My Journey to RKC II — Part 1: My Training

How I prepared for RKC II

A special Thank you to Master RKC, David Whitley for your instruction and encouragement in my preparation for RKC Level II!

Training Started –January 2011
1. Kettlebll trainng – 3 days per week, focusing on all level I drills
2. Sntach Test – 16kg or 20kg – performed 1x per week
3. 15:15 heavy swings for 10 minutes (20 rounds), started using 24kg, worked up to 36kg and tapered back to using 28kg.
4. 15:15 Snatches – started with 20 rounds, worked up to 80 rounds with 16kg and tapered off the last month of training

January 2011: I started learning technique on Pistol, C&J, Windmill and Bent Press

The Pistol

Performed high rep drills using TRX and agility boxes for assistance. I performed ladders 10-1 for 3 weeks. Once I was comfortable with the skill and pistol technique, I would do pistol ladders mixed with my Press / Pull training.

Bent Press , Windmill & Clean & Jerk

Learning these techniques were a little challenging and out of the box for me, but Master Level instruction from Dave Whitley, MRKC on these skills got me on the right track. I continued to practice these performing 2-3 rounds of 3-5 reps every week.

THE PULL UP & MP

March 2011 – June 2011: I continued to practice Pistol, C&J, Windmil and Bent press with a few reps per week, while my main focus was to get comfortable with a bodyweight pull up. The pull up seemed to be my biggest challenge to passing RKC Level II.

One of my goals since completing RKC Level I was to be able to perform a solid 20kg MP. Although a 20kg was not required for my bodyweight to pass level II it was personal goal for me to achieve prior to attending level II. Following the already established ETK and RTK program design, I am now able to press the 20kg. Patience to allow the program work was the hardest part!

I started my work on the Pull Up and MP in March 2011 adding a day 4 to my weekly practice. I spent two hours every Saturday following Enter The Kettlebell type program design with Press / Pull ladders. My press work consisted of 16kg single presses, 16kg double presses, 12-14kg bottoms up presses.

In between ladders I focused on FMS stability drills. I incorporated ladders of leg lowering drills with core engagement during my Press/ Pull practice.

During my last month I started to supplement my practice with a few Heavy (28kg-32kg) Get-ups / Cleans (24kg-28kg) every week.

Final Training week:

Monday – Final Press/ Pull ladders
Tuesday – 25 minutes ropes and Kettlebell Deadlifts – 30:15
Wednesday – 16 – 16kg, 4- 20kg, 2- 24kg TGU
Thursday – REST
Friday – Sunday – RKC Level II

Now it’s go time…..Stay tuned for weekend updates!

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Fireworks at Tennessee Kettlebell

Fireworks at Tennessee Kettlebell
Ok – well maybe not actual fireworks, but I thought it deemed appropriate considering the timing of this post.

We are certainly experiencing our own kind of fireworks at Tennessee Kettlebell and thrilled to have the opportunity to see such awesome results with our clients.

At Tennessee Kettlebell we are passionate about giving our clients more, more than just a good workout. Yes, we are a fitness studio and exercise is why people initially seek us out. People are getting more than just an exercise class when they commit to Tennessee Kettlebell. Our clients have many different goals. These goals range anywhere from improving body composition to improving general health to becoming better at their sport, however, we have learned that the most important aspect for every client is patterning of good habits. Our mission at Tennessee Kettlebell is to help people look better, feel better and move better by increasing mobility, stability and strength.

At Tennessee Kettlebell we are more than a monthly auto draft on your bank account, we are committed to helping you reach your goals, whatever they may be. Our group training atmosphere motivates, encourages and helps hold you accountable to keep your health a top priority. Our programming is based on proven principles from both the RKC, the standard for Kettlebell training and FMS systems. Why listen to what we have to say, here’s what some of our clients are saying about Tennessee Kettlebell.

Tennessee Kettlebell Boot Camp from Tennessee Kettlebell on Vimeo.

Tennessee Kettlebell Spotlight on Marion from Tennessee Kettlebell on Vimeo.

Tennessee Kettlebell Spot Light on Robert from Tennessee Kettlebell on Vimeo.

Untitled from Tennessee Kettlebell on Vimeo.

Weekly Practice

Pull up – do your rep max (body weight or assisted)

Heavy Get up to Standing
OH Walk
Get down
(repeat 2x per side)

Pull up – do your rep max (body weight or assisted)

Heavy hand to hand swings – 15 – 20 reps
(repeat 3x)

Double Clean & Jerk x5 (you can sub push press or military press)
Following last C&J, do 5 Front Squats (do not put bells down b/w jerks and Front Squats)

Repeat the entire sequence 3x

Enjoy, Let me know what you think!
~hd

Weekly Practice

Here a great work out for ya!

Using Kenneth Jay’s Viking Warrior Conditioning style timing 36:36 protocal:
Get three bells (light, medium and heavy), set your timer for 36 sec of work and 36 sec of rest.

