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The RKC–the Perfect Training System?

August 27, 2014 By Mike Krivka 5 Comments

RKC Big Six Kettlebell Exercises — *Graphic: Senior RKC, Robert Rimoczi*

INTRODUCTION

Everyone is looking for the perfect “thing”–the perfect diet, the perfect car, the perfect vacation, the perfect look, the perfect mate (sorry, not going to happen and this isn’t the venue for that conversation), or the perfect workout. Looking to find the “perfect” anything is a fool’s quest but the pursuit of perfection makes champions. This article will explore what I consider to be the almost perfect strength and conditioning program: the Russian Kettlebell Certified (RKC) Kettlebell training system.

PREFIX

To determine if something is “perfect”, you have to either compare it against other similar items or at least have a list of criteria that you can judge it against. Fair enough. In this instance we are looking for the perfect strength and conditioning program and while I’m not going to point fingers or name names, I will define the characteristics that I think make the RKC superior. In my humble opinion for a strength and conditioning program to be anywhere “near perfect” it needs to have (at a minimum) the following components:

It must address the six basic movement patterns:
- Push
- Pull
- Squat
- Hinge
- Carry
- Groundwork (ex. Turkish Get Up)
It must have both Ballistics and Grinds as part of the training program:
- a. Ballistics for strength endurance and impact generation
- b. Grinds for deep strength and tenacity under pressure

Those are the basic criteria for analysis and they are pretty easily defined. The goal of the perfect system should be to enhance the athlete’s or client’s overall strength, mobility, work output and athleticism. Read on to find out why I think the RKC meets these criteria and much more.

SWING (Ballistic)

To say that the kettlebell swing is the foundation that all ballistic movements with the kettlebell are based on would be an understatement. The swing establishes a deep and powerful explosive groove that allows the athlete to generate power from the ground up. It reinforces transitional and positional strength skills as well as developing a fine tuned ability to go from absolute relaxation to absolute tension in a heartbeat (one that is beating very fast as well).

Training the kettlebell swing develops the hugely important hinge movement in a dynamic manner. Most athletes will train the hinge, or something that looks like it, while doing barbell deadlifts. But the kettlebell swing gives the athlete a platform to practice exploding out of the hinge, dynamically loading the hinge, and teaches how to transition quickly and efficiently from loading to unloading while seamlessly applying force when and where it is needed. This is a tremendously valuable skill for anyone involved in contact sports or who has to move fast and recover quickly–like Moms and Dads chasing kids around!

GOBLET SQUAT (Grind)

The squat has been the staple of most strength and conditioning programs since before the invention of the barbell–as well it should be. The squat develops tremendous strength in the legs, hamstrings and glutes. It also requires the athlete to establish and maintain bracing throughout the torso. Understanding how to squat well is one of the foundational movement patterns and one that is overlooked by many athletes; you know the ones – big guns and chicken legs. In the RKC System, the goblet squat is the primary squatting movement for a good reason: most people (even those who have been squatting for years) lack the strength, mobility, and awareness to squat safely and effectively.

The goblet squat establishes a solid structure for loading the posterior chain, reinforcing the anterior chain, and creating alignment in the joints that ensures safe loading and transitions. For some, the goblet squat takes on a more rehabilitative form since it trains the client or athlete to open their hips and use their knees safely and effectively while teaching how to avoid undue stress on the lower back. The only drawback of the goblet squat is that it cannot be loaded to the same extent as a barbell squat. The inclusion of the kettlebell squat with one or two kettlebells makes this point almost moot. Once again, you can’t go to extreme loads but the efficiency but efficacy of the squat with the kettlebell almost makes up for it.

TURKISH GET-UP (Grind)

The Turkish get-up (TGU) or just plain old “get-up” is new to this generation of athletes and has found many ardent followers. The TGU is relatively hard to categorize. Some people consider it to be a pure strength technique while others categorize it as a mobility or pre-hab/rehab tool. Regardless, the TGU is an essential tool in the quest to make athletes move better and develop integrated strength. With modest loads, the TGU can be used as a strength endurance tool; the stresses placed on the athlete getting up and down are phenomenal for conditioning and rival the dreaded burpee for the language they generate. With heavier loads, the TGU can be used to develop transitional and positional strength like no other technique that I am aware of. Mastery of a number of planes of movement, the ability to maintain tension and establish intermediate loading and unloading positions, are all challenges that must be overcome if you are going to be successful at doing the TGU. From a pure movement perspective the TGU is golden and adequately fills in the “groundwork” section of the basic movement pattern requirements.

CLEAN (Ballistic)

The kettlebell clean is often overlooked and under-appreciated when it comes to developing strength. But I will tell you this from the outset–show me someone with a weak clean and I will show you someone who has an even weaker snatch and military press. The clean is the foundation for all of the overhead ballistics and grinds with the kettlebell and it also establishes an efficient and powerful groove that will be reflected in the kettlebell snatch. The clean, just like the swing, is a foundational move that relies on a powerful backswing to get the kettlebell moving. But unlike the swing, the clean requires that the kettlebell be directed upward as opposed to outward. A “swingy” clean is ugly and painful as well as being inefficient. Once the kettlebell has been “cleaned” it is considered to be in the “rack”–and that is where the magic happens. The “racked” kettlebell is now being supported by a complex symphony of tension from the anterior and posterior chains and is ready to be cleaned again or (military) pressed or jerked. The stability of the kettlebell in the clean (racked position) has to be absolute if it is going to be used to grind the kettlebell overhead via the military press or as a ballistic via the kettlebell jerk.

MILITARY PRESS (Grind)

The military press (MP) is the first overhead technique in the RKC System. The MP trains full body tension, bracing or “wedging” of the body under the load, efficient grooving (the path the kettlebell takes), the overhead lockout, and much more. More than just a mindless pressing movement with the kettlebell, the MP trains the client or athlete to drive from the ground up to press the kettlebell overhead, hold the lockout, and then to pull the kettlebell back into the racked position of the clean. The last five decades or so has seen the MP being supplanted in most strength and conditioning programs by a heavy emphasis on the bench press. While the bench press has many and varied benefits the MP is (in my opinion) superior to developing integration with the torso and power from the upper torso that translates over to many sporting and daily functions. The MP can be very frustrating for both sexes as well. Men who have a “big bench” find that they have puny MP’s. Women who have strong legs and good kettlebell swings are stymied by trying to get even a light load safely overhead. With a little practice and some determination, both groups will find their strength improve and will reap the benefits of being stronger overhead (especially when it comes time to snatch the kettlebell).

