V.P. Simen’, associate professor, Ph.D.
G.L. Drandrov, professor, Dr.Hab.
I. Yakovlev Chuvash State Pedagogical University, Cheboksary

Keywords: kettlebell lifting, long-term sports training, phases, structure, age, physical fitness, competitive results, model characteristics.

The purpose of this study was to develop and scientifically substantiate the structure of the long-term training of kettlebell lifters.

On the basis of the analysis and generalization of scientific and methodological literature, the researchers’ competitive and training experience, a survey and interviews with elite kettlebell lifters and coaches, the structure of the long-term sports training of kettlebell lifters has been developed and substantiated. It includes six consecutive phases which are characterized by the qualitative originality of current tasks. Each of the distinguished phases is characterized by constituent periods, age limits, the model characteristics of physical fitness and competitive activities, the means, methods and forms of organization of the training process and control of results. The orientation of coaches towards this structure will help to improve the quality of programming and organization of the training process and to train elite kettlebell lifters.

Introduction. As seen from the modern sports practice, high achievements of kettlebell lifters at European and world youth championships are not often repeated later in their sports career. This is due to the use of regular hard and exceptionally strenuous training load in the youth age, which exceeds the adaptabilities of the growing body of a young kettlebell lifter. When choosing training methods and techniques, level and dynamics of given load, the age peculiarities of young athletes that determine the optimal parameters of adaptation to their influence with respect to the specific character of kettlebell lifting exercises, are frequently not taken into account.

Another important reason for this situation is the lack of the unified structure of long-term sports training of kettlebell lifters in the theory and methodology of kettlebell lifting, which results in certain difficulties in programming and organization of the training process at its certain phases. The necessity of resolving the conflict between high social importance of high competitive achievements of domestic kettlebell lifters in major international competitions, on the one hand, and the insufficient scientific development of the matters of the structuralization of the long-term sports training into specific phases with distinguished current tasks and demands to physical fitness and competitive activity corresponding to them, on the other hand, determine the urgency of solving the problems of structuralization of the long-term sports training of kettlebell lifters.

The purpose of this study was to develop and scientifically substantiate the structure of the long-term sports training of kettlebell lifters.

Materials and methods. The purpose of the study was achieved using a set of research methods including: analysis and synthesis of theoretical and methodological literature, personal competitive and training experience; interview; survey of elite kettlebell lifters and coaches.

The subjects of the study were 35 elite kettlebell lifters at the age of 20–67, including 6 international masters of sport (IMS) of Russia and 29 masters of sport (MS) of Russia. All the interviewed athletes answered the questions of the survey we had developed. The answers to the questions showed the respondents’ personal experience in the organization of their own long-term sports training in kettlebell lifting.

Results and discussion. The problem of the structuralization of the long-term training of kettlebell lifters has been studied in a  number works [1-4, 7, 8].

On the basis of the results of the experimental study made, we have developed the model characteristics of physical development and physical qualification, the competition results and qualification standards for kettlebell lifters at the early phases of the long-term sports training [5, 6].

As far as today is concerned, the following problems remain poorly studied– those concerning the number of trainings per week, the number of competitions per year at different phases of the long-term sports training of kettlebell lifters, the optimal length of the training and the age for hitting the qualifying standards to get sport grades and honourable sport ranks in kettlebell lifting. The matters concerning the relative significance of physical and psychological qualities for success in kettlebell lifting also remain insufficiently studied.

In order to find the answers to these questions, we have interviewed 35 elite kettlebell lifters from Nizhny Novgorod, Omsk, Kirov, Chelyabinsk Regions, the Chuvash Republic and the Republic of Tatarstan, 29 of which are MS of Russia and 6 of which are IMS (age 20–67 years old).

The results of the survey are presented in Table 2.

It has been determined that the respondents began to systematically (not less than 3 times per week) practice kettlebell lifting at the age of 18.52±4.99 years old. They hit the qualifying standards to get the rank of first-class athlete, on the average, at the age of 19.6 years old, the rank of candidate for master of sport (CMS) – at the age of 20.8 years old, the rank of MS – at the age of 23.0 years old, the rank of IMS – at the age of 25.2 years old.

The criteria for determining the periods of the training of kettlebell lifters are the average age of elite kettlebell lifters when they have the highest results, and the time necessary for training on the way to this level of achievements. With the practice of training kettlebell lifters that has been established nowadays, the optimal time for hitting the qualifying standards to get sport grades and ranks, since the moment of starting to systematically practice kettlebell lifting, is, on the average, as follows: first-class athlete – 1.2 years, CMS – 2.3 years, MS – 4.6 years, IMS – 8.0 years.

