Kettlebell Strength: Elastigirl vs BeWip (Feb 28-June 15)

[Elastigirl]

Elastigirl and Bewip are both charging toward the simple goals from Pavel's Simple and Sinister book. 

 

The goal is Simple: By June 15th ; Be able to complete 5 reps on each side of  35 lb(15 kg) Turkish Getups in under 10 minutes and be able to swing a 44 lb (20Kg)100 times in under 5 minutes.

 

Bewip is going to do all his swings with one hand, Elastigirl is trying for two hand, and any one handed swings are just for super awesomeness.

[BeWip]

Hey thanks for the pvp! Did squats with both kb (12 + 9kg) and that's OK. I tried to rope them together. I think I could manage 1 Set of swings with the 20kg but I don't think I'll be able to achieve a tgu with this size yet. I will maybe buy first the 16kg.

Anyone else working on the simple and sinister routine?

[Sloth the Enduring]

BeWip, you should be warned, ElastiGirl's superpower is consistency. She won't be an easy foe.

[Elastigirl]

Hey thanks for the pvp! Did squats with both kb (12 + 9kg) and that's OK. I tried to rope them together. I think I could manage 1 Set of swings with the 20kg but I don't think I'll be able to achieve a tgu with this size yet. I will maybe buy first the 16kg.

Anyone else working on the simple and sinister routine?

Did it work to rope them together? I've seen people hold two in one hand, but my hands are way too small for that. 

 

I tagged the PVP with Simple and Sinister, so if someone else is doing it, maybe they will pop in. I know other people use kettlebells, but I don't know of anyone doing Simple and Sinister. And even though, I wrote only our two  names in the challenge, I'm sure we are both willing to take on other challengers.

[Sloth the Enduring]

Hey thanks for the pvp! Did squats with both kb (12 + 9kg) and that's OK. I tried to rope them together. I think I could manage 1 Set of swings with the 20kg but I don't think I'll be able to achieve a tgu with this size yet. I will maybe buy first the 16kg.

Anyone else working on the simple and sinister routine?

I did S&S for a while. I really liked it, but my old man back doesn't tolerate one arm swings well.

If you're trying to up the squat load, I'd do a double racked squat. If you're doing a goblin squat for mobility, I'd stick with the 12 kg, weight doesn't matter much for that.

For sure, buy the 16. More KBs are better than less KBs.

[Elastigirl]

I did S&S for a while. I really liked it, but my old man back doesn't tolerate one arm swings well.

If you're trying to up the squat load, I'd do a double racked squat. If you're doing a goblin squat for mobility, I'd stick with the 12 kg, weight doesn't matter much for that.

For sure, buy the 16. More KBs are better than less KBs.

Going to the store today to buy me a new KB.It will be a good day.

 

Have you ever video'd yourself while doing one arm swings? I wonder if you are twisting too much? Part of the reason I'm buying a new KB is that the 44lb is too heavy for to swing one handed (I tend to let it get too far from me) and the KB I have now is too easy, and I get lazy with sloppy form.

[Sloth the Enduring]

Going to the store today to buy me a new KB.It will be a good day.

 

Have you ever video'd yourself while doing one arm swings? I wonder if you are twisting too much? Part of the reason I'm buying a new KB is that the 44lb is too heavy for to swing one handed (I tend to let it get too far from me) and the KB I have now is too easy, and I get lazy with sloppy form.

 

Yay for new bells!  You have a store that sells KBs?  That's awesome.  Around here the sporting goods store that carry them only go up to 25# except for the second hand place which imports a really shoddy set - it has an unsanded seam around the whole thing that would tear your hands up.

 

I haven't.  I considered that and started touching the top of the bell with my free hand and that really straightened me out.  What I should do is spend some time at TML's and have him set me straight with my crappy form.  My back doesn't tolerate one handed swings because it's strength is asymmetrical now.

 

I really love the idea of a workout you do everyday.  I keep wanting to come back to this, only with 2X swings.  For now I'll keep following your and Bewip's threads.

[Elastigirl]

Yay for new bells!  You have a store that sells KBs?  That's awesome.  Around here the sporting goods store that carry them only go up to 25# except for the second hand place which imports a really shoddy set - it has an unsanded seam around the whole thing that would tear your hands up.

 

I haven't.  I considered that and started touching the top of the bell with my free hand and that really straightened me out.  What I should do is spend some time at TML's and have him set me straight with my crappy form.  My back doesn't tolerate one handed swings because it's strength is asymmetrical now.

 

I really love the idea of a workout you do everyday.  I keep wanting to come back to this, only with 2X swings.  For now I'll keep following your and Bewip's threads.

These may be the same brand you don't like. The one I bought last time (44lb) is an Apollo. Looking online, people complain about its handle being too thick for  snatches. I  can see that, and the handle is rather tall, so if I'm ever snatching 44 lb  I may need to get a different ball. But for swings it works great. They had some other brand too today, which I'd never heard of. But the bell felt great and I liked the size of the handle. I think it was marketed to women, because if I wanted I could have bought a 5lb pink bell

we shall see. I probably waste money, because I just buy what  feels right, and don't research. The cost of some kettlebells can be daunting.

I think you should do a workout with TML and have him critique your swing.  I don't see why you can't do something similar to Simple and Sinister, but just do it 2 handed. The only drawback is you might have some in between where you've mastered the 2 handed, but aren't ready to move up to the one handed. Then you just go to TML's house and make him give you a workout to do.   

