Steve Cotter: Part 1

I have always travelled the world to find and train with the best in each field of interest I have. So when I started to develop a passion for Kettlebells I only had one persons name on my hit list, that name was Steve Cotter. Since training with Steve I have enjoyed a new level of Kettlebell development from day one! Steve Cotter is the Zen Master of Kettlebell training. His DVD series the Encyclopaedia of Kettlebell Lifting is enough to state that alone, but Steve is not one to rest on the bench. His new training programmers and DVD’s are set to raise the bar once again. Since I have become Steve’s student and friend, we have found a lot of common interests in the martial arts and martial art training. The way Kettlebells helps to develop ones structural power is a key interest for all martial art systems. Over the coming months I will be sharing with MAI reader as series of conversations I have had with world-renowned Kettlebell teacher Steve Cotter.

I have broken them down into 5 Articles, which will run over the coming months:

1 The Role of Kettlebells in the developing and understanding the functional power for the martial arts.

2 Core Developments – Key of kettlebells

3 Upper Body Training -Conditioning, Strength, Power, Endurance, Cardio and Flexibility.

4 Lower Body Training – Conditioning, Strength, Power, Endurance, Cardio and Flexibility.

5 Kettlebell Progressions and Training.

This article series will set you a few standard for you to aim for in your kettlebell training. Let’s get this party started!

1 The Role of Kettlebells in the developing and understanding the functional power for the martial arts.

Alan: I would think the first thing to be clear on is what is functional power in the martial arts.

Steve: Literally the ability to achieve your objective, so this is represented as carrying out the intent of the strike. The vehicle, your body, has to be trained to follow the command of the yi, the intentional mind

Alan: I would say we are looking at how Kettlebells develop the following: Stance, Base/ Balance and control of, Striking power and conditioning of Kinetic chains with the body. So with that in mind, let me start with asking you to talk about Stance, Base/ Balance and control of. A big area I know. What would be the role of Kettlebells in developing and training of this area?

Steve: First thing with regard to the stance is the connection to the ground; the way that kettlebells reinforce the stance is that it provides constant feedback. In fighting, there is the interplay between being rooted and unrooted at different times. To be rooted is to be stable and to be unrooted is to be mobile. So kettlebells require that you are rooted throughout the practice, particularly in the swing and the fast lifts.

Base is the application of balance, in that when one is said to have (established) base, he is rooted and in strong position, in a position of control. You must learn very quickly to establish base to work with kettlebell, because of its dynamic nature. If you are not rooted with a strong base, you will be pulled off-balance and not be able to continue. So the repetitious and rhythmic nature of the basic lifts reinforce stance, and the development and control of base.

Alan: Maybe you could talk about the relationship of Center of Mass to Base of Support.

Steve: Fundamental to all movement is this relationship of CoM to BoS .
The BoS can be anything, whatever we are supporting our balance with. However, the CoM will remain the same irrespective of any changes in BoS.
So the key to effective movement, which means movement that is balanced and in control, is to continually maintain a relationship of the CoM to the BoS. The mastery of movement comes in the ability to do this while moving in any way.

To describe this CoM to BoS relationship, we say to keep the CoM over the BoS. Over mean vertically aligned, because gravity exerts a vertical pull. So whether you are on your feet, your bottom, your head, your belly, or your back, on one leg or on two, you have this vertical relationship between Center and Base.

Center of Mass is the midsection; some call this dan tien and some will say the hips. It may vary a bit depending upon torso length and other individual alignment, but in general the CoM is going to be in the area just anterior to the sacrum in the core of your belly.

In simple terms, if you can keep this area directly over your base of support, you are in control of your body and your movements, as well as your environment.

Alan: What would be the core Kettlebell techniques for training this area?

Steve: The lifts that require the most power because the pulling on the body is what makes the Center of Mass work to keep itself over the Base---Swing, Snatch, Clean, Jerk, Press, Squat

Alan: What would then be the preparation training for Kettlebells?

Steve: Well, the first steps are those that I believe are always the first steps, whether it is for kettlebells or any other physical endeavour. That is movement and breathing.

The first thing is to assess movement and make sure that the body is prepared in a general sense. This means good range of motion in the joints and addressing any pre-existing conditions. For a generally healthy person, loosening up the neck, shoulders, waist and back are going to be most important. Someone less fit will want to spend extra time preparing the joints with gentle loosening Joint Mobility type of warm-ups.

Then be mindful of the breathing, full breaths and using a matching breath in which the breath follows the movement.

That means inhaling when the chest is opening during a movement, and exhaling when the chest is compressing during the movement.

