“What are your favorite training protocols for the swing, other than Kettlebell Simple & Sinister?”
Thus Sarah Carr, SFG I certified kettlebell instructor from Cairo, Egypt, started a great thread on our forum.
Mark Limbaga, StrongFirst Elite from Manila in the Philippines, replied:
- On the minute
- Every other minute
- On the minute for 2 minutes, rest on the third minute. Do this for up to 10 series [rounds].
These seemingly simple recommendations are very effective and, as the students of Strong Endurance™ will tell you, hide a lot of heavy science under the hood.
On the minute (OTM) sets have a lot more going for them than convenience. Creatine phosphate (CP), the “rocket fuel” that powers explosive efforts, recovers most rapidly during the first minute.
Decades ago, Soviet sport scientists developed a guideline that summarizes the recovery dynamics after intense exercise: “1/2/3 rule.” It states: ~2/3 of recovery takes place in the first 1/3 of total recovery duration, ~30% in the second, and ~5% in the third.
Thus, during the first minute after a hard set of swings you are experiencing the most rapid CP recovery and the highest oxygen uptake. This makes OTM training very time efficient. We recommend that you swing a heavy kettlebell for sets of 5 reps, a light one for sets of 10.
Swinging every other minute is perfect for sets of 10 with a medium size kettlebell. Lactic acid clears slower than CP recovers, so an extra minute allows you to stay more aerobic. If you are following the Kettlebell Simple & Sinister protocol and on a given day you do not feel like dealing with the talk test, swing every two minutes.
Apply the third option, a set OTM for the first two minutes followed by an extra minute of rest, to sets of 10 reps with a medium size kettlebell—one of The Quick and the Dead protocols. It takes advantage of the fact that your body’s different functions recover at different rates. Coaches who understand that “recovery” is not “one thing” are able to orchestrate different metabolic events to their liking by strategically varying the rest periods. |
| For other great kettlebell swing programming ideas, go directly to the forum thread. |
| | StrongFirst kettlebells are back in stock.
Have a strong summer.
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