Enter the Kettlebell! Quotes

“doing the perfect kettlebell swing alone is superior to 99 percent of the sophisticated strength and conditioning programs out there.”
― Pavel Tsatsouline, Enter the Kettlebell!: Strength Secret of the Soviet Supermen

“Russians are easy to spot, even if you dress them like Buckingham Palace guards. They are “the white people who look seriously ticked off,” as Army Ranger vet Ellis Jones, RKC, has put it on our forum.”
― Pavel Tsatsouline, Enter the Kettlebell!: Strength Secret of the Soviet Supermen

“7. BUILD UP THE TRAINING LOAD GRADUALLY USING COMMON SENSE, AND LISTEN TO YOUR BODY.”
― Pavel Tsatsouline, Enter the Kettlebell!: Strength Secret of the Soviet Supermen

“it’s the guys with the most jumps that seem to die for some very stupid reasons that are usually the result of being so familiar with a skill set that they go into automatic pilot mode . . . Every time I jump . . . I religiously check my [gear]. By the same token, every time I do a ket-tlebell windmill, I always follow a mental checklist, area is clear, snatch the bell, shift feet, look at the bell, inhale and pressurize for stability, the rear leg straight, the hip cocked back, descend under control, pause, return, lock out.”
― Pavel Tsatsouline, Enter the Kettlebell!: Strength Secret of the Soviet Supermen

“10K forced march in full kit, an obstacle course and rappelling, plus another 10K run. A cherry on the top when you are beyond smoked is a 12-minute full-contact sparring session—with fresh opponents rotating in every three minutes. Once on the team, operators aggressively compete against their colleagues in the frequently held law enforcement sports events. Their specialties: hand-to-hand combat and the kettlebell sport. A matter of specificity and pride.”
― Pavel Tsatsouline, Enter the Kettlebell!: Strength Secret of the Soviet Supermen

“Lift heavy and stay fresh. “Grease the groove,” to use The Naked Warrior terminology.”
― Pavel Tsatsouline, Enter the Kettlebell!: Strength Secret of the Soviet Supermen

“The fourth week keep the number of ladders at five, but now try to work up to 4 reps. In the beginning you might only do one (1, 2, 3, 4) ladder and four (1, 2, 3) ladders. It is fine. Don’t struggle with the top-end sets; improve without maxing out. Stay with it until you get 5 x (1, 2, 3, 4)—50 quality repetitions and almost no sweat! You may have guessed what you are supposed to do next when you are ready: 5 x (1, 2, 3, 4, 5), or an awesome 75 repetitions with a heavy kettlebell! As before, do five ladders and patiently work up to five rungs in every one of them. Take a couple of days off and test yourself with a heavier kettlebell. You will be impressed with your strength. Then”
― Pavel Tsatsouline, Enter the Kettlebell!: Strength Secret of the Soviet Supermen

“Pick a kettlebell you can clean and press—a clean before each press, that is—roughly five to eight times. C&P it once with your weaker arm, switch hands and put it up with your stronger arm. Rest. Two reps. Another short break. Three reps. Then start over at one. Do three ladders, for a total of 18 repetitions, the first week; add a ladder the next week and a ladder the week after. Five ladders, total 30 reps. You will stay with five ladders from now on. Although the top “rung” of each ladder, especially the last, should be tough, you must not fail! Never train to failure! If you want to know why, read Power to the People! The Party is always right.”
― Pavel Tsatsouline, Enter the Kettlebell!: Strength Secret of the Soviet Supermen

“TASK: KETTLEBELL SNATCH Condition: Snatch a kettlebell for repetitions with one arm and then the other. Standard: 1. All of the points that apply to the swing, (see pages 44-45) minus the requirement to keep a straight arm. 2. Pick up the kettlebell, swing it back between your legs, and snatch it overhead in one uninterrupted motion to a straight-arm lockout. The snatch. At the lockout, the arm must be level with the head or behind the head. 3. Catch the kettlebell softly without banging your forearm or jarring your elbow and shoulder. 4. At the lockout, the arm must be level with the head or behind the head. 5. Maintain the fixation for a second with the arm and legs straight and the feet and body stationary. 6. Lower the kettlebell between your legs in one loose, uninterrupted motion without touching the chest or the shoulder, and snatch again.”
― Pavel Tsatsouline, Enter the Kettlebell!: Strength Secret of the Soviet Supermen

“1. Your press is only as good as your clean. a. Make the kinetic energy of the clean go straight down to your feet. b. Brace your full body before the impact. c. Store the energy of the clean like a spring. 2. Stay tight. a. Brace (don’t suck in) your abs b. "Breathe behind the shield," while keeping your abs "braced for a punch." c. Cramp your glutes. d. Tense your quads and pull up your kneecaps. e. Crush the kettlebell handle. 3. Use solid shoulder mechanics. a. Keep your shoulder down. b. Press and lower from the lat. c. Don’t press the kettlebell; push yourself away from it. d. Press in an arc rather than straight up. Push out against the body of the kettlebell with your forearm.”
― Pavel Tsatsouline, Enter the Kettlebell!: Strength Secret of the Soviet Supermen

