Old Forum swings intensity - doubles vs. singles

[shawn smith]

Just for the sake of determining intensity:
I am doing 10 sets of 10 swings with a 24kg bell – this is 100 swings at 24kg or 2400kg total
If I use double 24kg bells, would the intensity be the same if I just did 10 sets of 5 swings – 50 swings total at 48kg or a total of 2400kg.
I know the math adds up, but do you guys think it equals the same intensity in reality? I am thinking I would need to about 7 swings with doubles to equal 10 swings with a single of the same weight, but am wondering if that\'s right or what you guys might think.
Thoughts?

 

[MikeMoran]

I am going to say no. A single 24kg feels like a toy to me after doing 2x24kg swings for weeks. The double swing is  a heavy duty swing that will add serious power to your singles. It does have a different grove though.

 

[Mike Provost]

No...one-arm/two-hand single bell swings and double KB swings are entirely different animals.

Do this simple test. One training day, do 5x10 One-Arm Swings with a 24k (no rest between arms). Take a one minute rest between sets (one set being both arms). Note the perceived intensity in your workout journal (I assume you keep one.)

On another training day, do 5x10 Double KB Swings with a pair of 24k's. Take a minute rest between sets, and compare the perceived intensity when done. That should answer your question better than any feedback any of us here on the forum could ever provide

 

[Steve W.]

I agree that no simple equivalency is possible. But even if it were, I'm not sure how useful it would be to know.

How many 200lb deadlifts equal a 400lb deadlift?

 

[Bill Been]

And Steve W has just illustrated the futility of trying to normalize between exercises by comparing "weight moved" in one vs the other. In this model, 1 Beast swing = 1 Beast Get Up. It's not a whole lot more useful even within the same exercise. How many 24 kilo swings could I do without stopping? Let's just say it's 100. Now how many 12 kilo swings could I do? It's essentially unlimited.