The optimal age for achieving the highest results, including places taken at Russian, European and world championships, is, on the average, 24.6 years old, according to the results of the survey.

The duration of the whole kettlebell lifting practice may reach 29–30 years – until attributed to the group of “veterans”, and may reach 50 and more years – if to take all the time, from starting practicing kettlebell lifting at the age of 10–11 years old till finishing active practice, is taken into account.

The kettlebell lifters surveyed trained, on the average, according to the following schedule: 0.9 times at the age of 10–12 years old, 1.5 times at the age of 13–15 years old, 3.2 times at the age of 16–18 years old, 4.0 times at the age of 19–21 years old, 5.2 times during the elite competitive period.

The surveyed kettlebell lifters participated in competitions, on the average, 0.9 times per year at the age of 10–12 years old, 1.1 times per year at the age of 13–15 years old, 4.8 times per year at the age of 16–18 years old, 6.9 times per year at the age of 19–21 years old, 10.0 times per year during the elite competitive period.

The surveyed athletes chose from the lists we gave to them two physical qualities and two psychological qualities that they believe are the most necessary to succeed in kettlebell lifting and two physical qualities and two of their psychological qualities that they thinks have been developed best of all.

While answering the question “Which physical qualities are the most important to succeed in kettlebell lifting?”, 100% of the respondents chose strength endurance, 40% - strength and speed qualities, 22.8% - coordinating abilities and flexibility, 11.4% - strength, and 2.8 of the kettlebell lifters chose speed qualities.

While answering the question “Which physical qualities have been developed in you best of all?”, 82.9% of the interviewed athletes chose strength endurance, 37.2% - strength and speed qualities, 28.6% - flexibility, 20.0% - coordinating abilities, 14.3% - strength, and 8.6% - speed qualities.

The analysis of the answers to the question “Which psychological qualities are the most necessary to succeed in kettlebell lifting?” showed the following results: 80.0% of the kettlebell lifters chose purposefulness, 60.0% - self-restraint and self-control, 34.3% - persistence, 25.7% - emotional stability. None of the respondents chose courage and resolution.

The answers to the question “Which psychological qualities have been developed in you best of all?” were as follows: 77.1% of elite kettlebell lifters chose purposefulness, 60.0% - self-restraint and self-control, 42.8% - persistence, 14.3% - emotional stability and  5.7% - courage and resolution.

Table 1. The indices of competitive career of elite kettlebell lifters, Х±δ, %

Answering the question “What kinds of sport have you practiced before starting practicing kettlebell lifting professionally?”, 48.6% of the kettlebell lifters surveyed referred to team games (football – 25.7%, volleyball – 14.3%, basketball – 5.7% and table tennis – 2.9%), 34.3 referred to athletics, 25.7% - weightlifting, 20.0% - cross-country skiing, 8.6% - freestyle wrestling and sambo, 5.7% - general physical training, gymnastics and bodybuilding, 2.8% of the interviewed athletes mentioned summer polyathlon, swimming, powerlifting, arm wrestling, karate and boxing, 5.7% of the kettlebell lifters did not practice any kind of sport. And, by the way, some kettlebell lifters, before starting practicing kettlebell lifting professionally, practiced different sports at the same time.

The interviews with the strongest kettlebell lifters, repeated world and European champions revealed that they had been creating a varied functional base and, only having reached the age optimal for the demonstration of high results, they had used more powerful training means.

The analysis of the working experience of the best coaches and champion biographies has shown that development of sport skills in kettlebell lifting mostly depends on the age when the athletes began systematic and committed practice. For instance, world champion Valentin Yegorov started practicing kettlebell lifting at the age of 11 and hit the standard of MS of Russia at the age of 16 and the standard of the IMS at the age of 21. World champion and world record-holder among junior athletes Andrey Atlaskin joined kettlebell lifting at the age of 13 years old and hit the standard of MS of Russia at the age of 17 and the standard of IMS at the age of 22. Repeated world champion and world record-holder Ivan Denisov began to systematically practice kettlebell lifting at the age of 17 and hit the standard of MS of Russia at the age of 18 and the standard of IMS at the age of 19 years old. On the other hand, European champion, Guinness Book record holder Boris Glinkin began to practice kettlebell lifting systematically, not less than three times per week, at the age of 24 and hit the standard of MS of the USSR at the age of 27 and IMS at the age of 34.

