Are You Making These 3 Fatal Kettlebell Swing Mistakes?

Pat discusses what good technique actually means in the context of kettlebell training, as well as his top three FATAL kettlebell mistakes. Drop a comment below - what do you consider to be the #1 kettlebell swing mistake?

[batardtrisomique]

I think it might be easier to define and identify "mistakes", if we stop looking at an exercise by itself. The Question of "Why shouldn't I squat on my swings and use my front delts to go over head?" is kind of like asking "Why shouldn't I hammer down a screw if it's working?" The answer only starts to make sense once you introduce the concept of a screwdriver, or in our case squats and front raises. It's not that it's wrong because it doesn't work at all, it's wrong in the sense that it is suboptimal to reach our goals, since we have better dedicated tools to reach them more efficiently.

And what might be a mistake for a certain specific goal might be the right approach for another. It might also make a lot of sense, to have a variety of styles or techniques for exercises, depending on what you want to achieve and what limitations you're facing with your body, your equipment or your time. That's basically not only knowing how to use a screwdriver, but even having different sizes at your disposal to better fit the screws. And let's not forget, that being suboptimal can be a lot of fun, which should be a purpose too to some extent. Using a handsaw might give you more satisfaction than ordering machine-cut pieces. Personally I like doing stuff like 30 to 60 minutes of single arm clean and jerk (switching sides every minute) and I am fully aware that most people have zero interest in doing that and wouldn't benefit from it. 😄

So yeah, mistakes are defined by the goal of the exercise and how they interfere with it, but that goal itself is defined by alternative exercises at our disposal. It's basically task division... If you could only do swings and nothing else, it might even make sense to get some quads and front delts in there. 😄

[antonipoblocki]

The squat swings made me smile. Last year I worked with a trainer who specifically advised me to squat deeper in a swing to improve the explosiveness of leg work in martial arts (the "jump into range" at the start of a combo, if you know what I mean). It was an interesting experience. Rewiring years of muscle memory wasn't easy :D

[williammoore]

Thanks for the perspective. As an SFG 1 and very new to teaching others, I think that I can recognize the 3 fatal mistakes in others, but I don’t want to be Mr know it all when I correct ie essentially saying my way is right and yours is wrong. Addressing the mistakes from the context of the intended function though, makes the critiquing seem much less judgmental and more objective. A kinder approach?? A change in my approach that I will make. Bill

[JH_Phillips]

Come for the kettlebells, stay for the Aristotelian philosophy.

[andrewwestcombe]

I like the new background, Pat. Maybe double down on the schoolroom look, and dress like Mr Rogers?