Gym Rules

I always train alone, but several people use my gym, including Isaac, who is working on his snatches and clean and jerks with a barbell, and getting quite strong I might add, as well as several friends and guests.  I wrote a list of rules, which might be helpful to others.  Feel free to borrow or steal this for your gym.

Steve’s Gym Rules

1.  It’s your fault.

 If you get injured, or property gets damaged, it’s your fault.  If you are not prepared to take responsibility for your safety and the preservation of this house and equipment, please don’t lift here.

2. Use, don’t abuse, the equipment.

Please train hard here, and give it all you’ve got to reach your goals.  This equipment is made of steel, iron, and wood. The floor is concrete.  It’s tough, and with normal use, will last for generations.  However, with abuse, it will break.  I worked very hard to buy and/or build everything in my gym, and there is no reason I should have to buy anything twice.  Don’t deliberately drop weights, slam them into the power rack or each other, or otherwise abuse the weights.  If you are really psyched up and want to take out your aggression, hit the heavy bag.  Please do not do kipping pullups on the power rack. 

3. Respect this house.

I’m glad you are training here.  I’m proud of the accomplishments I’ve reached in this gym, and hope that you have similar success.  This is a hardcore gym where people get strong and fit.  However, there are other people in this house, who may be working, homeschooling, or sleeping while you are training. Don’t use the speedbag or heavy bag at very early or late hours, or when the boys are homeschooling (before noon).  Use the radio and CD player, but mind the volume and the content of your music.  Please respect that we are a Christian family, and music with explicit lyrics is not played here, nor is profanity.  Or Justin Bieber, for obvious reasons.  We want more testosterone in this gym, not less.

4.  Keep it clean.

Several people train in this gym.  If you use it, put it back.  If it’s dirty, wipe it off.  If you spill it, clean it up.  There are wraps and towels in the green basket.  Feel free to use them.  Bring them in and put them in the laundry basket so they can be washed for the next guy/gal to use. No dirty shoes on the mat.  If you take weights outside to train in the sunshine, don’t tear up the yard, and clean them before bringing them back. 

5. Use common sense.

If you don’t know how to use it, leave it alone, or ask for instruction.  If it’s dangerous or stupid, don’t try it.   When in doubt, see rule # 1.

Measurements Log

Feb. 16- 179.5 lb. Measured bodyfat with 3 point Jackson Pollock method.  15.2% body fat. 152 pounds of lean mass, 27.5 pounds of body fat. Tried it the old way, and got 20%.  I think I like the new way better!

Jan. 17, 2013- 181 lb, 18.6% bodyfat.  147 lb. lean mass, 34 lb fat.  I think I'm doing something wrong.  My Accu-Measure caliper package insert says to measure only one place, just above the iliac crest.  I get the same 14-15mm reading every time, no matter my weight, and no matter what I see in the mirror, which correlates to 18.6%.  Next time I'm going to try the Jackson-Pollock 3 or 7 point system, and see what results I get. 

Dec. 21, 2013- 183.5 lb.  18.6% bodyfat. 149.5 lean mass, 34 fat

December 5, 2013- 180 lb., 18.6% body fat.  33.5 lb fat, 146.5 lb. lean mass.

November 2, 2013- 183 lb., 18.6% body fat.  Approximately 34 lb. of fat and 149 lb. lean mass.

August 30, 2013: 186.5 lb., 23% body fat.  43 pounds of fat, 143.5 pounds of lean mass.

October 11, 2012- 184 pounds, 17.5% body fat.  152 pounds of lean mass, 32 pounds of fat.  I've gained a pound of muscle in two weeks, but have not lost any fat. 

