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Kettlebell S&S 24 to 32

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ali

ali

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Big shiney new lump of a 32 arrived today. Only seems like yesterday that my 24 arrived. I've met the goals for a 24 but want to make it easy first before moving on. Thing is  it seems very heavy and frankly a bit scared of the damn thing. I'll approach the change one set at a time as I did from for the 24 introduction - for those of you who have done this, is there anything I should be forewarned about? Extra insurance? I would never have thought that I would even think about a 32 let alone need to buy one, the stuff works. Thanks Pavel. Oh and I need new jeans and a new belt for my old jeans to keep them up. Didn't see that coming either and my food bill has gone up to match my ravenous appetite. Where was that on the S&S disclaimer Pavel, eh? Superb.
 
Alistair, enjoy your new 32 kg. Just start easily – do some sets with the 24, then introduce a single set of two-handed 32 kg swings into your schedule, then go back to the 24 to finish. Adjust gradually, never finish any set you can’t finish in good form – that means put the bell down after 5 reps if that’s what you need to do – and enjoy your increasing strength.

-S-
 
Listen to Steve, he gives good advice. Maybe meet with an SFG once or twice to ease the transition. You're doing the right thing going straight to that bell, respect it, but use it, and in no time you'll be using it for everything.
 
Right on, Alistair!  I'm more or less there with you right now.  I was pretty intimidated by the 32 the first time I used it for a get-up.  I was shocked by how controlled it was when I started to move.  I don't do single handed swings with the 32 yet, but I use it for half of my get-ups.
 
I made the jump from the 24 to the 32 and it was not as bad as I expected. I was cautious, so slowed way down. For swings I scaled back to doing a set at the top of every minute, and adding in sets with the 32 one at a time. For the swings it might feel like it's going to rip your arm off. Grip it much, much harder than the 24 and keep that shoulder packed. Add some sets, and then take a few steps back. It took me about 7 or 8 sessions to work up to doing all of the sets with the 32. Once I got there then I started working the time down.

For me the swings and get ups progressed at about the same rate. For the get ups my biggest tip would be to move slow. When you get good with the 24 you can start to take the movement for granted. As the weight goes up, so too must your focus.
 
Becareful not to tear your calluses while your grips adjust. Thats been my problem going from 24 to 32.
 
Alistair - I honestly could have written just about the same exact thing.

I just got mine late last week. I had it delivered to the office and it's been staying there. I'm just trying to GTG sets of swings throughout the day right now. Most are 2-handed, but I work in a set of 5L/5R every once in a while.

I hope to bring it home soon and start to work it into my regular S&S workouts, if I can do them on a regular basis. My home life is a wreck right now, so my S&S workouts are sporadic.

The swings are easier than I thought they would be, but I'm being careful - especially for those 1-handed sets. I don't want to launch it across the office, or slam it onto the floor on the downswing.

The TGU was also not too bad. I just did one rep on each side. I got a complete rep with the right, but only got "up" on the left.

I also thought about just jerking it overhead and doing timed holds a time or two per day. However, it's pretty heavy for that and I'm having a hard time getting it overhead and stable, so I may not do that very often.

I also agree with Scott. My grip isn't quite strong enough to just hook it with my fingers (1-handed). So, I tend to grip it a little deeper, and get on the inside (palm-side) of the callouses, which can probably cause them to bunch and possibly tear. It hasn't felt like that's going to happen yet, but it might when I get into higher-rep sets.
 
Great everyone, thanks for the replies. So, couple of 2 handed sets peppered in with 1 handed 24s, at what point do you switch to 1 handed For the 32? I'll need to get psyched up a bit first. Like you Jason worried about wrecking your office, I'm concerned for my conservatory window! Thanks again
 
A good guideline is when you don't have to catch your breath and your hands do not feel like they are going to rip from swinging the 32
 
I was going to write a post this morning about my first session with my new 32Kg kettlebell but you've beaten me to it ;) so I'll just respond here instead.

I started S&S in December last year with the 16 for get ups and the 24 for swings - mostly two handed. I'd just finished some rehab work on my shoulder which had been holding me back for the previous year which was very frustrating. I'm 41 and I weigh 76Kg.

Because I was wary of my shoulder I spent a week with just the 16 just to make sure it would hold up and then started adding in one set of get ups with the 24 as per the example progression in the book. Doing the get up with the 24 was a bit shaky at first and to be honest I had difficulty believing I could progress, but I stuck with the process. Once I felt confident with that set with the 24, which usually took about a week, I'd add another set in. By mid to late February I was doing all getups with the 24, and all swings sets were one handed with the 24. I had/have the  problem where I'm wanting to test myself every session and get all my swings in under 5 min, but I'm learning that I'm better served having some days where I don't go so hard.

Feeling confident I ordered by 32Kg kettlebell (from Kettlebell fever in the UK), but they weren't available for a few weeks so I was stuck with the 24, even though I felt I could move on as I owned every one of my 5/5 getups and my swings felt crisp.

So all through March (which included a business trip) and the first half of April I had to stay with the 24 and not rush forward to the 32. It turns out this was really beneficial and is probably one of the best things that could have happened to me. Even though I wasn't progressing in weight, I was progressing in strength which  meant when I came to use the 32 for the first time, which I did this morning, I was able to confidently add 1 set of get ups with the 32 into my session and one set of 10/10 swings with the 32.

On my first attempt I couldn't quite get up on to my elbow, but I came back down, made sure everything was tight (which it wasn't, which was the reason for the failure) and went again, this time making it. I'm really happy about that. I also love the way the 24 feels so small and light when you go back to it after just one rep with the 32.

