Consult a doctor before you start training.
Especially an orthopedist and a cardiologist.
Always choose the right places for training
For workouts, choose places where you won't break anything or injure anyone (including yourself). When you're doing swings or jerks, make sure there are no people in front of you! Remove any foreign objects, including weights, from under your feet.
Make sure the surface on which you are going to work out is level, otherwise you can injure your back and knees.
Exercise on a flat, non-slip surface. If you are exercising outside, make sure there are no potholes around, which appear after the kettlebell falls to the ground. If you are training with light women's rubberized kettlebells, choose a surface that will not bounce off the kettlebell.
Make sure you are not blinded by the sun when performing Turkish lifts.
Choose the right footwear
You should train barefoot or in flat-soled shoes. Wrestling shoes, cleats, and trekking shoes are suitable.
Shoes for basketball, running or aerobics are not suitable. Fancy shoes will not only make your results worse, but can cause knee or back injuries.
Never wrestle with kettlebells.
"Never wrestle with weights," emphasizes Nate Morrison. "You will lose. Dodge it and don't get in its way."
If your shoulders, elbows or other joints twist unnaturally under the weight of the kettlebell during the exercise, don't try to fight it. Drop the kettlebell! But make sure it doesn't fall on you.
It's even better to anticipate the movement of the kettlebell - that way you'll prevent problems without running into them.
Always follow safety procedures
With practice comes experience and with each workout skills are acquired. But how can you do the last, most difficult approach with heavy weights correctly if you don't develop the right skills in the first simple approaches?
More often than not, injuries occur when you first do and then remember how you should have done it correctly.
A typical mistake after the swings or jerks is to lower the kettlebell incorrectly with your back hunched over and transferring your body weight to your toes. Fully control the kettlebell before it stops. Lower the kettlebell as if you need to do one more repetition. Place the kettlebell on the floor and only then relax.
Keep moving until your heart rate calms down
The need to warm up before a workout is known to everyone, but you also need to calm down if you're out of breath. If you stay standing, sitting, or lying down after a shock approach, grabbing air with your mouth, your heart will struggle. When you're short of air, movement, especially with your legs, such as running, shadow fighting, or walking, pushes blood back to your heart. Don't stop until your heart rate and breathing are at least halfway even.
If you have a heart rate monitor, you can use it to prevent overtraining. Immediately after your workout, a heart rate 20-50% higher than your pre-workout heart rate is acceptable, and it should normalize within 1-2 hours.
Listen to your body, use common sense, increase the load gradually
If your elbows hurt, it's your fault. On the first day taking 50 weights on your chest was foolish.
The concept of training load refers not only to weight, approaches and reps, but also to flexibility. Don't try to assume the right posture by applying force, develop flexibility gradually. If you bruised your forearm by taking a weight on your chest, it would be crazy to repeat the exercise further without practicing the technique of the movement. Sore and swollen forearms indicate your haste, not your stamina.
Instruction is no substitute for common sense and cannot account for chance
If you are devoid of common sense, leave the weights behind and take a fitness class.
Safe exercise technique
It is necessary to develop the ability to focus on the muscles and subdue them.
Evgeny Sandov
Strongman Evgeny Sandov did backflips holding a 24-kilogram weight in each hand, so he had some knowledge of concentration. It's not just a question of safety, but strength as well. At one of the Russian Kettlebell courses, senior instructor Rob Lawrence pointed out that in our system, safety doesn't get in the way of effectiveness, rather it's one aspect of effectiveness. Follow the instructions presented here and your chances of getting injured while exercising with or without kettlebells will be reduced, while ensuring you get stronger.
Real athletes move from the hip joint, not the back or knees. The movement starting from the pelvis is very powerful, yet it is safe for the back and knees. Stand up straight and place the ribs of your palms in the creases that form when you bend your body at the hips. Firmly press the ribs of your palms into your "joints," thrust your pelvis back, tense your buttocks, while shifting your body weight to your heels. This will teach you to bend at the hips rather than rounding your back. Glenn Hyman, the Russian Kettlebell Master, points out that this little instruction has played a huge role in his successful work in rehabilitating patients with kettlebells. Do the same with the upward movement - pelvis first. Work the buttocks and the back of the thigh, a little on the front of the thigh, but not the back.