September 28, 2012- 183 pounds, 17.5% body fat.  151 pounds of lean mass, 32 pounds of fat. I continue to gain muscle slowly, but the fat is not coming off.  Been eating carbs, and probably too many calories.  I can stick to the training, but the diet is the really tough part.  Since July 21, I've gained four pounds of muscle, and one pound of fat.  Since August 3, though, I have gained 1 pound of muscle and 3 pounds of fat.  I've increased my bodyfat by 2% in just under 2 months.  I feel very strong, and my endurance is through the roof, but I'm still adding fat.

September 14, 2012- 182 pounds, 17.5% body fat.  About 150 pounds of lean mass, 32 pounds of muscle.  No change in the last two weeks.  I know my weight has varied, but no overall change. From my baseline, I've gained one pound of fat and three pounds of muscle since July 21.  My strength and endurance are at a higher level than then.  My bodyfat percentage is the same as my baseline.  It dropped two percent in two weeks on the slow carb diet.  This seems to be what works.

August 28, 2012- been slacking on the diet.  182 pounds, 17.5% body fat.  150 pounds of lean mass, 32 pounds of fat.  I'm up half a pound of muscle.

August 3, 2012- 177.5 lbs., 15.7% fat- 28 pounds of fat.  149.5 pounds of lean mass.  After four weeks on the slow-carb diet, I've lost 8 pounds of fat and gained 3 pounds of muscle.

July 21, 2012- 178 lbs, 17.5% fat- 31 pounds of fat. 147 pounds of lean mass. This is my baseline measurement.

Weighing, Measuring, and Cheating

I'm following the slow carb diet pretty faithfully, and today is cheat day. I plan to make it count- already had a cinnamon bun, and it was worth the wait.  Weight today: 178 (total lost: 5 pounds).  Body fat: 17.5%. This means I have 31 pounds of fat on my body.  Earlier in the week, I registered 19.2% bodyfat, or 35 pounds of fat.  This could be a fluctuation because I measured it at a different time of day, but the metric indicates that I'm down 4 pounds of fat.  I'll take my official weight and bodyfat measurements each Saturday when I get up, before cheating. 

What the Heck? 20 Pound Squat PR

In his first kettlebell book, Russian Kettlebell Challenge, Pavel Tsatsouline talks about the “what the heck?” effect of kettlebell lifting.  He cited Russian studies from the 1980’s which indicated that as one’s kettlebell sport numbers go up, other athletic factors improve as well, even if they are not trained.  I’ve just now gotten my jerk and snatch numbers up to an acceptable level with the 16k bells, and am doing my work sets with 20k now.  The only heavy lifting I have done lately is to grease the groove on the deadlift- I keep the bar at 300 pounds, which is not terribly heavy for me.  I can take it for 3-5 reps any time.

Wednesday my new knee wraps arrived from MuscleDriver. After a tough kettlebell workout (check the training log for July 11 for details), I decided to squat a little with my new wraps, and see if they helped my knees to feel more stable.  I had a full ACL replacement in my left knee in 2006, and it’s been funny ever since.  I got 225 easily, so I went for 255, which is my all-time best, as I don’t squat much.  It went up strong, so I went for 275.  Got it, slow and steady- a 20 pound personal best, without squatting since April!  “What the heck?” indeed.  The more time I devote to kettlebell sport, the more I realize that does the body good.  Moderate weight, high rep ballistic lifting agrees with me.  Think I’ll keep at it.

Just Do This!

I have found that I need to be told what to do.  If I have a specific program for lifting, I make progress.  I'm great at checking off tasks, both in my work, and in my training.  I've used Pavel's templates in the past, including the Rite of Passage to work up to clean and pressing a 32k kettlebell, and Power the People to deadlift 405 pounds.  Until now, I have not had a specific template for kettlebell sport training.  On Theirry Sanchez' blog, I found a kettlebell sport program generator:  http://kettlebellfitnessdk.wordpress.com/2011/06/08/kettlebell-sport-program-generator/

