once i moved down to san diego i started training in kettlebell sport, which i didn't even realize was a thing until i started following people under the "kettlebell" hashtag on instagram. i ended up following a bunch of people, some of which were kettlebell sport athletes, and then i was like, "hmmmm,... i think i want to do that."
So when I moved down to San Diego, I booked one on one sessions with Brittany (@kbfitbritt) so I could figure out HOW to do kettlebell sport, which has very different techniques from the average kettlebell workout. and then joined team KOR (@mykorstrength) so I could start to learn more and prepare for a competition! but that's not the topic of today's post. Today I am going to explain what exactly kettlebell sport is because i have been explaining it to friends and family since i started getting into it, and i figured there were other people who had questions on what i've been talking about all the time!
SO. here are the basics of what kettlebell sport is:
(disclaimer: I do not know everything about KB sport, but this is my basic understanding of it all!)
there are three main events:
all of these events are for 10 minutes, and if you drop the bells you cannot pick them back up. There are competitions that do 5 minutes, as well. but they are not ranked events (as far as I can tell)
Snatch : one bell, you swing the bell overhead as many times as possible in 10 minutes, you can switch hands once throughout the event.
Long Cycle: double bells, clean and jerk, for as many reps as possible in 10 minutes. clean being swinging the bells back through your legs and up into a rack position, and then jerk (basically a press that uses your legs to get it overhead)
Jerk: double bells, just jerking the bells overhead nonstop, for as many reps as possible in 10 minutes.
Other events include:
One Arm Long Cycle: Fairly self explanatory, it is long cycle, as listed above, just using one arm instead of two. And this allows for a hand switch.
Double Snatch: Snatch two bells up and either drop back into rack and then snatch them back up or just snatch them as you would with one arm. (I haven't seen this at except in instagram videos, so I'm not sure if its an event typically seen at any competition)
Biathlon: This is competing in a 10 minute jerk set, and then a 10 minute snatch set. With rest between those sets.
Other things to know:
kettlebell sport is also known as girevoy sport, and the terms can be used interchangeably.
the sport originated in Russia.
sport kettlebells, regardless of weight, are the same dimensions.
The weights you can compete in are all in kilograms, which are 8, 12, 16, 20, 24, 28, 32, 36, 40, 44, 48.
Fixation! You have to fixate at the top of each rep, otherwise it does not count. What is fixation? That is a complete arm and body lockout at the top of the rep, with the lifter and the bell completely motionless.
Scoring is calculated by several things: the reps, the lift, the weight of the kettlebell, and the weight of the lifter. so basically, if two people are lifting the same weight KB and hit the same reps, but one is lighter... the lighter person would win. there is a full on mathematical formula that calculates the scores in a competition if you are interested in looking into it.
EDIT:
As of 2020, Kettlebell Juggling has been added to Kettlebell Sport.
Kettlebell Juggling is judged by a panel who give points for number of rotations on flips, timing, turns, and style. My understanding, is that it’s kind of judged like ice skating. Though I have not found a scoring system online yet.
and that's the gist of it! there's obviously a lot more nuance as you get into it, especially into the technical side of things. but now, hopefully you can understand the basics of kettlebell sport!
kettlebell sport is a great endurance sport and an amazing community of people! i have legitimately made so many friends through this, and if you're thinking about trying it out, i would go for it! it can be super intimidating, for sure, but you won't know if you like it if you don't try!
any questions? want to start learning more about fitness or kettlebells? leave me a comment below or send me a message on instagram or facebook!