Bristol Kettlebell club Member profile – Sarah Stribling

I started Kettlebell training just coming up to 2 years ago.

Kettlebell is like any exercise. If you don’t put the effort in then you can make it easy. To get results you need to push yourself, although I would stress that once you have been trained in the basic techniques/moves of kettlebell it’s not a complicated class to join in with (unlike some classes I’ve attended in the past), no matter what level of fitness you’re at. What I like about Kettlebell is the classes are always different so I never get bored. You can vary the level you train at by using different weight kettlebells for different exercises therefore getting a great workout all the time depending on how you feel.

The thing I was most concerned about at the start was muscle bulk. Don’t know why I ever worried about this. I’ve gradually worked my way up to using quite heavy weights with some of the exercises and although I don’t train to lose weight, I manage to maintain my weight easily and my figure is noticeably more toned and lean all over. Nothing I’ve done before has worked the whole body effectively as this.

This varies depending on what kettlebell exercise we are doing. When I first started I mainly used 8 and 10kg bells. I’ve progressed to using 14kg bells for double work, 16kg for single presses and snatching, 24kg for two handed swings and 20kg for single handed swings.

My main aim is to keep training with kettlebells as I get older as it’s been proven to me how it keeps you flexible, strong, lean and feeling great.

My personal aims are to eventually manage a turkish get up with a 24kg bell and to improve my score on the secret service snatch test each time I do it!

This past weekend we had the club’s inaugural  twice yearly strongman/woman contest. 8 members (4 female and 4 male) who have been with the club for varying degrees of time showed up in anticipation of winning the prestigious title of Bristol Kettlebell clubs strongest man or woman.

This was the line up :-

Huw Davey

Conway Leamen

John Burns

Paul Doddrell

Sam Murray

Glynis Moss

Annie Smith

Julie Haydon

The contest is a test of static strength with classic lifts such as the deadlift, overhead press and squat, but also has events that test our athletes overall conditioning such as the medley, sled pull and farmers walk.

There were 6 events of which details are below.

1. Deadlift – As many reps as possible inside 90 seconds – Men use – 2x32kg and Ladies – 2x24kg
2. Military press – As many reps as possible inside 90 seconds – Men use 2x20kg and Ladies 2x12kg
3. Front Squat – As many reps as possible inside 90 seconds – Men use 2x24kg and Ladies 2x16kg
4. Kettlebell sled drag – Pull the loaded sled over a distance of 25 metres in the quickest time – Men pull 76kg and Ladies pull 52kg
5. Kettlebell Medley – Move 3 heavy bells from bottom to top of a hill in the quickest time – Men 3 x 28g and Ladies 3 x 20kg
6. Farmers walk – Furthest distance covered in 2 mins wins – Men 2x32kg and Ladies 2x24kg

Winning an event gets you 10 points, second place – 9 points, 3rd place – 8 points and 4th place gets 7 points. In the case of a tie the points are shared.

Here are the results at the end of each event.

Deadlift

Winner – Huw with 57 reps

Conway – 50 reps

John – 48 reps

Paul – 38 reps

Winner – Sam with 34 reps

Annie – 31 reps

Julie – 29 reps

Glynis – 25 reps

Military press

Winner – Huw with 25 reps

Conway – 23 reps

Paul – 15 reps

John – 14 reps

Winner – Sam with 17 reps

Annie – 11 reps

Julie – 7 reps

Glynis - Forfeited

Front squat

Winner – Huw/Conway (tie) 22 reps

Paul – 17 reps

John – 16 reps

Winner – Sam with 30 reps

Annie/Julie (tie) – 15 reps

Glynis – 10 reps

Sled Drag

Winner – Paul with a time of 30.18 seconds

John Burns – 30.22

Conway – 30.55

Huw – 43.03

Winner – Sam with a time of 28 seconds

Annie – 51.04

Glynis – 56.00

Julie – 107.42

Medley

Winner – John with a time of 43 seconds

Huw – 44.85

Conway – 46.23

Paul – 47.30

Winner – Sam with a time of 43 seconds

Annie – 50.42

Julie – 53.85

Glynis – 55.35

Farmers Walk

Winner – Conway completed 10 lengths in the 2 min time frame

John – Just short of 10 lengths in the allotted time.

Huw – 6.5 lengths

Paul – 6 lengths

Winner – Sam completed 9 and 3/4 lengths in 2 mins

Glynis – 8 lengths

Annie – 6.5 lengths

Julie – 5 lengths

The contest had events that none of the athletes had tried before so the element of surprise was always there.
Also some of the athletes had not even lifted this much weight in training so there was a lot of uncertainty going in. However they all stepped up to the mark and performed brilliantly. At the end of the contest this is how the points went down.

Men

Huw davey and Conway Leamen tied for first place so a tiebreaker event was held to decide the winner.  The event was the iron cross which involves holding kettlebells on the end of your arms but in a cross position so the arms are at right angles to the body. Huw Davey managed to hold on 15 seconds longer than Conway so in the end the title went to Huw with an over all score of 55 points. Well done Huw!!

So 2nd place went to Conway Leamen with 54 points

In 3rd place was John Burns with 51 points

Landing in 4th place was Paul Doddrell with 48 points

A fantastic effort from the men and a very close contest which could have gone to any of them given the conditions on the day. (There was a hail storm half way through). I hope they will all be back in September to once again fight for the title of Bristol Kettlebell clubs strongest man.

Women

The winner of the ladies was Sam Murray who cleaned up winning every event, therefore a maximum total of 60 points. Well done Sam!!