You simply insert your goals and the kettlebells you have at your disposal, along with the severity of the curve (i.e., how often you want to lift heavy, based on your recovery ability), and it gives you a 21-session template to follow.  The site recommends training three days a week, or every other day, which means it takes 6 weeks to hit 21 sessions.  After my performance last weekend with the 16k kettlebells (85 jerks, 80/80 snatches in competition), I'm ready to move up to the 20k.  I input a goal of 75 double jerks and 75 snatches per arm.  The template it gave me is below.  I was somewhat surprised to see that most of the reps are done with the 16k.  Each session includes a low rep, heavy set with the 24k, a work set with the 20k, and one or two sets with the 16k.  It starts off very manageable, and follows what looks like a logical progression.  If you study the table, you can see a linear cycle to avoid burnout.  It really makes sense.  I'm going to follow this for the next six weeks and see where it takes me.  Along with this, I plan to do a Power to the People style program of deadlift and bench press, and throw in heavy clean and jerks- I still have my eye on Master of Sport in the single clean and jerk.  I believe that improving my biathlon numbers got me CMS in this lift, and that to continue to improve these numbers will help in my quest for MS.  Check out the template online.  I'll keep you posted on my training.

Edit: Blogger would not let me post the table.  Keep an eye on my training log, and the program will emerge. 

July Training Log

July 31-  Jerks: 24k- 11; 20k- 36; 16k- 29, 32.   Snatch: 24k- 11/11; 20k- 36/36; 16k- 62/62.  Deadlift: 5 singles @ 320.

July 30- cleaned and rearranged gym.  Played around with rack jerks up to 165 pounds.  Deadlifted 300 for about 5 singles, then 320 for two.

July 29-  Jerk: 24k-9; 20k- 32, 16k- 26, 28.   Snatch: 24k- 10/10; 20k- 32/32; 16k- 55/55.   Deadlift: 300- about 10 singles throughout the day.  August 1 I'll add 20 pounds the bar and grease the groove all month with 320. 

July 28-  great day.  Took a friend to the RDU airport, then hung out and ate with some good friends from college.  Let my diet go- cheat day.  Had nutty bars, a Krispy Kreme doughnut, a BLT, burger and fries, and a milkshake.  Came home and did a circuit of lawnmowing and kettlebell pressing.  I  brought a 24k kettlebell outside and mowed the lawn.  Every time I passed the kettlebell, I pressed it twice with each arm.  Didn't keep count, but probably around 80 presses per arm.

July 27- finally backcycling a little in my kettlebell training program. Warmed up with some old school barbell lifting.  Five singles of each: deadlift @300; power clean @ 135 (breaking in technique again, starting light); power snatch @ 95; press @ 95 (1 set of 5); power jerk @ 145.  Stretching.  Jerks: 24k- 8; 20k- 28; 16k- 23, 25.  Snatch: 24k- 9/9; 20k- 28/28; 16k- 48/48.

July 26- no formal training.  Walked around in the heat at Carowinds all day, swam a little.

July 25- Jerk: 24k- 12; 20k- 40 (a new PR, I think); 16k- 33, 36.   Snatch: 24k- 12/12; 20k- 40/40; 16k- 69/69.   This is my heaviest session before backcycling.  The 12th session of a 21-session cycle.  I've had 12 sessions of 7 sets each, and have not missed a single rep!  Finished every set!  If this program is successful, I should hit 75 jerks and 75/75 snatches per arm in mid August.  Even if I don't hit these numbers, I know I am improving, and expect to put up solid PR's, possibly rank numbers in WKC and USAKL in August.  At the end of the cycle, I may increase my target reps and start a similar program to take me to the WKC worlds in October.  If I can't get to Chicago, I'll make October 27 a test day, and see how I would have compared to the lifters at worlds.

July 24- Deadlift: 300lb. x 10 singles, spread over a few hours.  A few bent presses and getups with 32k. 5x5 military presses per arm with 24k.

July 23- Jerk: 24k- 11; 20k- 37; 16k- 30, 33.   Snatch: 24k- 11/11; 20k- 37/37; 16k- 63/63.   A very tough session, because I slept badly last night.  Had to extend rest periods significantly.