SNATCH (Ballistic)

The kettlebell snatch is a riddle wrapped in an enigma. It looks so easy and effortless when you watched it done by a well trained practitioner and it can also look like a tragedy in the making when done by someone without the proper coaching. As a ballistic technique it is comprised of many facets that appear to be one smooth and seamless movement (if done correctly). I have heard the snatch described as a “swing that ends up overhead” but I don’t think that is an accurate assessment of the movement. The swing is more like a clean that ends up overhead. I’ve always said that a “clean is a short snatch and a snatch is a long clean”. Why? Because the trajectory of the clean and the snatch are almost exactly the same; one ends up on your shoulder and the ends up overhead. But why is the snatch such an important part of the RKC? Because it trains the client or athlete to develop and master a number of skills and make them appear as one.

To master the snatch you have to be able to generate, manage, and absorb force; you need to be able to manage tension and relaxation; you need to be able to create and demonstrate positional and transitional strength; and so much more. Hopefully you can see why the snatch is held in such high regard and considered by some as the “King of the Ballistics”.

CONCLUSION

Six techniques – that’s it. With those six you have met all of the requirements of the six basic movement patterns with the exception of one: the carry. That’s pretty easy to fix with some farmers’ carries or walking with the kettlebell in the clean (racked position) or held overhead. Okay, okay – the pull is somewhat sketchy as well, although you are getting some great pulling work out of all the kettlebell ballistics. The addition of renegade rows or pull ups will fill that gap nicely as well.

Here’s the thing – there is no “perfect” system but the RKC comes darn close to hitting the basic requirements that any client or athlete needs to improve their movement, their athleticism, and their longevity. A nice balance of ballistics and grinds as well as a series of movements that hit every major muscle (and most of the minor ones as well) makes the RKC system “near perfect” as far as a strength and conditioning program goes – and that’s about all you can ask for in this lifetime.

***

About Michael A. Krivka, Sr. – Senior RKC: Michael A. Krivka, Sr. is a Washington, DC native who has been involved in Kettlebell training for over a decade and is currently an RKC Team Leader 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.

RKC Kettlebell Hinge Analysis

July 2, 2014 By Mike Krivka 5 Comments

OVERVIEW
There are six basic movement patterns : Push, Pull, Squat, Hinge, Carry and Groundwork (i.e. Turkish Get Up, Rolling, etc.). A thorough understanding and utilization of these movement patterns will make you an exceptional athlete, a better rounded coach or trainer, and will allow you to move and grow old gracefully – which are no easy tasks. Tens of thousands of words have been written in regard to Pushing, Pulling, and Squatting; of late the Hinge, Carry and Groundwork have started to get some well deserved attention as well. Among all of the writing there are some real gems of information and guidance as to how to effectively implement the movements and safely execute them. One area that is referenced a lot, but not clearly defined and explained, is the Hinge. The Hinge is the basis for most of the Kettlebell techniques as well as the foundation for the barbell Deadlift. While it is being taught and practiced by athletes and clients every day there are still some issues with executing it safely and efficiently. The following several paragraphs are my attempt to clarify some “gray areas” regarding the Hinge.

A HINGE IS A HINGE… OR IS IT?
There is a lot of confusion as to what a Hinge is and what isn’t. If you spend any time on YouTube (and I do) you will see a wide variety of examples what people are doing that looks like a Hinge but in reality is something completely different. Let’s define the Hinge first and see if we can identify where people go wrong. First – a Hinge is not a Squat (but the Squat has a Hinge component; we’ll get back to this later on). The Squat requires maximum flexion of the Ankle, Knee and Hip and puts the butt parallel or below parallel. Second – the Hinge is not bending over or what some people call “The Sippy Bird”. Bending over requires that the Hip flexes and the head travels forward over the toes. This type of Hinge presents itself with people who are trying to “pull” the Kettlebell or Bar. Third – the Hinge is not done with a straight back – meaning upright, but a flat or neutral spine. When you do the Hinge, the backin its entirety, needs to stay neutral or flat in order to not only protect it but to “stack” is so that you can transfer power through it.

So we have three things that the Hinge isn’t – so what is it? The Hinge is a loading position that allows you to maximally translate energy from the ground via a ballistic extension of the ankles, knees and hips. This ballistic extension can then be translated into movement of the body or a secondary object like a Kettlebell. There are a laundry list of variables that will affect the volatility of your Hinge (and yes it should be a “violent” extension” but I’m going to save that for another RKC Blog posting). What I want you to imagine that the Hinge should be the position you feel that you can get the most drive or explosion out of. Think “jumping over a building in a single bound” and you’ll get what I’m talking about.

LEADING WITH YOUR HEAD
Here’s the nitty gritty about the Hinge: it’s all about initiating, generating power, and transferring power. And guess where the biggest errors occur? You’d think it’s with generating and transferring – but it’s actually on the initiation. You see when most people do the Kettlebell Swing (or Clean or Snatch for that matter) they explode out of the Hinge position leading with their torso and head (back to that Sippy Bird” thing). Don’t believe me? Then try the simple test outlined in the video below. The first demonstration shows the athlete trying to pull their way out of the Hinge position. This position is so weak that light pressure on the head stalls the whole body. The second demonstration shows the athlete driving up from the ground using their legs and finishing with a powerful Hinge movement. The presence of my hand on the top of the athletes head doesn’t deter them at all.

What you are going to find is that many of your athletes and clients are paying lip service the Hinge but are actually generating power through their lower back and acceleration of their head. It’s going to startle many people when you are able to stop them dead in their track with gentle pressure on their head; careful when you try to demonstrate this because you can easily tweak someone’s neck or back if they try to “fight” their way through the obstruction. Here’s the thing – you can train the Hinge in this manner and get reasonably strong and stay injury-free for a long time. But… and it’s a big one… you are not going to be able to generate as much power as you could if you don’t learn to initiate and follow through with the Hinge from the ground up.

