New to Forum

[millerbc]

Hi I’m new to the forum although I own all of John’s books. I’ve been an avid Kettelbell lifter for about 5 years. Due to tennis elbow I have in the past three weeks turned to transformics and I have to say I’m pleasantly surprised. I teach self- defense and my chief instructor is in the same organization as Master John McSweeney (before he passed away) so I’ve known about Tiger Moves for years. It was not until I actually started doing them that I see and feel what an excellent exercises they are. I wanted to get some feed back on what I’ve been doing so far.
1) Tiger moves
2) Trinity exercises
3) 100 Atlas pushups
4) 3-5 sets of 3-5 reps of deck squat, to squat thrust/push up to pull-up. Or I set my boxing timer to 3-3 minute rounds with 1 minute of rest in-between
5) Then usually 20 minutes on the elliptical or the Tabata protocol. The above usually takes about 60 minutes.
6) At night I get about 20 minutes doing the circuit portion from Mark’s Master Level fitness book
7) And then Tabata with KB swings or Tiger bend squats.


Any feed back would be great. I’ve got so much time and $$ invested in my KB’s I’m reluctant to get rid of them; but almost every time I pick them up now I end up hurting myself. For all those out there that say I’m not lifting them right all I have to say is you are entitled to you opinion even when your dead wrong.

John thanks for all you do and for making it available for people like me.

Bob

[Aaron Hoot]

Hey Bob,

Welcome! It seems like you have a fair workout already. I will tell you something. If something is hurting you I wouldn't be doing it. That is just my opinion.

Again, welcome to the forum!

Aaron

[tony84]

What your doing looks good. Its a very balanced routine. Many people well tell you, you have to find what you enjoy and what works for you. I dont see anything wrong with what your doing, i think youll see great results my friend. Obviously if you keep hurting yourself its time to quit to kettlebells for a while. I dont know how you use your kettlebells, but when i see people doing them on TV the moves are very fast and expolsive, and to me they seem dangerous. These people are just wipping them around. Again, i dont know if this is how you use them its just what i seen. You should be able to get results with transformetrics so i would try not to worry about not being able to do the kettlebells for now. Welcome to the forum!!!

Tony

[Greg Newton]

Bob,

I was a garage gorilla. I loved working out with IRON. My grandfather was a welder and my great grandfather a black smith, so maybe there was something in the genes. I invested in a lot of basic equipment - power rack, circle squat, cambered bar, Olympic bar, dumbbells, over 600 pounds of plates, etc., and worked out on my back deck in all sorts of weather, snow, rain, sun, and cold. Thunderstorms were out for obvious reasons.

I started the Transformetrics style of training a little over three years ago. Slowly, but surely I began giving away my precious equipment. It was hard to do. One York barbell set I'd lugged around since I was sixteen and saved up my hard earned money to buy. But, I didn't need it anymore. All my fitness needs are being met by John's system. The only equipment I use now are the Power Tee's and a karate belt I use for doing isometrics. And, I don't need those.

I guess there is a sense of freedom in knowing you can train anywhere and anytime with just the space you need for your body. I can look back on the 28 year old, 160 pound martial artist, or the 38 year old, 217 pound weight lifter I used to be, and I know for a certainty that at 48 I am physically superior to either one of those previous incarnations.

Yes, it is hard to let go of the weights, but in my opinion, it is more than worth it.

[John Peterson]

hey Bob,


It's great to have you with us. I also agree that it really is amazing what happens when one fully understands exactly how to apply tension when performing Tiger Moves. All at once one realizes that no form of external resistance is really necessary to create great muscle tension and subsequently a perfect physique and great strength.

As far as Kettle Bells are concerned, I'm no expert because I have never trained with them but the men that I have known that have used them on a regular basis have all ended up with various degrees of injury from minor injuries like bruised wrists, to more severe injuries like stretched ligaments and muscle tears. Of course some are far worse than others.

Bottom line: I would never make a stupid statement like, "You aren't doing it right." It seems that if one trains with them often and intensely that one is bound to get injured based on the feedback that I have been given. Still, maybe the secret is to use them very infrequently. I don't really know because I have never done any training with them. And frankly, I never will.

But once again Bob, it's great to have you with us.

---John Peterson

[millerbc]

Thanks for the encouraging words and advice.


Greg I know I’m on the same path as you in getting rid of my weight equipment.

I see the benefits of John’s system and plan on working with the different exercises and routines to see

what works best for me.

[Andy62]

I used kettlebells for about a year before I came across Bronze Bow and John Peterson. I didn't have any joint or injury problems,but I realized with their ballistic nature that possibility was always there. I liked the fact that I could get a combined strength and aerobic workout in about 20 minutes in the limited space of my apartment. Once I came across Bronze Bow I realized that Transformetrics had all of the advantages without the limitations of kettlebells. I could also vary the resistance level and work from angles that were not limited because they were dependent on gravity.

[Black Knight]

Welcome to the forum.I have a very similar background as you.Ive been in martial arts over half my life and have been competing in MMA for over 5 years now.I to use Kettlebells but i also do tons of other types of training ranging from pilate,yoga,plyometrics and pretty much everything in Transformetrics.I havent lifted a KB myself for over 6 months due to an ACL tear that occured during training.Prior to the injury i had been doing KB for only a year with no ill effects and great results in both conditoning and strength but honestly ive only been utilising them for about a year.And your injury could be an accumlative problem from all the years youve put in.

My suggestion for you would be to cut them out completly and focus alot on Tiger Moves,DVR,DSR, and isometric stretches as well as strength iso also make sure your doing your joint mobility drills each morning and before practice.When i started incorporating those in my program lots of aches and paines went away.John has a program in his book.I personally first learned of them from Pavels Super Joint book wich is a great addition to any athletes library.Theres one drill in particular that has helped me with elbow problems(due to being on the reciving end of to many armbars early in my training)i forgot the name of it.Its hard to explain but pick up Super Joints and that might help.

I would stick to those things i mentioned for about a month or two and see how you feel.Then i would SLOWLY start incorporating KB back in.If you lifted 4-5 times a week start out with 1-2 to see how you feel.If it comes back right away take another month or two of off.If it keeps coming back you might have to take atleast a year off to heal the dammage youve done.I wouldnt sell your KB if you really like them because i know from personal experince that they are quite pricey.I tend to take a more of a Hybrid approach to Transformetrics then most on this forum.And i see Johns way of training a good addition (if not complete system)to anyones fitness program wether it be powerlifting,kettlebells,olympic lifts etc.Because DVR,DSR,and Isos help prevent as well as restore health in joints,muscles and tendons.And i know that some people just simply love lifting weights and i would never tell somebody to quit what they love.Ill let them find out for themselves.

So anyways i know i went all over with this post but i hope it helps.Good luck my friend.

[millerbc]

Black Knight,

Thanks for your words of advice. I think I will cut out the KB's and see how I feel. As Andy62 said I like the 20 minutes and done with the KB's. But I'm finding that Hindu squats are giving me the same if not better effect.

I've got super joints I will start the elbow circles and see how they feel. Truth be told I probably have over trained with the KB's 5-6 days a week doing 900-1200 rep routines and then hitting the mitts either before or after is just not a smart combo. Plus having a high milage body:)


Thanks again for taking the time to write a very educated response to my problem. I'm starting to see there is a wealth of knowledge from people on this forum.

Bob