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Kettlebell S&S for SENIORS (recovery)

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Rick Straker

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Hi, I'm curious if "seniors" typically need more recovery time between S&S practices?

(Or just play it by ear, based on energy level the days following workouts?)
 
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Hi Rick I don’t ha e an answer for you but I am starting S&S today at 58 y.o. Some I am curious also.
 
Just do what you can. Start light. Don't be a hero. Follow the instructions in the book.
I've only missed two days so far this month. One because I slept in. And one because I helped the in laws move. Some days I'm only getting 3-4 hours sleep. Best days are 7 hours.
 
Listen to your body. If you know you have certain injuries/weaknesses, modify your expectations as necessary. (My shoulders have been a problem area much of my life. While they've gotten stronger with Turkish Get Ups, I know that being too aggressive with my progress is not prudent for me.)
 
Hi, I'm curious if "seniors" typically need more recovery time between S&S practices?

(Or just play it by ear, based on energy level the days following workouts?)
In general terms yes. But there are going to be outliers and for those folks it's going to be more individualistic.
I am 62+, I do S&S almost daily, along with a boatload of other stuff...
 
I would love to hear more about this too. In the book Pavel says the S&S protocol it is for all age groups, but I am old enough to know that recovery gets harder as we age. Maybe the key is to keep the weights easy enough and the progressions slow enough that you never have a “hard day.” This is the principle of S&S for all age groups. But it is likely even more important for gentlemen and women of a certain age.
 
I think it has to do with stress vs. recovery. Not age, directly.

Consider a lifelong runner. If they run 3 miles every day, can generally they run every day without a problem? Yes. But if they have only run twice in the past year, can they run 3 miles every day? No. It's not enough time for tissues to adapt, and all the other physical adaptations to occur for the body to handle running 3 miles a day. It will take some time to build up to 3 miles in even a single run, and when they get there it may take a day or two to recover from it. But when they do, it will serve as a training stimulus, and they will improve their body's ability to run.

Slow increases. Measured doses of stress, followed by adequate recovery (rest, sleep, nutrition). That's how you transform a body's ability.

It is the same with S&S. Each training session is your measured dose of stress. It is a moderate daily load; "if you don't have heavy days, you don't need light days" and rest days. It's possible to do it every day, if your dose of stress is just right, and you are recovering from it, therefore adapting to a higher level of ability.

Basically if you are progressing, you are fine. Don't worry about your age.

If you're not progressing, and you feel like the sessions are hard, and you feel better after a day off, then perhaps you are pushing too hard in each training session, or your recovery is not good enough to do it daily (due to age, life stress, hormones, or some other factor). Either back off the intensity just a bit (if you want to train every day), or back off the frequency to 3-4x/week.
 
When I started S&S as a 50 something guy 4 years ago I was doing it almost every day, but every time I got to 24kg I started getting injured. Since then I had some form checks, got some medical attention, and attended the Kettlebell and Bodyweight Courses.

Now I do just 3 days a week with 16kg, and 3 days a week with OAPU and Pistol progressions. I grease the groove with the OAPU and do 5x5 for pistols. I'm also waving the load for both modalities as recommended by my physiotherapist for kettlebells, and by the Bodyweight course.
By mixing the modalities you should find that "a change is as good as a rest" in which you feel sufficiently recovered for the next S&S workout while still practicing almost every day.

Other options I am considering is a 3 times a week routine with 3 lifts e.g. S&S plus pullups, PTTP plus squats, or Naked Warrior plus a hinge.
 
I think its a fact that seniors in general need more recovery time. In my 40's I trained 6 or 7 days.
I find in my late 50's 5 days a week works better. 3 days on, 1 off, 2 days on 1 off.
Its standard advice but don't do 2 hard days in a row.
I try for S&S MWF at a minimum, and a short, light Strength Aerobics session Tuesday and Saturday if I'm not doing other sport on those days. Thursday and Sunday off.
I agree with Anna that it's stress vs recovery but differ in that I believe that unfortunately it is also age related. You need more recovery in your 50's from an equivalent amount of stress than you would in your 30's and 40's. Once you accept that and the fact that your athletic performance potential does indeed drop off as you age, your training becomes more enjoyable.
And I say this having just come out of a complete burnout because I don't heed my own advice ;)
 
I agree with Anna that it's stress vs recovery but differ in that I believe that unfortunately it is also age related. You need more recovery in your 50's from an equivalent amount of stress than you would in your 30's and 40's. Once you accept that and the fact that your athletic performance potential does indeed drop off as you age, your training becomes more enjoyable.

