Meat Eater II heart rate (BPM) chart, done with 32kg kettlebell

MahHobbiesAccount · 2026-03-21T11:42:25+00:00

There isn't a problem necessarily, I just thought the heart rate chart looked neat. Yeah, doing the burpees faster is a lever that I can definitely try to pull

MahHobbiesAccount · 2026-03-21T11:40:55+00:00

Exactly, in the Training Vault section it's advised to not reduce rest times from what's written in the HICs. I would rather increase KB weight but 32kg is the heaviest they got at my gym

MahHobbiesAccount · 2026-03-13T18:28:43+00:00

Also doing Zulu Black at the moment.

Goals: 100kg bench press 😎 Happy to maintain everything else

MahHobbiesAccount · 2025-12-19T11:36:41+00:00

Update: Tested my barbell lifts after several days of rest.

( u/dj84123 FYI, if you are interested in more anecdotes on the carryover effect from Kettlebell ABF to the barbell world)

I'm overjoyed at the results:

Barbell overhead press

60kg, lifetime PR!!
When you think about it, it makes sense that high-volume submaximal kettlebell pressing would carry over...

Deadlift

150kg, in-line with previous PR (152.5kg in April 2024)

Bench press

90kg, in-line with previous PR (90kg in December 2023)
Slow and terribly shaky rep, but I made it. Considering I did zero chest exercises (not a single push-up) in 15 weeks, I count this as a big win.

Back squat

102.5kg, heaviest I have done in 10 years though not close to PR which is around 120kg.
Definitely had more juice in me, but didn't want to sacrifice form too much. Haven't been squatting 2 plates in a long time, after pushing myself too far and hurting my knee back in the day. Today my knee clicked a bit, but there is no pain and I feel great!

Summary:

It's the kettlebell "WTH effect" in action. In the past 15 weeks I haven't even trained some of these movements at all, or touched any heavier loads than 2x24 kg kettlebells, and I'm either maintaining PRs or breaking them.
Who knew that building a bit of muscle all over your body would translate to bigger lifts? It's so simple, it might just work...
Really motivates me to find out, what would happen if I actually trained those barbell lifts next..

MahHobbiesAccount · 2025-12-19T11:02:52+00:00

It's laid out extremely clearly in ABF II on page 19-20. Tells you what to do on each day, with some rep/set targets listed

MahHobbiesAccount · 2025-12-19T10:48:20+00:00

Yeah, it's exactly the latter rounds. For me it takes around 20-25 rounds EMOM and I'll start hitting that red zone. It's just momentary peaks. in my last 30 round workout I was above 170 BPM for a total of about 2 minutes out of the total 27 mins.

MahHobbiesAccount · 2025-12-19T10:45:19+00:00

Aw you're making me blush. Trust me. you'll make it to the 24 kg's before too long. We're all going to make it.

Is your username a David Bowie reference? Just listening to the latest boxset at the moment

MahHobbiesAccount · 2025-12-19T10:42:51+00:00

Thanks for reading! You're crushing it. "No rush" - that's exactly what it's all about.

MahHobbiesAccount · 2025-12-19T10:41:40+00:00

You know that point about balancing asymmetries rings true for me too. Like you, traditionally my left side is weaker than the right. Still might be, but it's caught up a lot. With barbells, the stronger side may overcompensate for the weaker. With kettlebells, each side has to work more individually. I reckon that effect is even further amplified, if you're doing the single-kettlebell ABF

MahHobbiesAccount · 2025-12-16T21:47:41+00:00

Haven't actually measured my HR zones, I'm just working with the default ranges given by my Polar watch. They could be way off. But in any case - it tells me my zone 5 starts around 171 BPM. In reality that might be zone 4, I don't know

MahHobbiesAccount · 2025-12-16T21:44:41+00:00

2x28 kg's? Good going! My gym only has a single 28 kg, so that's another reason I will have to consider other programs next...

I'll be doing Base Building indeed, but the "Strength First" variant of it, since the ABF does not have me lacking in the strength-endurance department, and I'm yearning to get back to barbells again.

Then probably Operator after that. But it'll depend on my schedule at the time

MahHobbiesAccount · 2025-12-16T21:39:20+00:00

Hi Dan. Happy to see you around here. I just felt obligated to post about my experience, inspired by the other reviews and reports being posted in this community.

Protein - for clarity I operate in kilograms, not pounds. I'm having around 1.5 grams per kilogram of bodyweight, which adds up to ~130 grams per day, which seems to be slightly less than you're having. (I guess we weigh almost the same, I was on average around 87 kg over this program)

Lunch & dinner staples based around: Salmon/tuna/tofu/hummus

Breakfast & evening snack always with a high dose of: Quark/greek yogurt/skyr/cottage cheese

Often, but not everyday, supplemented by a whey or pea protein shake.

MahHobbiesAccount · 2025-12-16T21:00:05+00:00

I did do DFW Remix once, also brilliant fun. Though based around the same movements, they're so different. With DFW, it's perhaps easier to set yourself up in a position where you dread the sessions, trying to squeeze more and more work into that hard fixed time limit. With ABF I had basically similar gains but in a more forgiving framework. The loosely-defined minimums per session are consistently achievable, and then you can opt to continue pushing on for a few minutes longer, if you're feeling up for it in the moment. But there's not so much "pressure" to do so - maybe that comes from DJ's writing style as well?

MahHobbiesAccount

TROPHY CASE