 

So my advice I guess is that there's no rush. There's nothing wrong with sticking with the 24 for a week or two just to bed your strength in and make sure you're ready for the next step up. Once you do go up though, make sure EVERYTHING is tight. The 32 is a lot less forgiving than the 24. Also watch your grip so your calluses don't get torn, and maybe have a practice with the 32 outside (which is what I did) if your concerned you might damage your property. Once your confident with it go back indoors.

Sorry the post is so long but I just had to share because I'm quite excited!
 
No reason to apologise john, share and share alike. Hearing all experiences  is what makes this forum so valuable, from seasoned practitioners and people going through or just been through a similar journey, it all matters and is all so helpful. I'm quite excited too, feel as if I got a new bike for christmas! It's just a lump of iron. It's an odd thing.
 
Good contributions here. I remember when I bought the 32kg last year, I could hardly drag it out of the shop. A year later, it feels pretty light when doing get-ups and swings. I'm now trying to replicate this with the 40kg. Similar feeling: how on earth will I master this, but then you just do it, up the reps and sets, and one day you realise it's not too bad after all...

Just stick with the programme, it works!

 
 
I made the mistake of pushing forward with 2 handed swings only through the 32 and the 40, convinced that I wouldn't be able to do a single hand swing with the 32 until I was comfortable w 2hand swings at the 40 level.  then after reading over and over in the forum that S&S is a program of 1H swings and getups I finally got my head straight and started working through my singles.  this was just 2 weeks ago.  at first with the 32 my left hand grip was not secure enough to do 10 reps, but my right was, though my form was not sound.  I kept looking back at the book and re-setting my head.  my sets would look like 6L, 10R, 4L, rest 5L, 10R, 3L, 2L,  rest 5L 10R, 3L, etc until I made my 100. this was taking 12 to 15mins.  my getups were dialed in with the 40 already so the 32 felt like a break and I took that break often, to work on technique and slowing everything down.  my get-up sets were 32,40, 32, 40, 32.  sometimes I would do all 40s sometimes all 32s - I am still working the same way. twice in the last 2 weeks, I took a day "off" where I went back to the 24 for swings and getups to refresh. my last 2 sessions, yesterday and this morning, were my first training sessions where I was able to do 10L/10R all the way through.  i'm thrilled, literally thrilled, but of course it's just a quiet smile I share with myself, inside my head i'm doing back flips.  but the swing session still takes just over 8 minutes.  so now it's the slow and joyful grind to 5 minutes, which I am hoping to get to within the next few weeks.  then its another month or so of really dialing it in with the 32.  then I get to mix that 40 in and I am really looking forward to it.  having gotten myself straight with the 32 my confidence for moving up to the 40 is through the roof, just start slow and take the small improvements and enjoy the process.  I reference the S&S and ETK manuals every day for a few minutes and continue to find things I was missing, probably because I wasn't ready to absorb it.  i'm excited for you Alistair, your about to get so much stronger!  enjoy.
 
I would not spend too much time with two hand swings; they are very different than one hand swings. Getting much better at two handed swings does not always lead to improvement in the one handed version. If you are following S&S by the book, it says “when your one arm swing is solid, it will be the only version you will be using.” Since you have been on the program for a while, you should be pretty comfortable with the swings.
 
I transitioned to the 32 back in January; it definitely took some getting used to, especially on the swings. Just 3 weeks ago I finally got all 10 sets with the 32, and they're starting to feel much more crisp and my grip doesn't give out anymore. The get-ups progressed much faster for me with the 32, though. I banged out 10 in 10 within just two months of practicing with it.

Now, I've been practicing my get-ups with the 40 and am having a much more difficult time than I was when transitioning to the 32. My first attempt at pressing the 32 at the beginning of the get-up was successful - not quite so on the 40. So I decided to press it with both hands and do the negative at the end single-handed in the hopes it will help with the press. We'll see...

Last week I started helping a friend start S&S with the 16. After he left my house, I laughed to myself: I could hardly believe that the 16 was hard for me too just a very short time ago. It's crazy how well this program works!
 
Hello everyone,

I have a question.

Recently I just started adding the 32 kb to my training sessions. Just a couple of sets of double hand swings and get ups.

Unfortunately, the handle of my competition 32 kb is way too thin. It is only 1.29 inches in diameter. This gives me calluses at the edge of my palm during getups. I also tried a couple of one arm swings the other day and they felt very uncomfortable, like I can't really get a good grip on it.

I am wondering if I should get an iron cast kettlebell with a thicker handle or if I should just keep working with this one. My main concern is not being able to grip it well during one arm swings.
 
I've just finished progressing to the 32 for all my reps.

The swings have been going OK, but I have had to start using chalk to stop callus pinching and I really have to keep the calluses down using a pumice stone and hot water a few times a week.

I found the TGU a much more daunting progression, 32kg still feels heavy, if I ever feel I am getting wobbly then I switch back to a lighter bell for the rest of the session.

Pnigro - I love the cast iron bells - mainly for aesthetics, but mine takes chalk really well.
 
Pnigro, about that competition kb of 32 kg that you bought. Firstly, your grip will adjust to it, you can be sure of that. You can't imagine what your hands can get dexter at. Basically, competition kbs are adapted to one-hand handling. Secondly, cast iron kbs are generally cheaper than the competition ones by some 20%, but the quality of finishing is really uncertain. I bought a cast iron 32kg kb two years ago, from Germany, and the handle was so uneven that I had to polish it with sandpaper.
 
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