2009-11-09 - Kettlebells and Systema breathing

My session today consisted of:

Warm up: Systema breathing and jogging

24kg OAJ ladders: 108 reps / 2 minutes rest between sets

24kg Swing: 15/15

Systema basic exercises

The focus during the session was on incorporating the basic Systema principles and breathing methods into everything. One of the key principles of Systema is proper breathing. In fact, everything in the Russian System flows from proper breathing. Another important aspect of Systema is proper structure (or body posture). The idea is to keep the breath flowing freely and easily no matter what you do and to keep your posture as relaxed and natural as possible. During my Jerk sets today I tried to keep my posture as natural as possible and also focused mainly on breathing rather than the mechanics of the movement. What was interesting about this approach was that the actual jerks became almost a side issue. Focusing on breathing allowed the movement to happen almost without any effort. I also noticed that my posture was far less exaggerated than usual. I used hardly any knee dips and the movements felt easy and fluid. I think this approach will help me to discover my own most efficient style of kettlebell lifting. Being naturally lazy this style will probably revolve around minimalism, but the weeks ahead will tell exactly how this will turn out.