DO'S AND DONT'S OF KETTLEBELL SWING

DO’S AND DONT’S OF kettlebell SWING

and Why crossfit’s creation of the “american kettlebell swing” is stupid and dangerous

The fitness industry has a huge movement problem:

Our hinges look like squats and our squats look like hinges.

In this post, we’ll cover:

• Why it’s bad that hinges look like squats and squats look like hinges

• Why there should be value placed on technique

• What a hinge or squat should look like

Input leads to output is the central theme of any intervention or ‘Program’

The risk, rate, and overall effectiveness of any intervention is based on the quality and how consistently it was executed. 

In strength training, it’s common thought that doing 5 sets of 5 reps on squats it will get us stronger. Pretty logical: doing low reps, higher intensity, with compound multi-joint movement leads to a transfer in overall strength.

But what if doing 5 sets of 5 reps – instead of getting you stronger – gets you injured?

Is it the program design’s fault for your injury? A good question to ask is: did you have good technique while doing it? Was there any evaluation of how you did it?

Sure you accomplished the 5x5 at a specific intensity. But how was your technique while you were doing it?

Said another way:

What you are doing is one component.

How you do it needs as much – if not more – consideration

THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A HINGE AND A SQUAT

The central difference between the two comes down to the flexion of the knee or the hip.

A hinge pattern is getting into available hip flexion-extension while keeping your ribs, spine, and pelvis in a neutral position through the entire movement.

A Squat is getting into knee flexion-extension while keeping your ribs, spine, and pelvis in a neutral position through the entire movement.

As mentioned in the beginning of this post, many people are doing the opposite.

their hinges look like squats and squats look like hinges.

Why are people doing this incorrectly?

Why do people’s hinges look like squats and squats look like hinges? Some potential problem causers:

• People’s posture and daily habits are deteriorating. This leads to poor mobility and poor body control.

• Bad coaching and programming: Incorrectly training people who are not capable of sustainably holding a position. When this is done to someone incapable of certain exercises, it forces them into movement compromises.

crossfit’s “American Swing” is a stupid name

Delineating the swing as American versus Russian leads to incorrect execution of movement

The “American Swing” as it is commonly called, means raising the kettlebell overhead. From a biomechanics standpoint, it’s a horrible idea.

Said another way, you will get hurt with this type of kettlebell movement.

A couple of faults with it right away:

When people have poor mobility through their glenohumeral (shoulder) and thorax (chest), they are forced to make amendments and find range elsewhere in order to get a fixed object overhead.

They compromise.

In addition to that, the flexion and internal rotation of the shoulder don’t mix well.

In the context of a KB swing, when you swing a KB overhead and lack shoulder mobility or cannot control your rib, spine, and pelvis you overcompensate by going into the vertical vector. You go straight up and down.

There is rarely a circumstance when American Swing is programmed based on quality. it is almost always based on quantity.

This is a poorly designed exercise in general but especially for the general population.

And it leads to undesirable outcomes.

A “swing” is a high velocity hinge. that's it!  Not an overhead movement.

If you want someone to swing appropriately and access the benefits of hinging with high velocity, you place constraints on it.

Do they have the ability to flex and extend at the hip without losing control of ribs-lumbar-pelvis?

If they can do that, ramp up the velocity of the swing to a point that transfers to increased performance.

Conclusion

The ultimate goal is great biomechanical positions paired with the appropriate amount of force, velocity, or capacity.

If we simply re-engineer why we are swinging and understand that ultimate goal, you can essentially accomplish anything.

distill it down to Input x output (what you do x how you do it)

If how you’re doing something sucks or is poorly thought out – you will not get the output that you wanted in the first place.