Kettlebell Training

How to Make Turkish Get Ups More Challenging

Kettlebell Training

The Turkish Get Up is not only one of the premier kettlebell exercises, but one of the best exercises on the planet.

In the past, I’ve done my best to avoid playing favorites with exercises, but if I could only choose one exercise, it would be Turkish Get Ups. 

Blending total body strength, joint range of motion, movement transitions, functionality and options to modify for a cardio training effect, the Turkish Get Up exercise checks a lot of boxes all in one shot.  

In this article, I’m going to share how to add exercises to an already complex exercise, to make it, well, more complex.  

Many Exercises Rolled Into One

Boiled down, a single repetition of Turkish Get Up is made up of a diagonal crunch, modified lateral plank, hip lift, kneeling windmill, lunge, and static overhead carry.

Every pattern listed is performed concentrically and eccentrically.   

Start in a lying position.  Roll up to the elbow, then the hand.  Lift the hips, bring the leg underneath, windmill up to kneeling.  Lunge to stand up.  Reverse the flow.  

The only major movement pattern Turkish Get Ups don’t really address is upper body pulling.  

Non-issue.  

I’ll show you how to include bent-over rows to get your pulling work in.  

There is an infinite number of ways to reorganize traditional Turkish Get Ups without losing the incredible benefits of the exercise.  

Since the main positions of Turkish Get Ups include lying, kneeling and standing, we can slip exercises into each of these positions to create a brand new movement challenge.  

Here are some examples of exercises that can be added to the traditional Turkish Get Up pattern to increase the movement complexity.

Turkish Get Ups w/ Cleans, Pressing, Squats and Z-Press

Once in a standing position, the exercise options are limitless.  

The kettlebell clean and press is a staple combination.  Descending down to the floor with an offset loaded kettlebell front squat gives the body a dose of asymmetric loading.  

Once seated, get tight and press the kettlebell overhead.  

Expect the Z-Press to be the limiting exercise with regard to weight selection.  

Pressing from this position is far more strict compared to other overhead press variations.   

 

Turkish Get Ups w/ Cossack Squats and 1-Arm Swings

I place a high value on being able to squat in different ways.  

People have beaten the mechanics of the basic bilateral squat to death.  

Cossack Squats require pretty aggressive hip mobility and strength in an uncommon pattern that a lot of people just don’t train.  The adductors will be singing.  

Once standing, the hand-to-hand 1 Arm Swings deliver a short burst dose of loaded conditioning and indirect core training.

Turkish Get Ups w/ Squats

Normally, Turkish Get Ups are performed with a lunge to stand and return to the lying position.  This variation removes the lunge completely, using squats instead.

Caution:  Must have sufficient shoulder/t-spine mobility and stability for this.  

 

Turkish Get Ups w/ Bent Rows

One knock against calling Turkish Get Ups a “total body exercise” is the lack of upper body pulling.  This variation provides a solution by including bent over rows.

 

Turkish Get Ups w/ Pistol Squats and Z-Press

Pistol squats, the slang description for unsupported single leg balance squats, are one of the best squat variations I know.

Improving single leg performance is great for sport and daily living.

At the halfway point, it’s time to return to the floor.  This variation leverages an overloaded eccentric pistol squat for the descent mechanism, which is pretty challenging and effective way to return the ass to the ground.

Once settled, press the kettlebell overhead with a strict Z-Press.

In my own training…

… I engage in exclusive Turkish Get Up workouts several days per week.  

To be clear, the “work” part of these workouts ONLY includes Turkish Get Ups, nothing else.  

Mobility exercises come first to prime my body.  

I pull out the kettlebells, set the timer, turn on the music and start moving.  

These sessions start with a lighter weight kettlebell, gradually bumping up in weight every 4-5 minutes.  

I like to finish the session with a heavy kettlebell, testing my will, focus and ability to stay organized physically while the fuel tank runs low.

Controlled movement while under fatigue is an underlying goal of most of my training.  Explore new movements while fresh, morph the basics for conditioning and mental tests. 

Yes, these sessions can be monotonous, but they are free of bullshit and any unnecessary exhaustive decision making in the gym.  

The work is non-stop.  I’ll take rest for a sip of water and to towel off the sweat, but always getting right back into the work.

Fatigue is going to set in as time passes.  This is understood and accepted.  

When the body becomes fatigued, movement quality degrades.  

Maintain awareness about how fatigue impacts movement, blurs the mind-body connection and also how to continue moving with quality.

If rest is needed, it is taken.   

Expanding movement capacity is best done while fresh.  But don’t forget how to program your body to move well when tired.  

The key is to know thyself, which means knowing your current fitness level and when you’re about to overstep your capacity to exercise safely.  

 

General Tips/Insight/Common Sense

The question of “how many reps should I do” varies greatly from person to person.

I prefer to set a timer (anywhere from 10-20 minutes) and begin working.  You might only be able to go for 5 minutes.  Who cares.  Celebrate the effort and build on it.  

Focus on QUALITY repetitions.  Take breaks as needed to execute quality reps.

Despite the soul-sucking marathon workouts found in at-home DVD’s, magazines and on social media, it’s unnecessary to beat yourself into a pulp every single workout.  

Deliver a potent dosage of movement, get on with your day.  Rest, recover, regenerate, grow stronger. 

Learn each add-on movement in an isolated fashion.  Do not Z-Press in the middle of a Turkish Get Up having never performed a Z-Press before.  Do not attempt swings, cleans, rows, etc… having not practiced each of these exercises in isolation.

Make sense? 

