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RKC School of Strength

Official blog of the RKC

hkc

Kettlebells in the Clinic

October 25, 2022 By Paul Britt, DC 2 Comments

Paul Britt demonstrates a kettlebell get-up

If it wasn’t for kettlebells, I would not be a chiropractor today. I started out with the RKC in 2006 and attended the CK-FMS in 2010. The CK-FMS was the movement program that was based off of the FMS and was taught by Gray Cook and Brett Jones of FMS. It introduced me to movement screening and how to help clients move better, feel better and live better pain free.

amputee athlete performing a get-upI ran my gym based on what the FMS taught. We used the Functional Movement Screen as part of our onboarding program. I loved the results we were getting in members that could not/did not move as well as they should. It started my journey from Law Enforcement/Gym Owner to attending Chiro school. I knew that there was more that I could do to help people with the right credentials, and being a Chiropractor was something that I knew would allow me to help more people achieve even better outcomes.

The ability to look at and screen movement helped tremendously in Chiro school. It allowed me to look at everyone through a movement lens versus just looking at the injury that brought them in. I attended the Selective Functional Movement Assessment certification while in school. That is the clinical variation of the Functional Movement Screen. It allowed me to narrow in on the root cause of the patient’s dysfunction. The RKC/FMS gave me a leg up in the Rehab and improving outcomes.

Fast forward a few years and I am still helping people with better movement and decreased pain with kettlebells. Kettlebells are a significant part of our rehab program. They take up little space and can be used by everyone. The allow us to engage our patients in their rehab due to the challenge and the fun of using the kettlebell. Everyone that walks in wants to try and pick up the 106lb…

We use the skills taught at the Hardstyle Kettlebell Certification (HKC) as our base for rehabilitation and strengthening. You will often hear that the swing, Get Up and squat pretty much fix what ails you. Guess what? It is true. We find that if our patients have those three exercises down, their activities of daily living as well as any extracurricular activity can be performed with little to no dysfunction. Can we fix everything? No, but we can help them improve their lives and make them more injury resistant.

One of our patients, a CrossFit competitor, had to undergo shoulder surgery for a tear. Once we were able to load and stress the shoulder, we started out with the unweighted get up. We started out with rolling to the press. This allowed us to help connect her core to the rest of her body core after six weeks of being sedentary. We performed the movement of rolling to the press without weight. She would lay on her side in the fetal position, roll to supine and press from the floor.

Once she owned the movement, we move to shoulder packing. We use the supine press position and showed her how to pack the shoulder. We accomplished this by lightly pushing and pulling the arm up and down int the press position. This allowed her to feel the movement and perceive what it should feel like when doing correctly. We also showed her to rotate her fist in the press position for movement in the joint. This was for getting fluid moving as well as allowing the body to feel what the shoulder should be doing when functioning correctly.

Paul Britt instructing an athlete performing a get-up

We like to work the standing to half kneeling after teaching the shoulder packing to get to half kneeling and help with stability. I find that this is often easier to teach than having patients work into the post and to the heist and windmill before they can safely move through the mid-range movements. There is no set number or time frame. We have had one patient work through the parts of the get up unloaded for 6 months before they were allowed to use any weight. Time practicing the get up is never wasted time.

The athlete worked through the rest of the get up without weight and then started with low loads. We moved from 25% internal rotation and 50% abduction to 100% pain free in both ranges of motion in 12 weeks after surgery. She is back to competition weights without pain or dysfunction.

The swing can be used in the same manner. We find the parts of the swing that will benefit patients and work from there. The power of the teaching process and the techniques are often greater than the sum of the swing. For back pain, posterior chain strengthening has been shown to be superior to general exercise and walking programs for treating chronic low back pain. (1)

The swing is a great tool for working with patients with issues in the back. For back pain we start with the basics, breathing. We start with crocodile breathing as taught in the HKC and RKC. A large problem that we find with low back pain and other injuries are breathing dysfunctions. A large portion of our patient base breathe in the upper chest, using traps and accessory muscles to breathe versus the diaphragm. Breathing has been shown to help inhibit the paraspinal muscles and help with spasms. Proper breathing patterns help with balance, pain and the ability to access full strength in a patient. (2)

Proper breathing is essential for being able to develop the ability to use tension and relaxation to get the most out of swings. What do we do, we work on teaching them how to breathe properly. Once they understand how to breathe, it becomes an alert system for us. If they lose the ability to breathe well during an exercise, we have either fatigued them or selected the wrong exercise to use.

The deadlift, the deadlift drag, and the pendulum swing are three of the swing teaching tools that we use a lot. “Deadlifts have been shown to improve low back pain as effectively as low load motor control drills.”(3) That basically says that if the patient is ready, deadlifts are at least as effective as bands, stick drills and similar movements that do not require loads.

Why not make them stronger if it is clinically available to the patient. There is a lot more buy in from the patient when they have that visceral response from lifting real weight and getting stronger each session.

Paul Britt instructing kettlebell deadlift and deadlift drag

The deadlift drag is a great tool for strengthening the posterior chain and connection it with movement. The set up is deadlift hinge with the bell in front. The kettlebell is moved along the ground in a drag utilizing the lats, rhomboids and other muscle of scapular control as well as erectors and glutes. It has helped us to improve scapular control and function in patients that have scapular dyskinesia.

I have personally used the pendulum swing in my own rehab journey. I suffered a disc injury several years ago that kept me from performing standard exercises. I was able to move into a hip hinge but could not move through the full deadlift pattern with weight. I found that the low position was pain free and I was able to swing a kettlebell in that position. I would get into the hip hinge at a position that did not hurt or worsen my symptoms and perform pendulum swings.

Our end goal with swings is to move through two handed to one-handed swings. Research has shown that this is a great way to help mitigate current back pain as well as help decrease future problems. The one hand swing engages the opposite side spinal erectors and same side external obliques leading to greater stabilization in the back and core.(4)

A specific end user for the Kettlebell Swing as a rehab tool is our Post ACL reconstruction patients.(5) The research has shown that kettlebell swings help decrease the risk of non-contact injuries from high risk to a lower risk profile after 6 weeks of training. We teach them the Get Up, before we allow them to swing. The Get Up is used as a strengthening and screening tool to ensure the patient can load the knee safely before transitioning to the swing. The improvements are due to posterior chain strengthening, the semitendinosus and hamstrings.

Paul Britt instructing the goblet squat at his clinic

The squat as taught in the HKC/RKC are useful in several ways. We like the squat as the end game for connecting the dots of the rehab program. It requires mobility and stability to perform and control of the breathing and tension. We use Bottoms Up Squats to test for connectivity of the core with the movement pattern. If the Bottoms Up Squat cannot be performed, there is a leak in the pattern.

We want to make sure that our elderly patients can get off the floor and the toilet. If they can do that, we have increased their quality of life and survivability. We have found that patients that have gone through the program have reached those goals.

This is a quick look at how you can implement kettlebells in the clinic to help your patients move better, feel better, live better pain free. It does not have to be complicated to work.

***

Paul Britt DC is a Certified Chiropractic Sports Physician and Senior RKC based in Gulf Breeze Florida. His practice, Integrative Chiropractic Solutions utilizes kettlebells as rehabilitations tools to help his patients achieve their goals.

  1. Tataryn N, Simas V, Catterall T, Furness J, Keogh JWL. Posterior-Chain Resistance Training Compared to General Exercise and Walking Programmes for the Treatment of Chronic Low Back Pain in the General Population: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Sports Med Open. 2021 Mar 8;7(1):17. doi: 10.1186/s40798-021-00306-w. PMID: 33683497; PMCID: PMC7940464.
  2. Stephens RJ, Haas M, Moore WL 3rd, Emmil JR, Sipress JA, Williams A. Effects of Diaphragmatic Breathing Patterns on Balance: A Preliminary Clinical Trial. J Manipulative Physiol Ther. 2017 Mar-Apr;40(3):169-175. doi: 10.1016/j.jmpt.2017.01.005. Epub 2017 Mar 1. PMID: 28259495.
  3. Aasa B, Berglund L, Michaelson P, Aasa U. Individualized low-load motor control exercises and education versus a high-load lifting exercise and education to improve activity, pain intensity, and physical performance in patients with low back pain: a randomized controlled trial. J Orthop Sports Phys Ther. 2015 Feb;45(2):77-85, B1-4. doi: 10.2519/jospt.2015.5021. PMID: 25641309.
  4. Andersen V, Fimland MS, Gunnarskog A, Jungård GA, Slåttland RA, Vraalsen ØF, Saeterbakken AH. Core Muscle Activation in One-Armed and Two-Armed Kettlebell Swing. J Strength Cond Res. 2016 May;30(5):1196-204. doi: 10.1519/JSC.0000000000001240. PMID: 26473519.
  5. Zebis MK, Andersen CH, Bencke J, Ørntoft C, Linnebjerg C, Hölmich P, Thorborg K, Aagaard P, Andersen LL. Neuromuscular Coordination Deficit Persists 12 Months after ACL Reconstruction But Can Be Modulated by 6 Weeks of Kettlebell Training: A Case Study in Women’s Elite Soccer. Case Rep Orthop. 2017;2017:4269575. doi: 10.1155/2017/4269575. Epub 2017 Jan 18. PMID: 28197354; PMCID: PMC5286491.

