Simple and Sinister 2.0
Simplicity of Training
The Best Results I Ever Had
By Adam Mundorf
“The swing, the get-up, and the goblet squat are the three most beneficial exercises anyone could do -- period.” - Pavel Tsatsouline
"There is no better entry into strength than the kettlebell. Learning to do swings and get-ups properly will lay a great movement foundation : flexible hips, strong abs, important bracing, breathing, and shoulder packing skills, etc.
Every other modality, bodyweight or barbell, will be much easier, stronger and safer with a kettlebell foundation." Pavel Tsatsouline
Simplicity of Training
You don't need to do everything, all of the time. The program minimum by Pavel Tsatsouline covers much of the basics. Here is the program in a nutshell. There is much more to it in terms of programming but if you want to learn more just buy the book.
- Warm Up
- 3(5) Prying Goblet Squat
- 5 Curls on Last Rep of Each Set
- 3(5) StrongFirst Hip Bridge
- 3(10) Halo
- Swings
- 10(10) One Arm or Two Arm depending on the day
- Every other training session is done with the two arm.
- Turkish Get Up
- 5(1) Turkish Get Up
- Pre-Bed Stretches(1 to 3 Circuits except Bar Hang is done only once at the end)
- 90/90 Stretch
- QL Straddle Stretch
- The key with these above stretches is to really relax into the stretch. Take your time and just enjoy it.
- Hang on Pull Up Bar
- Other Notes
- Between even number sets you use expand your hand bands to work your finger extensors.
- You breathe nasally slowly and take your time between sets.
- Perform fast and loose drills to shake off the tension.
- Always use a bit of chalk.
- After 24 sessions with a weight (more on this later), I will begin to introduce two sets of a heavier weight. Overtime, I will work up to using heavier weights almost effortlessly.
- Apply Cornhuskers Lotion before bed on workout days to keep your hands moisturized, especially because you're now using chalk.
- Jolts
- On the 10th and 20th of every month, you test yourself with an unrelated activity. It can be anything you want.
- My favorite 'jolt' is farmer carrying my 32kg kettlebells until form failure.
- All you do is the Simple and Sinister Warm-Up and then hit your jolt.
- Same pre-bed stretching as before.
The prying goblet squat unlocks your hips plus the curls allow for some arm work. The StrongFirst hip bridge activates the glutes and stretches the hip flexors. The kettlebell halo unlocks your shoulders and works the whole shoulder girdle. The kettlebell swing works with your hinge pattern and your whole posterior chain. The turkish getup strengthens the shoulders and teaches your body how to move as one piece. The 'expand your hand bands' between sets, balance out all of the gripping done during kettlebell training and hopefully life. The cool down stretches stretch your hips, back and sides. The hanging from a pull up bar decompresses your spine and improves shoulder health.
What's missing from the above? Not much. Could you do a bit better? Probably but not without added complexity. For the record, the book is worth getting. There is also an excellent online course that can be found here : https://strongfirst.skilltrain.com/Pages/Public/Courses There is so much more nuance to the program than what I wrote above.
The Best Results I Ever Had
The year was 2012 and I was a furniture mover in Philadelphia plus was an avid kettlebell lifter. My plan was simple : Wake up before work, do the program minimum from Enter the Kettlebell and eat a hearty dinner when I get home. My body was strong, my confidence was high and my vision for the future was bright. I put in the work and as Dan John put it : "Little and often over the long haul." The long haul is where I struggled. Somewhere along the way my mind got cluttered. I started to accumulate more training books, more ideas and quite frankly less results. This ends today. I will complete Simple and Sinister through to the Timed Simple standard. My mind is no longer cluttered and my vision is clear.
Who Compares, Who Cares?
Don't compare yourself to others who don't have the same lifestyle as you. A workout for a construction worker will be different than someone who sits at a desk all day. This is why the program above rocks. You do it as frequently as possible depending on your energy, time and schedule constraints. So at the end of the day : Who compares and who cares?
Step Loading, Rule of 24
Simple and Sinister is meant to be run about 5 to 6 days a week through the Timeless Simple standard. Now, if you read the above section, you realize that having an active occupation, demands more recovery thus more days off. So, instead of going by a strict calendar month, we will be going by number of sessions with a given weight. That number will be 24. 6 days a week multiplied by 4 weeks in a month equals 24 total sessions.
Keeping it Pavel
Eggs do not teach the chicken. Experienced coaches know not to mess with programs. I've seen it all the time and when I was younger I violated this principle myself. Adding this and that, changing a program because you think you are smarter than the author. I have news for you, being full of yourself for no reason whatsoever is the key to wasting your twenties and possibly thirties. Do I really know more than the great Pavel Tsatsouline? Do I have the right to change their formula? I have no right and I do not know more than them. This is why I am keeping it Pavel.
Follow me on my journey. Repeat Until Strong.