2nd place went to Annie Smith who totaled 53 points

And landing in 3rd place was Julie Haydon with a total of 47 points

Fourth place went to Glynis Moss who totaled 39 points

I am very proud of the ladies, they have shown and continue to show that you can indeed lift heavy stuff and not get bulky muscle, which is a common myth that still seems to prevail. They all stepped up to the plate and over delivered on their own expectations and mine. Guys watch out, it won’t be long and they will be kicking your asses all over the place!

There were a few members who could not attend for the event, Sarah Stribling, Trineta Watson Tripp, Ali Cape, Vikki Hill, Linda McEntee, Agneta Forsberg and Claire Wilson would have been contenders, likewise in the mens division, John Evans, Graham Duncan, Robert Healy, Dave Thompson, Ian Coop, John Bassi, and Chris Coles could all have made it a very different story. Maybe in September eh peeps??!!

Here are a few more pictures from the day.

If you would like to get involved with the club click here and get signed up to the intro class.

Regards

Pete

Bristol Kettlebell club member profile – John Evans

I started Kettlebell training on feb 20th so have been doing it for 9 weeks now.

What attracted you to kettlebell training? 

I had heard that the results are quite dramatic and that it is one of the most effective forms of exercise. I liked that it was a class and not at a gym and that it was varied so I wouldn’t get bored.

Yes. I think it is as tough as you want it to be. There is a technical element to all the moves so you need to learn that, but I found it quite quick to pick it up and then it’s up to you as to how honest and tough on yourself you want to be. You can move through the weights quickly and push yourself in each session. I certainly feel that it has been a tough workout at the end of each class.

What other types of fitness have/do you enjoy?

I never really went to the gym much and didn’t like all the posers in there when I did go. That said when I did go it was mainly cardio and i used to like using the cross trainer. I have recently started running as well as doing the kettle bell classes and whilst I wouldn’t say I enjoy going running as such, I think it is good to have the mix of cardio training and the kettle bell.

In the 9 weeks since I started I have lost 10lb, almost 4 inches from my waist and also toned up on my chest, shoulders and arms particularly. I am just looking forward to seeing how much of a difference it will make when I have been doing it for 6 months. I am really happy with the results so far and want to see how far I can push myself.

When I started I was working with 12kg kettlebells to learn the techniques for the different exercises. I now use a 20kg Kettlebell for most of them, 24kg for two handed swing and squats, 14 kg for snatch and windmills as I have only recently learned them and am still concentrating on technique.

I want to move up the weights with the snatch and windmill as well as continue pushing myself in the classes. As well as using the kettle bells we also do body weight exercises and I want to see a continued improvement in this. I want to continue to lose weight and tone up and I know that I can get the results I want in the kettle bell classes.

Word from Pete - John has good natural strength and has progressed up to heavier kettlebells quite quickly, this is fine because his technique is good.  Using heavier bells means that he is burning way more calories and so with a couple of simple dietary tweaks that I suggested he has seen some excellent body composition changes.  Its very early days for John with only 2 months or so of training under his belt. He has yet to experience the benefits of snatching and windmills. When he gets good at these two exercises his results are going to go skyward’s!! I am looking forward to coaching John further in these lifts, I think he has great potential in the upcoming fitness tests and strongman contest when it rolls around in September. Well done John!

If you would like to get involved with the club click here and get signed up to the next intro class.

Bristol Kettlebell club Member Profile

 

 

Learn more about kettlebell training, the people who do it, the results they have had and why they enjoy it so much.

This is a series of blog post’s showing exactly who trains at Bristol Kettlebell club and what they have to say about it.

Kicking the series off is Paul Doddrell

 

When did you get into kettlebell training?

I started attending in November 2011 but have been training 3 times a week (when I can) since January.

I had been struggling to lose weight for some time and was finding other exercise just wasn’t doing it. I had heard good reviews about kettlebell training so thought I would give it a try.

It is an intense exercise, however Pete explains things carefully and starts you off on your own ability, this way you can increase how hard you push yourself but with guidance from Pete.

I used to enjoy zumba and Kung Fu, however I feel that kettlebells is more beneficial to me providing an all over body workout, strength and conditioning.

I started off using a 12kg bell for all workouts and now I am using a 20kg bell for swings and a 16kg bell for all other workouts.

To gain more lean muscle, strength and conditioning, and to be able to snatch a 28kg bell.

Word from Pete – Paul shows us exactly what can be achieved through hard work, consistency and dedication. He is always keen to train and very rarely misses a session. His strength is building and he was particularly impressive in the recent strongman contest where he won the sled pull event. Given his attendance and perseverance I have no doubt Paul will reach his goals and get in even greater shape. Well done mate!

More profiles to come, check back to the blog very soon.

If you want to get involved with the club click here and sign up to the next intro lesson.

So you may or may not know that I am currently training for the most prestigeous of kettlebell certifications the RKC level 1. To pass this gruelling 3 day event, trainees have to not only show excellent technique and form in the 6 main exercises, and show competence in instructing others in these exercises but they also have to pass a conditioning test which for men is to perform 100 snatches in under 5 minutes with a 24kg bell. This all takes place over the 3 day certification in which trainees will also under go numerous daily workouts and form critiques. On the last day (if you are still alive) you will go through the graduation workout which I understand is pretty tough. Throughout the course men typically work with 24kg bells and ladies with 12kg and 16kg.

I have tailored my training towards increasing work capacity performing two workouts most days, a strength based session in the morning and a conditioning session in the evening.

Every month or so I test myself with the RKC snatch test. Today I did pretty good

Take away points for me are

Its definitely better to try not to put the bell down and rest in the lockout position if needed.

Breathing could have been better, at the beginning my breathing was all over the place, need to work on that.

Hands/callousses weren’t a problem so no worries there.