A lot of guys over 40 who pick up kettlebells don’t really care about muscle - but they should .
Especially if they want to “drop fat,” “get back in shape,” or dare I even say it, “Tone up.”
Why?
Muscle is your body’s “fat-burning mechanism.”
It burns extra calories both at rest and at work.
And the more muscle you have on your body, the more calories you burn off at rest, and the more you burn while you work - kettlebell Swing, Press, or Snatch a kettlebell.
And those two things are critically vital for fat loss.
And they're also critical for “getting stronger.”
The more muscle you have on your body, the greater strength potential you have.
With that foundation set, I got this comment over one of my IG posts the other day - the answer to which I thought you’d find insightful.
Good question.
When discussing muscle growth, we need to think in terms of “whole-body” vs. “local.”
“Systemic” is the impact a load or stimulus has on the body as a whole.
“Localized” is the impact a load or stimulus has on a region - like the shoulders / shoulder girdle.
The Kettlebell Clean + Press is categorized as a “multi-joint lift” - which is made up of two or more “compound exercises” - exercises that use multiple joints.
Contrast a multi-joint movement with an “isolation exercise” - like a biceps curl - which only uses (in theory) one joint.
This is important to know weight because the energy demand and the stimulus for change in your nervous system is greater using a multi-joint exercise when compared to an “isolation exercise” .
However…
The demand on the muscle tissue is usually the inverse -
There’s more demand on muscle tissue in isolation exercises compared to compound exercises.
In fact, you could say it’s a continuum that looks like this:
Compound Lift → Compound Exercise → Isolation Exercise
Increased CNS demand / stimulus → Lesser CNS demand / stimulus
Less muscle tissue demand → Increased muscle tissue demand
This explains why bodybuilders are usually bigger than powerlifters but powerlifters are stronger .
Bodybuilders focus on making their muscles as massive as possible.
Powerlifters emphasize making their muscles - with relation to the Squat, Bench Press, and Deadlift - as forceful as possible.
Now, with that as our context , let’s get back to our question:
The pros of the Clean + Press over the Strict Press are as follows:
1- Greater systemic stress (compound lift vs. compound exercise), and therefore greater nervous system activation for change .
2- Less localized upper body exhaustion, so usually, but not always, you can get more Presses in a set of Clean + Press vs. a set of Presses.
3- Use “ground reaction force” or “force wave” from the Clean to boost power output in the Press. This too often lowers upper body fatigue and boosts the number of Presses you can do.
4- Improved conditioning effect from alternating between Cleans and Presses.
5- Train the posterior chain (hips, hamstrings, erectors, calves).
… To name but five .
Does that mean you should never do “just” Presses?
No, not at all.
Here’s the reasons of Presses over the Clean + Press:
1- If you’re concentrating on increasing your Press Max, then do repeat Presses.
2- If you want to “just” focus on pure localized muscle building, then do “just” Presses.
3- If you’re learning how to Press, you need to concentrate on your technique - sets of unbroken Presses are the way to do.
… To name but 3 .
Personally?
At this stage in my life, I’m all about saving time , so I prefer Clean + Press vs. the Press.
If you don’t want to choose, here’s another option that some may consider the ultimate compromise :
Clean THEN Press.
Do all you Cleans FIRST, and then, without resting your bells, do your set of Presses.
(This is called a complex.)
This still gives you a systemic response , but you also get a focused response too.
The only downside is you’ve accumulated exhaustion by doing your Cleans first, so your Presses may suffer.
Which is best for you?
Clean + Press, “just” Presses, or Cleans THEN Presses?
It all rests on your specific goals.
For most guys our age - probably 90% - are best served by “just” Clean + Presses.
Stay Strong,
Geoff Neupert.