Once a thorough warm-up is completed the basic program will focus on:

Swing
Clean
Press
Push-Press
Jerk
Snatch: as below

In that order. This is to be done with a single kettlebell. A man of average size with average fitness will start with about 16kg and average women of average strength will start with an 8 kg. The first step is to build volume and work capacity gradually before moving to heavier kettlebells.

Once comfortable with the single kettlebell in all the lifts, then moving to 2 kettlebells for the same basic lifts.

Alan: As the body can only be used in so many ways these basic Kettlebell exercises cover the main movements for kinetic power generation. This spring loading of your center of mass allows you to feel the direct of forces though your legs as you press the kettlebell. It terms of technique, what would be the main teaching points of not losing that connection when swinging or cleaning the kettlebell?

Steve: With the essential points of alignment in place you will maintain whole body connection. This means keeping the kettlebell positioned correctly in the palm so that the wrist is not bent and the force can be directed from the forearm bones into the base of the palm. One common error is to allow the kettlebell to move up to high in the palm, and this distorts the alignment.

With kettlebells, or any effective form of movement, if one small piece is off the entire chain is affected. Another important point is to keep the kettlebell aligned vertically over the body’s center of mass---not to the side. This is challenging for those who have so much bulk in the arms and chest that they cannot move the kettlebell into place over the midline. Also, restrictions in flexibility will make it difficult to get the correct alignment. The fix is to practice regularly and relax as much as possible. Over time the body will find its ideal alignment for the given structure of each body.

Another key point is when resting, which means the point in the lift in which the frame can hold the weight so that the muscles do not have to work too hard—the knees should be fully extended. For example when in the rack position, like in the Clean, in which the kettlebell(s) is (are) resting on the chest, or when the kettlebell(s) is (are) locked out overhead, such as in the press, or push-press, or jerk or snatch. It is common for people to bend their knees, but actually the legs should be straight, because in that way the skeleton can support the weight instead of the muscles. When the legs are bent too much, the muscles of the legs have to work too hard and will quickly become fatigued.

These three are some of the most common mistakes and things to be mindful of. There are several other subtleties, but these are the most common errors that I see. By correcting these three points, the lifts will become more efficient and the connection much better.

Alan: Punching power, if to be maximized must use the whole body. Therefore Kettlebells must be a good way to test your muscular connection. What would be the main signs of incorrect lifting and the main signs of good kinetic connection when lifting?

Steve: The most common mistake that will be found is the use of what I call “artificial tension”. By artificial tension, I mean, using more force than what is needed to accomplish the task. The degree of tension should be predicated by the weight of the kettlebell, however when using artificial tension, a lifter will treat all weights as if they are heavy, even when in fact they are very light. This has to do with efficiency or economy of motion and also experience and control.

An analogy is the development of power in martial arts. A less experienced student will try to hit harder by tensing the whole body, tension the arm. Of course, this will diminish the amount of power that can be transferred into the strike, because the tension in the arm will hold the power back. A more experienced martial artist will relax the arm while moving toward the target and the whole body will be tensed only upon the moment of impact. We want the power to go into the target, not to stay inside our own body—we want the target to feel the power, not for ourselves to feel the power.

Initially, it feels more powerful to be tense in all the movements, but this is an unsophisticated level. I relate it to lying in the snow and feeling warm—you are warm because the heat is leaving the body, you stay feeling warm until eventually you freeze to death.

So, it is important to learn how to relax and how to transfer the power smoothly throughout the whole body.

Good kinetic linkage takes place when the frame is doing the work and the arms are simply an extension. The legs and waist and back support the structure and the arm transfers the force to the kettlebell. The way to learn this well is to start with a lighter weight and work for longer periods of time. In this way, you will not be able to hold excessive tension because you will fatigue too quickly if you do, so you learn to relax under load. When this happens the whole body can be coordinated and fluid.

Alan: From the point of view of muscle conditioning for MMA or sparring. What would you say would be good way to set up a Kettlebell programme based on round training? i.e. you are training for a three 5 minute round fight.

Steve: A good approach is to first develop a base of endurance a few months out from the fight, and then to more closely mimic the specific energy demands of the fight as the fight draws nearer. Everybody has to develop a base, whether it is a high level fighter or other athlete or if it is someone who is simply looking for general fitness.

