Three top tips to improve your kettlebell swing

Improve your kettlebell swing with these top tips and watch as you being leander, stronger and fitter.

2 arm Swings

The foundation move of kettlebell training! The swing often gets overlooked as kettlebell students move too quickly to more advanced moves like the snatch. The problem is that if you progress without your foundation in place then you are gonna find it tough. Learning to swing properly will help you to master all other kettlebell moves and make make more difficult moves like snatches seem like a walk in the park . So here are three easy to implement tips that will accelerate your progress on the swings.

Tip  1 - Stay connected

Stand upright and stand tall and hold your arms out in front of you - now bring the arms down to connect to the body - you will find your arms glued to your rib cage (keep it tight to the body on the ribs not the chest). Keep your arms there and push the hips back like you are riding a broomstick. Then snap your hips and leave the arms pinned to your ribcage until the hips finish - then allow the hips to pop the kettlebell off the body. Then repeat.

Tip 2 - Ride The Kettlebell Like A Broomstick

If you have pinned the arms to the ribcage then riding the kettlebell like a broomstick will come natural to you. On the downward swing with the kettlebell do not let it pull out away from you - stay connected so that your arms are glued to your body and sit back through the heels and ride the bell like a broomstick by sticking you butt out behind you which will give you more momentum to perform the swing with less effort.

Tip 3 - Lead With The Hips

Once you have pinned your arms to yoru body and you are riding the kettlbell like a broomstick, you begin the swing again by extending the hips. Obvious right? However, you should finish the hip snap long before the kettlebell reaches the top of its swing. Once the kettlebell is descending again and you are reconnecting the arms to the body it is the hips that push back first. The knees do not bend down first. Push the hips back first - the knees will bend as a result of the hips moving. So the hips lead the race to the top of the swing and they lead the race to the catch at the bottom of the swing.

Implement these tips on two-arm and one arm swings and you will gain noticeable power and coordination with the swing. Then after practicing the swing use these same tips on your snatches and you will find the kettlebell floating to the top easier than ever.

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