Think about the Hinge this way: the best way to generate power is from a fixed object outward or upward (like the ground). If you are initiating your Hinge by driving off the ground with an explosive push from your feet, the force will be transferred though the ankles to the knees, the knees into the hips, and ultimately into the Kettlebell. This is generating power in one direction. If you are inadvertently generating force by using your lower back and head (once again think “Sippy Bird”) then you have force being generated both upward towards the head and downward towards the ground and only a percentage of that will be able to be transferred into the Kettlebell. Once again – watch the simple hands-on test and cueing that I demonstrate in the video and you’ll see that the most efficient and powerful way to create force in the Hinge is through initiating through the ground up.

WISDOM FROM A MASTER
Marty Gallagher is a master in the realm of strength. He has made a career out producing world record holding athletes, writing about the iron game (have you read his opus “The Purposeful Primitive”?), and working with Tier One Special Operators. To say he knows what it takes to be strong and get strong would be an understatement. I’ve had the pleasure of sitting down and talking about strength training with Marty on a couple occasions and I always come away with insights that are light years away from where I currently am. For instance, we were talking about Barbell Deadlifting (DL) and how many of the current crop of DL’ers you see start way too high and are facing down when they initiate the movement. Sure, you can get the bar moving there but you’re never going to reach your potential using that technique; not to mention you are putting unnecessary stress and strain on your back. According to Marty the best “pulling position” for the Barbell DL is the shins and the torso at almost the same angle – this allows you at to drive off the ground with the legs (squatting) and then transferring the load into the Hinge to complete it. Once again – the Hinge completes the movement; it’s not the whole movement.

So how does this apply to the Hinge in regards to the Kettlebell? Directly! Do not pass Go, do not collect five hundred dollars! While pulling a heavy barbell Deadlift and performing a heavy Kettlebell Swing may look radically different they have a lot of similarities (and several differences). If you look at the Hinge from this perspective it will radically change how much more force you can generate (using the biggest muscles and drivers in your body) and will lessen your reliance on using your arms to move the Kettlebell. Several things that make a difference between the two are the position of the load during execution. The barbell has no choice but to stay in front of the shins during the movement; this will change not only the loading but also affect the angles of all of the major joints. With the Kettlebell you have much more latitude for positioning the load (those pesky shins don’t get in the way) and you can put it between and behind your feet to allow a more direct and powerful loading of the hips, glutes and hamstrings.

Don’t let my explanation of the positioning on the barbell Deadlift and Kettlebell Swing confuse you! The point I am trying to make is that when you are practicing a technique that utilizes the Hinge the key factor is how you are initiating the movement. Are you driving through the Hinge from the ground up or are pulling through the Hinge with your arms and head? There is a HUGE difference and the results are profound…

CONCLUSION
What I’ve outlined above may be common knowledge to some and, even after a video and over a thousand words, will still be a mystery to others. That’s okay! Watch the video, re-read the above post and see if you can work out the specifics on your own or via experimenting with your athletes or clients. The purpose behind the test I demonstrated is not to frustrate or confuse you – it’s to show you a simple and effective way to ensure that your athletes or clients are using the safest and most effective way to generate power for Kettlebell ballistic techniques.

Thanks for your time and attention and I look forward to your feedback and questions!

***

Importance of the Overhead Lockout

June 4, 2014 By Tabitha Dearle Leave a Comment

So many kettlebell exercises go overhead.

Some move quickly like the Snatch (top left picture) and Jerk. Some move slowly like the Press (top right picture) and Bent Press. And some are simply just held overhead like the Turkish Get Up and Windmill but every single one of them should look identical in the lockout position.

When the kettlebell is overhead your body should have tension running through it from top to bottom, reaching the top of your movement is not a moment to relax. Keeping your lats activated, your belly and glutes tight, the arm sucked into the shoulder, wrist straight ensures safety and strength.

Breaking down the Overhead Lockout:

The Wrist: When the wrist is in the correct position the muscle in your forearm remains active. Maintaining a straight wrist with knuckles facing the sky can be a challenge for some, especially when using a lighter kettlebell that sits higher on the wrist and presses on bone. If the pressure on the wrist is too much when you are starting out grab some sweatbands and cover the wrist for protection (not for continual use to cushion a kettlebell banging onto your wrist, that is a different issue altogether).

Keeping the wrist straight is essential in reducing injury, the “Broken Wrist” position will eventually lead to exactly that…

I asked fellow RKC and Physiotherapist Craig Soley for a breakdown of the dangers of incorrect wrist position, the following is his response –

“One of the most common mistakes in KB pressing activities is wrist position. So we can be clear, wrist (neutral) extension is described such that if I drew a line from your knuckles along the back of your hand and down your wrist is would be a perfectly straight line. If the wrist is flexed (a less common mistake) the knuckles would be in front of the wrist and forearm. If the wrist is extended then the knuckles would be located behind the bones of the wrist and forearm. Holding the KB in wrist neutral, the load is carried through the joint and held by muscular effort – this is good. In wrist extension, the load is carried on the joint, less muscle effort and the weight is resting upon the bony structures – over time this is bad and it is bad practice.

Why? Think collapsed arches and flat feet, hyperextended knees and hyperlorditic lumbar spines as other examples of resting on your joints. If you continually rest on your joints they will eventually wear out. Also, if you are training, train! Use your muscles to do the work and take the load off your joints! Keeping your wrist neutral trains for function and longevity.”

The Elbow: The elbow, as with the wrist, should maintain a straight alignment. The extended arm should run parallel to your head with your bicep inline with your ear. If you are hypermobile through the joint you will need to be more mindful of your movements as they are more likely to sustain injury due to the unstable nature of the joint.

