Circle training GS style

Over the last several months I translated every worthwhile article on GS I could get my hands on and by about November last year I was out of material, as evidenced by the lack of posts on the blog. Luck smiled upon me, however, and a month ago I came across a second hand book shop in Russia which happened to have an early GS book by Polyakov and Voropaev with the title... "Girevoy Sport". Thanks to Pavel, Voropaev's name is not unfamiliar to Western readers. The book is quite small, about 80 pages and was published in 1988. Even though the methodology of training has changed considerably since then, I believe that basic principles have not.

So far I have only read bits and pieces of the book, and some stuff is quite interesting. One of the chapters discusses strength endurance as the key quality of GS. I will rehash this chapter at the later stage, and in this post I will quickly run through the author's ideas of circle training.

According to Polyakov and Voropaev this method is very useful for the development of strength endurance and can be used at any stage of training, from beginners to highly qualified gireviks. It's advantages lie in the fact that one session includes many exercises. All exercises are performed several times and their intensity should be lower than during usual training. The emotional background and the variety and total training volume are very important. The complex recommended by the authors is as follows.

1. Snatch, each arm - 30-40% of maximum
2. Pushups - to the maximum
3. Cleans, two bells, 5-10 reps
4. Two KB press from the head level, 5-10 reps
5. Rope climbing, 3 times
6. Jerk, two bells, 50-60% of maximum
7. Pullovers on the bar, 3-5 times

Depending on the period of preparation this circle may be repeated 2-3 times.

Polyakov and Voropaev believe that circle method allows the coaches to show their creativity, as the choice of exercises, the quantity and quality of load may vary within very wide range. This method is best used in the preparatory period, when you need to improve general physical preparedness within shortest period of time.

As far as I am concerned, this method looks interesting. As you can see, it is a hybrid of OTW and HS (I know, I know, but let's not get into the whole thing of excessive tension and velocity). It is very similar to the circuits used by Dragondoor crowd, except that classic lifts are done for considerably higher numbers. This will teach the corret technique and the ability to set pace, even the ability to rest with the bells in your hands, while other stuff done for low reps will develop strength. Moreover, presses will fatigue the arms and will facilitate the technique of classic lifts, especially of jerks during the next circle. While doing this stuff non-stop will fry your cardiovascular system. The whole session should not last longer than 30 minutes for mere mortals. Feedback is welcome.

1 comment:

girevikdavid said...

Eugene, This philosophy goes back over 30 years to Gadja's PHA training and is good common sense circuit training. The real sticky point for me is what phase of training are we addressing (how long before a contest) and what are our goals? Does a girevik need MxS beyond 32 kgs? If so, when in the cycle of competition? If so, how much max strength is enough? Closer to competition time do we need more resistance than the bells provide? Does just using giri maintain the strength of the 350 lb squat we worked so hard to attain and did we need to be that strong to begin with? And how much cardiopulmonary benefit of circuit training does a girevik need when they are doing interval training just to do the lifts.

I know a lot of people will assert that you only need to do the kettlebell lifts a la Fausto Coppi "ride a bike, ride a bike, ride a bike", but I remember that when I could bench 325, doing 135 explosively for multiple reps was a 2/10 on the effort scale. Could I do it for 10 minutes? don't know.

Lots of good stuff to think about in your great blog - thanks for all the hours you have put into it. It's much appreciated.

BTW, I can't get on Irongarm. The password activation link doesn't work. Could someone contact me about that?

Peace and sweat,

David