How to do a Russian Kettlebell Swing:

The kettlebell swing is a great accessory exercise for developing explosive lower body power. Functionally it is very similar to the Hinge/RDL, so it is recommended that you are proficient in those movement patterns before learning the KBS (Kettlebell swing). If you have not learned the hinging movement pattern yet, click here to go to the exercise library entry on it.

Initiation:

Set up the kettlebell 1-2 ft in front of you, squat down with a flat back and reach forward to grab it. It should not be so far away that you cannot maintain even foot pressure from the forefoot to the heel. If you are having to lean forward onto your toes and are basically falling forward to reach it, you have put it too far away.

Pull your back tight (shoulders down and back), and then pull the kettlebell with straight arms between your legs until your forearms are touching your inner thighs. This is how to initiate the swing to start the first rep.

‘Start’ Position:

The start, or ‘catch’ position of the kettlebell swing is the point at which the back swing of the kettlebell ends, and your forearms are in contact with your legs.

This position should be visually almost identical to the ‘hinge’ pattern. This most critically means that the majority of the movement should come from the hip, and not bending of the lower back. Additionally, there should not be excessive knee bend, or else your glutes and hamstrings will not be appropriately loaded to exert the most force on your arms/the kettlebell. In an ideal scenario the knees should not move forward very much or at all as you hinge back into the catch.

Movement:

At the point of reaching the catch position you should forcibly contract your glutes to explosively send your hips into full extension. A good mental image is imagining there is a pane of glass right in front of you and you are trying to shatter it with the pointy part of your hip bones. As your arms are in contact with your legs/hips in the catch, this acceleration of the hips will catapult your arms forward, bringing the kettlebell with them.

As a result of this, your arms should not be working to lift the kettlebell very much if at all. If you are performing the swing properly, you will have a tight grip, tight back/shoulders, but almost completely relaxed arms.

‘End’ Position:

The ‘end’ position is where the hips are fully extended and your arms are out in front of you with the kettlebell at eye level. Every rep should end here. From the initiation of the swing all the way to this point, your shoulders and back should always be pulled tight. By this I mean shoulders pushed away from the ears and squeezed back, and your collarbones should be pointing up to the ceiling. If when you reach the end position, your shoulders have come forward it means you are allowing the momentum of the weight to pull you forward. Resist that. From here, you will guide the kettlebell back between your legs with straight arms and start over from the catch position.

Common Compensations:

Squatting:

A common error is to bend the knees too much and allow the kettlebell to arc far from the hip. This will essentially neutralise the kettlebell swing and turn it into a really fast kettlebell deadlift + front delt raise. This will unload the glutes and hamstrings, and the lack of contact between the forearms and inner thighs means you can’t effectively transfer the force of the hip extension into the kettlebell.

Why this happens:

Inadequate understanding of hinging mechanics/bad habit

How to fix it:

RDL into Kettlebell swings will help you to ingrain the right pattern and the sense of where the appropriate catch position is.

Rounding the Back:

Why this happens:

Inadequate understanding of the hinge pattern

How to fix it:

Kettlebell RDLs

Getting Carried Away by the Kettlebell:

If you allow the kettlebell to pull you deep between your legs in the back swing/catch position, you will be setting yourself up to an inefficient position to drive the kettlebell back up, and it may also adversely impact your balance, especially at heavier kettlebell weights. This is akin to squatting all the way as deep as you can before trying to jump high. You will lose some of that explosive recoil if you don’t have a tight, quick turnover from catch to extension Think about creating a tight, small arc between your legs rather than letting it drag you so far back (but not catching so high that it hits you anywhere sensitive of course).

Arching in the Catch

Visually speaking, this error is quite subtle in the example above, but with a keen eye you can see the difference quite notably.

Why this happens:

Excessive overcompensation in the attempt to not round the back

How to fix it:

Learn to brace, using deadbugs

Arching in the Extension

Why this happens:

Lifting up using the lower back instead of shooting the hips forward by using the glutes

How to fix it:

Horizontal Band Resisted RDLs, pulling you into hip flexion/the bottom of the hinge, so that you have to actively use the glutes to extend back up.

Arms instead of Hips:

Why this happens:

Not making forearm to inner thigh contact, so the hips cannot drive the movement

Poor timing of the swing, so the hips cannot drive the movement

Squatting the swing (Mentioned above)

Consciously using the arms too much

How to fix it:

Completely relax the arms and only allow the kettlebell to rise as far as it naturally goes, instead of cheating the extra ROM with your arms

Stop Squatting the swing (mentioned above)

Ensure you are making contact between your forearms and inner thighs in the catch position so there is a direct connection between your hips and the kettlebell

Incomplete Hip Extension:

This one sort of goes hand in hand with ‘Arms instead of Hips’. If you do not complete your hip extension you are unnecessarily and unhelpfully limiting the degree to which your hip extensors can contribute to the movement, meaning the exercise will be less effective for its intended purpose.

Why this happens:

Lack of awareness of what full extension feels like

Ignorance/bad habit:

How to fix it:

Pay closer attention to the ‘pane of glass’ cue mentioned in the ‘Movement’ section of this guide while performing the movement

How to Progress the Kettlebell Swing to Make it Harder:

Add Weight:

The best way to make the swing harder is to just pick up a heavier kettlebell!

One Arm Swing:

You can also increase the difficulty of the swing on your upper back primarily by switching to a one armed swing. This will challenge your back muscles’ ability to control the weight and not allow it to fling you forwards.

You can also learn the trick of switching hands at the top of the movement if you want to look flashy.

How to Regress the Kettlebell Swing if You Can’t Do it:

Kettlebell RDL:

The Kettlebell Swing is just an explosive progression of any weighted hinging movements, so if you struggle with them, practicing a normal weighted hinge will help to solidify the pattern so that it is easier to maintain form more dynamically and explosively.

So What About the American Swing?

A progression popularised in CrossFit workouts is the ‘American Swing’, where the kettlebell is taken into a full overhead position. This is a somewhat controversial topic as it is debatable whether the extra ROM adds any utility to the exercise or in fact detracts from it, increases injury risk (to those without adequate overhead mobility) and shifts the focus of the movement onto muscles that the kettlebell swing was not originally intended to work.

It is also argued that if you can impart enough force on a kettlebell to get it all the way overhead, you should be working with a heavier kettlebell anyway.

‘American’/Crossfit Swing:

However, if you do intend to do the American Swing for whatever reason (i.e. doing it in a CrossFit workout), is the same as the russian swing but the amplitude of the swing is much higher. The kettlebell is taken to overhead rather than eye level. All that differs in terms of form is that the grip will have to be tighter, with the wrists actively slightly flexed in order to prevent the kettlebell from flinging behind you as it reaches the peak of the swing. In order to do this swing with minimal injury risk and maximal effectiveness, care should be taken to make sure the arms assist minimally in getting the kettlebell past eye level to reach overhead, and that you have sufficient overhead mobility to achieve the top position.

To test this, lie on the ground on your back, and try to touch the floor above you with straight arms, without your ribs or lower back lifting. If you can do this, you have sufficient mobility to do the american swing safely.