^This.^ I’ll be 71 in June and I am fortunate to get in 3 solid S&S sessions in a week. I monitor HRV (Garmin Body Battery) carefully and all sorts of stresses (seasonal allergies, poor sleep common for us geezers, cold, heat, etc.) make exercise recovery challenging.

I don’t worry about it a lot anymore, though. My goals are simple and mostly focus on just showing up and maintaining solid function, which I do. My daily activities are OS resets (religiously) and walking the dog a lot. That and a few S&S sessions pretty much constitute my week and keep me where I need to be.

I’m not training for the Olympics.
 
Now more than any other time, regardless of training history or athletic performance parameters, we need to all adapt to a new normal. In many ways, of course. Training wise, never has the phrase less is more been so appropriate.
 
^This.^ I’ll be 71 in June and I am fortunate to get in 3 solid S&S sessions in a week. I monitor HRV (Garmin Body Battery) carefully and all sorts of stresses (seasonal allergies, poor sleep common for us geezers, cold, heat, etc.) make exercise recovery challenging.

I don’t worry about it a lot anymore, though. My goals are simple and mostly focus on just showing up and maintaining solid function, which I do. My daily activities are OS resets (religiously) and walking the dog a lot. That and a few S&S sessions pretty much constitute my week and keep me where I need to be.

I’m not training for the Olympics.

Thats impressive! I aspire to be as active and consistent at your respecful age!
 
Rick, I would be very careful about "playing it by ear, based on energy level." Too often you may hear a whiney body looking to get out of a practice session. I stopped doing the old S&S about 6 years ago due to an injury. Back then I used to try to attain the time standards every practice session. Progress was slow. It was hard but doable. But then I was a young, snot-nosed kid in my early 70's, so what did I know?

After bouts of ladders reloaded, Strong, A+A, and Q&D, I started S&S 2.0 about 3 months ago and am loving it. At 77 years of age I do it 6 days a week and follow it as written. Not following a time standard and using the new excellent progressions for adding weight makes recovery tailorable every session. On days when I feel a little less than ideal, I can easily switch from one hand to two hand swings and/or take a little more time to recover. Reluctance to start exercising is quickly overcome after a few sets.

I would also add that as a senior you need to work hard on developing the best form possible. Try to make improvements after each set. Use a journal to record your sessions and mark areas for improvement for the next time. This is a key to progress. I had neglected flexibility exercises for too long and going back to the TGU was hard. I invested a full month of doing them "naked" (i.e. with a slipper) until my form returned before even adding KBs. Set ego aside and work with a size KB that you can do with great form. As form improves, your ability to move up in KB size will also increase. Do the S&S flexibility exercises and any others you may need. Life for a senior is a perpetual battle against rigor mortis. You can still progress at increasing strength and fitness although maintaining what you already have may also be viewed as a victory.

I find that taking daily walks or ruck marches adds energy. Make these easy; only 20 to 50 minutes can be quite effective. Between sets of S&S I also do OS resets and/or Fast and Loose which seem to help. Make sure you are doing the 2.0 version of S&S.

Good luck! Patience and perseverance.
 
A big part of my recovery has included dietary changes. I started experimenting with the Carnivore Diet last year and have been there for most of that time. Early on, I found that lots of eggs helped, but that seemed to taper off after a while (I'm down to 6 eggs/d, usually just yolks). But in the past several months working S&S almost daily, I've found the single best predictor of low soreness (never none) is whether or not I had some bone broth after my workout. I usually do my swings fasted, and in between sets get my bone broth ready for my wife & I. I'll then have one glass full (12-16 oz or so) and then not eat for another hour or two. This seems to be the special sauce that has kept me going since I started implementing bone broth around February this year (started back on S&S in January). I was able to go from 20/24::6/4 to 4/6 in 2 weeks. While that trend didn't hold up for 2/8 (just started), I can say that the upper body soreness isn't as great in the morning. As soon as I start doing halos & prying goblet squats, my body actually feels primed to do swings and getups.

I've also found taking a nap during the day helps. 20-40 minutes. And every now and again, I've learned to look at the bells and say "not today" and walk away knowing that I'll knock it out better tomorrow than if I even tried it today.
 
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