Respect Your Strength | Kettlebell and Bodyweight Workout
Hello all,
The last 2 days have been great for me! I have had very little pain and I managed to do one of the best training sessions in the gym on Friday morning. I did Skull-Crushers for the first time in ages and my triceps are still sore!
At the minute, I think my training is going so well because I am NOT trying to push out MAX weights. I am going moderately heavy but working on form and reps to improve my strength endurance and overall performance.
I respect my strength enough not to test it all the time! Very important lesson, which I have only just learned.
For this reason I am enjoying the exercises more and I feel I am getting more from them because I am not as sore or drained the next day. There will be the occasion when I will test my 1RMs (one rep max) again, but until then I intend on being creative with the KBs and Barbell.
Today is a Kettlebell and Body Weight day and the workout is going to blow you away! Or at least it better, or I have seriously lost condition LOL!
The Workout
Guess what’s back? TRIPLETS!!!!! Heheheee (evil laugh)
That’s right, there are FOUR sections of 3 exercises (triplets). You perform 3 rounds of each triplet before performing 1 round of a bridging exercise. Then you move on to the next Triplet. The first 3 Triplets are a mixture of Set-Reps and Set Times and will mix a little strength and conditioning. The final Triplet is Pure Conditioning/Torture and will be performed as interval training, again 3 rounds.
As I was aiming for higher reps (between 8 and 15), I used moderate weights throughout. If you want to go heavier, then feel free – the workout can be easily adapted to suit any goal.
Also remember you can take this workout into the gym and adapt it for the Barbell!
Triplet 1
- Kettlebell Single-Leg Deadlift (left) x 8 – 12 reps (2 x 16kg) (12, 12, 12)
- Kettlebell Single-Leg Deadlift (right) x 8 – 12 reps (as above)
- Side to Side Step Ups x 1 min (63, 60, 61)
After 3 rounds of the above, complete one set of the following “Bridging Exercise”:
- Weighted Squat Hold x 1 min – eek! (16kg)
Triplet 2
- Single-Arm Row (left) x 8 – 12 reps (20kg) (10, 8, 8 )
- Single-Arm Row (right) x 8 – 12 reps (as above)
- Elevated Plank Climber x 1 min (28, 25, 23)
Again, after the 3 round of the above exercises, complete one set of:
- Diagonal Knee Tucks x 1 min (didn’t count)
Triplet 3
- Wide Stance Goblet Squat x 8 – 12 reps (24kg) (12, 11, 9)
- Single-Leg Hip Thrust (left) x 12 – 15 reps (15, 15, 15 )
- Single-Leg Hip Thrust (right) x 12 – 15 reps (15, 15, 15)
After 3 rounds of the above complete the following:
- Side Plank Raises (right and left) x 1 minute each side (16 left, 17 right) :/
Triplet 4 – (evil conditioning)
Set your Gymboss Interval Timer for 9 cycles of 15 seconds rest and 45 seconds effort and complete 3 rounds of the following torture:
- Stand-Kneel-Stand (left) (16kg) (15, 14, 12)
- Stand-Kneel-Stand (right) (14, 13, 12)
- KB Swings (any variety) (20kg) (31 two-handed, 26 roundabout, 30 two-handed)
Hope you all enjoy this workout as much as I did. Let me know what you think in the comments below.
Have a great day!
Cheers
Marianne
September 4th, 2011 at 6:16 pm
This looks so great! I m looking forward to it this afternoon 😉 I loved the barbell workout as well. It was a nice change up and reminder that my barbell need not be just a dust collector. Glad you are pain free. Have a great Sunday
September 4th, 2011 at 7:15 pm
Thanks Cynthia! Hope you have fun!! How cool that you have a barbell! I am jealous 😛
September 4th, 2011 at 6:34 pm
I know I already commented on facebook but I really loved this workout. It was a bugger! I love this format though it works really well. The stand kneel stands are always a favorite too. Keep um coming Marianne! You are the best!
September 4th, 2011 at 7:18 pm
It’s ok Aimee, you can comment everywhere if you like 😀 Glad you enjoyed/hated it – that’s a sign of a great workout!! 😉
September 4th, 2011 at 7:51 pm
Hi Marianne
Look very fine lady! great definition in your stomach!
I was wondering how do you fuel your body especially seeing as you are going hell for leather with the resistance training? It would be interesting to know what you do nutrition wise… or like me at least ‘try’ to do ( usually give into the sweets too often lol)
It would be great to see maybe some more nutritional postings!
Looking forward to doing this tomorro for the craic lol
Criostiona
September 5th, 2011 at 9:12 am
Hey, I get asked a lot about my diet and I think I will do a little update on what I am doing etc. It’s nothing exciting, but it works for me.