The safest movement you can do while exercising is to lean back.
Renowned physical therapist Robin McKenzie explains that most back pain is caused by overstretching of ligaments and surrounding tissues. And this is often caused by poor posture, especially lack of flexion in the lower back. "During exertion, the joints of the spine are subjected to stretching and loosening and their structure is easily disturbed. If you hump after significant exertion during rest, the joints of the spine easily succumb to adverse changes." Don't hunch over. Do five or six backbends before lifting weights. "Stand up straight and accentuate your lumbar flexion," McKenzie explains. "That way you'll make sure you're in the right position before lifting weights." Place your hands on your lower back, fingers pointing down, and bend backward, using your hands as a fulcrum. Return to the upright position. For each subsequent repetition, try to bend back a little more.
If your back hurts right after performing an action, it is not necessarily due to that action. The pain may be caused by the fact that the spine is in the wrong position during rest, i.e. the reason is in your stoop. Therefore, after intense physical activity, do not slouch, but complete the exercise by doing the same five backbends.
Some Russian coaches make their athletes lie on their stomach and read books after training.
"Tense Your Muscles" - Keep the muscle corset around your waist in light tension to protect your back. Your stomach should not be retracted and should not bulge out. Imagine that you are preparing to get punched in the stomach.
The kettlebell pulls up on your chest and the jerk is not done with the strength of your arms. The hands only transmit the force of the hips. If your hands are tense, especially when lowering the kettlebell in the swing, it can hurt your elbows.
The term tame the arc was coined by Russian kettlebell instructor Rob Lawrence. This concept is best illustrated by Jeff Martones taking the kettlebell on his chest with a change of hands. Try it once you've mastered the swings.
Grab the kettlebell with one hand, make a swing, carrying it between your legs. Swing the kettlebell overhead and catch it with the palm of your hand. Keep your wrist tense and your elbow low. Do not lean backward.
Drop the kettlebell from the palm of your hand between your legs and catch it by the handle. As you lower the weight, make sure it does not hit your knees. Repeat the exercise.
Very quickly you will realize that the kettlebell swing in a large arc causes problems. The kettlebell "runs" forward and pulls you behind it, not allowing you to catch it in the palm of your hand. Swinging too high is also bad.
Tame the ark and the problems will be solved. When returning, the kettlebell moves backward, not downward, as in this case the forearm would hit the groin. "The Long Way. Lifting the kettlebell upward is not done by biceps effort, but by jerking the shoulder backward, as when trying to start a lawnmower or chainsaw.
Ark taming is also performed by taking the kettlebell to the chest and jerking. If the kettlebell moves in a large arc, it will strike the forearm. Decreasing the arc is accomplished by moving the wrist ahead of the kettlebell.
World champion wrestler and kettlebell lifter Ivan Shemyakin jumped three times on one leg, holding a seven-pound barbell above his head! This requires not only powerful legs, but the strength and skill to lock (maximally extend) your elbows and draw your shoulders into your shoulder joints during each movement. Try jumping or walking quickly while holding a light weight or dumbbell over your head. You will learn very quickly that the elbow and shoulder can only hold the weight if the elbow is locked and the shoulder is retracted.
Lesson: As you hold the kettlebell over your head, pull your shoulders into your body, like a turtle pulling its head into its shell.
Russian Kettlebell Instructor Steve Cotter suggests an exercise for retracting your shoulders: lie on your back and lift your straight arms up. Ask a friend to pull your arms up until they begin to "separate" from your body. Feel the movement. The second time you are pulled by your arms, try to pull them into your shoulder joint. If you have done it right, your arms will remain in "contact" with your body while your friend pulls you off the floor.
If you're training alone, do pull-ups as suggested by gym instructor Anthony Diluglio. Hang on the bar, holding it with a narrow grip from above. Contract your triceps and pull yourself up an inch or two, pulling your arms into your body like a turtle's head. Without bending your arms, pull your shoulders inward. Bring your shoulder blades together. Note that your arms should come close to your ears - this is reminiscent of the position of your shoulders while holding a kettlebell over your head.
