Kettlebell Workouts with Master Geoff Neupert

As you may know if you’ve been reading these newsletters for any length of time, we’re big fans around here of the Clean + Press. It’s truly a transformative exercise. But one thing we haven’t really discussed is the difference between - The Clean + Press And - The Clean → Press (Clean THEN Press) … Especially in terms of doing multiple reps. Obviously 1 rep of each is identical. But after that? That’s where things start to change and why you might want to know the difference, especially if your goals are to get stronger or to get leaner. Let’s take a closer look: Clean + Press This is where you perform multiple reps of Clean + Presses, like this: Clean, Press, Clean, Press, Clean, Press… (Also called a “chain.”) [+] Creates a “force wave” from the Clean that transfers into the Press, which makes the Press feel easier [+] Spreads fatigue throughout the body [+] Decreases local muscular fatigue (Clean = hips, hamstrings, grip; Press = arms, shoulders) [+] Drives respiration [+] Great fo...

Have you ever wanted a “HYYYOOOOGEE Bench Press?” Or “Big Pecs?” I did. Up until I was about 23. Then, I stopped Powerlifting and started Olympic lifting . You know what I discovered? All that Benching - and the assistance work - the Incline Bench… Close-grip Bench… I didn’t help ONE IOTA for my Jerk - or ANY of my Overhead Work for that matter! In fact, all it did was tighten me up and make it difficult to rack the bar across my shoulders! I spent MONTHS stretching so I could get in the Rack position! And it was PAINFUL! Especially on my left side with my jacked up elbow that neither fully bends nor fully straightens. But you know what was fascinating? My bench didn’t suffer at all by training all that overhead work! At one point I was hitting 5 sets of 2 with 90% of my all-time 1RM Bench Press - without much BP practice! Which brings me to the point of today’s email and a question I got from Jaramiah - “What’s your thoughts on kettlebells building chest strength and musculature? I do...

This is what I’d do, step-by-step. [1] OWN IT. About 6-7 years ago, one of my colleagues “suddenly” dropped about 80 pounds. He was a powerlifter chasing a BIG squat—800lbs if I recall correctly—but could never get below 260. When he lost that 80 pounds, I hadn’t seen him for a couple of years, so I asked him how he did it. “It was pretty simple,” he said. “I talked to [a mutual friend] and he said, ‘Dude, you gotta own your sh*t.’ And that was it.” In other words, if you struggle to lose weight, you have to identify your excuses—those stories and lies you tell yourself—and get rid of them. Change your stories. [2] GET JUNK FOOD OUT OF THE HOUSE. I’d go through the pantry and get rid of all cookies, chips, crackers, and soda. Then I’d hit the freezer and get rid of pizza, ice cream—any high-calorie “binge-y” food. If it’s not there, I can’t eat it, especially not on impulse when I’m under stress. [3] I'D EAT A "PROTEIN-FIRST" DIET. The first thing in my mouth each meal is...

Hard to believe it will be 20 years ago next month when the bottom dropped out of my training life. I tore the labrum in my right hip, and could barely walk. I ended up ruining a family vacation to Kauai, Hawaii because it was so bad. All the things I loved to do, I could barely do. Ever had something like that happen to you? If you have, you know sometimes it’s something that you can’t recover from. It took me until 2012 to fully recover. I had to come up with new things - new exercise - and new ways to measure my progress. I’ll share some of the things I’ve learned over the years that can help you as soon as now - today. But first, if you feel like you’re not making progress, it’s only for one of two reasons: 1- You're actually Not. 2- You are, but you're not measuring it correctly, or at all. The first comes from: a- Not training consistently b- Bouncing around from program to program c- Not training at all They’re pretty obvious. The “cure” for #1 is to actually get on a pr...

If you need a kettlebell program that focuses on strength, but strips off body fat in the process, so you get BOTH stronger AND leaner, I recommend this one. https://go.chasingstrength.com/kettlebell-burn-2/ Where 1M = 1,000,000. Or at least it feels like it - since I first started writing about this back in 2009. 😆 Let me ask you a question: Before you run a 5K, what must you do FIRST? That’s right - run 4.99K. You have to work up to running that 5K. And who wins that 5K? That’s right - the FASTEST runner. In both cases, you have to display FORCE. When you can finally run a 5K, you can produce more force. And the winner of a 5K produced the MOST FORCE over that distance in the shortest time. (That’s also a measure of “power.”) In order to lose body fat, you have to be able to do work. And in most cases, A LOT of work. Problem is, if you’re not strong, you can’t do work - let alone a lot of work. To paraphrase Dean Wormer from Animal House addressing Kent Dorfman: “Fat, weak, and stup...

The past 3 years I’ve used this time of the year heading into my birthday to hunt and conquer new PRs. 2024 was no different. But not everyone experiences that. In fact, many guys (and girls) look back over their year at this time of year and are disappointed at their lack of progress. Same weight… Same waist measurements… (Maybe a little more)... Same strength levels (Maybe a little less)... And they wonder what went wrong and how they can do things differently the upcoming year. (That is if they don’t get discouraged and quit altogether - not you hopefully.) Which is why I wanted to show you this email I got a while back from Cutter. Feel free to read the whole thing, but really pay attention to the highlighted parts: As you can see, Cutter used ‘THE GIANT’ on top of a less-than-optimal work schedule, “only” 3 days a week, and reported the following: [+] C+P went from double 50lbs KBs for 20x 5 in 30 minutes, to double 85lbs dumbbells for 13 sets of 8 in 30 minutes [+] His “upper ba...

W ell, I don’t know about “EVER” - you’d have to be the judge of that. Sure, there’s “Simple” and there’s “Sinister” - Simple = 10x10 Swings every 30 seconds with a 32kg and 10 Get Ups on the minute for 10 minutes Sinister - 10x10 Swings every 30 seconds with a 48kg and 10 Get Ups on the minute for 10 minutes. Both sound incredibly boring to me, which is why I’ve never done either. There’s the Beast Tamer Challenge: Perform ONE rep using a 48kg on the following exercises: 1- The Pistol (single leg rock bottom squat) 2- The Pull Up 3- The Single KB Press … Which I achieved back in 2006 (Beast Tamer #6). And there’s my “STRONG ENOUGH” standards - 1- 2x32kg Clean + Presses for 10 sets of 5 in 20 minutes 2- 2x32kg Front Squats for 10 sets of 5 in 20 minutes 3- 32kg Snatch - 100 reps in 10 minutes (10 sets of 5+5) … Which many have complained are “out of reach” for them. And so, as if those aren’t enough, try this out: Clean + Press with a pair of 32kg for 10 sets of 10 reps in under 60 min...

Here are some ideas for you: 1- Moving up a bell size: Typically, I use a 10x5 - 10 sets of 5 - in 20 minutes - as a test to know that a client (or myself) “owns” a KB - especially for a combo lift (two lifts in one - the C+P) or straight up “Grinds” for strength work. For example - Move from 2x24kg C+P to 2x28kg C+P. (Or just Presses.) That’s approximately 1 set of 5 every 2 minutes. You have to make it in the time period or we’re still keeping those bells in the program. For ballistics like the Swing, I think the time-tested and true 10x10 (10 sets of 10) in 15 minutes or less is a great benchmark. It ensures you “own” the weight simply because 100 reps is no joke. If you need programming ideas, use ‘SWING HARD!’ where you’ll find 10 different 8 week (or more) long programs for both the 2H and 1H Swing. 2- Moving to a More “Advanced” Exercise: For example - moving from the 2H Swing to the 1H Swing. I recommend a 10x10 in 15 minutes or less with a 24kg for men, and a 16kg for women. A...