Always dabble with light weight first.  Playing with new movement combinations while flinging a heavy kettlebell increases the risk of disaster.  We can mitigate the risk of injury by using lighter, more manageable weight.   

Again… move with quality.  There’s a time and place for high intensity, balls to the wall, aggressive exercise with a little less emphasis on precise movement.  

Turkish Get Ups are not an exercise to rush through. Embrace the slow, meticulous grind.  Move with purpose, grace, soft hand/foot touches and strength in transitions.  

Breathe. 

Don’t forget to breathe. 

Turkish Get-Ups: “Press at Every Step” Variation

Kettlebell Training

Turkish Get-Ups (TGU’s) are one of the great kettlebell exercises.   Nevermind kettlebell exercises, they are one of the great movement training drills we’ve got.

When I am asked, “What are the best exercises I should be doing?”

Turkish Get-Ups are always a part of my answer.

This is a heavy question to ask and even heavier to answer.  Responses will differ depending who you’re asking but generally speaking, there is too much movement value, low risk and high reward with Turkish Get-Ups to leave it out.

Few other exercises provide the total body training effect of Turkish Get-Ups.  

Like any exercise, TGU’s have an infinite amount of variations, add-ons, and programming option (sets, reps, time, weight, etc).  Practicing variations is a nice way to introduce a movement challenge and avoid the onset of boredom.

Make no mistake, keeping training fresh is important across the long-term.

One of those variations is the “press at every step”.

This TGU variation involves performing five presses in the following positions:

  1.  Lying position.
  2.  Elbow support.
  3.  Hand support.
  4.  Half-keeling.
  5.  Standing.

Press #1:  Lying Position

FullSizeRender 3

This is the only true horizontal press of the five listed.  “Horizontal”, meaning you’re pressing from the back of the body to the front of the body (anterior to posterior then back to anterior again), similar to the mechanics of a traditional bench press.  Lower the weight down until the elbow makes light contact with the ground, pause, press back up.

Press #2: Elbow Support

FullSizeRenderPressing from the elbow support position will be a new experience for a lot of people.  Expect this to feel unnatural and use cautionary judgment with weight here.  The trajectory of the kettlebell is slightly different than any traditional pressing exercise. 

Press #3:  Hand Support

FullSizeRender

This body position will likely be the most awkward press of them all.  Remain rigid from waist to shoulder.  Naturally, your body is going to want to crease or your ribs are going to flail.  Avoid letting either happen.  Stay rigid and press! 

Press #4:  Half-kneeling

FullSizeRender 2

Training in the half-kneeling narrow stance position is a natural core blaster and can reveal side-to-side differences in symmetry.  You might be steady with the left knee up, but hardly maintain the position with the right knee up.

Turkish Get-Ups aside, half-kneeling pressing is a natural overhead pressing progression into the standing press.

Press #5:  Standing

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Finally, standing at last.  In the world of “functional training”, this is as functional as it gets.  Pressing objects overhead is a common task in life.  Unfortunately, most of the objects pressed overhead in life aren’t evenly weighted with nice handles.

Here is a video of a full “Press at Every Step” Turkish Get-Up…

 

Whether you’re craving a movement challenge or simply a new variation of a timeless exercise, give this one a shot.  Be prepared for sore shoulders and core in the days that follow.  Five presses inside of each TGU repetition accumulates a lot of work for the upper extremities.  

For more great kettlebell exercise variations, I recommend two resources.  The first is a landmark book from the modern day Godfather of kettlebell training, Pavel Psatsouline.  There isn’t a kettlebell professional who hasn’t read Pavel’s ongoing work with kettlebell training.  

The second resource is a full training system from Chris Lopez designed to improve body composition using kettlebells, more specifically fat loss.  Kettlebells are unique in their ability to burn fat when used systematically.  Chris has published a number of kettlebell training programs focused on how to  “lean out” using kettlebells for quite some time.   

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Most importantly, let me know how you made out with this TGU variation…

 

Cheers, 

Kyle

Infusing Kettlebell Presses into Turkish Get Ups = Amazing Added Challenge

Kettlebell Training, Quick Tips

The Turkish Get Up is a little known weapon to those who are insanely strong, balanced and mobile.

Since implementing into my own training schedules, I have noticed incredible increases in shoulder stability and strength, core stability and strength through multiple planes of movement, along with a nice boost in joint mobility at the hip, shoulder and thoracic spine regions.

To be honest, it’s extremely hard for an exercise to crack my workout line-up. In other words, I am very selective about adding new training methods since I have seen such tremendous results with my mainstay movements.

However, in the same breath, I have to say that the turkish get up has been one of the greatest additions to my training habits to date. The amount of insight that I gained about my own movement quality was unprecedented, and humbling at times.

I ‘bulletproofed’ my body the day that I dedicated myself to learning the turkish get up, and by learning, I am talking about reading articles and watching YouTube videos until I was blue in the face.

You can learn any exercise correctly if you know where to look on the internet. If you’re a visual learner, check out the videos on YouTube, some are extremely high quality and in depth.

I cannot say enough about the drastic impact turkish get ups had on my performance and quite frankly, my physique. Spending that amount of time under tension does wonders for firming up a person’s body. I can’t deny that I haven’t enjoyed seeing the tweaks in transformation.

The traditional turkish get up is a phenomenal exercise, and probably needs no further adjustments or additions, but for the curious mind (which I have) and those who enjoy exploring (which I do), adding in slight tweaks to the turkish get up can make what some feel is a “bland” exercise extremely interesting, not to mention fun.

