Viking Warrior Conditioning: The Scientific Approach to Forging a heart of Elastic Steel

VIKING WARRIOR CONDITIONING

THE SCIENTIFIC APPROACH TO FORGING

A HEART OF ELASTIC STEEL:

AN APPLICATION OF THE THEORY BEHIND

PROPER VO2MAX TRAINING

BY KENNETH JAY

Copyright ©2009 Kenneth Jay

All rights under International and Pan-American Copyright conventions.

Published in the United States by:

Dragon Door Publications, Inc

P.O. Box 4381, St. Paul, MN 55104

Tel: (651) 487-2180 • Fax: (651) 487-3954

Credit card orders: 1-800-899-5111

Email: [email protected] • Website: www.dragondoor.com

ISBN: 978-0-938045-04-5    0-938045-04-0

This edition first published in March 2009

No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means without the prior written consent of the

Publisher, excepting brief quotes used in reviews.

Printed in the United States of America

Book design, Illustrations, logos, photo manipulation and cover by Derek Brigham

Website http//www.dbrigham.com • Tel/Fax: (763) 208-3069 • Email: [email protected]

Photographs of Kenneth Jay by Hanne Paludan Kristensen • www.hpkristensen.dk,

Photographs on pages 96-98 by RalphDeHaan.com

DISCLAIMER

The author and publisher of this material are not responsible in any manner whatsoever for any injury that may

occur through following the instructions contained in this material. The activities, physical and otherwise, described

herein for informational purposes only, may be too strenuous or dangerous for some people and the reader(s)

should consult a physician before engaging in them.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Foreword

Introduction

1. Viking Warrior Conditioning

2. Cardiovascular Physiology 101

3. Some Words on Force Production

4. Why the Kettlebell?

5. Application

6. Meet Thórólf

7. The Fat-Burning Zone and Why It Is a Joke

8. The Tripod of Conditioning

9. Testaments to the Power of Viking Warrior Conditioning

10. Call to Action

Appendix: Viking Warrior Snatch Mastery

Glossary of Cardiovascular Physiology

Consulted Works

Index

About The Author

FOREWORD

BY MARK REIFKIND

MASTER INSTRUCTOR RKC

It’s not often in the world of physical training that something comes along so special, so unique, and so effective that it causes a paradigm shift in how people train and think about training. Louie Simmons turned the powerlifting world upside down with his inspired reinvention of how to train the powerlift. Pavel did the same thing and more with the Russian Kettlebell Challenge. And now, Kenneth Jay has taken the Tsar of the Kettlebell lifts—the kettlebell snatch—and created a method of training so revolutionary that it causes us to rethink everything we thought we knew about cardiovascular training and how to incorporate it into our strength and conditioning programs.

Kenneth has looked at the true meaning of cardiovascular adaptation and configured a kettlebell-training program to elicit that response for real. As I told him when we were discussing the benefits I had derived from this, The VO2max training delivers what circuit training only promised: real strength and cardiovascular conditioning in the same package. With NO compromises.

I remember sitting in the auditorium at the Level 2 RKC Certification when Kenneth unveiled this new regime and I heard him speak about building a heart of elastic steel using only the 16 kg kettlebell. I was able to snatch the 24 kg bell quite well at the time but was still suffering from shoulder issues that precluded me from really going all out with it. My powerlifter’s mindset would not allow me to use lighter bells, as that would be too sissy, to quote a top-level Russian Kettlebell Chief Instructor. But as a volume-training addict, the program intrigued me.

I was even more intrigued when I got to witness the RKC candidates being put through their paces in this new way of using the kettlebell. It looked brutal but quite safe—a great combination for this high-mileage, ex-competitive athlete. I had to try it as soon as I got back home. And what an eye-opener it was!

Having gotten permission to use a lighter bell, I felt quite safe focusing on moving the weight as quickly as I could during the snatches and trying to do the prescribed number of sets and reps. Trying is the operative word. I stopped counting when my heart rate topped 190 and I wasn’t even halfway through the workout.

As an ex-gymnast, I have always reveled in the speed and momentum training that kettlebell work not only allows but encourages. I immediately realized that the magic in the bell was able to really develop speed and, with speed, power. And as we all know, in the world of sport, speed and power are the king and queen. This new VO2max training program maximized both these attributes to the hilt, all the while using weights that were so safe that anyone could do them—anyone who could handle the workload, that is!

Always being one to take a long-term approach and giving my injuries their due, I adapted the program to just one day a week, not really thinking I would be able to garner all the benefits from such a modification. But in just eight weeks of doing the workout religiously once a week, in addition to my other KB training, my resting heart rate dropped from 64 to 48! It hadn’t been that low since I had trained for ultramarathons and triathlons! Kenneth was really, really on to something special.

I also put my clients who were snatching on the system, and they saw results so quickly that it was mind blowing: improved cardiovascular efficiency, loss of fat, and increased speed and power. Also, their snatch training went to a new level in so short a time that it was almost not to be believed.

It may seem impossible, but just two or three sessions of this program produced changes in people’s bodies and systems. Hard to believe, but it was happening right in front of my eyes—and all with kettlebells light enough not to scare away the most timid of clients. When something works, it works! Kenneth truly understands the meaning of force: mass x acceleration. Acceleration is clearly the lynchpin here.

My wife, Tracy, who at the time was in phenomenal shape from high-volume kettlebell training, also took to the program in a heartbeat and saw even more body fat loss and muscular definition than she had thought possible—and from just one session per week. Kenneth had really figured out something very unique.

The training program really forces you to hit on all cylinders at once: speed, power, efficiency of movement (you can’t go fast if you’re inefficient), mental and physical toughness, and, of course, the cardiovascular system of a miler with the muscular power of a gymnast. What a great combination!

One year later, at the next Level 2 RKC Certification, Kenneth unveiled his latest addition to the VO2max program—the BOOST, a peaking protocol—and again, he put the candidates through their paces after the lecture. This was another eye-opener, especially to Tracy, who had been training with the regular program religiously. She knew this would be the ticket to putting her Secret Service Snatch Test (SSST) numbers over the top.

Now with this amazing book, Kenneth has put it all down on paper. All the science, all the protocols, and all the progressions. He has added even more protocols to the original program, and all have real research to back them up. This is not an easy read, just as the protocols are not easy to do. Simple but not easy, as I love to say.

After a year more of doing VO2max workouts every week, everything has changed about my snatch training. All for the good! I can now snatch twice a week with no shoulder issues, and I could do three sessions, if I wanted. The speed and power I got from using the 16 kg bell has transferred to my 24 kg snatch work, and