Kettlebell Workout Misconceptions: “I’m too advanced for that”

If you don’t... Or you don’t want to take the time or energy to figure out all the details of watching your Press numbers go up in your training log, while seeing more muscle definition in the mirror...

👉 Use this program.

And if your pants are too tight in the waist, and you want them to feel loose again?

👉 Use this program here based upon your KB skill level.

Here’s a sad truth that keeps people stuck and shady marketers making moolah from outlandish claims in the fitness / weight-loss space:

Many people discount the amount of work something takes or overestimate their abilities - or worse - both.

(I used to invest in real estate and the “joke” was that any project took 3x as long and cost 2x as much as you estimated.)

As a result of underestimating, we end up with the “magic weight loss pill.”

And in the kettlebell space, a result of overestimating is a rash of emails I’ve recently received from people saying they are “too advanced” for “Kettlebell Exercise X”.

An example is the Swing.

Now, if you’ve been a newsletter reader of mine, you know that even though I value the Swing and its variations, I’m not a big fan of it.

Even though I prefer other exercises like the Clean + Press, the Clean + Push Press, the Clean + Jerk and the Snatch, I recognize that -

The Swing has its place - a very important place.

[+] It’s the foundation for the rest of your KB training

If your Swing sucks, your Clean and Snatch are going to suffer.

And worse, you may hurt your elbow or shoulder because you “yank” the kettlebell overhead with your arm instead of driving the weight up with your hips and guiding it into place with your arm/hand.

Plan on performing at least 10,000 reps to “own” it. Minimum.

[+] It’s a simple conditioning exercise to use when you’re learning the other KB exercises

One of THE BIGGEST MISTAKES I see novices make is try to turn “skill work” - learning new exercises - into “MetCon.”

That’s a great way to -

[a] Not learn the skill properly and bang your head against the proverbial wall in frustration for the next couple of years, and/or -

[b] Get injured and be one of “those” people who say something like “kettlebells hurt my shoulder”...

[+] It’s great for things like fat loss, because of its simplicity, especially when you’re learning other KB exercises

A simple way to stimulate fat loss is to create “oxygen debt” - or get out of breath.

One of the problems with getting out of breath is that you lose “motor control” the ability to perform skills.

Especially advanced skills that create more coordination and timing to perform, like the Snatch.

So, the Swing is a great exercise to burn fat while you’re learning other and new kettlebell skills.

Pretty much the same rationale here as the aforementioned point.

[+] It can be an incredible challenge if you change the way you perform it - simple but NOT easy!

To make the Swing more challenging (a.k.a. HARDER), you can -

[a] Swing it higher

[b] “Float” it longer

[c] Increase the speed of the backswing (Overspeed Eccentrics)

[d] Use a heavier weight

[e] Swing it more explosively / faster

[f] Combine points [a] through [e] above

Here’s a real-world personal example:

Even though I can perform Turkish Get Ups (TGUs) pretty easily with a 48kg, and could probably pass the TGU part of “Sinister” (10 total reps of the TGU w/48kg On The Minute for 10 minutes - or 1 per minute for 10 minutes)...

I “confess” that I cannot perform the other half of Sinister - 100 1-Hand Swings - 10x10 - every 30 seconds, completed within 5 minutes using the 48kg.

Why not?

Simple (no pun intended) - I don’t want to.

Would it be “hard?”

Yes.

Not that the 48kg is “heavy” per se…

Rather, because I don’t have that kind of conditioning and nor do I care to train for it.

Would it be a “challenge” for me?

Absolutely.

And that’s because “conditioning” is my “weakness.”

(At least that kind of “conditioning” is.)

Am I “too advanced” to Swing a 48kg KB for sets of 10?

Not at all.

It’s just that - and here’s the key point -

I prefer not to accept that challenge and train for that goal.

And so it is for everyone.

(NOTE: When I was using KBs to prep my body for BJJ, I used 1-H Swings with the 48kg a lot.)

Generally speaking…

Follow this 5-STEP HIERARCHY of how you train to use each KB exercise:

Learn the SKILL

Train the SKILL

Train for STRENGTH

Train for CONDITIONING

Train for FAT LOSS

Can you combine exercises in the hierarchy based upon your goal?

In other words, train for skill and/or strength and lose body fat at the same time?

Yes.

You just have to know what you’re doing.

Hopefully, this video cleared some things up for you.

Stay Strong,

Geoff