Of course, everyone should hone in on the basics of executing a regular turkish get up before moving any further in the progression, it just makes senses to progress with common sense.

The idea of pressing during the turkish get up was simple…

I perform a press at certain check points that allow for it.

Press #1: Horizontal chest press in the starting prone position.

Press #2: Overhead vertical press at the tall kneeling position.

Press #3: Overhead vertical press at the standing position.

Press #4: Explosive push press at the standing position.

Done.

If you stop and think about it, you’re pressing the kettlebell (or dumbbell) four different times for each individual rep of the turkish get up.

That’s a lot of work.

*** Keep in mind that the chest press performed in the lying position might will not feel like a normal bench press because: 1) You’re pressing an odd object (kettlebell), 2) Your range of motion is limited (elbow contacts ground surface) 3) Your body position is altered from a more traditional bench press.

All of these things are ok, so relax about it. “Real world training” says that you won’t always be pressing a shiny dumbbell on a padded bench. Though he was referring to sandbags, I believe I heard Alwyn Cosgrove call repetitions like these “alive reps”. Nice terminology, I can roll with that.

If you perform 5 reps of get ups on each side of the body, you’re looking at 20 reps per side (40 total) right and left. If you go higher reps, which I typically like doing since my turkish get up practice usually involves nothing more than get ups and some kettlebell swings afterward for conditioning purposes, you might be looking at a pressing volume of 40+ reps on each side of the body.

Consider that the pressing is uni-lateral (pressing with one arm while the other remains unloaded) and you can bet that your mid-section is getting as much of a workout as your upper and lower extremities are.

Poke your tummy the next time you press a decently heavier weight on one side only, it will be activated.

“Six-pack training” anyone?

I considered pressing at the same check points on the way back down to the start position, but felt like this would be slight overkill. Who knows, maybe down the road. That would have increased my pressing volume to 40 reps per side for every 5 reps of turkish get ups, and 80 per side had I completely 10 turkish get ups.

This is where I use my logic. For my goals, that amount of pressing will take away from my main goal, which is to work the turkish get up, not improve my pressing strength and abilities. So, I avoided this volume to keep the workout more TGU-centered.

Make sense?

Post-workout, the first observation I had was the fatigue component experienced from all of the added pressing.

The shoulder burn wasn’t nearly as bad as it was from the “5 minute no rest turkish get ups” that I adopted from Jon Hinds (owner of Monkey Bar Gym), but it was right up there. I am humbled what a simple activity like holding a weight (and a relatively light one at that) overhead can do to fry your shoulder musculature.

For me personally, it was a completely manageable fatigue (which is perfect) that provided an added challenge to the main movement.

A rarely discussed topic with turkish get ups is the amount of cognitive support needed to execute such a segmented exercise. There is a lot happening on the way up to the standing position, and then on the reversal moving back down to the starting position.

Holding the weight overhead is one thing. Holding the weight overhead while twisting and turning underneath that weight in an effort to rise up to the standing position from a dead stop laying position is another. Don’t

The first few times I gave a good effort to turkish get ups- treating them like practice versus a workout- my brain was fried. My eyes felt tired.

The brain has to be engaged in order to make turkish get ups work, and this is another HUGE benefit of the drill. Turkish get ups are a technique driven drill sequence. I respect those who preach this, because I feel that focusing on technique and the subtle details is how you extract the most physical and mental benefit from the movement.

The mind-body connection during get ups is of tremendous benefit for the exercisee.

I feel smarter after get ups, no lie. More detailed, more creative, stronger 3-dimensionally.

If you’re looking for a challenge, try adding some presses into your turkish get up practice. But keep it exactly that, practice. Be mindful of your abilities, yet don’t be afraid to walk to the fringe to challenge your mind and body.

And as I mentioned earlier in the post, if you have never practiced turkish get ups, your main job is to learn the steps first before adding pressing. You have to crawl before you walk.

Cheers to adding pressing to your turkish get ups,

KG

(pictures to come…)

Saturday always provides adequate time to explore different combinations of work capacity style circuits.

I like to take the governor off and push myself on Saturday mornings.

This past Saturday didn’t disappoint.

The goal was to accumulate 25-30 minutes of a work:rest style circuit.  I didn’t feel like being monotonous with the exercise selection so included 10 different exercises, stringing them together strategically so that I could give an honest effort to each exercise without sacrificing anything (mostly due to fatigue) to the next exercise in the circuit.

It really worked out well and challenged a number of movement patterns.

The equipment that I used:  24kg kettlebells x2, jump rope, Jungle Gym Suspension Trainer

Here is how the workout was structured…

—> 20 seconds of work: 20 seconds of rest of the following:

24kg kettlebell snatch right hand

rest

24kg kettlebell snatch left hand

rest

Bodyweight Chin Up

rest

Double 24kg kettlebell squat-to-press (aka: Thrusters)

rest

Mountain Climbers

rest

Kettlebell Figure-8 (advanced and technical, but great drill)

rest

Bodyweight Push Ups

rest

Double 24kg Lunge (alternating sides)

rest

Hand-to-Hand 24kg Swings (alternating every rep)

rest

Burpees (jump and push up)

rest

Jump Rope (combination of two foot bounce and running)

—-> Repeat 4 complete cycles of the above…

The best part about this workout is that you don’t have to worry about keeping track of reps.  When I am doing work capacity style training, counting reps can be a major pain.  It’s really the last thing I want to be doing while I am huffing and puffing.  Instead, the work starts on the buzzer and ends on the buzzer.  It’s really convenient.

