John’s Ramblings

Kettlebell enthusiasts (and the occasional Danish Olympic weight lifter) know the name of Kenneth Jay.  He is a Master level RKC instructor, and he made his mark on the sport by publishing his book “Viking Warrior Conditioning” (“VWC”).  An extension of his thesis research, VWC is a series of exercise protocols that will increase the efficiency of the cardio vascular system (as measured by VO2Max) via kettlebell exercise.  Specifically, the protocol calls for the kettlebell “snatch” (actually a helluvalot of snatches), a move where the kettlebell is held in one hand, and “snatched” from between the legs to above the head.  Repeatedly.  Over and over.  Here’s a short clip of someone performing the snatch (way better looking that a video of me… I promise!):

We spent a fair amount of the day in a lecture format, which worked out great because a.) you build understanding of the principals involved, and b.) there’s no freakin’ way you could swing a kettlebell for 6 hours.

We also spent quite a bit of time on form and technique, because if you’re not doing it right, you won’t get the proper results so why waste your time, right? So we reviewed and enhanced technique on the kettlebell swing, one-handed swing, and finally the snatch move. Jay’s innovation to the swing and snatch is to utilize a “Stretch/Shortening” cycle, where you increase power by making the hip flexion/extension portion of the swing or snatch as short as possible. I’m still trying to get the hang of this, since the kettlebell is dropping rapidly straight for my “boys”, and self-preservation dictates that you fold the hips as soon as possible. Practice, and maybe a jock strap and blindfold will be required to perfect this new technique.

Next up was an introduction to the exercise protocols themselves.  We worked on the first two (there are five, with a secret #6 lurking out there somewhere).  Protocol #1 is to do 40 minutes of snatch intervals, 15 seconds on & 15 seconds off.  By way of a “snatch test” and some simple math, you first compute your “VO2 Max Cadence”.  Mine was 28 snatches in a minute with a 16 kilo kettlebell.  Because we are doing 15 seconds of work at a time (1/4 of a minute), I’ll need to complete 1/4 of 28, or 7 snatches in each 15 seconds of work.  Sounds simple, but it starts to get pretty hard as you fatigue.  If you apply a little more math, I am supposed to perform the snatch 7 times every other 15 seconds, or 14 times a minute.  Since I’m doing 20 minutes of work in 40 minutes of elapsed time, that’s 280 snatches of 16 kilos (35 lbs) each.  280 * 35 = 8,400 pounds.

We didn’t do anywhere near a full set of these in class… we basically got a good taste of the 15:15 protocol, and finished with the 36:36 protocol (36 seconds of work, 36 seconds of rest).  I had a rest day Sunday, so today I set up my interval timer and tried a little VWC, despite feeling a bit sleep-deprived.  I made it through 20 minutes, so 10 minutes of work, 140 snatches total.  I was whipped, and it was mop-and-bucket cleanup time for the home gym floor when I was done.

This is going to be a fun program to work through, and should really accelerate my next weight-loss phase (which I started today).  I’m back on the Warp-Speed Fat Loss diet for the next few weeks in order to get myself off this plateau I’ve been camped on for months.  Having a day of kettlebell-immersion has helped fuel the fire again, and I’m looking ahead to getting my RKC training certification in February.  I need to make the decision here shortly, as there are some pretty good discounts for early commitment.

Tags: exercise, kettlebell

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