Hope you enjoy the craic! Love that I have someone commenting and talking about good old craic. Which btw (for everyone else) is Northern Irish speak for fun/biz/gossip? Can you think of any other meanings Criostiona? We greet people by saying “well, what’s the craic?” haha” Love it!
September 4th, 2011 at 7:52 pm
sorry hit enter too soon on my first comment!lol
September 4th, 2011 at 10:03 pm
This looks like another great workout Marianne, can’t wait to give it a go. Am celebrating a small achievement myself…finally managed an unassisted pull-up, infact did 3 single ones in a row(with a few seconds rest between each one)..i know it doesn’t sound like much but i’m so chuffed to have finally managed to get off the ground!!!btw you are looking in amazing shape right now, arms and abs look fantastic. Keep up the good work 🙂
September 5th, 2011 at 7:39 pm
Yipee, celebrate your great achievement!! You must be so proud of yourself! 😀
Thanks, not sure how the abs will hold up after the cookies I just baked … mmm!
September 5th, 2011 at 3:21 am
[…] I got this workout from my favourite fitness blogger, Marianne at http://www.myomyfitness.com. […]
September 5th, 2011 at 11:01 am
My diet’s been awol recently im usually quite disciplined but Im really struggling cutting back on sugar at the weekends, which is ironic for someone like me, who never would of thought of eating a sweet before lol! now im getting £5 pickamixes at the cinema lol!!
Hmmm… when I say craic I usually mean for a laugh/fun too, as in it will be quite funny me trying to complete the new workout lol We have some good colloqualisms… ‘well what about ye’, ‘you’re sleggin/slaggin’ or only in northern ireland would you get a shop assistant saying ‘u gettin?’ lol oh were so refined and polished 😉 lol
Looking forward to the diet post!
September 5th, 2011 at 7:51 pm
Haha, I know! “What our ye like ye ejit” ha! Gotta laugh at it! 😛
September 5th, 2011 at 3:27 pm
Hi Marianne,
this was the first workout of yours that I’ve done. I LOVED IT!!
My question is whether it’s normal to feel some lower back pain during the one-legged deadlifts. It was pretty fierce at first and then lightened up, but it was definitely there. I don’t know what about my form it would have been. Maybe I just need to strengthen my lower back?
September 6th, 2011 at 11:16 am
Hey Alastriona, I would say it is fairly common to feel some lower back strain during the single leg deadlift, even the normal deadlift. With a little practice to allow the hips to go back more and not to let the chest drift too far forward the lower back will be less likely to feel the pull. You may need to bend the knees a little more too. Good Mornings are a great exercise for stengthening the lower back and reinforcing the hip hinge while keeping the back neutral. I have starting doing these lately and my back has felt a lot stronger!
I am glad that you enjoyed the workout! And great to hear from you 😀
September 5th, 2011 at 3:49 pm
i noticed that on your single leg deadlifts you are stretching out your non working leg more than usual, is there a reason for that?
September 5th, 2011 at 7:52 pm
I was attempting to pivot more at my hips and needed the other leg as a counter balance … in theory LOL, it was still tough! 🙂
September 5th, 2011 at 5:34 pm
This just looked so awesome I had to do it! You never let us down Marianne! This was a fantastic combo of challenge and evil! I liked the leg emphasis and the progression of exercises. I was very careful on the stand-knee-stands as they hurt my hip and I am very careful with my left knee. They were tough at the very end!
Anyone who wants a great all-around sweaty workout with both strength and cardio — this is it! I really think this is one of your best!
~ Gillian
September 5th, 2011 at 7:56 pm
Thank you Gillian!! Glad you loved it too 🙂 Hope you are well, haven’t spoken to you in ages!
September 5th, 2011 at 5:41 pm
Hi Marianne~
Love this workout. You are an inspiration to me as I settle here in Galway from Boston. I have been printing some of your workouts out and they are great. I dont have alot of access to kettlebells so I assume you could use dumbells or you mentioned, a barbell~? I would like to know what you think about the “Gymboss” device you wear during your workouts…I have never seen it before. Do you recommend it? I do tabata intervals and constantly looking at the clock or watch- but if I had this, it would beep for me! : ) I am going to look at their website….
September 6th, 2011 at 11:19 am
Hi Sheryl, hope you are settling in well to beautiful Galway! I LOVE my Gymboss Interval Timer and, even though it is a little bit of money to spend, I think it’s worth it! It makes such a difference to your training not to have to count, plus the beep makes you work harder for some reason.
Enjoy!
