Kendall Giles

So I mentioned that I am evaluating a TRX suspension system, by Fitness Anywhere, via a 12-week fitness program (FORCE). Today was Day 64.

Somewhere in my recent travels I picked up a head cold. Blah. But, I didn't want to lose any ground, so decided to push through the workout as planned, though perhaps I didn't have as much pep in my step as I had hoped.

I started out with 3x5 kettlebell cleans with the 32KG kettlebell. While I still can't press the thing, I do feel that sticking with cleans to get me used to the weight is paying off, since now I can pass the kettlebell to my other hand without having to first put it down on the ground. More interesting is the little trick I am working on to help save my hands.

While kettlebells are the most effective way to build strength and endurance I've found so far, one artifact of their use is that you really need to take care of your hands. Because the handle of the kettlebell rotates in your hand as you do your exercises, especially with a heavier weight or with high volumes of reps, calluses will develop on your hands. Left unchecked, those calluses will grow and eventually tear, at a minimum causing you to miss days of training.

I've been trying as best I can to keep my hands from shredding, mostly by knocking down calluses with the magical Ped Egg and with frequent application of good old Corn Huskers lotion, but still, especially when working with the 32KG kettlebell, I tended to tear the skin on my palms at the base of my fingers.

I didn't want to have to resort to superglue to keep the workout going, so I modified my technique slightly and so far this new technique is paying off wonderfully. Basically, when the kettlebell is in the loaded clean/press/snatch position, the handle is resting across the palm of my hand. No problem. But when I would rotate the kettlebell down to the ground or through my legs for another rep, the portion of skin on my palm at the base of my middle finger especially would get the most friction, causing heavy calluses and eventual ripping. So now, with my new (experimental) technique, as I am rotating the kettlebell down I transition the kettlebell handle from across my palm onto my fingers, effectively missing the previous high-friction point where my fingers join the palm.

This is hard to describe in writing, but it is almost like I lose contact with the kettlebell for an instant, and in that instant my hand shifts its contact with the kettlebell handle to transition from palm to fingers on the way down, and from fingers to palm on the way back up, allowing for (so far!) tear-free kettlebell happiness. I am still working on perfecting this motion, as I need to build up more strength in my fingers, but this, along with the above hand care tips, seems like a winning combination.

After kettlebell cleans I also did 3 sets of 5 kettlebell presses with the 24KG kettlebell.

Following kettlebells, I did TRX Day 64, which is the start of week 10. Week 10 is actually a repeat of week 9, and the repetition allows your body to adjust to the big increase in intensity started in week 9. Nothing really exciting to report --- the hardest part was the superset on legs. But I was also happy to have a wobble- and crash-free double set of side planks, though from previous attempts at that exercise I had developed a good rear-end-crash-landing technique that I am rather proud of.

I ended the workout with about a 3 mile jog. In previous runs I had ended up holding my iPod Touch in my hands as I ran --- kind of annoying. So today I tested the Nathan Gel Waist Pack, and it worked very well. My iPod Touch didn't bounce around and I didn't even notice that I was wearing the pack. In addition to the iPod Touch, I'll have room for car keys, ID, and money, and maybe another small item or two. Very happy with this product.