Initially, the recommendation is to build the endurance base via extended sets, focusing mostly on the core lifts. Starting in the 4:00 range per set and working into 6:00 or longer. Because kettlebell lifting is so comprehensive, working the entire body, it is not necessary to work for very long in a given session. The body can be trained thoroughly in 30:00 or less per session, and the best result will come with frequent training, such as 4-6 days per week, instead of less frequent training of longer duration. I advise to build the initial program around the main lifts, clean, jerk, snatch, press, squat and to work only 1-2 sets and 1-3 exercises each session. After one month of so of developing the endurance base, then the program will be changed to simulate the specific time demands of the upcoming fight.

Here is a sample program. Of course the numbers will be modified according to the starting level of the athlete: their initial conditioning and strength, their size, their age and their experience.

Week 1:

M, W, F

Warm-up: mobility, agility, basic gross-motor patterns followed by extra work at specific joints where needed (neck, shoulders, etc)

1 arm Press: 16kg x 2:00 each arm
Front Squat: 2x16kg x 10 x 3
Swing: 20kg x 2 sets each hand of max reps

Week 2:

M, W, F

Warm-up

1 arm Clean: 16kg x 2:00 each arm x 2 sets
1 arm Press: 16kg x 1:00 each arm
1 arm Push-Press: 20kg x 2:00 each arm
Front Squat: 2x20kg x 10 x 3
Swing: 20kg x 2 sets each arm for max reps

Week 3:

M, W, F

Warm-up

1 arm Clean & Press: 16kg x 2:00 each arm x 2 sets
1 arm Push-Press: 24kg x 1:00 each arm fast x 2 sets
Front Squat: 2x20kg x 10 x 2
1 Leg DL: 2x16kg x 5 each leg x 2
Swing: 24kg x 1 set each arm for max reps

Week 4:

M, W, F

Warm-up

Snatch: 16kg x 2:00 each arm x 1 set
Front Squat: 2x20kg x 15 x 1
Hand-to-hand Swing: 16kg x 100

Week 5:

M, Thu

Warm-up

Snatch: 16kg x 3:00 each arm x 1 set
1 Leg DL: 2x16kg x 5 x 3
Swing: 24kg x 2 sets each arm for max reps

Tue, F

Warm-up:

Clean & Jerk: 16kg x 2:00 each arm x 2 sets
Front Squat: 2x20kg x 15 x 2
Swing: 24kg x 1 set each hand for max reps

Week 6:

M, Thu

Warm-up:

Snatch: 20kg x 3:00 each hand
1 Leg DL: 2x20kg x 5 x 2
Swing: 28kg x 2 sets each hand for max reps

Tue, F

Warm-up

1 arm Clean & Jerk: 20kg x 2:00 each arm x 2 sets
Front Squat: 20kg x 15 x 3
Hand-to-hand Swing: 24kg x 50 x 2

Week 7:

M, Thu

Warm-up

1 arm Clean and Jerk: 20kg x 3:00 each hand x 1; 16kg x 3:00 each hand x 1
1 arm Swings: 24kg x 2 set each hand for max reps

Tue, F

Warm-up

Snatch: 20kg x 3:00 each hand x 2; 16kg x 3:00 x 1
1 arm Push-Press: 24kg x 1:00 each hand x 2
1 arm Swings: 28kg x 2 sets each hand for max reps

Week 8:

M, Tues, Thur

Warm-up

Clean and Jerk: 16kg @ 1:00 each arm; 20kg x 2:00 each arm
Front Squat: 2x16kg x 15 x 1
Swing: 24kg x 2 sets each hand for max rep

In the sample program, the athlete worked up to doing 6-minute sets, 1 minute more than his rounds will be, and he is doing 2-3 rounds in the 6th and 7th week. The 4th week is a back off week, less intensity and volume, and the 8th week is ease off week as that weekend is the fight. This is a starting program for an average size male intermediate level athlete who has a base of martial arts and conditioning but is new to kettlebells. The numbers can be changed as needed, this is and idea of how it can be built, but you have to assess on a case-by-case basis to really get a program dialled in.

Moving forward, with the good base in the basic lifts, some more specified work can be added in, perhaps more specialized grip or abdominal work. My approach is that the most important lifts should be emphasized early and often before adding in supplementary lifts.

Alan: Thank you Steve, excellent insights.

Alan: Next month we will be taking about Core Development with Kettlebells.

Alan Orr is a disciple of Robert Chu Sifu and the European representative of the Chu Sau Lei Wing Chun system. Teacher of Tui Na Chinese Massage Therapy

He is also the UK representative for Guro Mark Wiley in the Filipino martial arts and Sensei Eddy Millis of Shark Tank in NHB/Grappling.

Web:
www.alanorr.com
www.thechinesemedicineacademy.co.uk
www.warriorfunctionaltraining.com

For further information Tel: 07958 908 196 or email: info@alanorr.co.uk