Heavy weights tend to bend the wrist backwards. Avoid this. Hold the kettlebell at the base of the palm.
This rule applies to two points of kettlebell flight: at the end of the swing when lowering the kettlebell and at the top point when holding it overhead. The goal is to give your elbows a rest.
For mysterious reasons, straightening the joint while extending the limb (excluding elbow lock) is taboo in Western gyms. Personal trainers who are unable to straighten the arms without weight bearing warn their clients that their joints will get sore if they extend the limb all the way out.
Holding a weight overhead with the arms not fully straightened at the elbow can lead to shoulder problems. Due to incomplete extension of the arm at the elbow, when the arm moves between the legs when lowering the kettlebell, the elbow can be injured.
Because of blisters on the hands you have to interrupt the exercises, it is better to try to avoid them. Increase the number of strokes, chest weights and jerks gradually so that the skin adapts.
You can treat the handle of the kettlebell with sandpaper, peel off the paint, and polish the iron.
Unlike presses and other power lifts, swings, throws, and jerks are performed with a loose grip. The palm and fingers form a hook, which is used to hold the handle, rather than grasping it with force. Holding the kettlebell this way minimizes the impact on the skin. Try it.
Put less stress on the calluses at the base of your fingers, and let the kettlebell handle slide in the hook from the base of your palm to your fingers and back so as not to pinch the skin at the base of your fingers.
Don't let the calluses get thick and rough. Russian weightlifters steam their hands in hot water before going to bed, treat calluses with pumice stone, and even use a greasy cream or a mixture of glycerin and ammonia.
Says Brett Jones, a Russian kettlebell instructor with an extremely strong grip, "Take some corn lotion and use it several times a day. This lotion is unique in that it is non-greasy and makes the skin firmer. Before going to bed, you can use other products that moisturize the skin. Use other balms and other oily creams, the effect of which is improved by wearing special gloves, which you can buy at any cosmetic store."
"Wipe or cut off calluses. Using a nail file, sandpaper or pumice stone, you can simply erase the calluses so they don't get thick and tear off. You can also cut calluses with a blunt blade. But if you wipe your calluses often and properly, you won't have to cut them off. You do not need to erase the calluses to the root, treat only the part that is "clamped" during jerks. The occurrence of calluses is inevitable, just take care of them to avoid disruption."
"Listen to your hands. If the skin on your palms is pulling and tingling, then you may get blisters and tears, feel it and stop. It's better to interrupt the approach early and keep your hands intact than to ignore the warnings and tear a blister, which will lead to having to give up further training."
Mark Rifkind, a master weightlifter accustomed to the rigors of hand training in gymnastics, powerlifting, and now also in kettlebell lifting, recommends: "This is the method I used to get rid of rough and thick calluses when I was doing gymnastics:
Steam your hands in hot water for at least five minutes. A hot bath will do; a shower would have to be used for too long.
Dry your hands and wait 30 seconds or so for the blood to drain away.
Rub your hands with a pumice stone or sandpaper to remove rough skin.
The skin comes off with a little effort and the callus pads become smooth and flat. Now they're protective and don't tear off."
Reef also tells me what to do if it's neglected and blisters appear:
"I cut off the dead skin. I clean and dry the area, put some sports porous tape on it and work out. When the tape gets wet or dirty, I change it."
"This porous tape leaves air access to the damaged areas of the skin, allows them to dry out, keeps them from cracking, and you can work out.
If you have to do squats in your workout, but you feel like your calluses are ready to burst, do the squats while holding the weight with both hands to reduce the stress on your skin.
Pay special attention to working out in wet conditions. Rob Lawrence, Russian Kettlebell Instructor, advises, "When training in humid conditions your friend will be the deadweight jerk. You do a regular jerk, then lower the kettlebell to your shoulder, then to the ground. You can do many repetitions this way without taking your hands off the kettlebell."
The exception is that lowering the kettlebell down in an arc reduces the impact on the skin. You can also do the deadlift in dry weather when your hands are wet.