Know thyself… If you’re a beginner, this workout might not be scaled to suit you.  If you’ve been working out for a while, this might work great for you.  If you’re a tough guy or gal, bump up the weight for kettlebell exercises, add a weight vest to chin ups and push ups, use a weighted jump rope, etc.  I can provide exercise progressions to bury anyone if that is what you are seeking, hopefully that isn’t the case though.  Smart training reigns supreme.

You might see a lot of volume in a workout like this, and you’re absolutely right, so nice observation.  However, I preach workouts that can be managed.  I managed this one nicely.  Notice how explosive work is ordered first in the workout.  That is on purpose.  People tend to get hurt when they attempt to move weight quickly under fatigue and will poor form.  I am not foolish enough to place a highly technical lift at a place in the workout when I am most fatigued.

Also notice that all of the exercises are non-competing, and ordered in such a way to respect that.  In fact, look at the kettlebell figure-8 + bodyweight push ups + double 24kg lunge… sequence.  Very different muscles are being taxed there.  Figure-8’s are combination of squats with rotational power where the kettlebell moves from a high front to low back to side and finally diagonally across body to high position (hybrid movement).  Push ups are an upper body push dominant exercise, and lunges are mainly a lower body hip dominant exercise.  This allows for an increase in heart rate and work, without gassing out the body for the next exercise.  You tax one movement pattern, than move on to the next.

Different movement patterns, different muscles, quality technique, short rest, big training effect.

Now I don’t own a calorimeter or a metabolic analyzer, but I would guess that the calorie burn from a workout like this was quite high.  Maybe 650-800kcals total, and that doesn’t include the residual calories that are burned post-workout.  Shortened rest periods combined with resistance based lifts that leverage a sub-maximal muscle contraction are notorious for creating an after-burn effect, it’s been studied quite extensively in the last few years as the concept of fat loss slowly gains momentum versus weight loss.

Metabolism can stay elevated for several days leveraging workouts like this.

If you leverage some quality eating habits during that period of elevated metabolism, you’ll burn some fat no doubt.  Rinse and repeat the process and you’re going to end up burning a bunch of fat.

I should also note that I designed this workout knowing that the coming days were going to be either complete rest (no workouts) or at the very most, a short yoga/static stretch session.  It’s important to rest, recover and let your body heal in between workouts.  Your body can only handle so much stress before adverse events begin to occur.  You really don’t want to play chicken with overtraining or chronic fatigue in general.  The point of recovering in between workouts is to give your body the best possible chance to leverage the work done in the previous workout, while allowing enough time to enter the next training session and make gains.

I think that a lot of people could lose greater amounts of body-fat (faster) while boosting performance if they decreased the amount of cumulative stress from workouts.  You want your body to recover in full.  Always entering a workout in a state of recovery is bad for business.  If you haven’t acquired a full taste for physical activity, this is good news for you, as each dedicated workout can be used to accelerate

Instead, choose fewer weekly workouts that create a larger (but quality) training effect.  Make them count.

Focus on accelerating other areas of life while you recover in between sessions.  Focus on establishing quality eating habits.  Re-think your water intake.  Read more books on success and self-growth.  Calm the mind with yoga, foam rolling and a long static stretch session.  Get more sleep.

Learning how to workout is great, and building fitness is empowering.  But keep your training efforts sustainable.  Win the war, not just the battle.

Give this workout (or a variation of it) a go.

Cheers to kettlebell and bodyweight workouts!

KG

30 Minute Workouts, Bodyweight Workouts, Kettlebell Training, Quick Tips

High Repetition Kettlebell Swings

Kettlebell Training

The kettlebell swing is a amazing exercise that can build power, strength, improve conditioning and accelerate fat loss.  

Swings are packed with benefits.  

Kettlebell swings have been a staple exercise in my workouts for the past 13+ years.  

I started by swinging a 24kg kettlebell, and have since moving on to 28kg, 32kg and 44kg swings of varying intensities and volume.  

Within 4 weeks, I noticed the impact kettlebell swings had on my physique.  

And I wasn’t using fancy workouts, just a simple 15 seconds on/ 15 seconds off for 24 rounds.  That’s a 12 minute workout, with 6 of those minutes being dedicated to swings.   

Long story short, adding swings to my workout regimine helped to burn fat off of my body while building functional power, improving my posture and delivering a potent form of conditioning. 

Swinging kettlebells has also improved my running.

Kettlebell swings are a total body exercise.

In the beginning, I rarely swung my 28kg bell beyond the 15-20 reps in a work set.  

Overall, my workouts 

Then I started reading testimonials where people described how high rep kettlebell swing workouts (several days per week) was torching fat off their bodies. 

Who doesn’t want to burn a little more fat off their body?  I sure did, and still do, let’s get lean people. 

Of couse, nutrition is a crucial part of fat loss, so factor that in. 

Over the years, I’ve gone pretty far down the rabbit hole with swings.  High rep swing workouts might eclipse 300-400 reps in a session, using heavier kettlebells.  

Note:  Tread lightly using high rep swings too frequently.  Give your body chance to recover and avoid injury.  

—> Here is a short list of my observations and findings while using high rep kettlebell swing workouts <—

1)  High rep kettlebell swings builds grip endurance.  

2)  Might be a good idea to perform self administered soft tissue work on the forearms using a lacrosse ball or a percusion massager like the TheraGun. 

3)  I got lean pretty quick, which is predictable because kettlebell swings work a large number of muscles and burn a significant number of calories in these high rep workouts.  

