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Old Forum Why go light?

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Rob Lawrence

Rob Lawrence

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Why occasionally use a lighter kettlebell when you can already lift much heavier? I don't know the science but I'll keep it in my own experiential terms.

First, it provides some of the psychological relief you get from cycling. You know when you start a deadlift cycle over and your old "heavy" weight now seems light? You get a huge boost of confidence and belief from that. If you are always pushing forward with your KB weights, you don't get this effect. You start feeling like you're at war with the bell every time you pick it up. Not a good way to feel even if your goal is max strength.

Second, remember that force is mass TIMES acceleration. Not plus, times. Force goes up dramatically when you lift a heavier kettlebell. If you want to get to the point of doing a lot of heavy snatches, you need to condition your body for that. Going lighter and doing more reps is a good way to toughen up with lower risk. If you can't do 200 snatches with 16kg, you are not going to do it with 32kg anyway, and in attempting the latter you're going to get injured.

Third, what I'll call "consolidation of technique." A lot of good technique you only learn once you're lifting heavier. Say you were trying to press a balloon - what could you learn from that? Not much. So you work with a heavier weight and you are forced to get things perfect. So why then drop to a lighter weight? Because when you drop to a weight you can handle easily, you can examine what you're doing and what you've learned. You can't do that lifting a weight that's potentially in doubt.

I've never used DeLorme but I find it interesting for that last reason. I may give it a whirl at some point.

At times I've gone heavy, heavy, heavy all the time. I've wound up injured and burnt out. So I like heavy, but I mix it up for the above reasons.

Rob

 
 
Excellent thoughts, Rob.  I'd been training GS with the 24k's for a little while, and top out at around 36-40 jerks, and 40 snatches per arm.  Then I felt beat up all the time.  About a week and a half ago, I put them down and grabbed the 12k's.  I hit 100 jerks, then 100/100 snatches in competition sets.  I got a lot of benefits that I didn't with the 24k's- a longer cardio session, technique reinforcement, better grip endurance work, etc.  One difference that I noticed was in the jerks.  With 2 24k's, everything seems to go at once.  I work at 6 rpm, and hit a wall about six minutes in.  Working at 10 rpm with the 12k's, my shoulder endurance outlasts my legs, because I focus on the leg drive.  By the end of the set, my legs are on fire, and I have to really push that last minute out.  With the 24k's, everything gives out at once because I use too much shoulder.  Training with the 12k's is going to give me more leg endurance and power overall, because I can get more reps in and work through my lactic acid threshold.

Bud Jeffries wrote something in one of his swing articles.  He wrote about how he would work up to really high numbers with a relatively light weight, then when he tested with a heavier weight, he would set a new PR with that weight.  He would go light, heavy, light, heavy for different cycles.  His light work reinforced his heavy work.

I've been considering this approach for a GS meet I have coming up in May.  I thought about working with the 12k's through mid-February, the 16k's through mid-march, the 20k's through mid-April, then pick up the 24k's for month leading up to the meet on May 18.  Work up to some triple digits with each weight before moving on the to next.

Any thoughts?
 
Two things. i learned from Dan John that the best way to get to 100 snatches with the 24 was not to slowly build up numberswith the 24, but practice doing 100 with a progressively heavier bell. FWIW.

As far as lifting heavy things, almost everybody does more than they can recover from in their workouts once they have gone beyond the magic first year of serious training. Have found from experience that while 3 weeks on 1 week off is gospel, the optimal way to back off is to use lighter weights (60-80% of normal work sets for 60-80 of your normal volume)for the same movement to hold the groove while letting the body recover. Your week 1 will still be a little off but not near as shaky as if you do a completely different movement, which i have used extensively also, but think is better far away from a peak or if you have a little injury or tweek.
 
Jack yes, Dan is correct and that is indeed the contemporary GS methodology as well. Of course that's a strength-endurance methodology rather than a strength one.

But even when the goal is absolute strength as with the SF crowd, your second point is right on and similar to my original third point. The difference is that ego-wise, I think backing off is easier with a barbell than with a KB. People want continual progress on KB weights but that is not the way it works. As Hans and Franz said some time ago, hear me now, believe me later.
 
Steve M, I'm highly hesitant to give GS training advice. I like Bud's thoughts but for competition I'd seek advice that is perfectly GS-optimized.
 
Rob, Jack,

Thanks.  I didn't mean to hijack the thread.  The advice from Dan John makes sense, and is what I have in mind.  I find that I am strong enough for GS with 24k kettlebells, but lack the specific endurance.  My GPP is up to par, but my grip gives out in the snatch, and in the jerk it's my shoulders (heavy) or legs (light, high rep).  I second what you are saying about the ego hit.  It's hard to put down the 24k's and pick up the 12k's but that's often where the progress is found.
 
Rob,

I've recently started using the DeLorme method and like it thus far. Little tough to report accurate results as I do it 2 mornings a week, and ladders & complex in the eves 2 days a week, and a hybrid on Saturdays.
 
Matt, I've done as many as 1,000 straight swings with the 12k, sport style.  33 rpm for 30 m, switching hands every minute.  Harder than it sounds.
 
Hi Steve, I doubt I could do that, but you're giving me ideas.  Last summer I started bringing a 12 or 16 kg to the neighborhood park and mixing it up with barefoot jogging.  No-stress, daydreamy, unquantifiable feel-good cardio.  Still following the GS/3rd way discussion.  Heeyuh me now oondt ahndoohstahnd me laytuh.
 
Matt, you could work up to it.  It's definitely a different style of lifting.  For example, if you breathe with each swing, whether you do biomechanical or anatomical breathing, you'll hyperventilate.  You end up with a breathing pattern that is synched to the movement, but not in a one to one ratio.  You also learn, through sheer fatigue, more efficient ways to move.  I don't do it often, but every so often I'll do high rep swings.

 
 
I just was struck by a powerlifter and GSer having similar thoughts.  Glad to have Steve's voice on the forum.  Rob, you seem to be bilingual as far as the bells go.  I'm inefficient/biomechanical but reserve the right to change my mind.  My take is that swings don't have to be anaerobic.  Just go light enough like Steve's 1,000 reps or my unstructured fartleks.  It can be more like jogging than deadlifting.  It almost couldn't be any other way.  I can swing anywhere from 12 kg to 2/3 bodyweight.  Humans can deadlift 1,000 pounds or run 100 miles.  It's almost impossible for there not to be value in the light approach.
 
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