So… it’s “Workout Wednesday” all around the internet… or at least that’s what the popular Twitter hashtag would have us believe. All of YOU know that we don’t just work out on Wednesday, but hey… its a good enough day as any to talk about it. And we certainly have a lot of fun things to talk about today!
First of all, if you haven’t already checked out the new RKC Blog Post today from Senior RKC Steve “Coach Fury” Holiner (who is actually a really mellow dude… despite that nickname) then go do that right now by clicking here. He’s also included a neat video. Not content to do things as they are written, I took what he had there and made it into a special workout for my small group, who like every collection of human beings (myself included) could always stand to work on and practice the kettlebell snatch. Steve uses a couple of nerdy metaphors, one of which is from the 1984 classic movie The Karate Kid. Yes, I did jokingly say “Very good, Daniel-san!” to someone in class. And yes they did laugh. Fortunately I made sure to say this when they were NOT holding a kettlebell. Safely first, people, safety first.
SO! Now that you are back from reading Steve’s blog and watching his video, this next part should make perfect sense to you! Here’s the version we did to really drill down with our technique while getting a great workout at the same time:
We warmed up with some joint mobility then got right into a warm up circuit to get us into the right mental state for Steve’s plan…
Timed Circuit, 8 rounds of 20 seconds work, 10 seconds rest… remember “where you are” in the sequence so you can keep going after the rest time is over (use a moderate kettlebell, I used one size up from what I’d be required to use for an RKC snatch test, so for me that means 16kg):
- 1 kettlebell front squat
- 1 one-arm kettlebell swing
- 1 kettlebell high pull (the kind you do as a lead up drill to the snatch.. not that weird grab from the ground thing…)
- switch arms, repeat until the 10 seconds rest, remember to start back where you left off in the sequence.
After that I explained Steve’s cool “paint the fence” drill and we practiced that a little while enjoying some water, taking a break. Then everyone selected a “reasonably heavy” kettlebell (for small, highly trained women this means something like 24kg+, but whatever is comfortable, but also heavy enough to really make you work on low reps!) and a kettlebell that was either appropriate for their level, or the one they’d use in a kettlebell snatch test situation. Here’s more about dead swings, aka “dead stop swings” in case you need a refresher! We did two rounds of Steve’s circuit, adding the “paint the fence” drill in at the end:
- Heavy kettlebell two hand dead stop swings: 5 reps
- Kettlebell snatches (with the lighter kettlebell!) 5 each side
- Heavy kettlebell two hand dead stop swings: 3 reps
- Kettlebell snatches 8 each side
- Heavy kettlebell two hand dead stop swing: 1 rep
- Kettlebell snatches 10 each side
- Steve’s “Paint the Fence” drill (no weight) and rest as needed
Next we did a “fun” variation of the plank row using ONE kettlebell (this gave the added challenge of an uneven push up!) Push up position, but with one hand on the snatch test size kettlebell, do a push up, then (with feet spaced wide if you need to) do a row with that same kettlebell. That’s one rep for that side.
We did a descending ladder:
5 on the right, 5 on the left
4 on the right, 4 on the left
…all the way down to…
1 on the right, 1 on the left
We ended with some heavy kettlebell carries, rack position right, then rack position left, then one hand at a time farmers walks.
Joint mobility cool down and we all rushed off for showers and dinner!!!!!
As promised here’s another small combo that you can do with a kettlebell. It’s also a video that I recorded when I was in Providience, RI this past weekend.
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