Filed Under: Coaching, Kettlebell Training, Mobility and Flexibility Tagged With: chiropractor, corrective exercise, fms, Getup, hkc, kettlebell get-up, movement, Paul Britt, RKC, Turkish getup

5 Reasons Manual Therapists Should Get Their HKC

November 1, 2021 By William Sturgeon 0 Comments

William Sturgeon performs a half kneeling kettlebell halo

In August of 2020 I started school for massage therapy. My goal was to widen my scope of practice as a coach, so that I could better serve my clients. I will be graduating next month and will be entering the world of manual therapy. This has been something I have been wanting to do for many years. I truly believe that manual therapy and corrective exercise can benefit a lot of people and help them improve their quality of life.

In the world of manual therapy, we often see people who are dealing with neck, shoulder, and low back pain. We treat these symptoms with therapeutic protocols and then move our client into a wellness or as-needed-based plan. Our goal as therapists is to help find the solution to their problem and get them back to active daily living activities.

But, what if we were able to better help our clients gain results by helping them strengthen the areas they are struggling with? This is where kettlebell training can be best tool for the therapist to use to answer this question. Kettlebells have been around for a long time and have been proven to be an effective tool.

William Sturgeon Manual Therapist

As I enter this new industry, there is one thing that I strongly believe in, and that is, massage therapists can enhance their practice by getting their HKC. This post will outline the reasons.

Extra Income

Most massage therapists work an average 20-30 hours per week doing bodywork. In time this does become taxing on the body and will not always be sustainable for long-term. This is where getting your HKC can help you with making more income. You can do this by offering one on one training or by doing this in a group setting. You can make more money in a group setting and also save your energy. But, if you would rather work in a one on one setting, you are able to do so as well. Adding kettlebell training to your list of services takes time away from the table with the clients you already have by helping them in a new way.

William Sturgeon Massage Therapy

Create a Niche

Adding the HKC certification to your practice will help you widen your scope of practice as a therapist and also allow you to specialize in a specific area. If you live in an area where someone is not teaching kettlebell training this is an opportunity for you to bring in a new service and be the leading go to person. I found this to be a very profitable way to become a coach. I’m the only person certified to teach kettlebells in my local area, the next person is 90 minutes away. Since this is the case for me, I am known for being the kettlebell expert in my area. Creating a niche is a powerful tool to have to help separate yourself from your competition.

Help Your Clients Train Safely

Did I mention safety? The RKC is the School of Strength, meaning we place a HIGH priority in educating our students how to train safely with kettlebells. There are many regressions and progressions in the curriculum to help teach your clients the proper technique. When it comes to teaching your clients movement, you always want to place them in the best position to be successful, and the HKC does that well. The best example of how we teach safety is by looking at how much time we spend preparing and teaching students the proper way to perform a hip hinge. The hip hinge is the key to keeping your back safe when using kettlebells. Teaching the hip hinge properly can help clients with low back pain by showing them how to move better.

William Sturgeon Kettlebell Goblet Squat

Kettlebell Are Great For Corrective Exercise

Kettlebells are known for their ability to help correct movement dysfunction. The reason that the kettlebell does such a good job at this is because of the way it’s shaped. The offset weight and handle challenge the body more because of the amount of stability required to use a kettlebell. As we know as therapists, stability is the foundation for injury free movement.  A majority of our clients work office jobs that have them in seated positions for long periods at a time. This can lead to neck, shoulder, and hip dysfunction and tightness. Using some of the exercises taught in the HKC can help your clients with these problems. Take for example someone who is dealing with rotator cuff issues, the kettlebell arm-bar is a great exercise for this.

William Sturgeon performs a kettlebell arm-bar

Learn New Skills

There are many levels to uncover after the HKC, next step is your RKC Level One & then Level Two. Each certification will show you a whole new set of skills to teach yourself and your clients. This will allow for you to expand and widen your skill set as a kettlebell instructor. When we teach people how to use kettlebells we always inform them that strength is a skill. Teaching your clients how to be strong through the skills of the swing, get-up, and squat will be a great base level to a variety of new movements.

Investing in yourself as a kettlebell coach will open new doors for you as a manual therapist. Not only will you be able to help your clients get out of pain with manual work, but you can also help them get stronger and move better. If you are ready to expand your skills and knowledge as a manual therapist, then register for the next HKC!

***

William Sturgeon, RKC Team Leader, RKC II trains clients at his gym, Restored Strength. Contact him through his website at RestoredStrength.com or follow him on Facebook: facebook.com/restoredstrength

Filed Under: Coaching, Fitness Business, Kettlebell Training Tagged With: hkc, HKC Workshop, kettlebell training for manual therapists, kettlebell training for professionals, manual therapy, massage therapists, William Sturgeon

The Hardstyle Kettlebell Basics for Hiking

September 14, 2020 By Shawn Burnah 1 Comment

Shawn Burnah, RKC The HKC Kettlebell Exercises For Hiking

In 2005, I was deployed to Afghanistan as an Infantryman in the Hindu Kush mountains and found some odd shaped weights stamped with “DragonDoor.com”. I did a search and found the book, The Russian Kettlebell Challenge. After reading the advertisement for the program and how it would build strength and endurance for soldiers and fighters I was sold.

After following the manual and video religiously, I was done with the “globo gym” and long runs, as my abilities surpassed my peers’ on the mountainous patrols. I practiced kettlebells and select calisthenics for years and was always more than capable to meet the challenges of rucking and jiu-jitsu. In 2017 I retired and now spend the majority of my free time in the mountains hiking and snowshoeing.

The RKC Plank:

The plank strengthens the body so it can remain upright while hiking under load. Maintaining a strong posture with a pack allows you to enjoy the views—instead of falling into a “pack mule” mode, where your head drops, and you plod along with one foot in front of the other. An upright posture also allows you to keep your lungs open and your focus on footing and route selection.

Shawn Burnah Hiking Climbing Obstacles

The Kettlebell Swing:

The Hardstyle kettlebell swing builds lungs, legs, and back strength as well as a strong core—all which are especially important for hiking. Contrary to popular belief, hiking requires more hamstring than quadricep involvement. Having attended courses which focused on performing a lot of air squats while wearing body armor, many of my classmates were still not prepared for the challenges of the mountains in our training. Fortunately, I had also added a liberal dose of swings in my off time. I practiced Bud Jeffries’ protocol outlined in I Will Be Iron and thrived on the trail while others collapsed in exhaustion.

Like the RKC plank, the kettlebell swing—particularly the one-armed swing (OAS)—builds the strength to keep the torso upright while walking with a heavy pack. The OAS also builds the strength to maintain stability as your weight continuously shifts back and forth from foot to foot. The momentary lock out at the top of the swing is also extremely important. It’s training for the “lock step” hikers use when going uphill that allows the bones to support the load for a brief rest, extending a hiker’s endurance. When training for hiking, consider swinging an RKC Snatch Test sized kettlebell for your weight class for many reps with good form. I was training with several hundred swings! Try to reach your rep goal without setting the kettlebell down.

The Goblet Squat:

Shawn Burnah Kettlebell Goblet SquatWhen we step up vertically while hiking, the quadriceps enter the scene. The quads act as shock absorbers, aid in speed control, and injury-proof your knees during all aspects of hiking, but especially when descending a mountain. The quadriceps are also prime movers for hopping around difficult terrain and help maintain stability when doing so. Practicing goblet squats is also similar to standing up with a heavy pack. Squats benefit hikers, but in a different way than most believe.

The author's son navigating obstacles on the trail
The author’s son navigating obstacles on the trail

The Get-Up:

The get-up mechanics are useful for hikers who are trying to rise from the ground with their pack on. When under a heavy pack like the military uses (60 – 100+ pounds), the ability to stand up smoothly prevents you from flailing like a beetle! By pressing and externally rotating the free arm downward and getting your leg underneath you, you allow yourself to rise evenly and under control. The get-up also increases strength and mobility of the spine and hips allowing you to step up, twist over, and move around obstacles.

The Hardstyle Push-up:

Triceps strength plays a role in scrambling uphill and lowering yourself down from a platform—instead of just dropping down and risking a lower body injury. Practicing Hardstyle push-ups also build the strength you will need to push up and over an obstacle.

The RKC Kettlebell Row:

Strong lats and rear delts assist in maintaining a good posture while wearing a pack. Rows build the strength required to climb up a sharp incline, or to pull a rope, tree, rock etc. The row also teaches you how to brace and pull to assist a fellow hiker up and over difficult obstacles like ledges.

