Kettlebell Strong! Program Again
- Thread starter John Grahill
- Start date
- Status
Ryan,
You could do 2 days of "Strong!" and 2 days of A+A.
Set it up like this:
Day 1: "Strong!"
Day 2: A+A
Day 3: Off
Day 4: "Strong!"
Day 5: Off
Day 6: A+A
Day 7: Off
Personally, I'd test your swings, then commit to doing 3 days a week of "Strong!" and nothing else but active recovery work on the "off" days. Then come back and test your swings again. I think you'll be surprised. Remember, being strong[er] makes everything else better.
Hope that helps.
Taro,
I wouldn't. If you ate exactly as you are now, the increased systemic demand of the "Strong!" protocol done 3 days a week is probably enough in and of itself to strip off a few unwanted pounds of body fat. @John Grahill might want to chime in here with his experience as he's run various permutations of "Strong!" over the last 7 years.
IF you were bound and determined to diet while doing "Strong!", you could always use a combo of intermittent fasting mixed with carb cycling - eat your carbs in the form of starches, on your training days only, post-workout.
Hope that helps.
Sean,
Looking better.
A few pointers:
THE CLEAN:
1) Good job pushing your chest out and keeping your head up.
2) From this position, shift your weight forward into your mid/forefoot and clean from there. This will give you a more positive shin angle on the start and by doing so, make your clean more "squatty" which will help you drive the KBs "up" instead of "out and around." It should also allow you to clean flatfooted instead of coming up on your toes, which I believe is still the SFG standard. (Please correct me if I'm wrong.)
Review the "Kettlebell STRONG!" tutorial on the clean and take a look at my set up.
THE FSQ
1) Again, better job staying upright.
2) I recommend doing some direct abdominal work combined with some t-spine mobility to get you more upright.
3) Also, brace your abs a little more before you descend and hold it throughout the squat.
4) If you're going to pause at the bottom, hold your breath "behind the shield." Don't let it go. That's for the lighter goblet squat to increase mobility/flexibility and should not be done under heavier loads, unless you want to blow your guts out of your rear end, if you catch my drift.
5) Depth: I suspect you're squatting too deep and rounding your lower back in the hole. If I watch this on super-slow speed (10%), it appears as if your current optimal depth is just below powerlifting parallel. You'll probably have to review from the side.
Hope this is helpful.
John Grahill
Level 8 Valued Member
Geoff's right. I lost body fat while doing Strong especially in the later rounds of phase 1 and even more especially in phase 2. (Phase 2 being work capacity and adding some muscle).
In my case I find there is very often a conditioning effect from muscle building protocols like phase 2 due to compressed rests.
In a nutshell, my weight went up a bit but my proportions improved. I tried to stick with a strict diet but the demands of the second phase increased my appetite. Having said that, I'm still in phase one right now and I'm hoping to drop about 5 more pounds! I'll let you know. My goal for early March is to be 200 or preferably below it. I was 202 on Friday. I'd like 197 or so to give me a little "wiggle room".....Ain't so easy to drop the pudge when you're over 50!
John Grahill
Level 8 Valued Member
....by the way, heavy-ish double bell clean and presses are hard work! They provide a lot of bang for the buck. "Strong!" delivers for double bell work like the ROP does for single bell work!
Last edited:
Gonna second on this one.
The metabolic and hormonal cascade lifting heavy does have a carryover to aesthetic purposes based on my n=3 experience
Sean M
Level 7 Valued Member
Geoff, thanks so much!
I did notice I come up on the toes in the clean (on review, I don’t notice in the moment). Probably a result of counterbalancing from too much “out and around”. I also have some barbell clean experience and drilled triple extension with that, might come naturally at that weight (135+).
I’ll brace harder (and hold) on the squat, and not go so deep. I can see some “butt wink” from the side at the very bottom, which is indicative of low back rounding (?)
Direct abdominal and t-spine work: end the session (and/or off days) with planks and one-arm rows, right? How much volume?
cmerrow
Level 6 Valued Member
@Geoff Neupert Not to detract from the program, but how effective might it be with a single ‘bell?
Not Geoff UT having followed his work for close to to years I can say it can be done but not as effective. Less total poundage, less systemic stress.
A good single bell alternative would be some of his programs in kettlebell express reloaded or kettlebell burn reloaded
Ryan Wallis
Level 4 Valued Member
Geoff,
That does help. Tremendously. What would be a good active recovery day look like? Mobility, walking, calisthenics?
John Grahill
Level 8 Valued Member
In Geoff's last "express" he had a series of programs called "The Giant" which was a single kettlebell clean and press protocol. It's for 20-30 minutes, 3x per week. I did attempt one 4 week run through one of them a couple of years ago and enjoyed it. Late last summer I asked Geoff what he thought of doing it as a double bell program. He encouraged me to try it. It was quite intense and I found it tough to recover from. (Density styled programs can be rough). I much prefer "Strong!" and that's why I recently went back to it.
lokate
Level 4 Valued Member
I like strong very much and feel realy great after it. But the day after i ask myself if i dont neef more as a martial artist. For example you read to get explosiv you have to work with a sandbag, or to get stronger you need to do pull ups, dips etc.
That makes me unsure because it seems like strong is to simple and that i need to do more.
Do you guys think its enough to do strong (I do clean and press) to get a good overal strenght and conditioning workout for martial artist?
That makes me unsure because it seems like strong is to simple and that i need to do more.
Do you guys think its enough to do strong (I do clean and press) to get a good overal strenght and conditioning workout for martial artist?
John Grahill
Level 8 Valued Member
@lokate, not a martial artist but I can tell you if you hit double cleans hard, you certainly can improve power output! Not trying to sound like a jerk, but the first half of a clean and press is a clean!
As an example after every bout of a clean and press program, my snatches get stronger!
@Hector G (another awesome guy) has a program based on the double clean and press similar to Geoff's that he designed for bjj guys and gals wherein he describes doing the clean and press for strength training and if needed concentrate on your sport on other days.
Tough to find a program that does it all....the old chasing two rabbit thing...
As an example after every bout of a clean and press program, my snatches get stronger!
@Hector G (another awesome guy) has a program based on the double clean and press similar to Geoff's that he designed for bjj guys and gals wherein he describes doing the clean and press for strength training and if needed concentrate on your sport on other days.
Tough to find a program that does it all....the old chasing two rabbit thing...
Xene
Level 6 Valued Member
Getting Brutally Strong with Double Kettlebell in Kettlebell STRONG! | StrongFirst
You, a pair of kettlebells, and one expertly executed exercise: the Clean and Press. Minimalism at its finest that delivers.
www.strongfirst.com
perfect timing!
Provx
Level 5 Valued Member
Getting Brutally Strong with Double Kettlebell in Kettlebell STRONG! | StrongFirst
You, a pair of kettlebells, and one expertly executed exercise: the Clean and Press. Minimalism at its finest that delivers.www.strongfirst.com
perfect timing!
very well written article. Look forward to see what kind of rep scheme people come up with on the modified a+a one recommendation and what kind of results people get on the new suggestions in general.
Will it be enough? Maybe.
It will also depend on how much practice you get in your martial arts training
- Status