4)  Take adequate rest between sessions.  Give your low back, glutes and hamstrings a chance to recover from the increase volume.  Foam roll, percussion massage, accupressure mat, active mobility training and long walks are a good idea.  

5)  2-3 high rep swing workouts per week is enough to create noticeable changes in body composition and conditioning.  

6)  Postural changes were interesting.  Standing position seemed like my hips were further forward and my shoulders pulled back.  

7)  15-20 minutes is more than enough time to accumulate a shit ton of swings.   

8)  Don’t be afraid to move up in weight and attack heavier kettlebells.  

I’d consider a high rep swing workout to be 100+ reps or more.  

Taking that number and scaling it for a beginner,  40-50 swings might be high rep for your experience level. 

If you’re advanced, 200+ swings might be your target for that day.  

It depends on your conditioning level and familiarity with the kettlebell swing.

Here’s a good kettlebell swing workout:

Baseline Kettlebell Swing Workout

Workoust like this are deceptively challenging.  

In the early round the rest periods feel long, but in the later rounds the rest periods don’t feel long enough.   

Fatigue is a hell of a drug.  

Using this workout, you’ll accumulate 100 swings in 10 minutes.  

That’s plenty to create a training effect.   

Choosing kettlebell weight.  20-24kg for men and a 16kg/20kg for women.

This is not the law however.  If you need to go lighter, do it.  Need to go heavier?  Do it.  Feel it out and make that decision as needed.  

This workout uses a fixed work:rest structure.  Wear a heart rate monitor if you have one.  A heart rate monitor can provide valuable information on work and rest periods, along with pinpointing how hard you’re actually working according to heart beats per minute.  

Using a heart rate monitor, I’ll perform the swings, finsih, then watch my heart rate monitor until the BPM decresases to 130bpm before starting the next round.  This method will make rest periods short in the beginning and tends to increase the length of rest later in the workout as fatigue accumulates and your body needs more time to calm down.  

Here are a few other workouts I’ve played around with. 

Other tips for high rep swing workouts

Don’t make the mistake of swinging too light of a kettlebell.  

The hips are powerful , size up the kettlebell and challenge yourself.  

If you have several different weights, you can start the workout with the heavier kettlebell and transition to the lighter bell as needed.  

It’s all based on feel.  

If you’re swinging super high rep marathon sessions with too light of a kettlebell, there’s diminishing returns.  

Instead of swinging 500 reps and feeling fresh at the end of the workout, lower the reps while increasing the weight.  

The increase in load will challenge your body plenty, and over time, the volume will increase.  

Repeat this process and you’ll be swinging the 40kg BEAST in not time.  I bet your body will reflect this progress.  

Just remember, the rules of progressive loading apply to kettlebell swings also.  

Again, this is a basic progression with loading, similar to what you’d use with traditional resistance training.

Heavier kettlebells will require greater effort to move the kettlebell through the arc of motion.    

Kettlebells are amazing for building power, improving posture and fat loss.  

Swings, while not the best for building lean muscle, are known to and can build muscle.  

Don’t count kettlebell swings out for building SOME muscle.  Just know there are better exercises.  

Deadlifts, squats, vertical pulling, rows, horizontal pressing and overhead pressing are best for building muscle because muscles will spend more time under tension through the full range of motion.  

Kettlebell swing are great for fat loss, if…   

… you’re in a caloric deficit.    

It doesn’t matter if you’re getting into a  caloric deficit via the swing workouts, or you’re a badass and entering workouts already in a caloric deficit.

You cannot out-swing a calorie surplus and expect to lose fat.  The math will work against you every time and you’ll go insane.  

People fight the calorie deficit thing all the time, like there’s some other secret sauce that can only be found by spending $97 on a fitness guru’s fat loss product.  

The caloric deficit is NOT EVERYTHING when it comes to fat loss, but it does play a HUGE role in burning fat.  

Huge.  

Sleep, hydration, protein intake, eating whole foods over processed foods (as much as possible) will deliver “best” results.

If you found this article wondering if high rep kettlebell swings are a good idea… 

… yes, they are.  

Just make sure you approach these workouts with some common sense, making sure you’re familiar with the swing itself and not overdoing the volume out of the gates. 

Increase the reps gradually, find the sweet spot with the weight, attack the workout. 

Integrating several high volume swing workouts per work alongside decent nutrition will deliver awesome athletic and aesthetic results.  

Cheers to high rep kettlebell swings!

KG

The RKC Deep Six Kettlebell Workout

Kettlebell Training

 

The RKC Deep Six Kettlebell Workout is movement challenge that creates a potent cardio and strength training effect using six of the best kettlebell exercises. 

  • Snatch
  • Swing
  • Clean and Press
  • Squat
  • Turkish Get-Up

There are hundreds, if not thousands of kettlebell exercise variations stemming from these six exercises.  

The “original 6” kettlebell exercises create the foundation on which pretty much all other results-based kettlebell training is built.  

For the home gym, this type of training is perfect.    

The RKC Deep Six Kettlebell Workout ONLY requires 1 kettlebell and leverages HIGH VALUE exercises.  

The RKC Deep Six Workout

The RKC Deep Six Workout leverages the effectiveness of the six premiere kettlebell exercises.  

Snatch, swing, clean and press, squat and Turkish Get Ups.  

Here’s what the workout looks like.

Screen Shot 2020-07-29 at 8.20.49 AM

Workout Structure

Each movement is performed in the order above, 1 through 5, starting with snatches.

Complete 5 snacthes, move to 5 reps of single-arm swings, then 5 reps of clean to press, and so on.