While the exercises taught at the HKC (and through the online HardstyleFit program) may not cover every aspect of hiking, they are a solid foundation for you to start thriving in the mountains.

***

Shawn Burnah, RKC. Contact him through his Dragon Door Instructor page: Shawn Burnah, and Follow him on Instagram @shawn.burnah

Filed Under: Kettlebell Training, Mobility and Flexibility Tagged With: HardstyleFit, hikers, hiking, hkc, HKC exercises, kettlebell exercises for hiking, kettlebell swing, kettlebell training, kettlebells for hiking, RKC plank

When You Want to Up Your Strength Game, Who Best to Choose?

February 14, 2020 By Andrea Du Cane 1 Comment

Newly Certified RKC Instructors in NYC

We were recently asked a very good question:

I’m opening a small gym and it will be a strength and conditioning facility that will cater to rock climbers, mace and kettlebell enthusiasts. Here is the conundrum RKC? SFG? Both? Or another cert?”

To be fair we get that question fairly often. The person asking that question is obviously a very thoughtful athlete and business owner and he wants to make a correct and informed decision.

Let me break this down as best I can. John and Pavel started the RKC many years ago – 2001 to be exact. After a number of very successful years, there was a difference of opinion in the direction the RKC should take. I cannot speak for SF, however, the direction the RKC chose to take was one of educating and producing strong and competent coaches. There are still instructor competency tests, but the focus is on corrective, progressive, regressive teaching that allows athletes and coaches to safely reach their potential and goals.

In the beginning, the RKC was run like a hardcore military bootcamp. With nearly an abusive quality to the instruction. Within the first hour, after a short warm-up and no training, the snatch test was given. The people attending were more often military, law enforcement, martial artists etc. In those days, very few personal trainers from the mainstream fitness industry attended.

As we grew, we started attracting medical professionals and mainstream fitness professionals. And thank goodness we changed! The focus became corrective strategies, progressions, and coaching. Our courses have come a long way. Yes, we still expect people to be able to demonstrate the unique strength principles, and for the RKC we expect people to take the time to prepare.

Another core belief is that our courses are not just for personal trainers to get some tools to teach their clients, but also to work on their own athletic abilities. I say it all the time, “how often do coaches get coached?”  Our workshops are designed for the participants to get equal experience in coaching and learning the system to teach others, as well as working on their own weaknesses and strengths to become better athletes themselves. In my experience, there are very few certifications that can say that.

This puts our focus on usable information a coach or gym owner can take with them the day after the workshop to implement immediately and to grow their personal and professional goals. Along with the knowledge and expertise gained at the workshop, there is ongoing support and networking though international private RKC Facebook groups.

Included in our kettlebell educational portfolio we have our HardstyleFit on-line courses and the HKC one-day workshops. Below is detailed information for all our workshops and courses.

Dragon Door also provides education and workshops in calisthenics, with our PCC courses. These special courses were created by Paul Wade, author of Convict Conditioning. The PCC is the perfect complement to kettlebell training, and for most athletes – extremely valuable.

We are also launching a new product that incorporates isometric training, developed by Paul Wade. This new system includes an in-depth manual, on-line and live workshops. Learn more about the ISOCHAIN

Dragon Door is the leader in innovative health and athletic training, with the RKC being the foundation of a system embraces the entire athlete and coach.

HardstyleFit Certificate: On-Line Training Only

  • Complete HardstyleFit Level One to earn 0.6 ACE CECs or 0.6 NASM CEUs.
  • Complete HardstyleFit Level Two to earn 0.7 ACE CECs.

A users’ course. Follows the structure of the HKC/RKC but without the focus on coaching the movements. HardstyleFit level 1 needs to be completed before level 2, to ensure the basic movements are understood and can be performed correctly.

The on-line written test before the physical video test, is to ensure a deep understanding of the strength principles in lieu of a live instructor providing the opportunity to share the information and provide Q & A.

A 50% discount is offered after passing the HardstyleFit course to apply to either an HKC or RKC. The discount code is good for one year of passing the course. The HardstyleFit program can be used as a “prep” for the in-person instructor courses.

HKC Certification: In Person Training Only

  • Earn .8 ACE CECs and .8 NASM CEUs

No specific weight class requirements are required. The lead instructor recommends the weight used to produce the best and safest performance for each of the three kettlebell lifts taught. There is no kettlebell prerequisite required. However, an entrance test of a 1 minute plank is administered at the beginning of the workshop to ensure an adequate level of physical preparedness.

It is recommended that participants have either completed the HardstyleFIt on-line training course or trained with an HKC/RKC prior to the course.

The three exercises presented and tested at the workshop are the foundation of the overall Kettlebell system.  Safe performance and mastery of each exercise is necessary before moving on to the more difficult exercises of the RKC.

The HKC provides hands-on coaching for the course participants, both as the coach and the person being coached. This back and forth partnering, enhances the learning experience on all levels.

The HKC is considered both a “prep” course for the RKC and a stand-alone certification.  Many trainers use the most basic kettlebell exercises for their group classes or clients. The HKC provides those trainers with enough knowledge and coaching experience to deliver results for their clients without the time and money commitment of the RKC. After passing the HKC, the HKC instructor gets a $200 discount on an RKC course within a year of passing the HKC.

The technique test demonstrates the participant’s understanding of the principles as well as the ability to perform the movements correctly. It is necessary to be able to correctly demonstrate each exercise, since a large percentage of the population are visual learners.

HKC Technique Test:

  • Two-Handed swing (10 reps)
  • Get-up (1 rep)
  • Goblet Squat (5 reps)

The Teaching/Coaching Test demonstrates the participants ability to coach the exercise. This allows the lead instructor to see the participant in action coaching another person.

The lead instructor is evaluating the participant on the following criteria:

  • Correctly demonstrating the exercise
  • Following the correct teaching progressions
  • Determining what movement is incorrect or unsafe – and stopping it if necessary
  • Applying the right correction
  • Putting safety first and above all other criteria
  • Picking the appropriate load for the given exercise and client
  • Using appropriate verbal cues without over cueing

HKC certifications allow 90 days to submit a video of any requirements that were not completed at the course. The participant sends the video in to the lead instructor or visits the instructor in person to retest the skill.

The HKC certification lasts for 3 years. There are 3 options to maintain your certification. Note: HKCs are not allowed to assist at an HKC to recertify.

  1. Attend an HKC at a discount
  2. Attend an RKC at a discount and move up your certification
  3. Submit an online HKC re-cert test (available after 2/18/2020)

RKC Certification: In Person Training Only

  • Earn 2.5 ACE CECs and 1.9 NASM CEUs

Weight classes are provided to guide the participant to use an appropriate load for general kettlebell training.  Weight classes are in line with other strength and athlete competitions. This ensures a safe and level training system.  An entrance test is administered at the start of the first day of the 2 (or 3) day course. 10 “Hardstyle” push-ups for men, 3 for women. The Hardstyle push-up is demonstrated at the course by one of the instructors and requires the participant to pause at the bottom and top, while maintaining the plank with spine in neutral. All reps performed at the testing instructors count. This demonstrates a strong core to ensure safety for all the ballistic and strength movements throughout the course.

During the live workshops, the master instructor has the authority to increase or decrease the load during instruction and testing to encourage the best and safest performance of the participants and learning environment.  For example, when first learning the get-up or snatch, the instructor may recommend participants start with a lighter kettlebell to learn the basic movement pattern and then increase the load as the skill increases.  For learning the swing, going to a heavier than ‘test weight’ will provide a clear understanding of the glute and hip driven nature of the exercise.

In some circumstances during testing, the master instructor has the authority to have a participant take a lighter weight for an exercise ie., a woman on the high end of the weight class may be allowed to use one size lighter for the get-up.  Whereas a man who is very strong may be asked to use a heavier than test size kettlebell for the clean or press to facilitate the correct muscular recruitment and produce the correct technique.

Kettlebell training is a strength and ballistic power production system that focuses on the hips and posterior muscles of the body. The RKC requires participants to prepare and train for the workshop. The average amount of time recommended is 6 months.

There are 3 paths recommended to take as preparation:

  1. Attend an HKC in-person certification
  2. Complete HardstyleFit level 1 and level 2
  3. Train with a certified RKC.

The Technique Test includes the 6 kettlebell exercises that comprises the Hardstyle strength and ballistic training. The rep count is designed to follow traditional strength training rep counts, while allowing ample time to demonstrate the strength/ballistic principles of the system. Both sides are tested to encourage a healthy and functional athlete. Exceptions to testing both sides must be cleared with Dragon Door and the Master Instructor.   And requires a doctor’s written note as to why the participant cannot perform both sides of an exercise or the need to lower the load from the test size kettlebell.

