In my opinion, the deadlift, or the health lift as it was once called is one of the top exercises you can perform for all around strength and power, especially for you back.  There are several variations to this lift.  The Suitcase Deadlift is one of those variations that you should consider adding to your bag of tricks.

While this is a lift that targets your back, it also target your obliques, and when performed with a barbell, the suitcase deadlift is a hell of a grip strength exercise.  In fact, I only use this lift to target my grip and my core, preferring instead to use heavy deadlifts for my back and overall development. 

This lift can be performed with a kettlebell, dumbell or a barbell.  I would suggest a kettlebell until you get the hang of it.  Then you can progress to a barbell and really move some weight.

This lift is executed exactly like a standard deadlift except the weight is next to you on the outside of your hip. 

Position the weight next to your ankle, squat down with a straight back and vertical shins, pick up the weight and stand up.  When you bend down to get the weight, visualize that you are getting ready to do a broad jump. 

It is also important to inhale before you lift the weight and stay tight thoughout the lift.  And remember to stand up straight and not lean to the non-loaded side.  Enjoy.

Yours in Health,

Dennis

This post is meant to give you some ideas and get you pointed in the right direction as it relates to using a kettlebell.  You will obviously not master the kettlebell just by reading this post.  I would strongly suggest you seek out quality instruction either with a certified trainer or through the use of books and videos.  The best in the business is Pavel Tsatsouline.  I would suggest to you “Enter the Kettlebell“  by Pavel.  As with any fitness routine, check with your doctor first. 

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100 Snatches in 5 minutes with a 24kg kettlebell.  Ah, good times. 

When I first started using kettlebells, there was no standard testing to determine your competency with a kettlebell.  Hell, when I first read about kettlebells about 6 years ago, I called around to every sporting goods store and fitness store within a 100 miles of my house to try and find a kettlebell.  Nobody had even heard of one before and one guy actually laughed at me. 

So, I jumped online and found one place that actually had kettlebells, DragonDoor.com.  I did find a couple of handles that you could mount to your dumbell but I wanted a real honest to goodness kettlebell.  If there is one thing you should know about me, one thing my father always harped on, it is that if I’m gonna do something, I’m gonna do it right.  No half ass which meant I had to have a real kettlebell. 

So I got a 16kg kettlebell and and I bought Pavel’s book, The Russian Kettlebell Challenge and got to work learning how to use it.  What I really learned was an entirely new way of thinking about how I was supposed to be working out.  I had a paradigm shift in my thinking. 

Before I found Pavel and kettlebells, I was mostly into bodybuilding type workouts with a little powerlifting stuff thrown in for good measure.  Not that I was a bodybuilder but that was how I thought I was supposed to be training.  And I had been training that way for almost 20 years. 

Concentration curls and leg extensions and bench presses and pec deck flys and so forth and so on.  It’s all I knew at the time and I spent hours in the gym with very little results to show compared to the amount of effort I was putting forth.

What I learned from Pavel was that the body doesn’t work one muscle at a time.  Your body was designed to work as a whole unit.  Think about this, what muscle does a linebacker use when he sprints across the field fighting off blocker after blocker and chasing down the quarterback who he wants to kill at all cost?  What muscle does Ryan Howard use when he hits a fastball 400 feet?  How about Michael Phelps when he won all those gold medals, what muscle did he use?  The answer to all these questions is all of them.  So it only makes sense to train them all as one. 

Now, I’m not a linebacker or a Major League Baseball player and I don’t plan on taking on Michael Phelps at the 2012 Olympics, but I am a living breathing human being who is interested in what Bruce Lee called functional strength.  I want to be as strong as I look.  I ultimately want to take my body to it’s absolute physical limit. 

My limit and your limit will be different, so you have to set your own goals and not pay to much attention to what others are doing.  A 500 pound deadlift is a personal record for some while it’s a warm up for others.  Kettlebells are no different. 

The RKC snatch test is a standard set by Pavel and it reflects his vision of what an accomplished girevik should shot for.  It is by no means the be all end all and it may be something that you want to shot for as a way of keeping motivated everyday.  It is a worthy goal that will require both physical and mental toughness. 

My goal is to complete the United States Secret Service snatch test for 200 reps in 10 minutes with a 24kg bell.  It’s what keeps me going on those days when I’m really not all that thrilled about getting in the gym.  It’s a goal that 5 years ago when I got my first kettlebell I though I would never be even close to reaching but it’s one that I feel I’m closer then ever to achieving.  What are your fitness goals?  If you don’t known, put down the kettlebell and figure it out.  Good luck!

