Top 10 Fat Loss Mistakes - #4 of 10 - Ignoring E.P…

Kettlebell STRONG!

Kettlebell HARD!

A lot of people “go through the motions” with fat loss programming.

They show up, and punch the clock, and “hope” it’s enough.

But the truth is, it’s not.

As I mentioned in an earlier email, you need to CHALLENGE your body so it has to change.

Otherwise, it remains the same.

One way to make that happen is EP - Exercise Progression.

For example:

Single Military Press → Double Military Press → Single Push Press → Double Push Press → Single Jerk → Double Jerk

2-Hand Swing → 1-Hand Swing → Single Clean → Single Snatch

Each progression increases the skill and energy demand from your body.

Now, that’s the OBVIOUS EP - the EXTERNAL EP.

But…

There’s a less obvious, practically hidden EP - called INTERNAL EP.

And that’s where on each set, you focus on refining your technique by layering in cues that:

[1] Reduce / eliminate “strength leaks” and

[2] Increase power output

… On each and every rep.

This requires more energy because more muscle fibers / motor units are being used for each and every rep.

As a result, more calories are burned.

An example:

Instead of performing 10 Swings…

Perform:

[+] 10 Swings where you “push the floor down and away as hard as you can” to stand up

[+] 10 Swings where you “plank up” or “stand tall” at the top of each Swing

[+] 10 Swings where you actively hike the kettlebell back under your legs (overspeed eccentrics) instead of just letting it fall

Using any one of these you haven’t used before will make each rep, and every set more challenging.

Combining all of them can set your lazy “metabolic furnace” ablaze.

(Of course, there are more cues you can layer in here too, for more explosive, calorie-crushing Swings, but hopefully you get my point.)

Now, I used Swings here as an example, but it applies to every kettlebell exercise.

Which one do you start with - External EP or Internal EP?

I’d start with Internal EP.

And that’s because it makes skill acquisition - External EP faster.

And that way you get the best of all worlds:

[+] Skill - Maximizing exercise performance

[+] Safety - Maximizing joint position and muscle mechanics

[+] Power Output - Optimizing work / force production

[+] Caloric Expenditure - The logical conclusion from the previous 3 - More work = more calories burned

How well does Internal EP work?

I was on a Zoom call the other day with a client.

He’d run through ‘THE GIANT’ with a pair of 20s, and increased his capacity, but still couldn’t Press a pair of 24s.

I ran him through a very specific sequence of drills, and within about 45 minutes, he’d performed his first Press with a pair of 24s - at about an 8/8.5 RPE (on a scale of 1-10).

Now the interesting thing was, this gentleman has a big “aerobic motor” - and endurance running background.

Yet, when we were working through the Internal EP drills - just 2 reps at a time - he was wiping away the sweat from his forehead.

After showing people Internal EP drills for 15 years or more now, I’ve noticed if you don’t have a “big aerobic motor, you’ll sweat, and huff-n-puff even more.

And that of course means you’re using more energy than you’re used to (a CHALLENGE) and so you’ll burn more calories than normal while you’re training, and probably after too.

Give this a shot with your current programming and let me know how you get on.

And if you need help with either your External or Internal EP I leave links to some of my programs that will help you out.