Requirements for RKC

  1. Single-arm swing (10/10 reps)
  2. Single-arm clean (5/5 reps)
  3. Get-up (1/1 rep)
  4. Military Press (4/4 reps)
  5. Double Front Squat (5 reps)
  6. Snatch (5/5 reps)
  7. Snatch Test: 100 reps within 5 minutes with test size kettlebell.

The Snatch Test is as overall physical preparedness test as well as demonstrating the endurance and strength that was needed in preparation for the course. Participants have the option of not taking the snatch during the course but submitting a video at a later date.

RKC certifications allow 90 days to submit a video of any requirements that were not completed at the course. The participant sends the video in to the lead instructor or visits the instructor in person to retest the skill.

Once completed the certification lasts for 3 years, after which the RKC has three options to re-certify:

  1. Attend an RKC at a discount
  2. Submit an online RKC re-cert test
  3. Assist at an RKC

RKC II Certification: In Person Training Only

The RKC II is an advanced kettlebell training program for serious professional coaches and athletes.  The course focuses neurologically and physically challenging lifts.

It is recommended to spend some time at the RKC level and refine those skills before moving on to the RKC II.

An entrance test is administered at the start of the first day of the 2- day course. 5 dead hang pull-ups for men, :20 flex-arm hold for women both with supinated grip. This demonstrates the  participants strength base to perform pull-ups.

The RKC II incorporates two bodyweight exercises the utilize some of the same principles of the RKC Hardstyle strength system. There is a lot of focus on progressions and regressions for all advanced kettlebell and bodyweight exercises. This allows the curriculum to be used with all populations that trainers and coaches work with in their businesses.

RKC Technical Requirements tested at RKC II:

All RKC level one exercises with double kettlebells except for the Get-up and Snatch:

  1. Double Swing
  2. Double Clean
  3. Double Front Squat
  4. Double Press
  5. Get-up
  6. Snatch
  7. 5-Minute Snatch Test

RKC II Technical Requirements: Instruction includes all progressions of each exercise and variety kettlebell exercises.

  1. Strict One-Arm Military Press
  2. Weighted Pull-up for Men; Single Pull-up for Women
  3. Pistol
  4. Double Jerk
  5. Windmill
  6. Bent Press (not scored)

RKC II certifications allow 90 days to submit videos of any requirement that was not completed at the course. The participant sends the video in to the lead instructor or visits the instructor in person to retest the skill.

Once completed the certification lasts for 3 years, after which the RKC II has three options to re-certify:

  1. Attend an RKC II at a discount
  2. Take the online re-cert test
  3. Assist at an RKC II

***

Andrea Du Cane is a Master RKC Kettlebell Instructor, CK-FMS, CICS, and RIST, ZHealth certified, she has a BA in Psychology from the University of Minnesota and is also a Pilates instructor. She is the author of several books and dvds including The Ageless Body, The Kettlebell Boomer, and The Kettlebell Goddess Workout.  She has over twenty years of aerobics, weight training and fitness experience, with an additional background in… Read more here.

Filed Under: Coaching, Fitness Business, Kettlebell Training, Workshop Experiences Tagged With: hkc, how to choose a certification, Kettlebell certifications, kettlebell coaching, kettlebell instructor training, kettlebell training, RKC, SFG, strength training

How To Avoid Back Pain From Kettlebell Swings

July 26, 2017 By Wayne Pallas 4 Comments

Wayne Pallas HKC, Swinging A Kettlebell

I earned my HKC in April of 2016, and began working with clients shortly afterward. The most common complaint I have heard has been lower back pain after swinging. Since I have always been careful to teach proper technique (e.g. packed shoulder blades, loading the glutes, keeping the head up, etc.), I was puzzled and decided to figure out what was causing this problem.

One possible cause is over-lordosis, arching the back at the top of the swing. I think the best remedy is to teach and practice a vertical plank. Full body tension, especially in the core, helps keep the back properly aligned.

I also noticed is that swinging with a kettlebell is different than practicing the hip hinge without weight. Weight changes the way the upper body moves during the hip hinge. The heavier the weight, the greater the risk that it will alter a proper hip hinge, putting more stress on the lower back (see photo below), especially if you keep your arms perpendicular to your torso on the way down.

Lower Back Stress From Incorrect Swing
The heavier the weight, the greater the risk that it will alter a proper hip hinge, putting more stress on the lower back, especially if you keep your arms perpendicular to your torso on the way down.

If you think of the upper body as a lever, with the navel area as the fulcrum, the weight of a kettlebell during a swing or snatch will tend to pull the shoulders down and in turn, move the hips up, which engages the lower back (see photo below). The solution I came up with is to “sit” into the hinge more, which feels like you are moving closer to a squat than a hinge, but relieves lower back stress.

Upper Body As A Lever
If you think of the upper body as a lever, with the navel area as the fulcrum, the weight of a kettlebell during a swing or snatch will tend to pull the shoulders down and in turn, move the hips up, which engages the lower back.

You can experiment with adjusting your hip hinge while moving or you can adjust your technique statically. Hold a fairly heavy kettlebell as you would for a squat and assume a hip hinge stance. Bend forward slightly visualizing your immobile upper body moving around a fulcrum (the red dot in the photos above). You should be able to feel your lower back reacting to the weight. From there, rotate your shoulders up (and hips down) until the back stress disappears (see example below). This approximates the proper stance while swinging with weight.

Lower Back Swing Experiment
Rotate your shoulders up (and hips down) until the back stress disappears.

After adjusting the hip hinge using weight, my clients and I have become more aware of our posture, and have been able to adjust it even while swinging, avoiding back pain.

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Wayne Pallas, HKC is a retired Colorado teacher (40 years, math/music), avid runner, personal trainer, and former martial artist. Over the past five years, he has sent out a monthly general fitness newsletter, Wayne’s Fitness Tips & Tricks, to several hundred readers. He is currently training for the Denver RKC in September.

Filed Under: Kettlebell Training, Tutorial Tagged With: hkc, HKC Instructor, kettlebell swing, kettlebell swing basics, Wayne Pallas

Is Certification Worth It?

July 13, 2017 By Michael Krivka and Adrienne Harvey 4 Comments

Master RKC Michael Krivka Kettlebell Swing

Education, training, and certification are expensive propositions. Training certifications can last several days and cost well into thousands of dollars—even before adding in the cost of time away from your business and family, transportation to and from the certification, hotels and other extraneous expenses. So, if you are going to invest your hard earned cash in a certification, it sure as heck needs to be worth it and then some! I’m not talking about making back your initial investment, but making back the costs several times over. With those parameters in mind, it makes sense to think twice about seeking additional certifications.

Which Certification Should I Attend?

How do you sift through all of the certifications out there to find ones that you can: a) afford to attend, b) allow you to make back your initial investment several times over, and c) provide you with information that will benefit your athletes today and tomorrow?

Consider these items before attending:

  • Location
  • Instructor
  • Certifying organization
  • Credential status
  • Content
  • Can you use the techniques, tips, correctives, regressions and progressions?
  • Does the certification fit the abilities and goals of your client demographic?
  • Can you immediately apply what you’ve learned at the certification to your current clients?
  • Does the certification provide actionable content or is it too specialized, obscure or advanced for your current (or projected) clients?

While all of these criteria are important to consider—and should play a role in the decision making process—what is the most important thing to consider? Far and above all of these considerations should be the contents of the course and how it applies to your clients.

A good certification will provide you with eighty to one hundred percent actionable material. That’s a pretty high percentage, but it also shows that the certification is dialed in and not just hours of “fluff” or useless content. It also shows the maturity of the content, the instructor and the organization behind it. An ideal certification workshop will have little or no wasted time, and the majority of the time will be spent on training and hands-on work to reinforce the principles and techniques taught.

A poor certification will provide you with very little actionable material; less than fifty percent actionable and a high percentage of theory, conjecture and anecdotes. These certifications are “personality-driven” and are usually nothing more than a handful of tips. The remaining time is often spent listening to stories and fluff to fill in the time.

Along with the RKC and PCC, two examples of excellent one-day certifications which provide near one hundred percent actionable material are the HKC (Hardstyle Kettlebell Certification) and the SCC (Strength Calisthenics Certification). Both of these certifications are tremendously powerful and provide attendees with a high percentage of actionable material that they can immediately apply to their current (and future) clients.

Focus on the HKC

The HKC focuses on a very precise number of core techniques; the kettlebell swing, the kettlebell goblet squat and the get-up. These three techniques are individually very powerful, but together are game-changers for athletes of all levels and clients of any caliber.

The kettlebell swing is the foundational ballistic of Hardstyle kettlebell training. It is the base that all ballistic techniques are built upon. Errors and bad habits with the swing will be transferred to all of the other ballistics, so it is imperative that the swing is base lined and solid. The swing has tremendous carryover to athletics and is an amazing conditioning tool. The swing trains and teaches the athlete how to add explosiveness to movement. It “fills in the blanks” of any client’s strength and conditioning program.