Yours in Health

Dennis

P.S. The standard for the ladies is 100 snatches in 5 minutes with a 16kg kettlebell.

This post is meant to give you some ideas and get you pointed in the right direction as it relates to using a kettlebell.  You will obviously not master the kettlebell just by reading this post.  I would strongly suggest you seek out quality instruction either with a certified trainer or through the use of books and videos.  The best in the business is Pavel Tsatsouline.  I would suggest to you “Enter the Kettlebell“  by Pavel.  As with any fitness routine, check with your doctor first. 

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I have received many questions in the past asking me to explain the kettlebell swing in more detail and even some asking to critique their form.  This lift is so important to get right the first time that I think it is appropriate to take another look at it. 

The problem I most often see with this lift is that people tend to squat down more then they should.  Yes, you need to squat down to pick up the kettlbell but the swing requires that you fold at the waist and keep the shins verticle to the floor.  A great way to practice this without a bell is to do a box squat.  Simply stand if front of a chair or a bench and sit back and down.  You want to be sure that your back is straight and that you stick your butt out.  It helps if you stand slightly farther away from the chair then you normally would to sit down.  This forces you to fold at the waist and push your butt out.  To get up, drive your heels into the floor and pop up.  Also, don’t forget to keep your chin up and your eyes looking straight ahead at the horizon.

The folding at the waist and bending of the knees that is indicative of the swing is practically the same motion that you would use if you were to perform a deadlift.  Because of the placement of the barbell in relation to you shins, you must fold at the waist and keep the shins vertical to the floor.  If you don’t, you will not be able to get the barbell past your knees.  Once the bar is past your knees, you would thrust your hips out and stand tall.  Same with the kettlbell during the swing. 

As you know, the force used to drive the kettlbell up and out during a swing is derived for the hips and thighs, not the arms.  When you perform the swing much like a squat, meaning you squat down and remain too upright instead of folding at the waist, there is a tendency to pull with the arms to get the bell moving out.  I think this problem is primarily created once somebody starts to perform other lifts like the clean and the snatch.  In these lifts, the grivik must pull up with the arm to “tame the arc”.  This becomes a habit that eventually bleeds over into the swing.  

The other thing that lead to bad swing form is that we have been told all of our lives to never bend over to pick something up.  While this is true, if you keep your spine flat and you sit back during the swing, you will not have any issues with your back.  On the contrary, you will develp a steel back that is resilient to injury. 

Yours in Health,

Dennis 

This post is meant to give you some ideas and get you pointed in the right direction as it relates to using a kettlebell.  You will obviously not master the kettlebell just by reading this post.  I would strongly suggest you seek out quality instruction either with a certified trainer or through the use of books and videos.  The best in the business is Pavel Tsatsouline.  I would suggest to you “Enter the Kettlebell“  by Pavel.  As with any fitness routine, check with your doctor first.

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When I first started lifting kettlebells several years ago, I ran into some trouble with one of my shoulders.  Because of an old hockey injury, my left shoulder had diminished mobility and it was very tight.  For years this limited my bench press and also affected some of my kettlebell lifts such as the bent press and windmills.  The halo, along with other stretching exercises help correct my shoulder mobility deficiency.  Even if you shoulders aren’t tight, this is a good drill to warm them up prior to your routine.

Hold a kettlebell by the horns with both hands and simply move it around your head.  You want to move it in a circular fashion and work to get the circumference of the circles smaller and smaller. 

Two points to remember when performing the halo.  Move the kettlebell around your head, not the other way around and keep your core and your glutes tight to prevent lower back injury.

Yours in Health,

Dennis

This post is meant to give you some ideas and get you pointed in the right direction as it relates to using a kettlebell.  You will obviously not master the kettlebell just by reading this post.  I would strongly suggest you seek out quality instruction either with a certified trainer or through the use of books and videos.  The best in the business is Pavel Tsatsouline.  I would suggest to you “Enter the Kettlebell“  by Pavel.  As with any fitness routine, check with your doctor first. 

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Today’s post is a little walk down memory lane.  When I was growing up and living with my parents, I used to lift in a room in my parents basement.  All I had at the time was a York Barbell set and a DP weight bench.  I thought I was high speed at the time.  I remember begging my father to buy me the DP weight bench with all it’s pulleys and addons.  It was going to be the key to my bodybuilding future.  Laughable now, but at the time, that’s what I thought.

