RKC Program Minimum and my opinion ...

As more and more people ask me for pointers on the "Hard Style" Manmaker I got the idea to post a short piece here. My opinion is that if all you do is the below exercises, then you will be fitter, have more mobility, and look better than 99.9% of mankind. Simple is good. Complicated is bad.

The idea behind Program Minimum is to create a the resiliency and durability to really begin to practice with kettlebells safely and effectively.

The two exercises that make up the foundation for the RKC strength and conditioning are the Kettlebell Swing

and the Turkish Get Up



Let's discuss the Swing first.

In fact, I write about the TGU tomorrow.

The swing requires that your body work as a machine. Done correctly you will use your hips, legs, back, heart, soul and lungs. The goal is to work up to 12 minutes of high reps swing sets with active recovery of your choice between sets. Could be jumping rope, mountain climbers, jogging.....you get the idea. The fitter you get the less active rest you will require. Then you will be able to do back to back sets.

What does high rep mean? The number you can do correctly and with safe, good form. Swings gone bad are bad indeed. Focus on quality and not quantity. Keep working to do more well each session.

Do this for twelve minutes twice a week and you will be strong, tough and ready for anything.

Sandy Sommer, RKC

Sandy Sommer, RKC and the Kettlebell Swing

The kettlebell swing is the foundation for all we teach. If you have difficulty with the swing, everything else will prove to be a challenge.

Steve Maxwell once said that if all we taught our clients was the Russian Kettlebell swing, then they would be be in better condition than 99% of the populace and I've seen nothing that wouldn't back that up.

The swing is an amazing kettlebell movement and deserves much respect for the results in can deliver to you.

If you've never seen the swing, it may look like a good way to injure yourself. Down correctly, it delivers results more quickly than almost any exercise since it increases flexibility, is resistance work and also cardio exertion all in one.

The movement is full engagement of the posterior chain. If your heels aren't firmly rooted to the ground, if you are glutes aren't fully engaged so that your hips are forward then it is quite easy to lose your balance. If all the above check out then your created stability counteracts the pull forward of the kettlebell.



The kettlebell swing has helped me live "back pain" free for the last 2 1/2 years. Please let me explain. Better yet see why here and you will thank me if you have chronic pain in your lower back.

Please email me if you have any questions at all and I am here to help you.

Sandy Sommer, RKC