Heavy Bell – two hand swing
Repeat 3x
Appropriate Bell – high pull Right
Apprpritate Bell – high pull Left
Repeat 3X
Appropriate Bell – snatch Right
Appropriate Bell – snatch Left
Repeat 3x
Push up
Repeat 3X
Jump Squats
Repeat 3x
Appropriate Bell – Hand to hand Swings
repeat 3x
Plank – 1 minute

Afterward, do some crocidile breathing – 15-20 breaths

Enjoy ~ HD
Let me know what you think….

A story a about Jenni Baker, RKC – and her Deubut on Dragon Door TV!

Congratulations to Nashville’s newest RKC’s: Jenni Baker and Drew Massey

Now official members of the RKC system AND the Iron Tamer Clan, I am so proud of you both! Having personally worked with Jenni on her training and preparation for RKC, I am so proud and excited to now share this experience with her. I have to admit that working with Jenni was not a tough task, she had an unwavering determination and definitely the skill to succeed. A quick story about just how much determination…you see Jenni did not take her training lightly, she was dedicated to continually improving right up to the week before she left. The day before she was going to leave, the students and fabulous trainers (thats us:))
at Tennessee Kettlebell made her a RKC “survival kit”. It had all the right stuff from athletic tape, to sunscreen, towels, even a little chocolate and a massage when she returned. We wanted this to be a suprise and so I sneakingly found out her work schedule and called her the morning that I was going to drop all the goodies off at the gym where she works. To my dismay and utter suprise, via text message, she told me she was on her way to the doctor as she had been up with a FEVER and COLD CHILLS all night. About an hour later she had confirmation that she had STREP! Now, Jenni was definitely ready for the Russian Kettlebell Challenge, she could hit her snatch numbers (NO PROBLEM) and her form was very solid, but did you ever wonder why you should train, train hard and train smart for your RKC Certification? Well, here you go, need I say more…you never know what the final hours hold before you depart for your RKC journey. Jenni left the following morning for a 12 hour drive from Nashville to Orlando for her RKC. She was not going to let this beat her, and that is just the way she is, she fought back and dug deep down to survive. She did everything necessary with proper nutrition, hydration and medication. Well……the rest of the story and RKC experience I will leave to Jenni Baker to tell! I must say I am so proud to call her a fellow RKC. I truly hope this will not be the experience for everyone with last minute trials and obstacles, but I will leave you with these final words. PREPARE and PREPARE TO SUCCEED!

PS – Jenni passed her sntach test – 100 reps in 5 minutes with a 16kg – on day 1 — with strep! Now that’s one Hardstyle Chick!

Check out Jenni Baker and Drew Massey, our representation from Nashville Kettlebell and Tennessee Kettlebell in this Dragon Door TV Episode

Weekly Practice

Here’s a favorite one for beginners, intermediate and advanced kettlebell users.

For beginners you will work for 30 sec and res for 30 sec between every round, perform as many rounds as you can in 15 minutes

For intermediate and advnaced you will work for one minute and rest for 30 seconds between each round. Per form as many rounds as you can in 20 minutes

Performing the ballistic swing exercise with each of the stabilityand stretching exercises below you will condition your swing to become more powerful and stronger. Eventually you will start to swing heavier bells and have more endurance during your weekly practice. Have realistic expectations, you will not mysteriously reach your strenth goals after one practice session, however you should notice a differnce in the power you generate in your swing as you move through your 15 or 20 minute session. This would be recommended to practice one time per week. Enjoy!

Beginners Practice

Pick 1 moderate size kettlebell
Hip Stretch R – 15 sec
Hip Stretch L – 15 sec
Rest 30 sec
Two hand Swing – 30 sec
Rest – 30 sec
Hip Bridge – 30 sec
Rest 30 sec
Two Hand Swing – 30 sec
Rest – 30 sec
Plank – 30 sec
Rest – 30 sec
RINSE & REPEAT for a total of 15 minutes; or 15 rounds if using a Gymboss. Click here to get your gymboss today!
If this feels too easy, shorten your rest periods to 15 seconds, then progress to using 3 differnt size kettlebells and preform with the 15 sec rest period. After you feel comfortable with this, you can begin the
Intermediate / Advnaced Practice below.

Advanced / Intermediate Practice

Pick 3 kettlebells of varing sizes, challenge yourself, but make sure you can swing the heaviest for 30 sec with good form
Hip Stretch R – 15 sec
Hip Stretch L – 15 sec
Two Hand Swing – 30 sec
Rest 30 sec
Hip Bridge – 30 sec
Two hand Swing – 30 sec
Rest 30 sec
Plank – 30 sec
Two hand Swing – 30 sec
Rest – 30 sec
RINSE & REPEAT for a total of 20 minutes; or 20 rounds if using a Gymboss. Click here to get your gymboss today!

Want to train with us in the Brentwood / Franklin / Cool Springs area – check out our TWO WEEK FREE TRIAL at Tennessee Kettlebell NOW!

Want to train in the Nashville Area – check out our TWO WEEK FREE TRIAL at Nashville Kettlebell NOW!