I also had one of those contraptions with the springs that you would pull apart.  I don’t know what you call it but that thing was dangerous.  If you pulled it across your chest, you had better make sure you held your arms out slightly cuz when you let it go, ouch! 

I also remember having this set of ankle weights that I would wear to school.  Seemed like a good idea until about 3rd period when I got tired of walk’n around with them.  Still not sure if they did anything for me or not but what did I know back then? 

I do know this now, you don’t need a whole bunch of fancy machines and equipment to get strong and fit.  In fact, sometimes those things can be a burden.  The trend today seems to be to get back to old school basics.  My primary piece of fitness equipment, the kettlebell is 3 centuries old and it is anything but high tech.  You see guys now using sandbags, ropes, tires and whatever else they can get their hands on. 

I’m gonna steal a famous line from a famous company, Nike.  Just Do It!  Doesn’t matter what equipment you have access to be it at a fancy gym or in your garage or basement.  Make the decision to get strong and get fit and just do it.

Yours in Health,

Dennis

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As I have talked about before, the overhead press has fallen out of favor in recent decades.  We have the fascination with the bench press to thank for this.  Not taking anything away from the bench press but in my opinion it is over emphasized and over used in many routines of today.  It is often times used as a false standard of strength.  Too many young and old lifters alike live and die by the poundage they can bench.  When interacting with these lifters, on of the questions almost always asked is, “what’s your bench”?  This has caused the classic torso seen in many of the great strongmen a century ago and even the great athletes depicted in the great Greek sculptures to become nothing but a distant memory. 

The great strongmen of yesteryear would never have though of lying down to perform their lifts.  What practical purpose does that serve anyway?  I guess if your only objective is to “look” strong, then the bench press is for you. 

The problem is that because of our fascination with the bench press, we have neglected the overhead press.  This has lead to weakness and feminine waists and large, sometimes intrusive pecs.  It also can result in shoulder problems as the bench press focuses on the front deltoids and all but ignores the side and rear deltoid causing injuries due to over development of the former and underdevelopment of the later. 

I have found that everybody knows how to perform the bench press but nobody knows the proper technique when performing the military press.  Done with proper technique, you should be able to press a great deal of weight overhead.  Want proof?  The world record in the bent press is an astonishing 370 pounds set by Arthur Saxon a hundred years ago.  (The bent press and military press are very different lifts but the concept of pressing a desired weight overhead with one arm is the same for both.)  Proper technique plays a very important role in developing your pressing power. 

We will discuss the kettlebell military press here although these techniques will work equally well with a dumbell or a barbell.

The first thing to remember is that the first key to a powerful press it the clean.  A properly performed clean is the foundation.  I have already discussed this in a previous blog so I won’t spend the time repeating myself.  Suffice it to say, get good at cleaning the kettlebell.

Next, remember to stay tight.  When you clean the kettlebell, tighten your whole body from your feet to your lats.  This is called bracing and will make the kettlebell feel light in your hand and will load the muscles similar to when we loaded the glutes and thighs before performing a swing.  Russian sports scientist Professor Yuri Verkhoshanky believes that by tensing your muscles in this fashion before the lift, one can increase their performance by as much as 20 percent. 

At this point we have cleaned the kettlebell into the racked position.  Our body is tight and our breathing is shallow to maintain a tight core and our shoulders are pushed down, not up as in a shrug.  As we get ready to press the weight overhead, squeeze the handle of the kettlebell for all your worth.  Crush it in your hand.  This principle is called irradiation.  What happens when you squeeze the handle for all we’re worth is that not only does your forearm tense, but you bicep and your triceps and eventually your delts. (This blog is not the place to go into depth on the subject of irradiation.  Check out ”Power to the People” by Pavel for a detailed discussion of this topic.)  I see so may people who don’t wrap their hands around the bar when performing their lifts.  They are missing out and leaving a lot of weight on the table.

Now, before you press the kettlebell overhead, flare out your lats.  A proper overhead press, or bench press for that matter is as much a lat exercise as it is a deltoids exercise.  When you flare out the lats, your arm will naturally start upward.  If you take nothing away from this post, remember this one point, it alone will add significantly to your pressing power. 

Lastly, as you press the kettlebell, imagine that you are pushing yourself away from the bell rather then pushing it away from you.  A great way to practice this is to stand in a doorway and practice pushing against the top with a moderate amount of force.  Get the feel for this and try and replicate it when performing your kettlebell overhead presses. 

