GS Longevity

In my last post (WTH effect) I mentioned how there is a 63-year-old Latvian GS athlete who can best my Long Cycle personal record by 20 reps. It's actually worse than that:
He can beat it by 31 reps (He did 111 reps at a competition in Kerch, Russia, last February).
And he lifts in the weight class below me. His name is Adolfas Vejelis.
Not only that, but there is a 70-year-old GS athlete, Nikolaj Sazonov of the Ukraine, who can beat my pr by 10 reps.
He did 90 reps at the same Kerch competition.
He lifts four weight classes below me.
These men are lifting the same size kettlebells that I use (two 24 kg/52.8 lb kettlebells).
These GS facts are simultaneously humbling and encouraging. On the one hand, every time I start to feel too proud about my progress, seeing the results of a masters or veterans match from Russia and the performance of men older than my father humbles me in a hurry.
On the other hand, I know that, as a 40-year-old athlete that's new to competition lifting, I can reasonably expect to improve and perform at a high level for decades to come (guys who hope to date my daughters in the coming years, take note: I plan to be stronger than you even when I'm drawing Social Security).
These athletes I have mentioned are not aberrations. Although they are high-level athletes, their continued success and acheivement is not unusual for older GS athletes who put in dedicated training time. Another GS blogger featured a similar post on another older GS athlete here: http://kahvakuula.fi/artikkelit/interview-with-eduard-trusevich/
This promise of increased strength, stamina, and work capacity at any age, along with an exceedingly low rate of injury, attract me to GS more than anything. I can't imagine myself ever quitting.
Special thanks to Smet, who's thread topic at the IGX forum inspired this post. Here are the official results from the Kerch comp:


Here is 62-year-old Eduard Trusevich of Latvia finishing the last minute of a 220 rep snatch set with the 24kg kettlebell at the Ventspils Atlans comp in 2007:

WTH effect

The term "What the hell effect" was first coined on the Dragondoor.com forum about eight years ago, when kettlebell lifters began noticing unexplained improvements in their performance of various activities seemingly unrelated to kettlebell lifting. Folks reported improvements in everything from one-armed pullups to distance running, even when they had abandoned training those activities altogether. People were so surprised by their success after doing nothing but kettlebells for exercise, that they exclaimed "what the hell!" when they unexpectedly bested a previous personal record. It seemed like kettlebell training was magic.
Not everyone who lifts kettlebells experiences the "WTH" effect, and some people doubt its existence altogether.
I don't know if my experience tonight counts as a WTH experience, because it only makes sense that kettlebell lifting strengthens the lifter's hands to a great degree. Here is what happened:
I went to Kmart to get a new watch battery. The sales staff at the watch counter could not loosen the screws on the watch to remove the old battery. They told me I'd need to take the watch somewhere with better screwdrivers, as they were afraid they'd strip the screws with the set they had, since no one could budge the screws.
I asked them to hand me the jeweler's screwdriver they were using. I could only use my thumb and index finger to turn the screwdriver since I was holding my toddler in my arms at the time, so I could not really bear down with any strength. Basically, I just used two fingers to turn the screw.
I loosened all four screws with ease using just two fingers. The jaws of the sales staff dropped to the counter. "Oh my God, you are strong" said one of the clerks.
I relate this anecdote not to glorify myself. I know there are probably dozens of teenage girl kettlebell lifters in Siberia who can outlift me. I read the other day of a 63-year-old Latvian man who can best my personal record in Long Cycle by 20 reps.
My point is, kettlebell lifting gives you real-world, walking around, every day strength you can use. You get the strength where you need it, especially in the back and hands.
I am not naturally strong. But I have enjoyed the benefits of the practical strength that kettlebells develop.
In the meantime, I'm still looking for a watch battery. It turns out Kmart was sold out, as was the drug store on the way home. Looks like I'm headed to Wal-mart and Target tomorrow.