Each exercise must be performed on BOTH SIDES OF THE BODY before advancing to the next exercise.

Again, the exercise order and repetition structure of The RKC Deep Six Kettlebell Workout looks the following:

5 Snatches

5 Single Arm Swings

5 Clean to Press

5 Squats

1 Turkish Get-Up

  • 5 reps per exercise (except turkish get-ups) per arm.
  • 3-5 total rounds
  • 1-2 minutes rest after each round.

Turkish get-ups are the only exercise following a different rep structure, 1 rep per side.  

Change hands/sides after the Turkish Get-Up.  

Changing Sides with the Kettlebell 

If possible, transition the kettlebell from side-to-side without letting the kettlebell touch the floor.  

This requires a hand-to-hand swing transition, which looks this:

 

If you’re unfamiliar with hand-to-hand transitioning, don’t worry.   

Slow the kettlebell and set it down.  Pick it up with the other hand and continue the workout.

Rest Periods

Rest periods are an important consideration for training hard and smart.   

Exert, then rest.  Gear up for the next round.

The decision to increase or decrease rest periods will depend on your fitness level and past experience.  

It’s better to start with longer rest periods and shave the rest period duration down as you see fit.  Chase movement quality, not extreme fatigue.    

In general, plan on resting 1-2 minutes between each round.

Hands Dry and Know the Exercises

Keep a towel nearby to dry your hands.

Snatches, swings and clean are all exercises that require a good grip on the kettlebell.

If sweat gets between your hands and the kettlebell, it’s extremely slippery and can result in slippage.  Losing hold of a even a light kettlebell will destroy bones. 

Exclude any exercises you’re unfamiliar with.  I say again, learn all of these exercses in isolation, free of accumulating fatigue and sloppy body position.  

You should be proficient in each of these exercise before trying this workout.

How often should you do this workout? 

You could use this workout 2-3 times a week.  

Monitor your fatigue level and don’t force a workout if it’s not right.  

People get excited about exercise and tend to overdo it.

I’d suggest positioning this workout in with other activities like active mobility training, resistance training, steady-state cardio and plenty of walking.

Yes, walking.  Walking will change your body and life.

Weight

You’ll have to play around with the best weight.  Sounnds like shit advice, but different fitness levels will find different weights challenging.  

Males might want to start with 16kg-24kg.

Females might start with 12kg-20kg.

These are general weight recommendations.  Go heavier or lighter depending on your fitness level.  

Investing in 3 different weight kettlebells is a nice approach.  

A light, medium and heavy option.  This allows for regressing or progressing the load used for an exercise if needed.

Scale this Workout to YOUR Fitness Level

Adaptation to physical stress can occur quickly with discipline and consistency.

If you do the same workout over and over, without your gains will come to a halt.  

Simple ways to INCREASE the difficulty:

  • Increase kettlebell weight
  • Add more reps per exercise
  • Add more rounds per workout
  • Decrease the length of rest periods in between rounds

Did you cruise through all 5 rounds no problem?  Bump up to the next size kettlebell.  Increasing weight is a simple way to challenge your training. 

Conversely, to DECREASE the difficulty, do the exact opposite of the bulleted points above.

  • Decrease kettlebell weight
  • Lower the reps per exercise
  • Lower reps per exercise
  • Remove rounds per workout
  • Increase the length of rest periods in between rounds.

Kettlebell training is brutally effective, and few other gym tools are as versatile. 

The RKC Deep Six Workout is a good example of how effective simple exercises can be.  

You’re getting cardio and strength in one shot, while keeping the workout time efficient.   

Forget spending hours in the gym.  

Turkish Get Up Favoritism

Turkish Get Ups are a game-changing exercise.  

TGUs are my go-to movement for building total body strength.

They’re incredible.  Maybe a little more of a learning curve, but well worth familiarizing.

👉 Read more about one of my favorite TGU and swing workouts here.

 

Learn more about kettlebell training

👉 Kettlebell Swings|Benefits and Workout Ideas

👉 3 Fresh Turkish Get Up Variations

👉 Kettlebell Clean – Press – Squat Combination

 

A Tough 20 Minute Kettlebell Workout: Clean+Squat+Press

20 minute Workouts, Kettlebell Training

Simple training delivers results.

And what’s more simple than taking a clean, squat and press and forming it into a great workout?

Today I’m sharing a 20 minute kettlebell workout that incorporates three tried and true exercises.

The training effect is awesome, and the time investment is minimal.

I’m a connoisseur of exercises and using basic equipment to create great workout, but I always keep focus on movement patterns. Compound exercises that train the entire body. Keep

Keeping it simple, for me, is keeping it effective. Simplicity eliminates decision fatigue and increases my focus and productivity.

Do less, but do it better.

Here are the 3 exercises we’ll be using for the workout:

Double Kettlebell Cleans

Double Kettlebell Squat

Double Overhead Kettlebell Press

Just three exercises, and good ones at that.

The clean, squat and press are time-tested exercises for building power, strength and muscle.

Kettlebell cleans are an hip hinging ballistic/explosive total body movement.

Kettlebell squats are a lower-body pushing exercise.

Kettlebell overhead press trains the vertical push pattern, which has great carryover to the daily living.

Combining all 3 exercises into a circuit makes it a total body effort. Plus, keeping the rest periods short and completing multiple rounds, the training effect is potent.

If calorie are in check, workouts like this are great for keeping muscle and accelerating fat loss.

Warm-up

Always work through a warm-up to prepare your body for more intense work ahead.

10-15 minutes is all you need to get a warm-up, work through mobility drills, lightly loaded movement patterns and raise core temperature.  