Practice these principles and the others discussed in my blog on pressing and you will soon be on your way to looking like a Greek god, or goddess as the case may be.  Enjoy.

Yours in Health,

Dennis

This post is meant to give you some ideas and get you pointed in the right direction as it relates to using a kettlebell.  You will obviously not master the kettlebell just by reading this post.  I would strongly suggest you seek out quality instruction either with a certified trainer or through the use of books and videos.  The best in the business is Pavel Tsatsouline.  I would suggest to you “Enter the Kettlebell“  by Pavel.  As with any fitness routine, check with your doctor first.

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The kettlebell windmill is a fantastic lift for improving the flexibility and power in your core as well as your shoulder flexibility and strength.  I highly recommend this drill to improve the above mentioned areas of your physique, but this is also a must drill to practice for your eventual progression to the bent press.  More on that in a later post.

The starting position for this lift is standing with a kettlebell overhead.  Matters not how you get it there, just choose your favorite method and get’r overhead. 

Next, kick out the hip that is underneath the bell.  You should be able to form a straight line from the kettlebell, to the elbow, to the hip and finally the knee.  Once you have done this, turn your lower body slightly away from the kettlebell so that your toes are pointed at approximately 45 degrees away from the kettlebell.  Most of your weight should be on the leg underneath the bell and try and keep that knee locked.  The other knee can be bent. 

Now, while keeping your chest open and your eyes on the kettlebell, bend or fold forward and to the side.  NEVER lean backwards or you will be asking for trouble.  Allow the elbow of your free hand to track along the inside of your thigh.  Go as low as you can in good form, then squeeze your glutes and get back up without twisting.  Your eventual goal is to be able to go low enough that you can place your palm flat on the floor. 

This drill can be practiced without a kettlebell or by placing the bell on the floor instead of holding it overhead.  Perform the lift just like you would if you were holding a kettlebell except you will be picking it up off the ground.  Get really good at this lift and you can both have a kettlebell in your hand and pick one up off the ground.  I suggest that the kettlebell on the ground be of equal or less weight then the one you are holding overhead. 

Again, this is a wonderful lift for improving flexibility but it can be dangerous if not performed properly.  Don’t bounce at the bottom or twist your torso in any way.  Straight down, squeeze the glutes and straight up.  Enjoy!

Yours in Health,

Dennis

This post is meant to give you some ideas and get you pointed in the right direction as it relates to using a kettlebell.  You will obviously not master the kettlebell just by reading this post.  I would strongly suggest you seek out quality instruction either with a certified trainer or through the use of books and videos.  The best in the business is Pavel Tsatsouline.  I would suggest to you “Enter the Kettlebell“  by Pavel.  As with any fitness routine, check with your doctor first.  

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The clean gets it’s name from the fact that one should, in one “clean” motion bring the kettlebell from the ground to the shoulder.  Looks and sounds easy but I often times see this lift done incorrectly.  Many times I see people who are new to the kettlebell clean banging the bell against their forearm and yanking the elbow.  Keep in mind that cleaning a kettlebell is different from cleaning a barbell.

Once you have practiced the swing and are comfortable with it, you will have an easier time learning the clean.  The movements are similar.  The force used to bring the bell up off the floor and into the racked position comes from the hips and thighs.  Once the kettlebell is almost at waist level, allow the arm to bend and bring the bell into the racked position in one smooth motion.  Imagine your are standing close to a wall.  If you allow the bell to swing out you will bang the wall.  Not what we want.

Once in the racked position, the kettlebell, elbow and torso are one with each other and the shoulders are pressed down.  Do not shrug them.  Your glutes should be tense along with your abs in order to absorb the impact of the bell.  You must achieve a tight core for safety and efficiency. 

Pause briefly as in the snatch and let the kettlebell fall back between your legs.  DO NOT reverse curl the bell.  The arms must be relaxed and loose.  Let gravity do it’s job.  Now repeat by snapping the hips and thrusting the bell back up into the racked position.

A helpful hint is to move the hand around the kettlebell rather then allowing the kettlebell to rotate around the hand and slap the forearm.  Also remember to keep the wrist tight and straight. 

A proper clean is essential for a proper press.  If you are loose, if your wrist is bent and if your core is not tight, you will not be able to press any significant weight.  You also run the risk of injuring your lower back.  That can be a life changing event.  So as with the swing, the kettlebell clean is worth your time and effort to master. 