Shoulder/Ear Poisoning: Over and over throughout all of my kettlebell learning I’ve heard the phrase “Your ears are poison to your shoulders”, simply meaning that if you’re overhead and the shoulder is close your ear then you’ve lost all stability and strength from the shoulder girdle being in a shrugged up position. Keep the arm securely in the socket and activate your lats for upper torso strength.

Core/Glutes: If you are planning to conquer The Iron Maiden Challenge (or for the fellas The Beast Tamer Challenge) you know that a good heavy Press comes from strong glutes and having your core locked tight. It is the solid base that stops you from leaking power and maintains control. Finish your lift strong by keeping them all engaged – meaning no disengaging in the middle.

Get moving before going overhead: Always warm up before any workout with your aim to target the muscles that are going to be used. PFE warm-up, Halos with Kettlebell, rotating all joints through their full range of movement.

Can’t Maintain Lockout? Thoracic Spine Extension Mobility plays a big part in maintaining posture in the overhead lockout. If you are lacking in thoracic mobility work on it with some of the following stretches/exercises –

Foam Roller on the thoracic spine
Armbar or Crooked Armbar
Thoracic Bridging

Always seek out professional help if you are suffering pain in any overhead position.

***

Tabitha Dearle, RKCII based in Perth, Australia, and is Co-owner of Perth Kettlebell School of Strength. She spent the first decade of her working life managing fast food restaurants before making a life-changing decision to become a Personal Trainer. Since then she’s been helping many, from athletes to seniors to children, change their lifestyles to become fitter, healthier and more mobile mostly through using Kettlebells. You can follow her blog at http://tabidrkc.wordpress.com/

Take Those Kettlebells Outside

May 14, 2014 By Laurel Blackburn Leave a Comment

It’s spring, the weather is warming up, the flowers are blooming and the sun is shining.

If you’ve been hibernating all winter and your workouts have gotten dull, now is the time to breathe new life into those workouts by taking your Kettlebells outside for some fun in the sun.

The possibilities for outdoor workouts are endless. I’ve been outside with my clients for several weeks working on some fun variations for outdoor workouts. Obviously, you need to be in a large grassy area or you could be liable for destroying property and we certainly don’t want that.

The workouts I’ve included are just a few of the fun variations that you can use. Get creative!

To get a full body workout, I start with bent over rows and push-ups. You can either do them once at the start of the workout or you can have them do the rows and push ups each time they pick up the bell.

Depending on how far you want to go down the field, you can vary the reps. If I plan to go far, then I will do 1 rep of each, swing, squat, curl and press before I throw the bell. If you want you can have your clients do several reps of swings, squats, curls and presses before they throw the bell.

Another option is to add a rep of each for every time they pick up their bell.

This can also be a time to work on form. At the end of the video, I included a “stop and throw” swing. This requires a very powerful hip snap in order to heave the bell as far as you can.

Hopefully this will give you some fun ideas and motivation to get you outside and enjoy the spring time.

***

Laurel Blackburn is an RKC Team Leader and owner of Boot Camp Fitness and Training and Tallahassee Kettlebells. Look for Laurel at www.bootcampstogo.com or www.tallahasseekettlebells.com.

In her early fifties, she is out to prove that age is just a number. Her goal is to motivate and inspire people everywhere, both young and old that strength, flexibility and mobility can get better with age. Follow her adventures on her blog: www.SuperStrongNana.com.

…It’s Only the HKC!?!?

March 18, 2014 By Mike Krivka 5 Comments

I’ve had the honor and pleasure to attend pretty much every certification that Dragon Door has offered for over a decade and I’ve always been impressed with the extremely high quality, professionalism, and thoroughness of each and every one of these events. The quality of the instruction and the enthusiasm of the attendees are unparalleled. So when I heard a recent attendee at an HKC certification make the comment “Why are you being so picky? It’s only the HKC?” I had to respond; but only after I was able to excuse myself, get a drink of water and splash some cold water on my face, and come back and address the question with a level head and something approaching my normal blood pressure…

Introduction

The HKC is comprised of a full day of instruction on three tremendously powerful, important and effective techniques:

Kettlebell Goblet Squat
Kettlebell Swing
Turkish Get Up

A whole day to cover just three techniques?!?! Yes–and even with a whole day to cover them, and a handful of variations, you are still only scratching the surface on how to use, apply, and perfect them. These three techniques will make a huge difference in you and your client’s strength, mobility, athletic ability and longevity. While at first glance they seem to be simple to execute and master you will quickly realize that to truly understand them will take thousands of repetitions and hours and hours of work. At the end of the day you will not only be able to safely and effectively know how to execute these three key techniques, but more importantly you will be able to spot good and bad technique, sequencing errors, and weak links in these core movements.

The Heart of the RKC

The HKC is the heart of the RKC. It is the strength, conditioning, and mobility foundation that it creates that will allow you to move onto more technical and challenging techniques. Without the understanding of the Swing, Goblet Squat and the Turkish Get UP being successful at the RKC would be impossible. The bedrock that the Snatch, Clean, and Military Press are built upon is the HKC–and they are also the foundation that the RKC II is established upon as well.

I have heard the HKC referred to as “RKC-light” or the “mini-RKC” and this is far from the truth. The HKC introduces three essential movements that set the foundation for more advanced ballistics and grinds as well as preparing the athlete to understand how to generate, absorb, and redirect force; key and game changing principles that are essential to high-level performance. The HKC is anything but a “light” version of the RKC–it establishes the awareness of a high quality movement baseline that will follow the athlete from the gym to the field, court, or streets.

Dan John, one of the most sought after and influential strength and conditioning coaches of our era, changed the paradigm for the composition of a complete training program from the time honored “push, pull, and squat” to something much, much more. According to Mr. John an athlete needs to train in the following six areas:

Push
Pull
Squat
Hinge
Carry
Groundwork

When assessing where athletes come short in their training programs, in other words, trying to figure out where they have gaps in their training, you need to look at what they are doing and what they are avoiding. Consistently you will find that most athletes are able to rattle off their Bench Press and Squat numbers but start to mumble when you ask about the rest of their training program. They are invariably short in their Pull, Hinge, Carry, Groundwork, and (quality) Squat movements.