Michael Krivka goblet squatThe goblet squat is the foundational grind in Hardstyle kettlebell training. Squatting, while a basic human movement pattern, has become a difficult competency for most people of ANY age. Training with weight machines and avoiding the movement altogether has only exasperated the problem. The goblet squat will help restore lost functionality in those who currently don’t squat and will create a new baseline for those who are currently training with squats.

The get-up is neither a ballistic nor a grind, but rests solidly in the realm of functional movement patterns that set the foundation for excellent movement and mobility. The get-up is unique in that it establishes linkages across the entire body. It trains the athlete to establish positional and transitional strength from the ground to standing, and develops exceptional mobility and range of motion in the hips and shoulders.

In addition to the swing, goblet squat and get-up there are several other techniques that are introduced at the HKC. These techniques reinforce loading and unloading principles, mobility issues, and bracing. In particular, the deadlift, the RKC plank and the “naked” get-up are taught and examined so that the trainer has an even greater understanding of the three primary kettlebell techniques.

Focus on the SCC

Like the HKC, the SCC focuses on a very specific group of techniques: push-ups, pull-ups, squats, inversions, leg raises and bridges. Even though these techniques are well known—at least superficially—they are infrequently fully explored or understood. At the SCC, these seemingly simple techniques are taught, examined and developed in such a way that a trainer can apply them to any training situation with any client. Key elements of the SCC provide trainers and instructors with the knowledge, tools, and cues to help even the most de-conditioned clients begin their calisthenics journey. Likewise these same elements can be used to continually progress the same basic exercises to elite levels. Body awareness, muscular tension, and coordination are common threads throughout all the drills taught and coached at the SCC.

SCC Austin Group Photo 2017

Push-ups: While nearly everyone has performed a movement called or presented as a push-up, few have really been taught how to do the push-up in a way that will safely and effectively build usable strength. The SCC teaches participants how to coach this powerhouse movement from the ground up. Far from just being an “upper body” exercise, participants are shown how a properly performed push-up engages the whole body.

Pull-ups: The SCC brings this challenging-to-general-populations exercise down to earth. Get your clients of any level started towards this empowering strength and confidence-builder. Even if a client is very de-conditioned, they can still get on the pull-up bar to begin the powerful lead-up drills taught at the SCC.

Squats: As in the HKC, the essential human movement–the squat–is taught in great detail and is regressed and progressed for nearly anyone who walks through the door to train with you. Desk jobs and sedentary lifestyles have robbed many people of their human birthright to squat. The SCC can teach a trainer how to get their clients past bad habits and movement difficulties over time. Basic bodyweight squats have the potential to improve your clients’ quality of life, strength, and injury resistance.

Inversions: Let’s face it, many of our clients will be very uncomfortable getting “upside down”. The SCC teaches several important steps to ease our clients into these healthy, fun, and empowering positions. Crucial cues even experienced trainers may not know will be introduced for headstands and handstands along with gentle alternatives for clients who may not yet be ready.

Leg raises: the leg raise family both on the ground and from the bar are taught at the SCC in great detail. While all the movements taught at the SCC engage the midsection (aka the core or the abs), the leg raises really focus on the area. Desk-bound and sedentary clients often find great relief after conquering the first few steps of the leg raise series. Building a strong midsection—and giving your client the “ab focus” they want (which helps keep them coming back) has so much more benefits beyond an aesthetically pleasing six-pack.

Bridges: While the full bridge is taught, the real gold with the bridge series lies in the earlier steps. Instead of breezing past these powerful mobility and strength enhancers, the SCC teaches the details of these steps. How many of your clients have tight hip flexors and forgotten glutes? The bridge series can be a surprising secret weapon. The very first step is a game changer!

Programming principles and creative modifications are taught for all of the movements in the SCC. Likewise the manual includes sample workouts which will no doubt give you many ideas for creating group and individual programs. When you go back to the gym on Monday to lead your clients or groups, you can bring a new plan of attack.

Adrienne Harvey Senior PCC, RKC-II Push-Up

Summary

At the beginning of this post it was stated that you should be evaluating a certification by looking for one that provides a high percentage of the material being actionable and applicable to your clients. If you look carefully at the content of the HKC and SCC you will see that fully one hundred percent of the material will benefit your clients. This includes clients who previously have experience training with weights or were competitive athletes in the past. It also includes clients who have never had any training, or enough time has passed, that the training is in the distant past and all the skills need to be dusted off and reintroduced. All of techniques can be scaled or modified to meet the needs of your clients, by either making them easier or more difficult, and all contribute to their overall athleticism, mobility and movement. In addition, most of the techniques can be modified or scaled to help work around common injuries/complaints i.e., back pain, knee pain, shoulder pain, etc.

Before you decide to spend your time and money on any certification be sure to take some time to evaluate what actionable and applicable skills you are walking away with. Are you going to get skills and understanding that you can use daily with your clients? Bottom line: look for certifications that will allow you to help all of your clients (in a number of areas) as well as give you skills that will help enhance your reputation and increase your income.

Join Master RKC Michael Krivka and Senior PCC, RKC-II Adrienne Harvey at the upcoming SCC/HKC workshop in Gaithersburg, MD February 2018, or look for an SCC/HKC combination workshop weekend in your area.

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Michael A. Krivka, Sr. – Master RKC: Michael A. Krivka, Sr. is a Washington, DC native who has been involved in Kettlebell training for over a decade and is currently a Master RKC and member of the RKC Board of Advisors and the RKC Leadership Team under Dragon Door (where he has been listed as one of the top reviewed RKC’s in the world for the last five years). He is also the author of a bestselling eBook entitled “Code Name: Indestructible” and is in the process of finishing up several other eBooks on Kettlebells, body weight, and the integration of other tools into an effective strength and conditioning program. Mike has traveled extensively throughout the United States teaching Russian Kettlebells to military (USMC, USN, USA and USAF) and law enforcement personnel (FBI, DEA, USSS and CIA)… read more here.

Adrienne Harvey, Senior PCC Instructor, RKC-II, CK-FMS, has been RKC Certified since 2010, and RKC Level 2 certified since 2011. Kettlebell and bodyweight training have been crucial in Adrienne’s personal quest for fitness.  A core member of the PCC team, Adrienne loves sharing her knowledge with small groups and individuals. She also loves to develop recipes and workout programs to further support performance, body composition, and of course—FUN. Go to http://www.giryagirl.com for more information about Adrienne.

Filed Under: Coaching, Fitness Business, Kettlebell Training Tagged With: Adrienne Harvey, calisthenics, certification, Coaching, fitness instructor, hkc, instructor education, kettlebells, leadership, Michael Krivka, personal training, SCC

The Fitness Program of the Future—Now!

July 5, 2017 By Kirk Adams 3 Comments

Kirk Adams, RKC Get-Up

I’ve been in the fitness industry for almost 18 years. Most of that time has been spent looking for answers to age old questions:

  • How can I best help my clients reach their goals?
  • How can I get my clients to workout more consistently?
  • What are the best tools and exercises to get them the most effective results?

There are many sources for answers—and many great systems producing outstanding results. About eight months ago, I was fortunate to join the Dragon Door family when I passed the RKC Level 1. It was an amazing weekend filled with learning, challenges and camaraderie. Since then, I have taken RKC Level 2 and have been fortunate to assist with an HKC and RKC Level 1. While these experiences have taught me many things, the most important is that what Dragon Door has to offer—specifically in the RKC and PCC—is exactly what people and the fitness industry need!

To get the most out of a fitness program, make progress and reach goals, it is important for people to work out as consistently as possible. Just the thought of having to travel to a gym before or after work—then spend an hour or more fighting over equipment—is enough to keep even the most dedicated person from sticking with a fitness program.

Kirk Adams, RKC Push-Up

An ideal fitness program—the fitness program of the future—would be short, portable, and use minimal equipment. Kettlebells and bodyweight training check all three of those boxes. Get-ups, swings, and complexes like cleans and presses offer so much “bang for your buck” that you can get a great workout without committing much time at all.

With a few kettlebells and maybe a pull-up bar, you can create a workout program with almost endless variety and challenge. These exercises are also extremely portable. Whether you’re at home, the office, or on the road, it’s easy to get in your workout—and there’s less room for excuses.

Kettlebell and bodyweight training reinforce several of the most positive aspects of the fitness industry. Most people would benefit from mastering and strengthening basic movement patterns with exercises that focus on improving their ability to squat down, lift, push, pull, and carry weight. This more functional approach can help people easily accomplish daily tasks and with less pain.

Kirk Adams, RKC Goblet SquatIt’s important for a successful training system to be appropriately challenging for everyone—no matter where they are on their fitness journey. Some of the best elements of both the RKC and PCC Workshops are the built in progressions and regressions for each exercise. Whether it’s someone’s first day of training or they’re an elite level athlete, these systems have safe exercises and workouts which will challenge someone to improve. This is an excellent way to bring more people into a fitness lifestyle and encourage them to continue training for a lifetime.