July 22- deadlift: 300 lbs.  10 easy singles spread out over about 2 hours.  I'm trying an "Easy Strength" approach to improving my deadlift.  I'll pull easy singles about every day, adding 20 pounds a month.  If this works, then by November, I'll be pulling 380 daily, so I should be prepared to hit a PR at the push/pull in Morganton. 

July 21- Jerk: 24k- 10; 20k- 33; 16k- 27, 30.   Snatch: 24k- 10/10; 20k- 33/33; 16k- 57/57. 

July 20- Mowing, weed eating, cleaned out gym.  Did 8 sets of 10 hs swings @ 24k.

July 19- Jerk: 24k- 9; 20k- 30; 16k- 24, 27.  Snatch: 24k- 9/9; 20k- 30/30; 16k- 51/51. 

July 18- one Tabata-style set of hardstyle swings: 20 seconds on/10 seconds off, 4 minutes.  Did not count reps, but worked at a pace of 10+ swings per set.   Got a body fat caliper today.  Compared the single measurement (suprailliac) chart that was included with the three-measurement Jackson Pollock calculator online, and both rendered about the same results: 19.2% with the single measurement; 19.6% with the three measurements.  I'll just use the single measurement from here on, so I don't have to look it up online.  I have about 35 pounds of fat, and about 143 pounds of lean mass.  I'd like to get down to about 10-12% bodyfat, but I'm sure what weight that would put me, because presumably I should be gaining muscle as well.

July 17- about three hours of heavy yard/farm work (building, hauling, etc.), followed by kettlebell lifting.  Jerk: 24k- 8; 20k- 26; 16k- 21, 23.   Snatch: 24k- 8/8; 20k- 26/26; 16k- 45/45. 

July 16- day off from lifting.  A little yard work.

July 15- Jerks: 24k- 7; 20k- 23; 16k- 19, 20.  Snatch: 24k- 7/7; 20k- 23/23; 16k- 39/39.  About four hours hard yard/farm work.

July 14- Ran a 5k with Dorian in 34:41.  Slow carb diet cheat day.

July 13- Jerk: 24k- 10; 20k- 33; 16k- 27, 30.   Snatch: 24k- 10/10; 20k- 33/33, 16k- 57/57.  Deadlift: grease the groove @ 300 pounds.

July 12-  Deadlift: 300 pounds- 5 singles

July 11-  Jerks: 24k- 9; 20k- 30; 16k- 24, 27.  Snatch: 24k- 9/9; 20k- 30/30; 16k- 51/51.  Played around with my new knee wraps- I got some pretty serious Titan wraps.  Have not squatted in forever, and never squatted seriously. My previous best was 255.  Today after the kettlebell sport training, I got 225, 255, and 275- a 20 pound PR.  300 went down, but did not come up. I attribute the PR to training the deadlift, as well as the "what the heck effect" of kettlebell lifting.  I like the knee wraps for squats, but not for jerks.

July 10- No serious lifting.  Greased the groove on the deadlift- 300 lbs., 6 or 7 singles throughout the day.

July 9- Jerks: 24k- 8; 20k- 27; 16k- 22, 24.  Snatch: 24k- 8/8; 20k- 27/27; 16k- 46/46.  Mowed grass for about two hours.  Deadlift 300 pounds x 5 singles.

July 8- no heavy training- stretching and mobility work.

July 7- Jerk: 24k- 7; 20k- 24; 16k- 19, 21.  Snatch: 24k- 7/7; 20k- 24/24/ 16k- 41/41.  One a9- rm jerk: 32k- 6/6, 12/12; 28k- 20/20.  One arm clean: 32k- 6/6, 12/12; 28k- 20/20.  All completed within an hour.  A very tough session!  Some stretching afterwards.

