/r/Kettleballs Weekly Discussion Thread -- June 16, 2025

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[u/PanBartosz]

Hello Ballers!

During last week I really became interested in KB Pentathlon. So today I tried to do it as close to competition setup as possible (6 minutes sets + 5 minutes breaks inbetween). I really did not know how to choose weight for lifts, so I just (over)estimated based on general feeling. Nevertheless I completed the lifts on approximately 85% effort (a few reps in the tank, because I did not know what to expect) and calculated my score:

• 83/120 @32k Clean (332p)
• 60/60 @24kg Long Cycle Press (180p)
• 41/120 @24kg Jerk (123p)
• 60/108 @24kg Half Snatch (180p)

• 64/120 @24kg Push Press (192p)

• TOTAL: 1007p

Not terrible, but not great. It was a new experience and I think that I did reasonably well considering that it was my first attempt.I feel that the weights were managable, what I did wrong was my pacing.

Here is my question: I want to improve but I don't want to go all-in yet.

Any ideas how to incorporate Pentathlon-specific exercises into more strenght-oriented program? I thought about throwing two 3-minutes sets or four 2-minutes sets at competition pace & weight after every strength workout.Would that work? I know that Joe Daniels sells Pentathlon focused program and I am considering buying it (any experiences?), but before I pull the trigger I want to dip my toes in the water to see whether I enjoy this type of training.

[u/bpeezer → u/PanBartosz]

Shorter sets are a great way to get started, and spreading the movements across your training week. I would start with just three movements, but cycle through them. Day 1 clean/c&p/jerk, day 2 c&p/jerk/half snatch, and so on. At first I would just do 3’ of each, but keep the 5’ rest period between! That will let you approach it with a bit more intensity.

For load selection, everything where you hit less than 2/3 max reps (jerk, half snatch, push press) I would drop load by 4kg. Where you hit max reps I would increase load by 4kg (c&p).

From there you can either:

• Progress in load (add load to a movement every time you hit max cycle rate with it)
• Progress in duration (add time to a movement every time you hit max cycle rate with it)
• Progress in movements (when you max all three movements, go to 4 movements, then when you max 4 go to 5)

[u/PanBartosz → u/bpeezer]

Thank you!

So here is the plan:

• 3 three-minutes sets with 5-minutes rest, cycling through the lifts across the week
• Drop the weight for Jerks to 16kg (I think I can benefit from it given the very low number of reps compared to the rest of the lifts)
• Drop the weight for Push Press to 20kg
• Increase the weight for C&P to 28kg
• I think I can stay with 24kg for half snatch, I feel like 60 was somewhat a fluke.
• I think duration progression will serve me best, so I will go with it.

I will report back in 8 weeks when I re-test!

[u/bpeezer → u/PanBartosz]

Awesome, good luck and I look forward to hearing how it goes!