if you are looking at a program to retain muscle in a cut, do a program made for that. C&P probably is “enough”, it’s definitely not terrible, but if you’re after classic aesthetic muscle looks, then you don’t need minimalism, you need to hit the muscles enough to create a growth stimulus. You’re experienced so you know that.

You’re going to do chins, push-ups and OHP too. Good stuff.

It’s new to you as a program, give it a whirl, let us know if it works.
 
@jmoran01
I think you will not be disappointed by @Geoff Neupert 's programs here.

Maybe he can recommend the best plan for maintaining muscle mass while cutting.

He has KB Burn and KB Burn Extreme as focused programs, which might work well here. And Easy Muscle also sounds like a great fit. Dry Fighting Weight too.
 
To a large degree, it depends on the weight you're using (and to a certain degree on your nutrition). You already have a fairly high volume.

Depending on how heavy the weight you use, not only can you preserve but in my experience build some decent amount of muscle.

During the last 6 months of my training towards sinister I was in one of the best shapes of my life - doing an average of 500 Swings and 50 Get Ups per week, with an average weight of 48kg in both lifts (44kg-light, 48kg-medium, 56kg-heavy).
 
Isn’t it interesting? You can observe the changes in body comp real-time when using minimalist routines. Always something slipping through the cracks, however small.
It definitely was interesting. I figured on some mass loss from not benching or squating heavy. But the hypertrophy on my abs was unexpected.
 
I’m on day 2 of S&S because I figured I should start running it and see how I feel. Plus I traveled for thanksgiving and have one 16 kg KB.

I hit the time standards to go up a bell but form was not perfect. So will stay on this for the week.

Early observations are shoulders are sore. There’s definitely TUT with the TGU. Body feels good overall. I think the magic might be in the consistency. Doing it every day.

I definitely think with proper nutrition this will cause fat loss. I think if I supplemented with pull ups, it would hit every muscle just about enough to keep a lot of muscle with S&S. Also maybe I should run it for a while because I never have.
 
To a large degree, it depends on the weight you're using (and to a certain degree on your nutrition). You already have a fairly high volume.

Depending on how heavy the weight you use, not only can you preserve but in my experience build some decent amount of muscle.

During the last 6 months of my training towards sinister I was in one of the best shapes of my life - doing an average of 500 Swings and 50 Get Ups per week, with an average weight of 48kg in both lifts (44kg-light, 48kg-medium, 56kg-heavy).

That’s impressive and great to know. I think that I’m starting with a 16 kg KB I have room to go with S&S. I can always add in something once a week to maintain too. S&S doesn’t take long which is also great as a busy dad.
 
As a busy dad if you're pursuing timed simple I would definitely say S and S+fighter pull-up or S and S+iron cardio

If you do either and eat ample protein and calories you will definitely look like you touch iron
 
I’m on day 2 of S&S because I figured I should start running it and see how I feel. Plus I traveled for thanksgiving and have one 16 kg KB.

I hit the time standards to go up a bell but form was not perfect. So will stay on this for the week.

Early observations are shoulders are sore. There’s definitely TUT with the TGU. Body feels good overall. I think the magic might be in the consistency. Doing it every day.

I definitely think with proper nutrition this will cause fat loss. I think if I supplemented with pull ups, it would hit every muscle just about enough to keep a lot of muscle with S&S. Also maybe I should run it for a while because I never have.
Hi, it sounds as if you are looking to the old version of S&S which I think had times tests. The latest S&S that I have read, lays down a clear step loading scheme, you don’t need to hit timed reps to go up in the weight.

Ps: I don’t know the older version of S&S, so sorry if I am making a wrong comparison.

Best.
 
Maybe he can recommend the best plan for maintaining muscle mass while cutting.

He has KB Burn and KB Burn Extreme as focused programs, which might work well here. And Easy Muscle also sounds like a great fit. Dry Fighting Weight too.
KB Burn is a great option that comes with a fantastic nutrition guide as well.

You will be miserable at the end of every workout though... but it works great!
 
I've used S&S on a cut twice and both times lost muscle.

The most recent time was 2021. I used the Giant and went from 78 to 88kg over about 7 months, with pullups and squats added in the way outlined in one of Geoff's newsletters. Those were the best gains of my life. When I switched back to S&S I lost most of the muscle I had gained, though I was very lean. Was using 40 for swings and 32 for TGU for reference.
 
KB Burn is a great option that comes with a fantastic nutrition guide as well.

You will be miserable at the end of every workout though... but it works great!
Brilliant advice...

This plan also helps you upkeep any progress you made in your swings and getups .

My personal experience with it is I actually got my getups so strong after running KB burn (if memory serves me right I unlocked 2 consecutive on my left with a 44kg for the first time and also 4 sets of s and s style getups with a 50kg)
 
If I was deep diving into the base version of S&S (not extra plans like SF endurance plan 260) I would sprinkle in Iron Cardio twice a week... That should be enough stimulus to maintain muscle IMO
 
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