Here are some GREAT movements for warm-ups:

14 Exercise Full Body Warm Up

The pre-workout period will also give you an opportunity to assess how your body is feeling on that particular day.

Not feeling it? Run down? Poor night’s sleep, stress, etc? Don’t be afraid to work through a warm up, but bypass the workout for the day. Come back tomorrow fresh and focused.

Much of my pre-workout warm-ups are infused with ground-based movements and active joint mobility training.

On the tail end of the warm-up, I’ll jump rope, flow with a macebell or practice some lighter kettlebell drills.

The Workout:

Image

Transitioning to a different exercise on every rep makes this circuit more challenging.

Again, you’re not doing the same exercise for X amount of reps before moving onto the next exercise, you’re performing 1 rep of clean, then 1 rep of squat and then 1 rep of overhead press before circling back to the clean.

1 time through the clean + squat + press = 1 rep.

Each set consists of 6 reps per exercise. The workout is recommended for 10 total sets. That’s a grand total of 60 reps per exercise.

The kettlebell is constantly moving throughout the workout, changing levels and positions.

Rest periods. If a 30 second rest period is completely unmanageable for 8 rounds, TAKE LONGER REST. Try 45-60 seconds. When workouts are shared, whether on this blog or any other website, you must consider your own fitness level and make adjustments as needed. NOTHING is set in stone. Tweak the session to suit your needs.

Weight. Use moderate to heavy weight for this workout. I like 24kg for males and 12-18kg for females.

Because this little circuit is using 3 different exercises, the weight you choose will correspond to both the weakest exercise of the three AND the recommended reps.

The weakest exercise with either be the clean or the overhead press for most people, and the weight of the kettlebell should be something you can squeeze 2-3 additional reps out of.

So, if the overhead press is the weakest exercise, select the weight based on that and make sure you can press it 8-10 times (even though suggested reps are 6 each)

Related Articles

Home Gym Workouts! Total Body Sandbag Circuit for Fat Loss and Muscle

Locomotion| The Weighted Lizard Crawl

One Kettlebell, 3 Fat Loss Workouts

Secret Service Kettlebell Snatch Test

Kettlebell Training

The Secret Service Snatch Test, which I’ll refer to as the SSST (so I don’t have to keep spelling it out) is a brutal workout.  

More of a test of will power, really.  

The SSST is a test of how many snatch reps can be accumulated inside of a 10 minute time limit usig a 24kg (53lb) kettlebell.  

That’s it.  

Set the timer for 10 minutes… and go.  

Achieving your best finish in the SSST will require a combination of:

  •  Kettlebell Snatch Technique
  •  Work capacity
  •  Conditioning 
  •  Luck with skin integrity (if the skin rips, it’s painful)
  •  Courage to suffer, and keep suffering, and keep…

The courage aspect of conditioning tests like this is a huge determining factor of your score.

Are you able to center yourself, refocus your thoughts when the fatigue and discomfort pile on?   

When I say “discomfort”, I’m primarily referring to the hand discomfort.  

The micro motion between the palm of the hand and kettlebell handle gets worse sensitive as the minutes pass by.     

Chalk helps, but only to a point.  The more you stop to re-chalk the hands, the more time you’re losing where snatch reps could be completed.  

Some people will crack because of the fatigue.  Hitting 200+ snatch reps in such a short timeframe is aggressive.  

There’s little… wait… likely no rest to be taken.  

For those who have tested their conditioning in competition or periodicially in a training cycle, you know what redlining your engine’s capacity feels like.  

Achieving a personal best with the SSST is going to require redlining.  

Ideal for removing callouses…

If you’ve been wondering how to remove built up hand callouses, you’ve come to the right place.  The SSST will remove skin in less than 5 minutes or your money back. 

From a hand care standpoint, this isn’t a workout you’d want to try that frequently.  Probably not even monthly.  Testing your toughness 2-3 times per year is probably more than enough.  

When I was really heavy into kettlebell training, I was testing my SSST 2-3 times per year at very sporadic times.  

It’s not like you’re going to wake up and feel the desire to snatch hardcore for 10 minutes.  I’d pick a day, maybe 7-10 days out where I knew I would be giving the SSST another attempt.  Then I’d section off 1-2 days after for rest, recovery and hand caudling.   

Best case scenario, you’ll have some juicy blisters on both hands.  Worst case scenario, you can expect to rip plenty of skin.

This attempt shows approximately 238 repetitions.  I say “roughly” because counting slow to 238 can cause your eyes to play tricks on you.  So if you have 10 minutes to spare to watch the video, feel free to call me out if I did less or throw me a bone if I did more.

It’s an “approximation” because I’m too lazy to keep double checking the reps.  Counting to 238 across 10 minutes is something I don’t have the attention span to do 3-4 times.   

Some of the top dogs in the kettlebell community are snatching get around 270+ reps, documented through video.    

Secret Service Snatch Test Leaderboard

If you want to paste your name amongst the leaders, film it.  It’s important to document your performance with un-edited video.  No one cares about word of mouth reporting.  Prove it.

Breaking down my SSST attempt….

In the early minutes of the test, I typically aim for 10 snatches per arm before switching.  

Honestly, this is for counting reasons only.  After watching the video, I start miscounting the number of snatches per arm pretty quickly.  

The biggest mistake in this attempt was taking a break.  It’s obvious why.  When you’re timing and aiming for most reps, taking a break doesn’t help anything.  