[Elastigirl]

Just finished  5 reps of 30lb TGU's (2 minute rest between)

[BeWip]

BeWip, you should be warned, ElastiGirl's superpower is consistency. She won't be an easy foe.

That's exactly why I picked on EG! I'll update my battle log now. 

 

Did it work to rope them together? I've seen people hold two in one hand, but my hands are way too small for that. 

 

I tagged the PVP with Simple and Sinister, so if someone else is doing it, maybe they will pop in. I know other people use kettlebells, but I don't know of anyone doing Simple and Sinister. And even though, I wrote only our two  names in the challenge, I'm sure we are both willing to take on other challengers.

It did work but it was not very comfortable. I'm not seeing using this technique for a regular work-out. 

 

Just finished  5 reps of 30lb TGU's (2 minute rest between)

That's so great, I really need to up my game now !

 

I did S&S for a while. I really liked it, but my old man back doesn't tolerate one arm swings well.

If you're trying to up the squat load, I'd do a double racked squat. If you're doing a goblin squat for mobility, I'd stick with the 12 kg, weight doesn't matter much for that.

For sure, buy the 16. More KBs are better than less KBs.

Grrrr. I guess I will try both the 16 and the 20 in a shop. I would prefer to go directly with the 20 to limit the amount of KB I own (also to reduce costs). My wife and I tend towards more of a minimalist lifestyle and don't want to amass too many gear (nothing wrong with that, it's just not our philosophy). That's also one of the reason I started with KB in the first place. 

[Elastigirl]

That's exactly why I picked on EG! I'll update my battle log now. 

 

It did work but it was not very comfortable. I'm not seeing using this technique for a regular work-out. 

 

That's so great, I really need to up my game now !

 

Grrrr. I guess I will try both the 16 and the 20 in a shop. I would prefer to go directly with the 20 to limit the amount of KB I own (also to reduce costs). My wife and I tend towards more of a minimalist lifestyle and don't want to amass too many gear (nothing wrong with that, it's just not our philosophy). That's also one of the reason I started with KB in the first place. 

That was one reason I chose kettlebells too, though now I seem to be accumulating them. Still they take up less room than a weight set. Not sure they are cheaper though, seems like people sell used weights pretty often. I think I should be set with my KB's now. I might give away/sell the lighter ones at some point, just for room space.

[BeWip]

I don't think it's cheaper than dumbbells. Also there are less chances to find some 2nd hand contrary to dumbbells that people buy and then never use and resell. In the end I bought the 20kg so Yeay for new kb. I'm not yet fully ready to sell/give away the 9kg. I'm doing few presses every other evening using a pistol grip to strengthen my grip. Also I might keep it for doing windmills and stuff like that in the future. I don't think I'm strong enough to pull this with the 12kg yet. 

[Elastigirl]

I don't think it's cheaper than dumbbells. Also there are less chances to find some 2nd hand contrary to dumbbells that people buy and then never use and resell. In the end I bought the 20kg so Yeay for new kb. I'm not yet fully ready to sell/give away the 9kg. I'm doing few presses every other evening using a pistol grip to strengthen my grip. Also I might keep it for doing windmills and stuff like that in the future. I don't think I'm strong enough to pull this with the 12kg yet. 

Yay for new kettlebells. Can't wait to hear about your first workout with it!

[Elastigirl]

I was able to complete 5 reps of 30# TGU's today. So this week I did that set 3 times. Next week I will go for 4 times. I still need a good rest time of 2 minutes. Being able to crank out 5 (each side) in 10 minutes gives about a one minute  rest period. Which means, I'm making good progress, but still a ways away from moving up to 35 lb. Not sure if I will hit my TGU goal completion by the deadline or not. I will be much closer though. 

 

Swings, much improved.KBGirl gave me some great tips, and I just took Monday and Tuesday for practice. I could really feel the difference in my swings. I am able to complete 100 swings with the 44lb without feeling over tired and losing form. Still taking the full 10 minutes. But if this challenge I just get solid with the number, than next challenge I can work on reducing my rest time.

[BeWip]

Congrats on the progression. I can now do 2 to 3 sets of one-arm swings depending on the days. Regarding TGU I can only complete 1 full (get-up + down) TGU per arm. I can do 2 sets if I don't do the going down part. That is the part I am most worried about for reaching the deadline. I'll update my battlelog now. 

[Moralitea]

How fitting! S&S is my current "get back into working out" kinda of thing as swings and get ups are so good for strengthening my back after hurting it. I'm on week 2.5 of doing it 3 times a week to ease my back back into things. I'll be doing one tonight, I'm up to 6 sets of 10 swings and 2 get ups.

 

I do all the swings with a 24kg and my first 3 sets of getups as well. After that my form for get ups becomes less than perfect so I drop down to my next size down (30 lb) for the last three sets of getups. 

[Elastigirl]

How fitting! S&S is my current "get back into working out" kinda of thing as swings and get ups are so good for strengthening my back after hurting it. I'm on week 2.5 of doing it 3 times a week to ease my back back into things. I'll be doing one tonight, I'm up to 6 sets of 10 swings and 2 get ups.

 

I do all the swings with a 24kg and my first 3 sets of getups as well. After that my form for get ups becomes less than perfect so I drop down to my next size down (30 lb) for the last three sets of getups. 

yeah, S & S is great for rehabbing.  Sounds like you are doing a good job of listening to your body and easing back into it.

[Elastigirl]

One step closer to goal. Just did 2  35# half TGU's. First time I've been able to lift the at all in a TGU. I'm happy.