“TASK: CLEAN Condition: Pick up a kettlebell, swing it back between your legs as if for a swing, and bring it to the rack in one smooth movement. Then drop the kettlebell back between your legs and repeat the drill for reps. The clean. Standard: 1. All of the points that apply to the swing, minus the straight-arm requirement on the top. 2. Don’t dip your knees when racking the kettlebell. 3. The kettlebell, the elbow, and the torso must “become one” on the top of the clean. The shoulders must be pressed down. 4. The arms must stay loose, and the hips must do all the work. 5. The kettlebell must travel the shortest distance possible. 6. Unacceptable: scooping; banging the forearms; stressing the back, elbows, wrists, or shoulders. Ladies should not hit their breasts with their arms or the kettlebells for health reasons.”
― Pavel Tsatsouline, Enter the Kettlebell!: Strength Secret of the Soviet Supermen

“Twice a week, a hard 12 minutes of the U.S. Department of Energy “Man Maker.” The Man Maker is a painfully simple workout that was devised and implemented at a federal agency’s academy by Green Beret vet Bill Cullen, RKC. Its template is simple: alternate sets of high-rep kettlebell drills—swings in our case—with a few hundred yards of jogging. Do your swings “to a comfortable stop” most of the time and all-out occasionally. Don’t run hard; jogging is a form of active recovery. Senior RKC Mike Mahler prefers the jump rope to jogging, another great option.”
― Pavel Tsatsouline, Enter the Kettlebell!: Strength Secret of the Soviet Supermen

“Drive your hips explosively, but don’t rush the kettlebell. Let it catch up as your hip drive goes up your body like a wave. Hurrying the kettlebell is like punching with the arm—ineffective.”
― Pavel Tsatsouline, Enter the Kettlebell!: Strength Secret of the Soviet Supermen

“To make sure you’re swinging without using your arms, attach a lifting strap or very short rope [or a towel] to a kettlebell... “Try a few swings. If you’re driving the weight up with your hips, the bell, rope, and arm should all be in one line throughout the rep. If you’re using your arms, your hands will rise up above the strap and bell.”
― Pavel Tsatsouline, Enter the Kettlebell!: Strength Secret of the Soviet Supermen

“Keep sitting back until your backside softly touches down on the box. You must not fall even an inch! Control your descent all the way! You will feel tightness on the top of your thighs and a stretch in your hamstrings if you do it right.”
― Pavel Tsatsouline, Enter the Kettlebell!: Strength Secret of the Soviet Supermen

“Don’t let your knees go forward. Ideally, your shins should be close to vertical. If you do not feel your hamstrings tighten up when you descend, you are squatting wrong. Imagine that you are wearing ski boots and your ankles cannot bend. If you own a pair, why imagine? Wear them. You cannot help but learn to fold in your hip joints.”
― Pavel Tsatsouline, Enter the Kettlebell!: Strength Secret of the Soviet Supermen

“I dare you to find a single exercise, kettlebell or not, that delivers more benefits than the kettlebell swing! Senior RKC instructor Steve Maxwell, a Brazilian Jiu-jitsu World Champion, has flat-out stated that doing the perfect kettlebell swing alone is superior to 99 percent of the sophisticated strength and conditioning programs out there. The swing is exactly what its name implies: a swing of a kettlebell from between your legs up to your chest level. The arms stay straight but loose; the power is generated by the hips. The motion is akin to the standing vertical jump, except the energy is projected into the kettlebell rather than being used to lift the body.”
― Pavel Tsatsouline, Enter the Kettlebell!: Strength Secret of the Soviet Supermen

“Don’t try to get yourself smoked; this will come soon enough. A 30-minute practice is about right. When done, you should feel energized rather than wiped out. You should hardly be sore the day after.”
― Pavel Tsatsouline, Enter the Kettlebell!: Strength Secret of the Soviet Supermen

“Listen to your hands. If your skin begins to pull, tingle or give indications of a blister or tear, listen to it and stop. Halting a set early to save your hands is far preferable to ignoring the warning and allowing a tear to occur which can derail your training.”
― Pavel Tsatsouline, Enter the Kettlebell!: Strength Secret of the Soviet Supermen

