10,000 KBS, WORKOUT 9, 16 JULY 2014

-I completed the workout in 47:33 using the 32 kg Kettle Bell. I got 8 hours of sleep the night prior. I kept the BS weight at 285#.

-I shaved 3:21 off of my time compared to my last BS day. Once again, during each cluster, I eliminated the 30 seconds of rest between the sets of 10 KBS/1 FS and 15 KBS/2 FS. Also, I remained dedicated to getting under the bar and squatting as soon as possible.

-I decided to do this workout on the new side of the gym in order to test out the rack I’m building. I kept the doors shut, and the lights off. It felt good to be right smack in the middle of the dimly lit and stiflingly hot construction chaos. It put me in a really good spot, mentally, right off the bat. From swing number 1 I was ready for a fight. I think this powerful mindset made a big impact on my performance.

-There were no major differences between the 5 clusters. I felt strong right from the first set of 10 swings and 1 BS in the 1st cluster.

-Clusters 2 and 3 felt really good. Swings and BS felt pretty light. I was surprised how easy the set of 50 KBS were in the 3rd cluster.

-The 4th cluster was pretty damn easy. That is a big change from the previous 8 workouts. That one has always been tough, both mentally and physically. Not so today. I was pretty amped up for it when it was time to role and, physically, it presented no trouble. I thought for sure my grip was going to be tested but to my surprise it was no problem. I was almost disappointed.

-I screamed through the 5th cluster, though to be honest I had to take a few additional breaths after my set of 25 KBS before I got on the bar to do my final 3 BS reps. I was gassed after that set of 25 swings. It was startling to feel that tired; that was something I was not expecting. I closed my eyes, took a few more deep, slow recovery breaths, and then attacked the bar. 60 seconds later I was on the bell for swings 451-500. Those last 50 swings were hard, really hard, but there was no question as to whether or not I was going to be successful.

-Despite the heat and ensuing torrents of sweat that stream off my skull and down my arms as though someone was holding a hose over my head, I have yet to touch the chalk bucket. I prefer to swing KB without it and plan on completing all 20 workouts sans chalk.

-The disassociative breathing continues to serve its purpose. I’m happy with my recovery rate and I love the additional mental challenge of breathing through my nose, only.

-I’m very satisfied with shaving 3:21 off my time while still using the 32 kg bell. My next mission is to beat my fastest 24 kg BS workout time. And that 40 kg bell is taunting me.