Training consistently and reaching your fitness goals is always harder when you go it alone. Having a community by your side with standards that hold you accountable help increase your chances for success. Dragon Door has built that community through its courses, books, and instructors. A community gives people somewhere to turn to when they have questions or need support along their journey. Dragon Door has also set standards for basic and exceptional levels of fitness based on gender, age and weight. These standards are excellent training goals. These goals and community accountability can help everyone stay consistent with their training even when personal motivation drops.

The most successful fitness programs have a few things in common: consistent workouts which can be done any time, anywhere and exercises that improve our ability to move well and get stronger no matter our current fitness level. But, people also need a community for support and standards that motivate. That’s why I’m excited to be part of the Dragon Door family. They’ve provided me with the knowledge and tools to help myself and my clients be better tomorrow than we are today!

 

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Kirk Adams, MS, RKC is the Head Performance Coach at Golf & Body NYC

Filed Under: Fitness Business, Motivation Tagged With: accountability, calisthenics, community, fitness, fitness program, goals, hkc, kettlebells, Kirk Adams, pcc, RKC

The Get-Up

April 12, 2017 By Dan John 6 Comments

The Get-Up

When in doubt, I pull John Jesse’s classic book, Wrestling Physical Conditioning Encyclopedia (printed in 1974), off my shelf. Jesse collected the history and wisdom of every strength, conditioning and wrestling coach and compiled it into a rare book that covers all the bases of strength training.

The first lesson one learns when reading Jesse is humility. In case you think YOU invented something, flip through the pages to find:

  • Swings
  • Sandbags
  • Circuit training (including mixing bodyweight work with barbells)
  • Rehab, prehab, tendon and ligament work
  • And, many, many more ideas involving equipment, movement and training
  • Oh…and the get-up

On page 154, we meet Otto Arco. He was the model for many of Rodin’s sculptures and we remember him for his skill in one particular exercise:

Arco, at a bodyweight of 138 pounds, could do a one hand get-up with 175 pounds. The get-up was his “secret” to all around body strength, body power and body composition. Arco wrote this in his book, How to Learn Muscle Control:

The main purpose of muscle control is self-mastery. Muscle control involves far more than the mere ability to make the muscles contract. It teaches you to relax, which is sometimes even more important than contraction. It gives you a selective control, and therefore the ability to single out those muscles necessary to the work to be done, and only those muscles; leaving the antagonistic, or non-helpful, muscles relaxed.

Arco, over a century ago, singled out the core and keys to the Hardstyle system: “selective control.” This is the ability to turn to stone when necessary and to relax…when necessary! It is the secret behind Bruce Lee’s one-inch punch and the ability to hit a golf ball far. We find the get-up in Jesse’s chapter 13, “All Around Strength and General Power Exercises,” where we also discover the ballistic exercises like the swing, the jerk and what we would now call “snatches” in the kettlebell world.

Arco maintained a honed physique that he modeled well into his sixties by focusing on an understanding of muscle-control. While the swing and goblet squat will illuminate the role of flicking the switch of hard/tight and fast/loose, the get-up will demand something best summarized by Jesse (155):

The athlete, in projecting his total body strength in competition, must mold the strength of localized areas into a total coordinated body effort.

The get-up, sometimes called the Turkish get-up was named after the great tradition of Turkish wrestlers using this move as an entrance test. It has enjoyed a rebirth in the new millennium due to the efforts of members of the RKC. At its simplest, the get-up is simply getting up off the floor with a load and returning back down. It can be done to exacting measures with fourteen or more separate steps up and fourteen or more back down. Somewhere in the middle is how we will teach the get-up.

Although the true benefits are “a total coordinated body effort”, when you observe the get-up, you find that many isolation movements are present, too:

Basic rolling

Press

Hinge

Lunge

Loaded carry (waiter walk)

We also find the “four knots”. The hips and shoulders must be both tight enough and loose enough to roll, slide and adapt through the positions as we move from the ground to standing. Both shoulders are engaged during the full movement at a variety of angles and loading parameters. One needs to be tight and loose throughout as we flow through the positions.

The get-up teaches the ability to remain stiff and tense through movement. When discussing reps of the get-up, I always err on the side of fewer. There are two reasons:

  1. Safety is part of performance.
  2. Trashing doesn’t help tuning.

The first point is the key to the RKC Code of Conduct. Don’t trip over a kettlebell haphazardly left on the floor. Don’t let go of a swing and hit someone in the face with a kettlebell. Don’t go out of your way to be stupid just to become (in)famous on the internet.

Those are all tenants of the “safety is part of performance” idea. With the get-up, a kettlebell is held directly above your skull. The kettlebell will win in a collision, so don’t drop it on your head.

More to the point, the get-up teaches total body coordination and total body strength. Like the Olympic lifts—the barbell snatch and barbell clean and jerk—it takes a level of focus to perform a get-up correctly. A single heavy get-up reflects the training base of perhaps months or years to get the movement “right.” Like the Olympic lifts, one doesn’t see the months of training and preparation that allow one to perform—and, yes, perform is the right word—a heavy get-up.

I keep the reps low to insure concentration, focus and optimal performance. As an Olympic lifting coach, I rarely get over ten reps in either lift with good lifters. With the get-up, I have found that few people can maintain the high levels of mental and physical coordination beyond about ten reps, too.

Get-up Kneeling Windmill

The second point is hard for many of our hard-charging brothers and sisters to understand: getting trashed is something a college freshman or someone who really doesn’t understand training does. I wouldn’t be surprised to see someone online doing Tabata get-ups some day (twenty seconds of get-up, ten seconds rest for four minutes) or some kind of “get-ups to failure.”

This kind of nonsense is an issue in the fitness industry. Sadly, it is what most people “hear” when we say the phrase “training session”.

Even though I want to make you move better and move more, most people’s ears tell them that I want you to puke in a bucket and lay in a sweaty mess on the floor.

No!

The get-up is all about tuning the body. The words “tune” and “tone” come from the same root. When we train people, we should be trying to tune them up. If you sit too much, stretching the hip flexor family and strengthening the glutes will do much more together.

When someone struggles in a get-up or cheats a position a bit, it tells us that something is going on today. I use the get-up and variations of it to access what is going on with a person that day. An unusual hitch in movement or a lack of mobility here or there can be addressed instantly if we see the get-up as a tuning exercise rather than a trashing movement.

Speed can mask problems. The get-up highlights weak links and poor linkage. My old training partner, John Price, used to always remind me, “An athlete is only as good as the weakest link.” The get-up is a different movement after a trip over ten time zones. The get-up is a different movement the day after an American football game.

But, a few minutes of intelligent corrective work, and tuning the body, allows us to get back into the game.

Stu McGill, the famous Canadian back specialist, offers trainers and coaches a challenge for every workout and program: after the exercises and rep scheme, write a column to explain why each exercise and rep is included.

When it is not included in a workout, we should ask why the get-up is NOT there.

***

Master RKC, Dan John is the author of numerous fitness titles including the best selling Never Let Go and Easy Strength. Dan has spent his life with one foot in the world of lifting and throwing, and the other foot in academia. An All-American discus thrower, Dan has also competed at the highest levels of Olympic lifting, Highland Games and the Weight Pentathlon, an event in which he holds the American record.

Dan spends his work life blending weekly workshops and lectures with full-time writing, and is also an online religious studies instructor for Columbia College of Missouri. As a Fulbright Scholar, he toured the Middle East exploring the foundations of religious education systems. For more information visit DanJohn.net

Filed Under: Kettlebell Training, Mobility and Flexibility Tagged With: Dan John, get up, get-up programming, Hardstyle, hkc, kettlebell get-up, Master RKC Dan John, RKC, teaching get-up

The Get-Up—The Ultimate Triplanar Exercise

December 7, 2016 By Ashoka McCormick 2 Comments

training get-ups for judo athletes

When we think of Bruce Lee throwing a kick, Muhammad Ali dodging a punch, or a great wrestler like Dan Gable swiftly shooting in for a double-leg takedown and dumping his opponent on the mat, we can easily imagine strength exerted on multiple planes.  This multi-dimensional strength and stability is achieved through specific strength conditioning. It is the key for optimizing body movement and power for a combat athlete’s knock-out punch. It also provides incomparable groundwork for other athletes, too.

The majority of today’s programs favor traditional strength and conditioning approaches which are often heavily biased towards sagittal plane (forward and backward) movements. We definitely need strength in the sagittal plane, and many of the big-bang-for-the-buck exercises like squats and deadlifts occur in this plane.