July 6- 100 hindu pushups (10x10).  York #1 barbell course with 55, 75, 100 pounds.  A good barbell conditioning complex.

July 5- Jerk: 24k: 6, pausing at the top for 5 seconds. 20k: 21, at a slow pace. 16k: 17, 18 @ 12rpm.  Snatch: 24k: 6/6, pause at the top for several breaths. 20k: 21/21 at a slow pace.  16k: 36/36 @ about 18-20 rpm.  Assistance training: 32k clean: 3 sets of 10/10.  32k jerk: 10/10.

July 4- No real training today.  Active day of walking, swimming, etc., but no serious training.

July 3- Double Jerk, 2x20k: 4 minutes @ 4rpm.  2x16k: 3 minutes @ 10rpm.  Bench Press: 2x5 @ 155.  Deadlift: 2x5 @ 255.  Jumping squats: 25@ 155.  Squat lockouts: 25@ 255, 10 @ 300.

Afternoon session:  felt good, so I started a program I got from a GS program generator.  Jerk: 24k- 5; 20k- 18; 16k- 14,16.  Snatch: 24k-6/6; 20k- 18/18; 16k- 31/31. 

July 2- Bench press: 2x5 @ 145.  Deadlift: 2x5 @ 245.  Double Jerk: 2x20k: 2 minutes @ 8 rpm x 3, 2 minutes rest between sets.  Snatch, 20k: 2 minutes @ 16k rpm x 2 per arm, 3 minutes rest. Mowed grass.

Kettlebell Meet!

Yesterday I lifted at Cyrus Peterson’s ATC Throwdown meet in Charlotte.  It was the first time he’s done this meet, and he said he would like to make it an annual event.  Count me in!

I’ve had a night to sleep on it and reflect on the experience of the day, and offer my thoughts below.  First, I have to talk about the people.  People are really more important than kettlebells.  The day started early at our house, as the other three members of team Mathews were running a 5k.  So what if the high would be 103, with a heat index of 111?  Dawn did the 5k with the kids, and is signed up for another one next month.  I’m so proud of how she is continuing to work hard on her weight loss and active lifestyle.  Her friend Susan is visiting from Georgia, and did it with her.  Susan is one of the nicest people I have met, and it’s great to have her here.

John Beamon was at the meet, and lifted 42(?) reps in the long cycle with two 20k kettlebells, at a bodyweight of about 154 pounds.  Pound for pound, that’s like me lifting the 24k’s for equal reps.  I can’t do it.  John lifts with a lot of heart, and made a 4 rep PR.  I saw a young lady named Erin who weighed in the 120’s clean and jerk a 62 pound kettlebell 16 times per arm to make rank in the strongman event.  To be as strong as her, pound for pound, I’d have to do the same thing with the 88 pound kettlebell.  Anyone who can clean and jerk half bodyweight 16 times per arm has done something incredible!  Very cool to watch that happen.  Sean Hogue, a lifter who is as strong as he looks, got 17/18 clean and jerks with the 40k kettlebell in the strongman event.  I got to meet Dave Fernandez, with whom I had corresponded by email.  He’s a great guy, and did well, almost making rank in strongman with the 32k.  Doug Bridges, one of my competitors, put up huge numbers in the biathlon with 24k kettlebells, and ripped both hands in the snatch event.  Fifteen minutes later, he was back on the platform with the 36k/79 pound kettlebell, and put up 13 clean and jerks per arm.  They had to clean his blood off the bell before I could lift it.  That’s pure heart, and it’s great to meet and compete against such people.

My first event was the double jerk. Because I’m not ranked in the biathlon through the World Kettlebell Club, I had to start with the 16k/36 pound kettlebells.  I was hoping for 80 reps in the double jerk, and kept my 8 rpm pace until the ninth minute, when it was clear that I had enough strength to finish. I sprinted my last minute and got 13 reps, for a total count of 85.  I was on the platform with Doug Bridges lifting 24’s, and Mike Sherman lifting 28’s.  I had the lightest bells, and there was no way I would put them down!  Eighty-five reps is a new record for me.  When I can consistently hit 100, I’ll move up to the 20k kettlebells in training.