Kettlbell Competition(s)

So many of you know I plan to compete in the 2nd Annual American Kettlebell Club Southeast Kettlebell Sport Championship in the Atlanta area on December 5th. I'm hoping to acheive my "Rank I" level classification in the long cycle event at that event. For my weight class that means cleaning and jerking two 24kg kettlebells for at least 69 reps in 10 minutes.
Since my last entry I have bested that goal twice in training. On one test day, I acheived 80 reps in just under 10 minutes. I video recorded this test on my cell phone. Since then, I haven't been able to locate my adapter to load the video on to my computer and post it to the web for critiques. Regardless, I've watched my performance and I think I may need to work on my lockouts to make sure every rep counts on competition day. So instead of working on increasing pace or duration, I've been working on crisp lockouts for every rep.
This post isn't just about kettlebell lifting competition. The competition in the marketplace has changed. Since my last Kettlebell Comparison post, a number of companies began offering competition style kettlebells, while others have improved their quality. Ader and Agatsu are now offering competition style kettlebells that appear to be similar in quality to the AKC kettlebells. And, based on forum postings (including photos) at IGX, Perform Better has improved the quality of their competition style kettlebells, particularly in the handle area. Prices are always subject to change, but based on my recent review of prices, AKC kettlebells still seem to be the best deal on the market. Still, it looks like their competitors now offer a good product at a good price. This can only benefit the consumer. I am glad that the competition style kettlebell is becoming more the norm than the older style offered by Dragondoor. Hopefully, this means the sport will continue to grow.

Kettlebell Comparison: Quality differences

A few months ago, I wrote a piece on kettlebell comparisons. Here is the link:

http://southernkettlebeller.blogspot.com/2009/06/kettlebell-comparison.html

In that piece, I noted the differences in quality between the Perform Better kettlebells and the AKC kettlebells. It turns out, I did not know just how similar and how different they were.
In a nutshell, the PB kettlebll I bought is an AKC kettlebell, made in the same mold, to inferior standards. End of story.
I found out by accident. As I noted in the previous piece, the finish of the PB bell was of much poorer quality than the AKC bell, and the grey paint (epoxy?) was continually chipping off when it collided with the AKC bell during clean and jerks.
The finish got pretty rough, rough enough to scratch my shoulders raw during a workout. I decided to remove all of the finish, smooth it out, and paint it to match my AKC bell. Here is what I found:


If the name looks familiar, it is that of Valery Fedorenko, the KB champion who works with the AKC. His name is on every AKC bell. The circular hole below his name is where the Perform Better logo appeared before I stripped it off.
Here is a view of the same kettlebell when I first took it out of the box, untouched (please note, if you click on the photo, it will enlarge, and you can clearly see the perform better logo on the kettlebell):


Also of note is what I found on the other side:



All AKC bells have "WorldKettlebell.Com" on the reverse side. As did this Perform Better kettlebell, when I stripped off the finish.

Unlike the AKC bells, there are a number of deep gashes in the bell:







I didn't quite remove all of the finish. This bottom view of the bell shows the grey finish depicted in my previous post on the comparison:




What is the import of this information? Well, for the consumer, its obvious that the AKC bell is still the best buy. I had to spend a few hours to get the handle of my PB kettlebell smooth enough that it wouldn't pinch and tear my calluses. Once the finish started chipping off, I had to strip the rest off so it wouldn't scratch my shoulder raw every time I did long cycle or jerks. Now I'll need to sand it some more before its ready to re-finish. Let's just say that caring for the PB kb seems like it is a hobby unto itself.

I will say that PB has prompt, courteous customer service, and I received the kettlebell promptly. But they had no interest in refunding my price when I explained how rough the handle was and how long it would take to dremmel and file it to be usable. They explained that removing the finish was a no-no. I smile when I think about that now.
I have heard that the quality of PB kettlebells has improved, and if that is the case I'll provide an update and post new photos to verify it (if and when I receive any). In the mean time, I recommend the AKC bells as the best buy. If you know of any other kettlebells you'd like me to post on, please let me know.

Reflections on Sergey Rudnev's LC template

I just completed Sergey Rudnev's Long Cycle training template, as taken from one of my favorite sites, http://girevoysportafter40.blogspot.com/.
I tried to follow the recommended workouts, to the letter, with the following exceptions:

1. The template is written for GS athletes who are at/near the Master of Sport level, using the 32kg KB's. I am shooting for my Level I amateur ranking, so whenever it recommended using 32kg KB's, I used 24kg bells. When it called for 24kg KB's, I used 20kg KB's.

2. I was out of town for a few days of the cycle, and only had access to non-competition-style KB's. During that time I did a few workouts of one-armed long cycle using 60 lb Kb's. The night I returned home I resumed the program as written.