But in designing our training, it is important to understand that the human body does not move in just one direction. We can also move side-to-side, forward, backward, and in rotation. Training in multiple planes, or multiple directions, helps us achieve higher levels of body awareness, balance, and coordination. This improved programing allows for quicker reaction times and more efficient neuro-motor function. Training in all the planes can help athletes and clients avoid injury and enhance their performance. It’s a required practice for any athlete determined to consistently perform on an elite level.

 

The Three Planes:

Sagittal Plane:

Movements in the sagittal plan move forward and back, or through the mid-line of the body. Common examples of sagittal plane movements are a biceps curl or a sit-up.

Frontal Plane:

Movements along the frontal plan can be described as side-to-side, such as abduction and adduction. Exercises that work through the frontal plane are side lunges and jumping jacks.

Transverse Plane:

Movements in the transverse plane include horizontal abduction, adduction or rotational actions. Exercise examples include the Russian twist or a cable woodchop.

One major reason most sports injuries occur in the frontal and transverse planes is that most athletes are only training in the sagittal plane. Athleticism depends on a tremendous amount of movement in different planes of action. Strength and conditioning programs for athletes should strive to include as many variations of movement as possible to train muscles in as many planes as possible (Kenn, 2003).

As trainers and coaches, we must prepare our athletes by strengthening their bodies in all three planes. If your athletes understand the difference between these three planes of movement and can develop their ability to efficiently weave their movements together, then they will be well-rounded and less prone to injury.  For example a fighter in the ring or cage spins, moves left and right, dodges kicks, pivots, punches, and is constantly tackled.  If his or her body is weak in a particular plane, the likelihood of an injury is much greater.

Most popular training methods do not use multi-planar movements. Powerlifting, Olympic lifting, CrossFit training, and bodybuilding tend to primarily work in the sagittal plane. Very few movements are in the transverse or frontal planes. Additionally, most of these training methods do not include multi-planar movements—combinations of frontal, sagittal, and transverse planes of motion. These popular training methods are still valid for training athletes, but coaches should also consider ways to train sport-specific movements that athletes will perform on the field of play (Brown, 2013).

Ashoka McCormick at the whiteboard

As strength coaches and trainers, we can create workouts that hit all of these planes, or we can select compound exercises—triplaner movements—that hit all three planes in one rep. One of the best triplanar movements of all is already a staple among RKC and HKC Instructors: the get-up

In the kettlebell community and the strength and conditioning world, the get-up is highly regarded, and with very good reason. It’s a highly functional movement and total body exercise. Its benefits include improved shoulder stability and strength, correction of left-right asymmetries, overall mobility, core strength, improved movement skills, overall proprioception / coordination, and time under tension. The get-up also teaches athletes to stabilize themselves and create whole body tension in a variety of positions.

 

Truly Triplanar

The above-mentioned list of benefits is more than enough justification to include the get-up in our workouts. But, I think that one of the most valuable benefits provided by the get-up is that it passes through all three movement planes from the ground up, and again on the way back down to the ground. For that reason alone, the kettlebell get-up is one of my favorite options—it forces you to work in EVERY plane of motion.

Body Awareness

The get-up provides a variety of functional movement patterns and an unmatched stimulation to our vestibular and nervous systems. Once they have mastered all the steps of the get-up, you can even lead your clients and athletes through the movement with their eyes closed for a greater nervous system challenge. The body awareness developed from practicing get-ups provides tremendous value for athletes and the general population.

Ashoka McCormick spotting kettlebell get-up

Five Minute Get-Ups

At my HKC certification in April, RKC Team Leader Chris White mentioned doing “Five Minute Get-Ups.” Since then I have added this drill into many of my programs for Judo athletes. At first, they should be practiced without weight, then balance a shoe on the fist for added challenge.  I tend to use the “Five Minute Get-Up” protocol at the beginning of our workouts, it serves as a good warm-up, and a great opportunity for skill development.

During the drill, we focus on one quality rep at a time. I encourage the athletes to take their time. You can incorporate “Five Minute Get-Ups” at the beginning of your workout, on a recovery day, or even as a stand-alone skill practice session. Advanced athletes can try it with weight. But, with or without a kettlebell, the main focus is on the fluidity of the movement.

When designing a strength and conditioning program, we need to include multi-planar movements, multi-directional movements, and various stances which are appropriate for our athletes. Exercises like the get-up will help athletes move more efficiently and will decrease their chances of injury while increasing their overall functional strength.

Winning Athletes At the podium

References:
Brown, T. (2013, September). NSCA’s Performance Training Journal, Issue 12. Retrieved November 18, 2016
Kenn, J. (2003). The Coach’s Strength Training Playbook. Monterey, CA: Coaches Choice.

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Ashoka McCormick, HKC is a performance coach in Santa Cruz, California.

Filed Under: Coaching, Kettlebell Training Tagged With: Ashoka McCormick, Athletic Training, fitness training, get up, hkc, kettlebell get-up, kettlebell training, stength and conditioning for sports, tri-planer training, triplanar exercises, triplanar movement, triplanar training

Training an Olympic Judoka with Kettlebell Swings and the Goblet Squat

June 15, 2016 By Ashoka McCormick 1 Comment

Colton Brown Goblet Squat

10,000 athletes compete in the Summer Olympics. Colton Brown, age 23, was ranked number 1 in the USA (and 27th in the world) in the Men’s 90 Kilogram Judo Black Belt Division on May 30, 2016. Now, Colton is heading to the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio De Janeiro to represent the USA.

The road to Rio was not easy, but Colton’s USA Olympic Judo Team qualification was one of the proudest moments in my young career as a strength coach. After four years of hard work, Colton has manifested a dream he’s had since age 12.

Colton had just returned from competing in the World Judo Championships in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil when I first began working with him in August of 2013. I had just begun my coaching career by volunteering as the Spartan Judo Team strength coach at San Jose State University. As a dominant collegiate Judo athlete and 2-time All American, Colton had his sights set on becoming an Olympian. After the World Judo Championships, Colton wanted to gain muscle mass. We spent the Fall semester in the weight-room working on a basic hypertrophy program. With the 2016 Olympic qualification period nine months away, we planned to spend two-thirds of the year on strength and hypertrophy. By mid-November, Colton had made significant strength and size gains.

Colton then traveled to Texas and Japan, two of 2013’s last important tournaments. At the Tokyo Grand Slam Tournament, he reported standing toe to toe with the number four competitor in the world—and he only lost by a penalty. Colton won six matches and took the gold medal at the Dallas Open. He credits our weight training program for helping him become the best player in the country.

After the tournaments, Colton kept training on campus at San Jose State, he also trained with me privately two to three times each week at the facility. Even before he began working with me, Colton already had a great deadlift, crushed pull-ups, and push-ups with ease. But, Colton’s weakest lift was the squat. While we had addressed his movement patterns and mobility, the exercise which ultimately helped Colton improve his squat was the goblet squat.

Since late 2014, the goblet squat has been a staple of Colton’s training. At first, I used it as a tool to teach Colton to squat more efficiently, and to build a strong foundation. Next, we progressed to the barbell back squat, double kettlebell front squat, and many others. I believe goblet squats are a great exercise for athletic movement preparation, or as a stand-alone drill for mobility.

Most importantly, the goblet squat is a great in-season squat patterning exercise for all athletes. Judo athletes face a unique programming challenge—their entire year is “in-season”. There’s no true “off season”, especially at the international level. Judo athletes compete and train on a regular basis. Even during the “slower” parts of the year, they practice on the mat twice a day, for five to six days each week. During the qualification period, they frequently travel for qualifying tournaments and required training camps. Extra travel is another unique programming challenge.

Goblet squats have a high benefit to low-risk ratio. I am not comfortable placing a lot of load on my Judo athletes during certain times of the year with barbell back squats, or front squats. Regardless of the competition calendar, I can always turn to the goblet squat—it’s safe, effective, and works well in our training program.

Colton Brown Judo Throw

The Road to Rio

In April 2014, Colton won his third consecutive title at the National Collegiate Judo Championships and continued to establishing himself as the one of the best Judo players in the USA. Shortly after, the Olympic qualification period began in May 30, 2014 and lasted until May 30, 2016. Prior to qualification, we made sure to build a solid base of strength. With more travel, we adjusted the volume of Colton’s program while he competed all over the world.

The World Tour is tough on Judo athletes. It’s stressful, and while they get to see the world, it’s not a vacation. Standing are constantly changing, qualification points are on the line—along with the demands of competing and traveling in vastly different environments all over the world. It’s a grind.

During the two-year qualification period, I added kettlebell training to many of Colton’s workouts. The kettlebell can profoundly benefit elite level Judo athletes. Kettlebell training is one of the most important ingredients in our recipe for success. While I don’t use kettlebells exclusively in my programs, they have proven time and time again to benefit our athletes on the Judo mat. Kettlebell swings may be one of the best movements a Judoka can perform in the weight room. Since adding more swings to Colton’s training sessions in the Spring of 2014, they have remained a staple in his training as a go-to power exercise.