“Ripped calluses are manly, but since they make you lose training time, try to avoid them when you do your quick lifts. It is elementary, Watson—you must gradually build up the volume of swings, cleans, and snatches to let your skin adapt. You may want to sandpaper your kettlebell’s handles, as kettlebell sport competitors do. Remove the paint and smooth out the iron. Unlike presses and other grind lifts, swings, cleans, and snatches call for a loose grip. “Hook” the handle with your fingers rather than gripping it. Try to lift in a way that minimally stretches the skin on your palm. Figure it out. Load the calluses at the bases of your fingers as little as possible; let the kettlebell handle glide from the “hook” of the fingers to the heel of the palm and back in a manner that does not pinch the skin at the bases of the fingers. Do not let the calluses get thick and rough. Russian gireviks soak their hands in hot water at night, then thin out and smooth out their calluses with a pumice stone, and finally apply an oily cream or a three-to-one mix of glycerin and ammonia. I hang my head in shame to be giving you metrosexual skin-care advice. Speaks Brett Jones, Senior RKC, who gives his hands the double abuse of kettlebell lifting and extreme gripping feats: “Go out and get Cornhuskers Lotion and use it several times a day. This lotion is unique in that it is not greasy and actually toughens and conditions your skin. At night you may want to use a product that penetrates and moisturizes in a different way. Bag Balm and other heavy (oily) lotions can be used at night and can best be absorbed if you put them on before bed and wear mittens, socks or specially designed gloves available at some health and beauty stores. [Brett, I will take your word for it.]”
― Pavel Tsatsouline, Enter the Kettlebell!: Strength Secret of the Soviet Supermen

“The heavy kettlebell is determined to bend your wrist backward. Don’t let it happen! Stick your hand far inside the handle so the weight rests on the heel of your palm. Then counter with the wrist flexors, the muscles that gooseneck your wrist.”
― Pavel Tsatsouline, Enter the Kettlebell!: Strength Secret of the Soviet Supermen

“Kettlebell cleans and snatches are not curls; the arms barely pass the force generated by the hips. Should your arms tense up, especially on the downswing, you are asking to tweak your elbows”
― Pavel Tsatsouline, Enter the Kettlebell!: Strength Secret of the Soviet Supermen

“Avoid slouching, and perform five back bends immediately before and after lifting. “By standing upright and bending back before lifting,” explains McKenzie, “you ensure that, as you begin the lift, there is no distortion already present in the joints of the lower back.” Place your hands in the small of your back pointing your fingers downward and keep your legs straight. Bend back slowly using your hands as the fulcrum, pause for a second, and return to the upright position. Try to bend further with each successive rep.”
― Pavel Tsatsouline, Enter the Kettlebell!: Strength Secret of the Soviet Supermen

“Stand up and place the edges of your hands into the creases on top of your thighs. Press your hands hard into your “hinges” and stick your butt out while keeping your weight on your heels. I learned this neat trick from Kathy Foss Bakkum, RKC, God rest her strong and kind soul. It will teach you to go down by folding at your hip joints rather than bending through your back. Glenn Hyman, DC, RKC, stresses that this bit of instruction has been instrumental to the terrific success he has had rehabbing his patients with kettlebells”
― Pavel Tsatsouline, Enter the Kettlebell!: Strength Secret of the Soviet Supermen

“A natural athlete moves from his hips, never from his back or knees. Hips-first movement is safest for your back and knees—and most powerful.”
― Pavel Tsatsouline, Enter the Kettlebell!: Strength Secret of the Soviet Supermen

“A typical mistake is setting the kettlebell down sloppily, with a rounded back and the weight on the toes, following a hard (and often perfect) set of swings or snatches. Don’t! Mentally stay with the set until the kettlebell is safely parked. Lower the kettlebell in a way you would if you were planning to do another rep. Then let go, and only then relax.”
― Pavel Tsatsouline, Enter the Kettlebell!: Strength Secret of the Soviet Supermen

“Everything in this program must be practiced barefoot or in flat shoes without cushy soles. Wrestling shoes, work boots, tactical boots, and Converse Chuck Taylors are authorized. Almost any shoes worn by a guy named Chuck will do. Chuck #1, RKC, wears size 15 chicken-yellow water shoes, and Chuck #2, RKC, digs skateboard Vans with a chess print. Unconventional, but good enough not to warrant a set of push-ups.”
― Pavel Tsatsouline, Enter the Kettlebell!: Strength Secret of the Soviet Supermen

“Anatoly Taras, a special operations veteran and a leading hand-to-hand combat expert in the countries of the former Soviet Union, believes that once a fighting man can do 50 snatches per arm, switching hands only once, with a 24-kilogram kettlebell, he has reached the point of diminishing returns. “People of a certain personality type will ask, why not [really crank up those numbers]?” says Taras. “You could if you have the time and the desire, but it is not necessary unless your goal is setting records. Having set a few records of this kind will not make you fight any better.”
― Pavel Tsatsouline, Enter the Kettlebell!: Strength Secret of the Soviet Supermen

“An average woman should start with an 18-pounder. A strong woman can go for a 26-pounder. Most women should advance to a 35-pounder.”
― Pavel Tsatsouline, Enter the Kettlebell!: Strength Secret of the Soviet Supermen

“Do you need two kettlebells of the same size? —Not yet. Double kettlebell drills are great—look what they have done for Senior RKC Mike Mahler—but they are not for beginners. Get good with one bell, address your strength imbalances, work up to the snatch and press goals listed toward the end of this book, then we’ll talk.”
― Pavel Tsatsouline, Enter the Kettlebell!: Strength Secret of the Soviet Supermen