Other than that, I followed the plan very closely.
The program finishes with an 8 minute test set, with a recommended number of reps of 56-64. I completed 63 reps, with the following rpm's: 9,9,9,8,7,7,8,6. I averaged just under 8 rpm for the entire set. This was a pr for me for total reps, and tied my pr for time with this weight.
That being said, I was somewhat disappointed, in that I seemed to be progressing faster under the AKC approach.
I will say that I have grown used to a much faster pace, especially with the 20kg bells. With the shorter sets I am much faster with the 24kg than I previosuly was. And I think that is something to build on.
Additionally, I think the use of sprint work, so prevelant in this and other Russian programs, is less mentally taxing than what I've done before. It just was easier.
Honestly, I think the AKC approach may have gotten me faster and better results. But I rarely had a day when I dreaded looking at the kettlebells. Rarely did I finish a set and feel mentally exhausted as I did before. So I think this may be a more sustainable approach.
I am going to continue using Russia templates for my training. The next plan will be Russian EDT. This is plan I took from the same website, http://girevoysportafter40.blogspot.com/. Here is a link to the plan:
http://girevoysportafter40.blogspot.com/2009/08/thoughts-on-russian-edt.html
I'll let you know how it goes.
Finally, here is a shout out and congratulations to Marty Farrell, who became the first American to achieve Master of Sport in both the Biathlon and Long Cycle. A video of his Long Cycle achievement appears below.
Thanks for stopping by.

Trying a New Long Cycle Template

I've been focusing on Long Cycle for a few months now, and I've been very pleased with my progress.
The workout is performed 5-6 days a week. The template is one to two 5-7 minute sets, with the goal of increasing the rpm's or duration each workout. I got the idea from some folks at the AKC.
The approach has worked well. I've increased my 2x24kgs pr from 37 reps in 5 minutes (just over 7 rpm) to 59 reps in 7 minutes (just over 8 rpm). I've had multiple workouts where I've maintained over 10 rpm for several minutes. It seems I constantly set new pr's.
That being said, the template can be very draining. Even though my workouts take less than 20 minutes to complete (sometimes the core of it is only five minutes) those few minutes can be hell. Such hell that some days I don't want to pick up the bells. I've had several days where I've set a new pr one day, but crashed and burned the next. And even on the pr days, it was very very hard. Not just physically hard, but mentally hard. I've actually finished a five minute set where my brain was so exhausted I felt like I'd just taken a law school exam.
Recently I read of another training template for LC specialists. I found the template at another GS training blog. Here is the post featuring the template:

http://girevoysportafter40.blogspot.com/2008/08/long-cycle-and-otw.html

Tonight I tried Microcycle 1 day 1. It went very well. Here are my results:
LC 2x24kg 2 min 23 reps. rpms = 11,12.
Target rpms were 8rpm, 16 reps total.
Enjoyed this sprint.
Waited a few minutes, then
LC 2x20kg 3 min 35 reps. rpms = 12,12,11. just missed 12th rep min 3.
Target rpms were 10 rpm, 30 reps total.
Also enjoyed this sprint.

I think I will enjoy this approach. I may find that nothing works as well as what I have been using. It has served me well. But the mental fatigue was very draining. I had to find something to "wave the load" to make it easier mentally. This template may be the ticket.

Return to Long Cycle: continued progress despite injury

My knee keeps getting better. But its been very slow. Over a month after the dislocation, my knee remains stiff after I sit for more than 15 minutes at a time. Although it keeps getting better, I still look like an old man when I get out of my car after my 30 minute commute.
Despite the injury, I continue to set personal records ("pr's") in the Long Cycle, both for pace and total reps. Last night I had a 5 min 2x24kg set for 45 reps (9 rpm) and tonight, I set my total rep record of 59 reps in 7 minutes (rpms = 9,9,8,9,8,8,8). This is truly significant, in that my previous pr of 55 reps (set June 16) took 8 minutes to acheive with rpms of 7,7,7,7,7,7,6.
I had been wondering what changes I needed to make to continue my progress. Things like OAJ's with a heavier KB, or adding squats or heavy barbell cleans.
Given the success I'm having, despite the knee injury, I'm going to keep doing what I'm doing until it stops working.