A few posts ago, I mentioned that I had registered for the RKC. For those who don’t know what the RKC is or what the certification is all about, check it out here. Well, I am about 3 weeks into the training for it. With my injury history, I have been really focusing on my preparation before I touch the Kettlebell. Foam rolling, static stretching, some corrective exercises, and some work with the Core X have been a part of my daily routine.
Basically, I really haven’t done any strength work without a kettlebell during the last 3 weeks and right now, I don’t think I need to. (This is completely different from training my athletes). For my training, I have looked into 2 programs designed to help me prepare for the RKC weekend and the 100 rep snatch test.
For the basic work with the kettlebells, I have implemented the circuit training advocated by Brett Jones in this article. These workouts have been tough, especially at the beginning as I began doing more volume. I really value Brett’s wisdom and experience with the Kettlebells as I have watched some of his DVD’s on Kettlebell training and the FMS.
For the snatch preparation test, I referred to this article by Steve Freides. I am following this one to a “T”. I started with level 1, and now I am on level 3, as last week I completed 5 snatches each hand on the minute for 16 minutes. This is definitely not something I could have just jumped into when I began, so progress has been made so far. For my next workout, I am going for 20 reps or 200 snatches in 20 minutes. So, Tuesdays and Wednesdays will be Snatch Test prep work, while Friday, Saturday, and Sunday will be Kettlebell circuits.
To be honest, I really love the way I feel right now. I feel like my form has been good, (I do plan on getting it evaluated by an RKC instructor) and my back pain is non-existent. All of the work with the kettlebells and also playing hockey 2-3 times per week both in pick-up games and adult league games is perfect for me right now in my quest to stay strong and in condition.