So what does this have to do with the HKC? Everything! If you were to augment the athletes (or your clients) training program to include more quality work in Squatting (Goblet Squat and variations), Hinging (Kettlebell Swings and variations), and Groundwork (Turkish Get Up and variations) you would make a huge and lifelong difference in how they move, perform, and recover. Filling in those gaps would make that much of a difference in the short term as well as having a huge impact on how the move and feel in the coming years. NOTE: I didn’t address the weakness in the Pull movement but that can be easily filled by Pull Ups (think Convict Conditioning) and by Farmer Walks (do a search on YouTube; there are lots of good examples).

Who Should Attend the HKC?

If you are truly interested in improving how you move, feel and perform as an athlete you need to attend the HKC. Even if you have no intention in ever teaching someone else how to use a kettlebell, but odds are you will share this newfound knowledge, you should attend. If you are interested in making a huge dent in your weaknesses, be they strength, mobility, or conditioning, then you need to make the investment in yourself and attend.

If you are a coach or trainer that is looking for a way to “round out” your athletes or clients then the HKC is the answer! Most athletes will hide between the movements that they are comfortable with and have no interest in learning new movement and loading patterns unless you can demonstrate and explain the benefits behind doing Goblet Squats, Kettlebell Swings, and Turkish Get Ups. Attend the HKC and you will be armed with this knowledge and much, much more.

If you are in the Military, Law Enforcement, or Fire/EMS service then you are desperately in need of a fast, efficient, and powerful training program that meet the physical demands of your profession. The foundation created by Goblet Squats, Kettlebell Swings, and Turkish Get Ups will go a long way in keeping your body in peak physical condition to be able to perform your job at a high level and return home, safe and sound, at the end of your tour, shift, or rotation. Because of the time commitment that all of these professions require you need to have a training program that will allow you to train efficiently as well as have carryover into your day-to-day tasks–you would be hard pressed to do better than the information that is presented in the HKC.

If you are a “Coach Potato” or “Weekend Warrior” then you can benefit more than you can imagine. This minimalist approach to training can augment, compliment, or out and out replace your exiting training program; and if you’re not doing any strength and conditioning training on a regular basis then this is a great place to start. With these three powerful techniques you can lose fat, gain muscle, move better, feel better and add quality years to your life – and have fun doing it!

Conclusion

If you are interested in improving how you move, feel, and perform then I strongly suggest that you look at the HKC as the answer to your strength and conditioning questions. The training that you will receive at the HKC is an investment in your health that will pay dividends for the rest of your life. It will be an experience that will change your concept of what effective training is and set a foundation for additional skills that will make you stronger, more mobile, and more effective in your sport of choice; even of your sport of choice is “life”.

Still not sure if the HKC is for you? Then I challenge you to get on the Dragon Door website and reach out to an HKC in your area, or anywhere, and get their feedback on the training they received and how it has impacted their lives. I think you will be surprised on how excited they are about the experience and how much that one day has influenced their training and their lives.

NOTE: If we ever get the chance to meet face to face, and I hope we do, please don’t ask me who said “It’s only the HKC!?!?” I have been sworn to secrecy and I can’t tell you who it was. That doesn’t mean I can’t send you a link to a website through an anonymous email account though… just kidding! My lips are sealed!

***

Painful Elbows? Look at Your Technique

March 5, 2014 By Andrea Du Cane 9 Comments

I can’t count how many people I run into, that have elbow pain and had to stop or back off their kettlebell or pull-up training. I’m sure you know someone who has developed pain in the elbows after working up to heavier cleans and snatches or just more volume. Perhaps they have just started Convict Conditioning or some other body weight program and then find they have to back off due to elbow issues. Maybe you have encountered the same problem at some point during your lifting career.

Unfortunately, this problem is all too common these days. Chalk it up to unbridled enthusiasm with their new skill or toy, pushing too hard too fast and lastly not paying enough attention to proper technique.

First, let me explain the difference between two general types of elbow pain.

Tennis elbow: which is caused by inflammation of the extensor forearm muscles, causing pain on the outside (lateral side) of the elbow.

Golfer’s elbow: is caused by inflammation of the flexor forearm muscles inside (medial side) of the elbow. Both are caused by repetitive stress where the muscle and tendon meet and at the point where the tendon meets the bone.

Tennis elbow is somewhat more common than golfers elbow, but both are very common in athletes in their 40’s and 50”s. This is largely due to the fact that tendons and other connective tissue becomes less flexible, and elastic as we age, causing the tissue to tear and pull away from the bone more easily than in younger athletes.

This is why it is even more important to add volume and load gradually as we get older. However, even young athletes would be wise to train slow and steady and put their focus into good technique instead of reps and weight. And lastly, good technique trumps everything. With good technique high volume cleans and swings should not be a problem for most people.

Let me explain how lifting kettlebells incorrectly can be effecting your elbows and how to avoid problems in the future.

99% of the time irritated elbows can be attributed to the ballistic lifts, not the grinds. Meaning that most of the time the problem lies in incorrect clean and/or snatch technique.

As always I start at the swing. If the single-arm swing is not good, especially on back-swing portion, I know they are risking elbow injury. And any problem you see in the swing will only be amplified during the drop in the clean and snatch.

Here are a few key points to look for during the back swing (this applies to swing, clean and snatch).

1) Is the elbow fully extended, or straight at the bottom of the backswing?

2) Is the arm in contact with the body, the ribcage or thigh or both? The arm placement does depend on the build of the athlete. People with bigger chests or shorter arms in relation to their torsos will have a harder time hitting this position. They should look for contact on the upper thigh or wherever is more comfortable. But, the arm MUST be in contact with the body at the bottom of the back swing.

3) Is there excessive tension in the arm, especially the forearm? The arm should be as relaxed as possible as the arm swings back between the legs and the elbow straightens. There should be just enough strength in the hand to keep a hold of the kettlebell, not a death grip.