September 5th, 2011 at 5:43 pm
Also~ you mentioned 9 cycles of 15 sec rest and 45 sec effort- 3 rounds. You did first exercise 9 times for that time period? Then second,etc…but 3 rounds? Just wanted to clarify. : )
September 6th, 2011 at 11:25 am
If there are 3 exercises, each cycle coinsides with one exercise. So you do exercise one for a cycle of 15 rest and 45 effort, then exercise 2 the same, exercise 3 the same (this has used 3 cycles from your timer and one round of the workout section). Complete 2 more rounds and that’s your 9 cycles. If you do one exercise for 9 cycles you’ll a) be dead from that and not want to do exercises 2 & 3 and, b) the section would last 27 minutes :/ Even I am not that evil!
It makes more sense for those who have an interval timer, because the Gymboss Interval Timer calls each set of intervals “cycles”. It’s confusing until you see it.
I hope I have explained it alright. 🙂
September 6th, 2011 at 4:10 am
I really have noticed a difference in your body composition lately. I read about your glutes journey, but besides that, have you changed something (ie. tweeks in diet/exercise) in particular or would you say it is just the results of all your hard work over a period time? You have looked great from the beginning but something is different!
September 6th, 2011 at 11:07 am
Thanks Michelle! I have posted on this today because a lot of people are asking what I am doing differently. I honestly think it is my training. Thanks for noticing 🙂
September 6th, 2011 at 7:16 am
You are really getting lean and mean Marianne. You must be adjusting your food intake drastically.
Looks good ! Dying to know what you’ve changed.
Raff. 🙂
September 6th, 2011 at 1:12 pm
Hi Marianne,
Just stumbled across your site and I am very impressed – thank you for all the info you share. This is the first workout that I have done of yours and I was just wondering whether there is any rest between sets in the first three triplets?
Thanks again,
Angela
September 6th, 2011 at 7:41 pm
Hi Angela, Welcome to my blog 🙂 For the rest between triplets, I would recommend about 2 minutes, but if you need longer, then take it. Just what ever you need to recover enough to put in a good level of effort in the next set of exercises. It should be intense, but don’t blow yourself up 😉 Hope you enjoy!
September 7th, 2011 at 7:13 pm
Changing right now to rock put to this one…..keep them coming!!! You are simply amazing. Looking forward to chatting to you about workout ideas!!!
September 7th, 2011 at 7:27 pm
Thanks Mike! I have activated your account btw … at last 🙂
September 8th, 2011 at 12:20 am
Awesome, awesome workout, just did it and I feel worked and it feels great!! Thank you Marianne!! 🙂
September 8th, 2011 at 8:38 am
Go Norm!!! 😀 Glad you feel great!
September 8th, 2011 at 7:39 pm
Hi Marianne,
I did this workout this morning and I’m glad I did. I’ve been decorating my daughters bedroom for the last few days and have missed doing workouts.
A real tester this one but so glad to have come out at the other end of it in one piece, very sweaty though so I must have been working at it!!
Cheers, Peter
September 9th, 2011 at 8:56 am
Just what I like to hear Peter, someone working hard at home and at there training 😀
September 11th, 2011 at 7:15 pm
I just found your webpage and this was the second workout I did from it. It was a real killer, enjoyed it a lot. But I almost threw up at the end of it 🙂
Thanks!
September 12th, 2011 at 9:01 am
Just what I love to hear Josefine 😉 Just kidding!! Glad you enjoyed the workouts so far. And a very warm welcome to my blog 😀
September 12th, 2011 at 1:35 pm
I can only join in and say I just love your workouts! challenging and fun… and some near death experiences 😉
I´m batteling a stubborn cold right now but I can´t wait until I am back on track and try this workout….
I am fairly new to your blog and I guess that you have recieved this question before, what kind of shoes do you wear? kinda looks like fivefingers or barefoot runningshoes, they look really comfy anways… I usually have to take off my trainers and workout in socks because I get cramps in my left foot quite often.. tried different shoes but it is always the same..
take care
September 12th, 2011 at 4:17 pm
Hey Susanne, welcome to ma blog 🙂 and thank you for the compliment “near death experience” hehe!!
My shoes/flippers are indeed Vibram FiveFingers and I LOVE them! They are pricey, but worth it in my eyes. Watch out for fakes though, if there are any being sold at silly cheap prices, they will be fakes 🙁
Hope you recover soon from your cold!
September 23rd, 2011 at 3:09 pm
[…] now to get your FREE Fitter U workout and "How to Get Fit and Lose Weight Fast" report!If you ever find yourself at a loss for workout ideas, don't feel like using weights or machines, or…by simply using your body weight you can enjoy incredible workouts that will not only help you burn […]