Yours in Health,

Dennis

This post is meant to give you some ideas and get you pointed in the right direction as it relates to using a kettlebell.  You will obviously not master the kettlebell just by reading this post.  I would strongly suggest you seek out quality instruction either with a certified trainer or through the use of books and videos.  The best in the business is Pavel Tsatsouline.  I would suggest to you “Enter the Kettlebell“  by Pavel.  As with any fitness routine, check with your doctor first. 

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Thanks to Pavel for this gem of a workout, the RKC Program Minimum.  The genius of this workout is it’s simplicity and effectiveness.  We are going to take only 2 kettlebell lifts and turn it into a fat burning conditioning routine that will build a back of steel, increase the muscularity and flexibility of your shoulders and provide a solid base in which to work from for future kettlebell lifts.

The two lifts are the kettlebell swing and the kettlebell get up. 

 -Twice a week perform 12 minutes of kettlebell swings.  Perform as many as possible setting the bell down as needed.  During the periods when the kettlebell is at rest, walk around or jog in place.  Occasionally it is permitted to go all out but most of the time you should perform your swings to a “comfortable stop”.  The walking around or jogging in place is a form of active recovery.  It also assists your heart in circulating the blood throughout your body.  Once you catch your breathe, pick up the kettlebell and perform more swings.  Your goal should be to best your last workouts swing total.  For beginners, the time can be adjusted down.  For the advanced, it can be adjusted higher.  There is no magic to the 12 minutes. 

 -Twice a week perform 5 minutes of continuous get ups.  Remember to alternate hands every rep and DON”T race the clock.  I never count reps.  As in the swings, the 5 minutes can be adjusted as needed.

You can perform this routine as a stand alone twice a week or incorporate it into your workouts.  I prefer doing this as a stand alone workout twice weekly.  After you have done this routine, you will know why.  At the end I always add an ab exercise or two. 

Simple and deadly effective, the RKC Program Minimum will kick you butt!

Yours in Health,

Dennis

This post is meant to give you some ideas and get you pointed in the right direction as it relates to using a kettlebell.  You will obviously not master the kettlebell just by reading this post.  I would strongly suggest you seek out quality instruction either with a certified trainer or through the use of books and videos.  The best in the business is Pavel Tsatsouline.  I would suggest to you “Enter the Kettlebell“  by Pavel.  As with any fitness routine, check with your doctor first. 

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“The one-arm get-up is a general test of strength which had considerable appeal to most strongmen of yesteryear….It has always made a hit with the public, for it was obvious to them that magnificent strength was being displayed when an athlete did a one-arm get-up with a heavy bell” -Siegmund Klein, an American Strength Legend.

The get up will help forge shoulders that can take punishment and dish it out.  They are responsible for many miraculous shoulder combacks states Pavel. 

Senior RKC Mike Mahler said that his big presses got even bigger once he started doing heavy get ups.  And Senior RKC Brett Jones started employing “the beast“, the 106 pound kettlebell and his already impressive pressing strength became even more so. 

You will find it hard if not impossible to argue with anyone of these men, so therefore I won’t.  The long and the short of it is that the kettlebell turkish get up, or simply the get up is a lift that should be in every girevik sport enthusiast bag of tricks.

The get up is performed by first laying on your back and picking up a kettlebell with both hands and then pressing it with one.  Then all you do is get up.  Simple right?  Well there are a few points to remember.

First, be sure to use both hands to pick up the kettlebell.  I have seen shoulders seriously injured by not following this step explicitly. 

Second, make sure your wrist is straight and tight, your elbow locked and the shoulder  in it’s socket.  Your arm should be vertical, and should remain so at all times.

Finally, when getting up, move seamlessly and don’t try and race the clock.  The get up is NOT an exercise in speed, rather it is an exercise in precision.

Oh, and don’t forget to continue to look up at the kettlebell.  As in other lifts, the bell is heavy and you are holding it over your head.  It’s a good idea to keep an eye on that sucker. 

Once you are standing with the kettlebell overhead, pause for a second and reverse the movement.  Switch hands and repeat.  Enjoy.

Yours in Health,

Dennis

This post is meant to give you some ideas and get you pointed in the right direction as it relates to using a kettlebell.  You will obviously not master the kettlebell just by reading this post.  I would strongly suggest you seek out quality instruction either with a certified trainer or through the use of books and videos.  The best in the business is Pavel Tsatsouline.  I would suggest to you “Enter the Kettlebell“  by Pavel.  As with any fitness routine, check with your doctor first. 

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