The above applies to all of the ballistic lifts. The reason is simple, the hips are the driving force of the lift NOT the arm. Therefore, in order to maximally load the hips, the force of the descending kettlebell must be absorbed through the body and that can only happen if the arm connects to the body at the back swing. If the arm is separated from the body, all of the force goes through the arm and believe me that’s a lot of force! Something’s gotta give, either the elbow, shoulder or lower back. Add to that the fact that the hips are not maximally loaded for the next rep, the arm and lower back end up initiating the upswing – with little to no ballistic power.

The easiest way to make sure your arm connects to the body on the back swing, is to wait until the upper arm starts to make contact with the ribcage before hinging and sending the hips back. This is especially true for the swing and snatch. The clean has a slightly different movement pattern due to the fact that the arm is already touching the ribcage, therefore the hips move at the same time the arm begins it’s drop.

Another way to see this is to watch for the handle of the kettlebell falling below the level of the knees. Sometimes it’s hard to see if the arm connects to the body, or if the timing of the connection is correct, remember the arm needs to connect before the kettlebells swings back between the legs not after.

There are a number of great cues, both verbal and with physical feedback. One of the simplest cues, is to tell them to “play chicken” with the arm and the hips. Wait as long as possible as the arm descends and then at the very last minute explosively hinge your hips back. I find this works especially well with my male clients. 🙂

For some clients simply telling them to wait until they feel the upper arm make contact is enough to get the correct timing. Or have them practice the movement pattern in slow motion without a kettlebell. Have them stand up tall in their swing stance, and have them lower their arm until the upper arm makes contact with their ribcage and then quickly drive their hips back into the bottom of the swing position. The cue I use in the back position is “riding a broomstick like a witch.” Your arm is the broomstick.

You can have them practice a few reps of the movement pattern and then pick up a kettlebell and do a few reps with each arm. Stop them immediately if you see them reverting back to the bad pattern.

Another simple cue I use is “Hips Drive Arms Guide.” This works especially well for the clean and the snatch.

For others, you have to use some sort of physical or tactile cue. This starts getting more involved, as with all physical cueing you should check with your state to see if you are allowed to use tactile cuing. If verbal cueing and the movement patterning doesn’t work, I recommend finding an experienced RKC in your area.

Once the swing technique is good, it’s time to look at the clean. The clean is the most likely culprit. The clean is simply a more complex lift, timing and technique is crucial to execute a good and safe clean. Because there is minimal forward and back movement and more straight up and down, it takes greater force in the hips to drive the kettlebell back, it wants to go straight down to the ground.

Here are a few key points to look for during the clean:

1) Is the kettlebell being “cast away”? Thrown away from the body?

2) Is the arm in contact with the body, the ribcage or thigh or both at the bottom, just like in the swing? Or is the kettlebell ending up down toward the floor between the feet instead of back and above the knees?

3) Is the arm completely straight with elbow locked, with minimal tension in the forearm?

With the swing, the arm is kept straight the entire time, during the clean it must bend and straighten with every rep. It is hard for some people to not hold tension in their arm or keep their elbow slightly bent at the bottom of the clean. This usually happens when people are trying to muscle the kettlebell up into the rack position instead of driving with the hips. On the drop if they don’t sit back fast enough, while keeping the elbow against the ribcage the kettlebell will tend to fall toward the floor.

This creates the need to slow or control the drop with their arm, holding tension in the elbow instead of absorbing the load with the hips. Remember the cue “Hips Drive – Arms Guide”. This is exactly what needs to happen.

Over time, holding the tension in the elbow and forearm can cause irritation to the tendons and you’ll end up with elbow tendinitis. Or sometimes shoulder or lower back pain will develop.

For the clean, the timing of the hips moving back are a bit different. Since the arm is already against the ribcage, when preparing to re-clean the kettlebell, the hips move slightly ahead of the arm or at the exact same time. Cue them to throw the kettlebell into their stomach, remember the goal is maximal loading of the hips, so the kettlebell needs to move back not down.

Another cue that works to help reduce elbow discomfort is to tighten the triceps at the moment the elbow locks. This will help to add stability to the elbow and take pressure off the forearm.

Something else to watch for is over gripping the handle of the kettlebell. You need just as much strength as necessary to hold onto the kettlebell at the back swing. The grip should be relatively loose especially during the upswing. Holding extra tension in the hand can also aggravate elbow issues.

Double cleans have a slightly different drop. Your elbows will momentarily leave the torso to make room for 2 kettlebells to be thrown back between your legs. But the arms drive back and against the inner thighs and/or ribcage. More weight means you need to push your hips back hard and fast and keep your weight back, the force can sometimes pull you forward to your toes.

The snatch is very similar to the clean. Pretty much everything applies.

If you clean up your clean (pun intended), you should find your snatch improves too.

On a last note, if you are experiencing elbow issues during your pull-up practice, this is often a result of too much volume too quickly. I would recommend less volume more frequently. Think of a “Grease The Groove” program, 1 or 2 reps spread out over the course of a day rather than lots of reps in one workout. Secondly, mix up your hand position, pronated, supinnated and neutral wrist positions will help in preventing overuse stress on the tendons.

If you currently are experiencing Tennis or Golfers elbow, the best medicine is the usual: rest, ice, NSAID’s, arm or elbow braces during workouts, stretching the forearms and hands, and forearm strengthening exercises. All will help to get you back to your favorite workouts.

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Andrea Du Cane is a Master Kettlebell Instructor, CK-FMS certified, CICS certified, Primal Move National Instructor and RIST, ZHealth certified, and has a BA in Psychology from the University of Minnesota. She is featured on Breaking Muscle website as the February 2012 coach of the month. She is also a Pilates instructor. She has over twenty years of aerobics, weight training and fitness experience, with an additional background in… Read more here.

Martial Artists and the Kettlebell Swing

February 5, 2014 By Jay Armstrong 3 Comments

When I encountered the kettlebell, it was love at first swing.

I knew immediately that this was a tool that would complement (rather than interfere with) martial arts training. Traditional efforts in the gym trying to develop big muscles made me strong, sore, and SLOW.

Swinging a kettlebell is clearly not traditional weight training. It will help your martial arts practice if you have the proper technique and a clear understanding of what you are trying to master. Two specific areas of martial arts skills that the kettlebell swing can help improve are:

Tense/Relax Cycling, and
Breath Control

If you feel you have been missing out on strength training or you want to add a different form of cardiovascular endurance training to your routine the kettlebell swing may be exactly what you need. But, the kettlebell swing has even more to offer if you are a martial artist.

