Kettlebell ICT: Week 3 Completed

These are the kettlebell weights I used:

Session A

A1 Snatch 12kg
A2 Press 16kg

B1 Snatch 12kg
B2 Bottoms Up Goblet Squat 16kg

Session B

A1 Push Press 16kg
A2 Bottoms Up Goblet Squat 16kg

B1 Push Press 16kg
B2 Supported Row 16kg

I increased the weight to 16kg for the goblet squat and supported row. I felt more confident that my low back could handle this load for those exercises.

Compared to last week I did not always need to rest for the maximum 2 minutes between the paired A1-A2 sets. At times, I was ready to go with 5-30 seconds left on the timer I'd set to 2 minutes.

I added the following to my recovery day routine:

Tall Kneeling Arm Raises To Side - 60 seconds per side
Quadruped Sidebending - 60 seconds per side
Monkey 180/360 - 2 to 4 minutes.

These are from GMB's article on fixing shoulder restrictions: https://gmb.io/shoulder-fixes/. They are recommended for addressing my main shoulder restriction, which is the back arch when reaching overhead. While checking out the Monkey 180/360, I found that GMB recommends the 3-point Bridge so I also added that to my routine.

Kettlebell Arm Bar

This is the exercise that I was doing when I suffered my first shoulder injury. Trainees have always been advised to work with a relatively kettlebell for safety. I foolishly chose a relatively heavy kettlebell instead. The consequence of that choice was that I lost control of the KB while practicing the exercise and dropped the KB, which in turn injured the shoulder.

I was trying out the KB Arm Bar in the first place because practicing it is supposed to improve shoulder mobility and stability. The KB Arm Bar also improves t-spine mobility and lat strength, and fine tunes your overhead mechanics for presses, Turkish Getup, etc.

I did not attempt this exercise again until this week. I just never thought of buying a KB light enough to allow me to practice the KB Arm Bar with less fear of re-injuring the shoulder.



Zack Henderson recommends including the KB Arm Bar as part of one's upper body warm up, holding 45-60 seconds per side for 1-2 sets.

The lightest KB I have is 8kg. It is enough weight to challenge me to maintain the vertical position of the working arm, while working into the stretch. Some time may pass before I feel confident to try this exercise with a heavier KB.

Kettlebell ICT Week 2 Completed

These are the kettlebell weights I used:

Session A

A1 Snatch 12kg
A2 Press 16kg

B1 Snatch 12kg
B2 Bottoms Up Goblet Squat 12kg

Session B

A1 Push Press 16kg
A2 Bottoms Up Goblet Squat 12kg

B1 Push Press 16kg
B2 Supported Row 12kg

I rested the full 2 minutes between segments. No new issues introduced for the low back or shoulders. Between sessions, I practiced the exercises which are recommended in Kettlebell Strong! for improving mobility for reaching overhead.

Kettlebell ICT Week 1 Session 1

Today I started an experimental program called Kettlebell ICT. The goals of the program are fat loss and strength gain. The program is experimental because there are no documented, pre-existing results from anyone completing the program.

I suffered a low back injury this past August while attempting an isometric seated row. My back has recovered enough that I don't fear a back spasm from something as mundane as putting on my shoes while seated, straining while sitting on the toilet, etc. However, experience has taught me to be conservative with my loading choices for the posterior chain when beginning a new exercise program, hence the choice of relatively light weight for the Snatch and Bottoms Up Goblet Squat.

This program will be a good experiment for me. I wasn't able to do much lower body training during the couple of months spent recovering from the low back injury. Then I went on a 2-week vacation for the holidays, eating a lot. This resulted in bodyfat gains, and some loss of strength.

This first session went fine, except when I attempted to press with my left arm, immediately after snatching with my left arm. Simply beginning the press set with the opposite arm after the snatch set seemed to fix the issue.

These are the kettlebell weights I used:

A1 Snatch 12kg
A2 Press 16kg

B1 Snatch 12kg
B2 Bottoms Up Goblet Squat 12kg