Weekly Practice from the Hardstyle Diva

WOW – what a great week in class at Tennessee Kettlebell. I will have to give credit to my husband for this workout! Everyone needs a good sweat every now and again, get that heart pumping, and to challenge yourself.

30 sec each exercise
One hand Swing – Right
Burpee
One hand Swing – Left
Burpee
45 seconds of rest
30 seconds each exercise
High Pull – Right
Jump Squats
High Pull – Left
Jump Squats
45 seconds rest
30 seconds each exercise
Military Press – Right
Jumping Lunges
Military Press – Left
Jumping Lunges
45 seconds rest
30 seconds each exercise
Two hand Swing
Mountain Climbers
Two hand Swing
Mountain Climbers
2 minutes rest
REPEAT

Everyone in class loved the challenge, its great when you can do a hard workout and people rally around each other encouraging everyone. Quality exercise is always encouraged, although when you are tired, proper form and technique will save you and often times people find that ah ha moment during times of fatigue.

Also in the news at Tennessee Kettlebell, Robert Chandler performed his first pistol (a one legged squat) this week…and we caught it on video. Check it out below. Robert has been training with us for over 8 months and because of training with Tennessee Kettlebell, he can now perform a pistol on each side. Congrats Robert, I am excited to see what’s on tap for you next — snatch test perhaps?!?!?!?

Enjoy the workout and let me know what you think ~hd

Why Organics?

While web surfing, I came across The Organics Center site. My husband and I are both big belivers in eating whole organic foods, to promote optimal health for as a lifestyle. Is Organis just a fad? I think not, watch this video and see how you can make a difference. We buy local by purchasing our meat, milk, eggs and vegetables for the week at our local farmers market. WOW — what a great video below, I just had to share. Hopefully it will help us realize how switching to organic food can benefit not only your health, but our planet also! Please share this video and let me know what you think about buying organic. Enjoy ~ hd

The Kettlebell Swing

In one of my last posts, I stated that I would do a series of blogs on each of the six basic kettlebell exercises: Swing, Squat, Snatch, Clean, Military Press and the Turkish Get-up.

Here we go, let’s talk about the Kettbell Swing!

There is a reason I blog first about the Kettlebell Swing. This is because it is the foundation for 4 of the other basic kettlebell exercises. Before getting into why the kettlebell swing, first let me digress and talk about cardio. I have been working out with kettlebells for almost over two years. Previously, I was a gym rat, I was all about “cardio” over “strength”. I thought that cardio was the only way to loose weight and lifting weights would make me “bulky”. Sound familar? That was when loosing weight was my goal. I lived by the number on the scale as my measurment of success. Who would have thought that two years in to working out with kettlebells, I have not stepped one foot on a treadmil, elliptical, not even put on a pair of athletic shoes to work out – to the “norm” in the training world this defies all reason! But, Kettlebells defy all reason. “The goal of an effective cardio session is to establish an elevated heart rate and keep the heart rate elevated for an extended period of time. The goal of a sensible cardio session strikes the elusive balance between duration and intensity. The kettlebell swing seems to be the ideal heart-rate spiking exercise in that it is a perfect combination of muscle activation and sustainable momentum.” My views of exercise and my pardigms of cardio first have been shattered. The Kettlebell Swing is where it all began. No I was not perfect in my first attempt, but I kept practicing and practicing and swinging and swinging. To have recently heard from “Irontamer” Dave Whitley, Master RKC “I am not sure I can find one thing to correct about your Swing.” Wow, that was music to my ears! Now my goals, strength over cardio, perfect practice not just a tough workout, and fat loss over weight loss, and an ultimate goal to strive for optimal health, not just the ultimate “look” or to be skinny!

The kettlebell swing has changed my pardigm of exercise incorporating strength and cardio into one movement. Benefits of the kettlebell swing are simply amazing when performed with proper form and technique. Pavel brought kettlebells to the United States from Russia and is the Chief Instructor for the RKC. Therfore, training RKC is the only option for me. Although many fitness professionals are attempting to teach their clients kettlebells, there is only one safe and effective technique. A kettlebell swing is a movement that should be taught in several progressions leading up to performing a swing with safe technique. A kettlebell swing should never be taught by attempting to swing first. The purpose of using progressions to teach a kettlebell swing is to evaluate a client’s current movement and hip mobility. Athletic people move from their hips and non athletic people move from their knees and lower back. Although your goals may not include becoming a world class athlete, but I am sure they include prevention of injury or reduction of chronic pain. Moving from your knees and lower back are one giant prescription for injury and the development of chronic pain. The kettlebell swing will teach you how to engage your hip flexor muscles, thus providing better movement in your everyday activities. No, you will not be perfect in your first attempt at a proper kettlebell swing. This movement is very foreign to most individuals. When performed with proper technique by engaging the hip flexors and keeping a long neutral spine, the benefits are unmatched. I guarantee you, you will being to move better in your day to day activities, existing pain will subside and all other areas of your general fitness will improve. As always you need to perform movement quality over movement quanity! I promise you that regardless of the # of reps performed your workout will be effective and efficient.

Be Strong & Be Well ~HD