Resuming Simple and Sinister after a layoff

[blesstafy]

I’ve restarted Simple & Sinister after a nine month layoff due to injury. Before the layoff I was close to achieving Simple, with a 32k swing and a consistent 28k Turkish getup which occasionally hit 32k. Then I pulled a muscle in my back from a bad swing and quit kettlebells for 9 months. Recently I’ve gotten interested in S&S again as a way of injury proofing my body for jiu jitsu training.

This week I started off with a 16K swing and getup and after just two workouts I’ve been able to increase to a 24k swing and a 20k getup which is faster progress than when I first started S&S from scratch.

My questions are:

1) After such a layoff is it normal to be able to build back the strength faster than the time it took to originally build it from scratch?
2) Also during the hiatus I dieted and did HITT workouts and lost 25lb. Before the weight loss when I was doing my swings and getups with a 32K I weighed 175lbs at 5’8”. Now I weigh around 155lb. How will this weight loss affect my potential for regaining my strength?
I’m now regretting the choice to lose the weight, thinking that the extra pounds would help me regain the strength faster and have given me an advantage in jiu jitsu.

Thanks in advance for any feedback!

 

[ant0099]

@blesstafy Have you addressed any of the technique issues that may have caused the strain? Or considered that if a program consisting of 100 unbroken swings hurt your back bad enough for 9 months away from bells, that maybe something else may be more effective for you?

Regardless, yes, it's easier to build back than build the first time.

We can't say how the weightloss impacts your return to form, but 32kg is now a higher % of your bodyweight so it'll likely be at least a bit harder.

 

[blesstafy]

@ant0099 Thanks. Yeah from what I remember I spaced out in the middle of a 32K swing set and did not properly hinge when the weight came down to my torso level so I think the force of the deceleration went into my back. It actually didn’t take the full nine months to recover, but I just lost interest in kettlebells for a while and took to other strength training tools like the steel mace.

 

[ant0099]

@blesstafy Honestly, you may be looking for reasons more than what s&s can accomplish. But yeah you'll get back there quickly. Love mace training myself

 

[blesstafy]

@ant0099 You may be right, I’m not completely sure S&S is the right program. I like the Turkish Getup but I’m not a big fan of the kettlebell swings as the ballistic element can lend itself to injury and they are what caused my injury in the first place. I’m thinking a safer alternative to the swings would be the kettlebell deadlift for ten sets of ten.

 

[ant0099]

@blesstafy If you know what you're doing, swings are fine. They're just not the best spend of time if you wanna get bigger or stronger.

Clean & presses would take you much further. Or snatches. Or thrusters

 

[josphat]

@blesstafy Especially as a martial artist you should always ask yourself, what am I doing this for? What is the goal of all this? Am I just doing this to make the goal the goal, or am I really pursuing something that will help me advance in martial arts? Simple and Sinister is always presented as a great program that will help you advance as a martial artist. But that's only very superficial and the actual number of people who didn't cope well with it is not known either. For example, if you want to become stronger in your core area, then you should definitely do more targeted exercises for the core. Also with the kettlebell, for example. If you have a weak upper body, do exercises that make your upper body stronger, such as pushing and pulling. If you are very weak in your legs or lower back then deadlifting or squatting is much better. Less bodyweight (to a certain extend) is better for your good health. A lower weight class in competition is better too.

 

[mag8166]

@blesstafy Switch to sport. I injured myself a few times trying to get to simple. Switched to sport style training 6 months ago, no injuries and feel way stronger

 

[blesstafy]

@mag8166 I’m sorry, what is sport training? Is this a different kettlebell program than simple?

 

[kail]

@blesstafy Sport is a totally different type of kettlebell training. Pavel's type is hard style, where you focus on maximum intensity all the time. Sport is more endurance-focused, so there’s more focus on movement efficiency.