Self Test

The concept of periodically testing one's self ("tameshiwari" in Japanese) is an important aspect of the martial arts, so today when I caught wind of the CrossWorld Meet of kettlebell lifting organized by a Finnish lifter I gave it a go.

There were a number of lifts one could choose from: The classical kettlebell sport lifts of 2 arm jerks and one arm snatches, but also 1 arm jerks and the 1 arm anyhow (get the bell locked out overhead with one arm any way you can). The time limit is ten minutes - the standard time in kettlebell competition.

I chose to do the 1 arm jerk, so after a little warmup I grabbed the heaviest bell in my possession, the 32kg (70lbs) and did the following: 20 w right arm, 20 left, 10 right, 10 left, 5 right, 5 left. A total of 70 reps.

Not too bad considering I haven't been doing alot of training with the 32kg but certainly newbie level in the kettlebell world.

To see how it's done watch this video of world champion Ivan Denisov playing with a 60kg (132lb) bell.

When is the last time you really tested yourself?