A combination of boiled over physical stress and mental conflict led me to resting for a brief time.  Getting to the root of the why I stepped away, it’s purely mental.  My body could have tolerated the pain, my mind talked me stopping.  

Based on tempo, I’m guessing it cost me 5-10 reps at least.  

It get’s hard to get your thoughts in order during a conditioning test like this.  The mental governor is begging you to quit, your hands are pleading you to quit.    

I could feel the skin loosening up, blisters forming and eventually the ripping on my hands towards the end.  The impact of this impacted my outcome.

Kettlebell Snatch Lockout

Critiques…

My posture at the top of the snatch is not great.  

But, I’m going to cut myself some slack on this because the ceiling in my basement is exactly 7 feet 4 inches high at the lowest point of the trusses.  When snatching indoors, I make sure I’m locking out in between the beams, just in case.  

My personal decision to green light kettlebell snatches in my basement at this ceiling height were made based on snatch technique.  The kettlebell turns over the hand prior to reaching full shoulder extension which the highest my hand will be.

Check out this post for a freeze frame depiction of the snatch.

My worst fear is bouncing the kettlebell off the trusses and losing control.  Lord knows what comes next, but I have an idea.  

The fatigue is so high during an SSST, it wouldn’t be good.  

The forward body lean is a counterbalance to the kettlebell, but I also think it’s a precautionary measure to avoid impact with the ceiling.  The kettlebell is not traveling straight up and down, it’s traveling in an arc.  

Counterbalance like this is because the kettlebell is not traveling straight up and down, it’s traveling in a subtle arc.  

I’m counterbalancing to avoid being thrown backward.  On the downward descent, a slow motion video or a keen eye at full speed should show an opposite reaction, where I’m leaning back slightly as a counterbalance.  

The obvious:  Later in the SSST, technique erodes to ugliness and it’s survival time.  

I accept the risk in this. 

BODY FATIGUE IS A TECHNIQUE KILLER.

If you’re training MetCon, you must be able to look yourself in the mirror and accept the risk of doing so.  

To my knowledge, it hasn’t been directly pinpointed in studies but injuries become more predictable as fatigue alters the control you have over your movement.  

Performing a box jump when 100% fresh is a lot different than the same box jump after you’ve done 25 thrusters and a 500-meter row.  

Plain and simple.  If you accept the risk of your actions, then you’re taking ownership for the injury.  

Decreasing the number of times I switch hands with the kettlebell would get me more reps.  Every hand transition is essentially a lost repetition to the final tally and wasted energy in doing so.  

If I was working longer sets per arm before switching, say 15-20 reps, I could gain an additional 10-15 snatches across the 10 minutes.  

Years ago, the first time I attempted the SSST,  I was hovering around 180-185 reps. 

Kettlebell training was relatively new, snatch technique wasn’t as great and I was unfamiliar the demands of 10 minutes of torture.   

The repetitions gained is progress.  Progress is always the goal, no matter how small or large.  A step forward is a step in the right direction.  

Make sure you subscribe to my YouTube channel, where I detail the kettlebell snatch along with many other exercises discussed on this blog.  

Cheers to The Secret Service Snatch Test,

Kyle

Single Device Workouts for Indirect Core Training

Kettlebell Training

I love training one tool at a time.

The stress that it places on the body to maintain posture during movement is priceless to me.

Sure, you’ll sacrifice the amount of weight that you’re able to use for the movement(s), but you’ll sacrifice something with every training method that you choose.

Single device training could be born out of necessity not having enough equipment or from a simple desire to breathe some fresh air into a stale program.

Staleness sucks.  You’ll stop training when things get stale.  The workout will feel like a chore more than a chance to challenge and better yourself.  Stale is boring.

For me, I started single device training with dumbbells and medicine balls first.  I was traveling and wanted to get a workout but the equipment in the hotel was lacking so I had to improvise to get some kind of respectable training effect.

Working out with one dumbbell at a time is effective in that you can use a weight that is challenging and most people are familiar with using dumbbells as a training tool.

However, since I am deeply in love with kettlebells- their flow and versatility I now prefer KB’s to DB’s (that’s kettlebells to dumbbells by the way).

The flow of a kettlebell is unmatched. I can’t say enough about it.  Especially when you start working in single device training sessions, you’ll find that being able to flow from one exercise to the other seamlessly provides a much more enjoyable experience.

Here is an example of an improvised single device complex that I threw together.


***Remember, a complex involves 4-8 exercises grouped together without rest between movements.  Complexes are metabolically demanding and probably not suited for beginners, although there are progressions that beginners can work through to get to a true no rest complex.  It just takes time, like everything else.

Progression is everything.  Don’t skip the basics.

You’ll notice in the title of this post I wrote “… for Indirect Core Training”.  I mean that.  Anytime you load one side of the body and not the other, you’ll find that the unloaded side’s musculature contract aggressively and goes into overdrive to maintain posture.  If you’re paying attention to your exercise technique during a uni-laterally (fancy term for one/single sided) loaded movement, you’re going to have to work harder to maintain a normal posture against those uneven forces.  Your torso musculature will light up like a Christmas tree, naturally.  No need for direct core work here.

I love it.

Even just pressing a dumbbell or a kettlebell over head one side at a time delivers such a unique training stimulus.  You’ll be sore in places you’re typically never sore, assuming that you are fighting to maintain that perfect posture.  When that happens, just understand that it happened because you loaded your body unevenly.

We tend to train everything with both legs or arms mirroring each other, so breaking out of the norm and going single arm or single leg is a great training tactic for the body.

Cheers from the great city of Eau Claire, WI…

KG