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Kettlebell Simple, heart rate, reps and sets

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SunStrong

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Greetings,
This is my first post here, I’ve been really impressed with all of the information I’ve read so far. Please forgive me if this topic has been covered...

I am doing Simple right now, 2.5 weeks in. I usually swing 55# and tgu 45#.
Today I was pressed for time so I tried to squeeze in a session in 20 minutes. I did 60 swings at 45#, and 10 tgu at 45#. This evening I read this article about heart rate and simple and sinister Simple & Sinister + Heart Rate Training | StrongFirst. When I looked at my heart rate data from that session, I noticed the my heart rate peaked at target for a moment, but the majority of the work was well under target. I did not rest very much between sets and some of them I did 20 reps on the swing. My question is, can you do more reps in a set if you’re not hitting target heart rate? Is that still antiglycotic?
I know this isn’t the way simple is supposed to be, this is the first time I lowered my bell weight and didn’t do 100 swings, but I felt like I needed to do the session because I was a little toasted yet still wanted some active recovery.
Regards,
Michael


Target HR 140
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My question is, can you do more reps in a set if you’re not hitting target heart rate?
As a general rule, no. Hitting your MAF HR at the end of the set is not mandatory. It's fine to peak a bit below your MAF. You could compress the rest periods a bit if you want, that would make your HR go higher.

In the example you gave, rest was already very compressed, and your HR was not peaking too high. That indicates that you could try a heavier kettlebell (which you already do).

That said, doing a session of compressed rest, reduced volume or longer sets every once in a while is perfectly fine.
 
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You can only maintain the maximum power output for a set of 10 swings. So 20 reps is always less powerful then a set of 10 reps. And we're after power.

To get a higher heartrate, grab a heavier bell, or less rest in between. Make sure you can do the talk test in between the sets and don't make it to intense everytime. Pavel Recommends one Glycotic session a week.
 
Welcome to the forum!
My question is, can you do more reps in a set if you’re not hitting target heart rate? Is that still antiglycotic?

Short answer, no. The closest thing I remember is this: Pavel has hinted at something called "glycolitic power repeats" in Q&D (Quick and Dead). You would need to rest 5 minutes between sets lasting 20-30 seconds. But this is all there is for now, as he promised to write more about it in the future. There is also a plan by Craig Marker with sets of 25 reps with a really heavy bell (48 kg) and 10 minutes of rest between sets (HIRT hypertrophy). And smart people like Peter Park do sets of 12 reps or so keeping HR under their MAF target, so it could be done to some extend.

Have you read Simple and Sinister 2.0 (revised and updated)? It is much more clear on the talk-test and the right weight and progression to choose.

Further, the Quick and the Dead is a great read. When going above 10 reps in a ballistic set, you will likely build up lactic acid.
 
" I noticed the my heart rate peaked at target for a moment, but the majority of the work was well under target. "

You also only did 60% of the exercises at a 20% reduction of weight so yes your heart rate peak will be less.

I wear a chest mounted heart rate monitor every time I train so I know my numbers are accurate. For me the first 20 swings produce a much smaller spike. I allow my rate to drop, then 20 more. The second set produces a higher peak and the height of that peak is dependent on the length of the rest period. The third and fourth sets seem to produce the highest peaks with the 5th and final set slightly lower. This is likely to less effort and a desire to be done, commonly called cheating.

I have just switched from 32 to 36 kg to all 100 of my swings are labored and I'm driving a lot of heart rate. I easily can hit against my max desired heart rate. For me at 57, I'm using 140 bpm as a training max.

So my recommendation is to get back to the heave weight and do all the reps and sets. Use your heart rate as a tachometer to how your body is performing. Have a good understanding of your red line and drive heart rate up but stay below the red line. Train hard with heavy bells and you shouldn't have any trouble driving up the heart rate.

BTW if you don't know your red line and want to know, go take a VO2 Max and they will tell you exactly. I live on Long Island and there are a couple of places around here that will do that test for $100 to $150.
 
I just went back and checked my log for my last session. My peaks where 132, 141, 133, 130, 128, my lows in between where 113, 99, 90, 102. So you can see I got more heart rate on my second set but I started without full recovery. So on the 3rd and 4th I waited for more recovery before starting the next set.

Remember this is the first time I'm doing 100 swings 4kg heavier than before. So merely getting them done was my objective. I think that session took around 13 minutes. I expect that to drop down to 6 or 7 in a couple of weeks, all the while keeping my heart rate around 130-132 at the peak.

So the heart rate just tells me how I'm doing. It gives me hard feedback on cardiac recovery. It lets me know how much gas petal I have left that I can push.
 
The set should take 15 seconds maximum. 10 reps should take about 15 seconds.

You don't want your heart rate to get high. When you do you will eventually fail to practice 6 times a week. So being below your target heartrate means you can add velocity rather than reps.
 
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