Tense/Relax Cycling

Exceptional athletes have the ability to rapidly contract their muscles, or create tension, and then just as quickly release that expression of energy. In fact, one of the things that separates great athletes from good athletes is the ability to create a greater amount tension in a shorter period of time than their competitors and then to more quickly return to a relaxed state. This makes them more efficient. I call this skill the tense/relax cycling skill. This is the ability to rapidly command the desired muscles, and only those muscles, to tense and then to release this tension.

Visualize your favorite professional athlete. Would you characterize their best performances as tense or relaxed? Do you think their impressive performances require no effort? Of course not. They just make it look easy because there is no unnecessary tension.

The kettlebell swing is an athletic skill. It is one that requires tension, muscular control, balance, coordination and significant energy expenditure. This is complex movement pattern that incorporates many practical elemental skills.

As the kettlebell descends down and behind the kettlebell athlete, the maximum amount of force is experienced. The maximum amount of force is presented to the grip and the shoulders and then downward through the posterior chain and into the ground. This moment of maximum exertion (or tension) requires that the kettlebell athlete strongly contract the muscles of the abdomen (or core). The kettlebell doesn’t stay at the bottom position for long. So, this contraction of the core is brief.

The big muscles of the hamstring group and the glutes drive the hips forward and upward to project energy into the kettlebell. As the hips move forward, they must encounter an opposing force otherwise they will move far enough forward to put the lower back into excessive extension. Repetitively doing this will probably make your back hurt.

As the kettlebell moves forward, the kettlebell athlete returns to the standing position. This postural position is referred to as the “plank” position. It is a neutral alignment of the neck, thoracic spine, and lumbar spine. In order to achieve this position, there must be a significant, simultaneous contraction of many muscles. There are few muscles excluded from this contraction. The lats should be strongly contracted to connect the arms to the torso. The abs and core muscles should be strongly contracted to transfer the power from the legs to the arms and to prevent hyperextension of the lower back. The muscles of the legs should be strongly contracted to provide a strong base of support and rooting of the body to the ground. The kettlebell is only floating at the top of the swing for a brief period of time, so this display of high tension is momentary.

How do we improve on a particular skill? Skills improve through focused and intelligent practice. The rate of progress is also related to 1) the frequency of practice; 2) the number of repetitions; and 3) the load or intensity of the practice.

The kettlebell swing provides the martial artist with an excellent platform for improving the tense/relax cycling skill. This is a drill that can be practiced with a large number of repetitions and with great frequency. In addition, the drill is obviously practiced with a load that may sometimes be significant. This all adds up to imply that swinging a kettlebell is an excellent way to improve the martial artist’s ability to rapidly and strongly tense muscles and then just as rapidly release this tension.

Focus on this aspect of the kettlebell swing and you will find you delivery more power in your kicks and strikes. And, your newfound ability to quickly relax will greatly reduce your fatigue.

Breath Control

We have looked at the principle of tense/relax cycling and how a martial artist can use the kettlebell swing to improve this skill. Now, we will look at how the kettlebell swing can be employed to give the martial artist better breath control.

The topic of breathing and breath control could take up several volumes. We need oxygen to provide energy to our muscles and to our brain. Carbon dioxide is a waste by-product of energy expenditure. Breathing is the mechanism by which oxygen is added to the blood during the inhalation phase and CO2 is expelled during the exhalation phase. Both of these are important! Inefficient breathing techniques will cause premature fatigue and adversely affect cognition.

Breath control is an essential skill for everyone but especially for martial artists. Two of the breath control abilities that are required by a martial artist are: 1) a sharp, strong exhalation (or yell) to accompany a maximum contraction, breaking technique, or punch; and 2) the ability to effectively inhale while the core and abdominal muscles are contracted (as they are during a fight).

A forced exhalation through a restriction causes many of the abdominal muscles to contract strongly. Imagine you are blowing up a very stubborn balloon. This is what I mean by exhalation with restriction. This effort develops a tension that spreads throughout the entire body. Yelling simulates this effect and has been used for centuries in martial arts communities. This practice has become commonplace in the world of tennis (among other sports) where many players yell each time they hit the tennis ball. The technique of rapidly and forcefully expelling air through a restricted orifice will help you generate much more tension and power.

It is difficult to inhale when your abdominal muscles are contracted. It is virtually impossible to do so with an inefficient, chest-breathing technique. To breath when your stomach muscles are tight, you must pull the diaphragm downward. Whenever you step into the ring to fight, your abdominal muscles automatically contract to help protect the vital organs behind them. So, you should learn to breathe with these muscles contracted. Even if you are not a martial artist, these muscles contract in the same way whenever you are under stress (at work, at home, or during sports) or whenever you are afraid. Learning to breathe while your abdominal muscles are strongly contracted will improve your endurance whenever your are excited or under the stress of competition.

Both of these breathing techniques are skills. You can improve your breath control abilities through intelligent and focused practice. The kettlebell swing provides an excellent training opportunity to improve these abilities.

The total tension position at the top of the kettlebell swing (or the plank position) is a great time to use the sharp exhalation to generate a bit more tension. And, the quick sniff of air through the nose at the bottom of the kettlebell swing is an opportunity to practice inhalation with braced abdominal muscles.

Your skill will improve quickly if you practice with focus, if there are lots of reps, and if there is significant intensity. The kettlebell swing provides the ideal scenario for all of these requirements.

Workout with Purpose

Often, we are given exercises with the sole purpose of working and strengthening a specific muscle group. Or, perhaps the drills are designed to increase the size of a muscle. While these activities are not necessarily bad, wouldn’t it be better if the purpose of an exercise was to help us improve our ability to perform in a real-world situation or in a sports activity?

The kettlebell swing can be utilized for just such a reason. If you focus on the correct aspects of the technique, the kettlebell swing can improve your tense/relax cycling skill and improve your ability to use your breath to facilitate the development of tension. These skills are essential to all martial artists. I am sure you will see rapid progress if you focus on these goals during your kettlebell swings.