My next event was the snatch.  Cyrus saved my numbers just before the flight started by pointing out that I had grabbed an 18k, rather than a 16k, kettlebell.  That four pounds might have really made a difference!  Thanks, Cyrus!  My goal was 80 reps per arm, and I got 80 on the left, just a little past 5 minutes.  I got 78 on the right, and dropped the bell at 9:53.  I had the time and pace to get 80, but not the grip.  I might have gotten 80 actually- watching the video, there seems to be a two rep difference between the number of snatches I did, and the number on the board behind me.  Unless they were no counts.  My official numbers in the biathlon were 85 jerks, and 78 snatches (they count the lower hand as the score). EDIT: I counted the reps, and indeed, there was a counting error in the first few snatches of my right hand.  My actual count is 2 higher than the board indicates, and I got 80 reps per arm.  No problem- it does not affect the outcome.  Judging is tough, and these things happen.  I'm just glad I reached the goal I set for myself!

About 20 minutes after the snatch ended, I was up for strongman long cycle.  I had to clean and jerk a 79 pound kettlebell, and all I wanted to do was lie down!  I thought that my competitor in the event was Doug Bridges (more on scoring in a moment), since he was the only other lifter using the 36k kettlebell.  His hands were torn, so I had a brief, fleeting vision in my mind of him doing one or two reps per arm, and then I’d just have to do three or four to win.  Wrong.  Doug is all heart, and put out an incredible 13 reps per arm!  When it was my turn, I told John Beamon that there was no way I could match it.  As it turns out, I did, getting 13 left and 14 right.  John told me that I could have made rank with 16/16 if I had paced myself.  Watching the video, he was right.  I hit 13 reps at a 1:30, and had time to get three more with the left, then do it again with the right.  Kettlebell lifting is a lot like life- don’t rush it, or you will regret it.

Cyrus scored this event a little differently than we all expected.  Because there were so many different bodyweight categories and bell weights used, almost everyone would have gone home with gold because they were the only lifters in their weight class.  I’ve got a few of those medals in my box.  They don’t mean as much as the ones you get by really beating a qualified competitor.  So Cyrus used a coefficient involving the bell weight, number of reps, and the lifter’s bodyweight.  It made sense when he explained it, but I can’t reproduce it here.  In short, it measured work output (bell weight and reps) in relation to bodyweight.  The guy who did the most work per pound of bodyweight won gold.  As it turns out, that was me!  In the biathlon, I won gold, Doug Bridges won silver, and Mike Sherman took bronze.  I’ll admit that it seems strange to win gold with the lightest kettlebells on the platform (I was also the lightest lifter), but I don’t make the rules.  In strongman, I won silver, after Sean Hogue’s gold with the 40k kettlebell, and I believe Doug Bridges took bronze.  Everyone seemed to be alright with the way Cyrus scored the meet, but I heard several people comment that it would have been nice to know in advance.

Cyrus put on a great meet, and it was nice to finally shake his hand and come to his gym.  He has trained a very competitive group of lifters, including Deb Dozier, who is knocking on the door of Candidate for Master of Sport in her forties, and Doug Bridges, who throws around 24k kettlebells like nothing, and won’t quit lifting even when his hands are torn.  Having taught Taekwondo for years, I know that determination and guts like this are often learned from the coach. Cyrus’ lifters reflected very well on him in their conduct, their welcoming attitude, and their numbers on the platform. 

If you have read this far, the reward is to watch the videos!  I have posted them below.  Other lifters on screen with me are Dave Fernandez in the middle during the one arm clean and jerk (I did not catch the name of the third lifter), Mike Sherman in the biathlon with the orange kettlebells, and Doug Bridges on the far end.