Having analyzed the special literature data, the results of our experimental studies and the survey of elite kettlebell lifters, we have developed the structure of the long-term sports training of kettlebell lifters. The training includes in its structure six phases, eight periods of training, nine age limits, eight fundamental program and norm demands, five organizational forms of practice; the number of trainings per week and the number of competitions per year are also given (Table 3).

At the phase of qualification and initial training, children of 10–12 are admitted to the kettlebell lifting circle. The duration of the phase is from one to two years. In the process of training work, on the basis of the results of testing of special physical qualification, the most gifted and capable children are selected. The training sessions with these children are held (at the departments of kettlebell lifting of CYSS or in school clubs) three times per week, the number of competitions per year being 1–2 times per year.

By the age of 13 years, young kettlebell lifters, on the basis of the results of control end-of-year examinations, particularly, according to hit standards of children’s sport grades, are transferred to the group of sport specialization. Then, till the age of 15, they continue practicing according to the specialized basic training program in Training Group 1 (TG–1) three times per week, the number of competitions being 2–3 times per year.

On condition that the kettlebell lifter hits the standards of the 1^st youth grade, at the age of 16–18, he starts practicing according to the advanced specialized training program in the training groups of the second (TG–2 – the age is 16–17 years old) and the third (TG–3 – the age is 17–18 years old) years of practice. The trainings are held three times per week, the number of competitions per year increases up to 3 times.

Young athletes who have regularly been practicing kettlebell lifting and who have reached the age of 19 are transferred, according to the results of the control end-of-year examinations, to the group of athletic perfection, in which the athletes increase their athletic mastery for three–four years. In the period of athletic perfection, it is obligatory for kettlebell lifters to hot the standards of the 1^st sport grade at the age of 19–20 years old and the standards of CMS at the age of 21–22, with three–four trainings per week and 5–6 competitions per year. In the period of achieving athletic mastery, at the age of 23–24 years old, kettlebell lifters meet the norm of the honourable rank of MS of Russia, with 5–7 training sessions per week and 9­–11 competitions per year, and are transferred to the group of athletic mastery perfection.

In the consecutive years, at the age of 25–31 years old, athletes try to reach the highest level of technical skills and the functional capacities of their body, which corresponds to the programmed model of future, and try to gain the honorouble ranks of IMS, MMS of Russia, with 5–7 training sessions per week and 9–11 competitions per year.  

The experienced athletes’ elite competitive phase may last rather long. This statement is confirmed by the long-term world championship titles won by famous Russian kettlebell lifters Sergey Mishin, Aleksey Pivovarov, Mikhail Bibikov, Ivan Denisov, Ukrainian athletes Roman Mikhalchuk, Yuri Petrenko etc.

Table 3. The approximate structure of the long-term process of sports training of kettlebell lifters.

The phase of athletic longevity or the period of stabilization of the highest results is at the age of 32–39 years old. At the age of forty, kettlebell lifters approach the phase of finishing the competitive career and, according to the competition rules, are attributed to the age group of veterans, but, if they wish, they may participate in competitions for adult kettlebell lifters as well.

The indicator for attributing to the phase of athletic longevity is the stabilization of high results without a considerable further growth, and the following decrease of results after the period of high competitive results. This phase may be rather long, with a gradual transfer to the competitions for veterans and with “supporting” practice instead of participation in the competitions.

It is necessary to note that the principle of the phases in sports training does not exclude cases when kettlebell lifting practice starts at a later age. However, a kettlebell lifter must pass through all these phases of mastery formation in his training. Certainly, the adults who have just begun practicing kettlebell lifting may do more exercises to develop their strength and strength endurance at the phase of initial training, and the elite competitive phase may be connected with more modest tasks – hitting the standards of sport grades.

Conclusion. So, at the modern phase of development of kettlebell lifting, the matters concerning the long-term sports training of kettlebell lifters have been studied insufficiently and are the subject for both theoretical and practical studies. The orientation of coaches towards the structure of the phased long-term sports training of kettlebell lifters we have developed will help enhance the programming and organization of the training process and train elite kettlebell lifters.

References

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7. Simen’, V.P. The qualifying standards of kettlebell lifters at the early stages of long-term sports training / V.P. Simen’ // Vestnik Chuvashskogo gosudarstvennogo pedagogicheskogo universiteta im. I.Ya. Yakovleva. – 2013. – No. 4 (80). Part 1. – Pp. 135–138. (In Russian)
8. Sukhovey, A.V. The author’s  urriculum of kettlebell lifting training (from the age of 10) / A.V. Sukhovey, I.V. Morozov. – Rostov-on-Don, 2007. – 46 P. (In Russian)

Corresponding authors: simen.vladimir@yandex.ru; gerold49@mail.ru