I’m going to do a recap and “top 10 take-aways” list from last Saturday’s Sacramento Kettlebell Workshop here in just a sec … but first, have a quick look at this footage –
I got “challenged” to do one of my kettlebell combos with my biggest KB – and my wife caught it on film! Check it out:
Okay, enough of that 😉 –
Every time we hold a kettlebell workshop at the studio, it gets a little bit better … and I think Saturday’s event was no exception.
This time around, we had folks come in from over 100 miles away – which was a first! – we made it a two-session, optional full – day (five hour) event, which was also a first – and most importantly, I think it was the most fun I’ve ever had teaching one of these. So thanks again to all who attended.
There were so many things that I ended up covering, that I wanted to share with those of you at home who couldn’t make it out –
So, I thought I would put together a quick list of the top 10 highlights of the day, based on initial feedback –
1 – Kettlebell footwear tips
One important point I covered was what kind of footwear to use when you’re training with kettlebells.
I covered this topic in depth in a post on this blog some time back; if you missed it, check it out again here:
=> 5 Reasons Why You Should Train Barefoot
2 – What size kettlebell to use
This is something I haven’t covered at previous workshops, but realized that it was an important thing a lot of beginner KB users are struggling with. Check out this video to for some tips:
=> What size kettlebell to use (video)
3 – History of the kettlebell
I added a fun little intro piece about the history of the kettlebell, and folks told me that they enjoyed it. Here is some info for you, from Wikipedia:
4 – Simple warm up
A simple kettlebell warm up that you can use any time, to get ready for a great KB workout:
- KB sumo deadlift – 8 reps
- KB halo – 8 each way
- ‘pumps’
- repeat 2-3 times total
This warm up, by the way, is from Enter the Kettlebell by Pavel:
5 – Box squat/vertical jump/towel swing progression
A couple of drills, that are great to help you learn the fundamentals of the kettlebell swing.
First is the box squat – practicing sitting back on to a box/bench/etc. – and learning how to move through the hips.
Then, you progress to the same movement, but jump out of the bottom – to simulate the explosiveness of a swing.
Finally, the towel swing is done with a towel inside the handle of the KB – this is a separate drill, but it teaches you to use your lower body, in the way that you learned to in the box squat progression – and then you can put everything together and improve your swing technique!
(This one came from Enter the Kettlebell as well.)
6 – Simple three step TGU progression
This is the Turkish Get Up, broken down into its simplest steps.
- The pick up – roll to the side, pick the KB up off the floor
- The 1/2 get up – the movement performed up to the hip bridge position
- The full get up – the movement performed to the full standing position
Here is an article and video breaking down the full Turkish Get Up progression for you:
=> How to do the Turkish Get Up
7 – Pull up progression
I covered some tips to help you do more pull ups – which are an amazing complimentary move to your kettlebell training. You can find some great pull up tips in these two articles:
=> How to do more pull ups fast
=> “Controlled cheating” for more pull ups
8 – KB clean tip(s)
The technique tip on the kettlebell clean that I think helped everyone the most was to use less hip snap than you would in a swing.
See this tip broken down in more detail in this video:
9 – Power breathing
We did a series of really cool power breathing drills, and a lot of folks ended up setting pressing PR’s.
See these covered in more detail in The Naked Warrior by Pavel:
10 – Swing => high pull => snatch progression
This progression seemed to help attendees get the feel for the snatch exercise the most. It is broken down into detail in this post/video series:
All in all, it was an awesome day. I had a ton of fun teaching it, and want to say thanks again to everyone who made it out.
If you missed this workshop, I hope to see you at the next one! And, in the meantime, don’t forget – the next best thing is to grab one of my “flagship” programs, here:
=> The Kettlebell Basics Swing Manual
=> The 10×10 Kettlebell Solution
Thanks again for reading, and talk soon –
Forest Vance, MS, RKC II