We needed to train Colton to be as strong and healthy as possible to endure the intense training camps and international Judo tournaments. While Colton had less time to train with me, our general programming template remained the same. For the three years we’ve been training, I’ve tried to use as many “big bang for your buck” movements in his training—no matter what tool we use.

Big Bang For Your Buck Movements

  • Push (horizontal and vertical)
  • Pull (horizontal and vertical)
  • Hinge (bilateral and unilateral)
  • Squat (bilateral and unilateral)
  • Crawling (side to side, forwards, backwards)
  • Core training
  • Movement in the sagittal, frontal, and transverse planes

Colton’s programs included balanced workouts with a wide variety of exercises with barbells, TRX, medicine balls, dumbbells, and kettlebells. For example, in one workout we would focus on a hinge movement and a pushing movement, then the next workout would feature a squatting movement and a pulling movement. I also included mobility, core training, and accessory movements in every session. Occasionally, we took the training to the beach or park. I think it’s important to include variety in your training and training environment. Another reason I love the kettlebell is you can work out with it almost anywhere.

Making the USA Olympic Judo Team

Colton continued to train relentlessly both on and off the Judo mat during the qualification period. During that time, he won a Gold Medal in the Pan American Open in San Salvador, Silver Medals at the European Open in Glasgow and African Open in Tunis, and placed at many other renowned tournaments throughout the world.

At the prestigious Pan American Championships in Havana, Cuba in May 2016, Colton earned three wins with one loss, capturing a Silver Medal after finishing in fifth-place for the previous two years. Now, Colton will be one of only three men representing the United States Judo Team in Rio De Janeiro this August.

Daily, Colton spends countless hours on the mats perfecting his judo technique, dialing in his nutrition, practicing mental visualization, planning his recovery, and studying his opponents. He also gives his best in every strength and conditioning session.

Kettlebell Swings and the Goblet Squat for Judo Performance

The Goblet Squat

The goblet squat is a staple in almost all of Colton’s strength and conditioning programs for the past two and a half years. Since there’s no true off-season in Judo, I have to be smart about loading him up. While we use other squat variations with the barbell, the goblet squat is our go-to.

Goblet Squat Prying

After a two to three week hiatus due to travel, goblet squat prying was an excellent choice to help open his hips. Flying has a direct physical impact. Sitting can cause the hip flexors and hamstrings to get tight and stiff. It can also take a toll on the spine, hips, and shoulders. Long flights leave your legs tight and your glutes inactive. One of the mobility drills I learned at the HKC is goblet squat prying, and it is incredibly effective for loosening up the hips.

I instruct the athlete to breathe deeply while maintaining their posture. As they begin to loosen up, I will instruct them to go deeper into the squat while wiggling the hips from side to side and in a small figure-8 as taught at the HKC. Alternately, I will instruct them to hold the bottom of the goblet squat position for a count of 10 breaths. We often superset the prying goblet squat with the RKC hip flexor stretch. These two exercises can do wonders for the hips, especially after a long flight. Adding a few sets of mini band activation exercises such as bent knee lateral walks, and mini band glute bridges ensure glute engagement. After opening up the hips, stretching the hip flexors, and turning on the glutes, the athlete is ready for a more productive training session.

The Goblet Squat as a “Mini Screen”

While I’m certified to use the FMS screen and administer it throughout the year, I also use the goblet squat in warm-ups and as a quick daily screen. Goblet squats how me how the athlete is moving during that particular training session. Basic movements like lunges, push ups, and squatting patterns can be used as movement preparation for the training session and as “mini screens”. I want to get a picture of where the athlete is on that given day, along with any flaws or leaks in the movement.

The Goblet Squat as a Teaching Aide

The goblet squat reinforces correct squatting mechanics. Colton’s squatting pattern, squat depth, and mobility immediately improved after adding the goblet squat to his program. The goblet squat is one of the best tools for helping my Judo athletes develop movement competency in the squatting pattern. I’m more confident when progressing them to advanced squatting variations such as barbell front squats, or racked kettlebell front squats.

San Jose Judo Kettlebells

The Kettlebell Swing

Powerful hip hinging movements teach athletes how to load their hips rather than their spine. They learn better ground force production while building a strong posterior chain (back, butt, abs, and hamstrings). For these reasons alone, the swing is always at the top of my exercise selection list for Judo athletes. I almost always some type of kettlebell swing in their programs. Russian wrestlers have used kettlebells for years and recognized the carryover onto the wrestling mats. I think the kettlebell swing is one of the best conditioning choices for grapplers and other combat sport athletes.

Hip Hinge

Moving comfortably and efficiently from the hip is important for the proper execution of throws and other movements in Judo. The main movements in the hip hinge are bending (flexion) and straightening (hip extension) when standing back up. A good Judo athlete must be able to properly hinge from the hips when setting up for or defending a takedown. I have seen a direct carryover from the explosive hip snap action of swinging kettlebells to the mat, especially for throwing.

Colton told me, “Judo is 90% hips, so when there’s a lot of kettlebell swings in my program my hips feel powerful—especially in my defense. When guys come in and try to throw me forward, I’m able to use my hips to block throws a lot more effectively.” Every time Colton sets up for kettlebell swings, he has to start from an athletic position before hiking the kettlebell back. Anytime your athletes can practice getting into the athletic position during training you’re on to something good. In grappling, the athletic position is critical for defending and blocking throws.

Grip

A kettlebell’s thick handle challenges the grip—another reason that kettlebells can greatly benefit the Judoka. If you’re doing a lot of swings, you’re also spending a lot of time building a vise-like grip. I experienced kettlebell-enhanced grip strength in my own Jiu-Jitsu practice when gripping my opponent’s gi. During the months of preparation leading up the HKC, I developed a better grip which was immediately apparent at my Jiu-Jitsu class.

Colton Brown Judo Pin

There are many ways to grip the gi in Judo and Jiu-Jitsu not only on the lapel and sleeves, but also on the pants and various parts of the jacket—sometimes even the belt. Once you achieve a good grip, you don’t want to lose it. “Without a good grip, Judo does not work” (Pedro, 2001 p48). Swings are just one of many kettlebell exercises (loaded carries, heavy get ups, presses, etc.) you can use to develop a strong grip. It is important to note that you can have the strongest grip in the world, but if you’re holding on to the wrong things, it does not help in Judo. Efficient gripping is addressed in the specific physical preparation of Judo practice, and should be complemented with supplemental grip strengthening exercises in a strength and conditioning program.

Tension and Relaxation

Some Judokas are too relaxed—and they are easily thrown. Others aren’t relaxed enough, and they ultimately burn more energy and fatigue more quickly than their opponent during the match. At the top of the kettlebell swing, all of your muscles must contract to allow the kettlebell to float briefly and then quickly relax so you can begin the backswing. The tension/relaxation principle taught in Hardstyle kettlebell training is incredibly valuable for the Judoka. Throughout a Judo match there is a constant—almost yin and yang like—balance between relaxation and tension. When working with Colton on his swings, I regularly reminded him to create tension at the top of each swing with the cues “tight abs” and “tight glutes”. At the same time I also checked for a full exhale, and during the backswing I would remind him to “relax”.

One principle from Hardstyle kettlebell training that I continually drive home with my Judo athletes is the transition between tension and relaxation. Kettlebell swings allow athletes to quickly create maximal amounts of tension followed by relaxation. This is a skill that can be transferred into almost any throw attempted on the mat.

Final Thoughts

Kettlebell training has played a big part in Colton Brown’s physical preparation for the Olympics, and I believe that kettlebell training is of particular benefit for anyone involved in martial arts such as Judo, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, and Muay Thai. This also holds true for any other type of combat sport like wrestling, boxing, or MMA.

 

Resources:

  1. Bakken, J. (2012, July 23). A journey of Olympic proportions begins with a determined step. Retrieved June 03, 2016, from https://www.uab.edu/news/latest/item/2599-a-journey-of-olympic-proportions-begins-with-a-determined-step
  1. Pedro, J., & Durbin, W. (2001). Judo techniques & tactics. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics.

More about Judo Athlete Colton Brown:

  • NBC Biography of Colton Brown
  • USA Judo Team Announcement
  • Video about Colton’s Olympic Qualification

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Ashoka McCormick, HKC, NASM-CPT, FMSC, CFSC works at Paradigm Sport Elite Athlete Training Center in Santa Cruz, CA, and he also serves as the Volunteer Strength & Conditioning Coach for SJSU Judo. He can be contacted at coachashoka@gmail.com. Please mention HKC in the subject. Connect with Ashoka McCormick on LinkedIn or follow him on Instagram: @ashoka_trains

Filed Under: Coaching, Kettlebell Training Tagged With: Ashoka McCormick, Colton Brown, hkc, Judo, Judo athletes, Judo players, kettlebell training, kettlebells, Olympian, Olympic Judo, Olympic Judoka, strength and conditioning, training an Olympic athlete

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