***

Jay Armstrong is a Senior RKC, 6 Degree Black Belt TKD, and Master Z-Health Trainer. The past 30 years have been dedicated to helping others develop confidence through increased strength and pain-free, exceptional mobility. His quest for knowledge continues. He runs The Kettlebell Club in Houston, Texas and can be reached here.

Pendulum (Low Swing) Workout

April 10, 2013 By Andrea Du Cane 4 Comments

I’d like to share with you a little story about myself. Last September while traveling in Scotland I fell down an escalator and dislocated my left patella. Not fun! Especially since it was the 4^th time it had happened to my knee since my teens and I was on the road instructing at workshops.

Obviously, all squatting and ballistic movements were off-limits for a couple of months. Yet I still needed to keep my strength in my glutes , legs and back as much as possible. So I came up with a couple of exercises (along with my “go-to” knee rehab exercise the single-leg deadlift), the pendulum swing and the deadlift row.

Today I’m going to talk about the pendulum swing. This exercise is one of the progressions we use in the RKC for teaching the swing. It is used to teach the idea that the lats are very active on the backswing and are necessary to help fully load the hips and glutes at the bottom of the swing.

This exercise reinforces the loading of the butt and legs and the activation of the lats. When done in an interval, your back and butt will be screaming for mercy!

I usually perform them with a :30 work/:25 rest interval. I superset pendulum swings with the Dead Swings, and the Dead-lift row.

To begin, start in your swing stance, using a heavy kettlebell. A heavier kettlebell is easier to use during the pendulum than a lighter bell, the more weight the more it counterbalances your hips. Trust me, if you go to light you’ll end up on your butt!

Grab the kettlebell with 2-hands and “hike-pass” the kettlebell explosively between your legs. Your upper arms will make contact with your ribcage on the backswing.

Just let your arms relax and “float” forward, do not use your arms to swing it forward. As the kettlebell swings to the front stay low and sit back and down. Tighten your glutes and keep your shoulders packed, the kettlebell should still be able to float straight forward. Just do not let your shoulders shrug up or out as the kettlebell swings to the front.

The focus is on the backswing with the arms doing a lot of the work, your lats, triceps and back will really get a great workout. It’s super important to remember you MUST keep a neutral spine throughout the entire set. If you lose the spinal position, immediately put the kettlebell down and rest, before starting again.

As the kettlebell floats/swings forward, the emphasis should be on sitting back and down, not on the kettlebell moving forward. There is a natural rocking motion you’ll achieve as you do this. Rocking slightly from the heels to the balls of the feet. BUT, make sure to keep your feet as rooted as possible while doing this exercise.

Your butt and legs, lats and triceps should be on fire when you’re done.

As I mentioned feel free to superset these with any other swing or deadlift exercises. And use any interval timing that suits your needs and fitness level.

For those with knee problems, this is a excellent alternative to full explosive swings.

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The Dirty Dozen: Move #1 – The Kettlebell Swing

February 13, 2013 By Phil Ross 18 Comments

The Kettlebell Swing: Often to referred to as the “Mother of All Kettlebell Exercises” and is the root of all Kettlebell Training.

The Kettlebell Swing is not only the basis but one of the biggest differentiators between Kettlebell Training and other strength and conditioning systems. The Kettlebell Swing “reverse engineers” the practitioner’s hips by the development of the hip hinge, hamstring and glute recruitment through the pop and lock required to execute the movement properly. In addition, the incredible rooting effect for power transference through the body is applicable to improved performance in virtually all sports and strength performance.

The Kettlebell Swing has so many benefits, yet many go untapped through poor execution. I’ve had people walk into my studio claiming “I love to swing, I do tons of them all of the time.” Then I watch them swing – Ooof! I don’t know where the heck they learned to “swing”, but now I know why they thought that swings were easy! No eccentric/concentric motion, shoulder’s not packed, no rooting, legs bent at the top and to much at the bottom, chicken necking so much that I thought was I hanging with Frank Perdue, lats not engaged, power leaks all over!

Now that we’ve looked at the poor examples, how do we execute the swing? Step one, find a quality instructor or at least purchase some DVDs or get your hands on a video program from one of the top flight RKC Instructors. I will mention, no matter how good a video is, nothing replaces working under the scrutiny of a qualified Kettlebell Instructor.

Starting from the ground up, let’s consider our feet. First make certain that your feet are the correct width apart. If they are too close, you’ll never be able to swing the bell between your legs. If they are too far apart, you won’t be able to completely fire your gluteus, thus leaking power. Additionally, you will tax your hip flexors more which could result in injury. Rooting with the floor is key. Take advantage of the feedback from your feet with the floor. Establishing that that intimate contact with the floor creates a map of you body’s nervous system and helps facilitate feedback and feedforward of movement.

Draw your kneecaps up into your quadriceps as you lock out your knees. This should happen simultaneously to the driving of your coccyx to your naval and the contraction of your gluteus.

While all of this in occurring, you need to shorten your abdominals by “zipping up” and exhaling a short, hard purposeful breath.

Pack your shoulders and engage the lats as the power of the swing travels from the ground, through your feet, into your legs and through you hips and gluteus, up into your lats, passing through your arms and shoots out of the bottom of the Kettlebell.

When you are swinging, think of “hips and grips”. It’s also very important that you go between full relaxation and full tension. This is how to develop incredibly useful strength!

There are quite a few swing variations. There are the two hand swings, the one hand swing, hopping lateral swing, hand to hand swing, dual bell swing, dead start swing, walking swings and the much maligned bottoms up swing, to name a few. All of the same principles apply to all of the swing variations, however there are certain unique benefits to each variation. Check out the accompanying video demonstrating some of the variations of the swing.

Now its time to get off of the computer and start swinging!

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Master RKC, 8^th Degree Black Belt, Specialist in Bodyweight Strength and CK-FMS Certified. Phil Ross’ name is synonymous with Martial Arts and Fitness. He is known as the area’s Kettlebell King and has successfully competed on the National Level in… Read more here.