A New Approach to Kettle Bell Lifting

8/3/2019 A New Approach to Kettle Bell Lifting

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!

A new approach to kettlebell lifting -

dissecting the swing!

by Kenneth Jay

Z-Health Master trainer

This free report made public April 2011 and the material presented herein merely reflects my own thoughts,

questions and observations during several years spent trying to understand and elucidate obvious

discrepancies in physical development. While the structure of this report resembles a scientific paper it

shouldNOTbe viewed as such. Video of the described styles of swinging a kettlebell can be found athttp://

vimeo.com/22640813. Finally, the report is both conceptually and textually dense so I recommend reading it

several times. Thank you!

Author correspondence:NeuroSig apsKenneth Jay

phone: +45 6170 1009

email: [email protected]
http://www.kennethjay.dk/http://www.kennethjay.dk/mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]://vimeo.com/22640813http://vimeo.com/22640813http://vimeo.com/22640813http://vimeo.com/22640813


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Introduction! 3Methods! 3

Test protocol! 3Materials! 4Maximal eccentric muscle strength! 4Statistical analysis! 4

Results ! 4Subjective feel! 4

Discussion! 5Benefits of the Experimental swing style! 5Adding more joints to the movement! 6Bone rhythm! 7Consequences of the PBS swing! 8Short-term consequences! 8Long-term consequences! 9Too much focus on strength! 9Limitations of the present experiment! 10

Conclusions! 10Closing comments! 10

A new approach to kettlebell lifting - dissecting the swing! by Kenneth Jay

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Introduction

As a scientist I find myself constantly analyzing the results I am seeing in my own training

and in the training of others. Not just if the goal of the training is accomplished but also

how it is accomplished and what consequences it carries. This is what this article is about:

The possible consequences of the foundation of the kettlebell ballistics in the most

typically used approach. More specifically, a style of swinging a kettlebell that is based on

the techniques of powerlifting.

The following questions will be discussed: 1) Is that approach the most advantageous in

relation to force production 2) force development 3) athletic movement and 4) health.

The data presented in this article compares powerlifting-based style (PBS) of swinging a

kettlebell to an experimental style (EXP).

Methods

Test protocol

A test population of 30 men and women all with a minimum of 3 months of kettlebell

experience were tested in maximal eccentric muscle strength of the Latissimus Dorsi m.,

the Gluteus Maximus m., the Gluteus Medius m. and the Biceps Femoris m. All test

subjects were tested in the powerlifting-based style swing (PBS) bottom position and the

bottom position for an experimental style (EXP) of swinging a kettlebell. Briefly, the PBS

style of swinging a kettlebell involves the following: 1) Maintenance of the box-squat

alignment, 2) zero elevation and protraction of the shoulders, 3) vertical, or as close to as

possible, shins at the bottom of the swing, 4) kettlebell above knee level at the bottom of

the swing, 5) no forward knee movement in the concentric phase, heels down and knees

tracking the toes at all times, 6) hip external rotation less than 45 degrees, 7) full hip/knee/elbow extension at the top of the swing and 8) the use of the biomechanical breathing

match. The EXP style of swinging a kettlebell focuses on: 1) Stance width of 1 - 2 times

shoulder width, 2) knees tracking inside of the medial side of the foot, 3) matching knee

and hip flexion and thereby letting the knees go forward, 4) matching torso and shin angle

at the bottom of the swing and 5) feet aligned straight or almost straight ahead.


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Materials

A Lafayette Instruments manual muscle tester (model: 01163) was used to record peak

Force/kgs and time/s to peak force. Testing procedure was standardized in accordance

with guidelines of the Lafayette testing system. The testing device (strain gauge-based)

and procedure has been validated as repeatable and reliable elsewhere in the literature.

Maximal eccentric muscle strength

Each muscle test was performed in the position specific to the two swing styles and in

accordance with the prime mover actions of the muscle in question. Three test attempts

were conducted on each muscle and the highest score was recorded along with the time it

took to develop it. If the third attempt showed more than a 5% increase compared to

attempt one or two- additional attempts were performed until no increase (< 5%) could bedetected. One minute of rest was given between attempts to recover.

Statistical analysis

A post hoc paired 2-tailed t-test was conducted in Microsoft Excel for Mac 2008 for

significance values (p=0.05). Results are reported as means.

ResultsSubjective feel

All subjects reported that the

experimental style felt a lot more

solid, natural and stable regardless of

the individual results. Furthermore,

several people reported that they

would feel much more confident

swinging a heavier kettlebell in the

EXP style.


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Table 1: Table 1 shows the results of the muscle testing ofthe Latissimus Dorsi (dominant side), Gluteus Maximus(dominant side), Gluteus Medius (dominant side) andBiceps Femoris (dominant side). ns = non-significant.


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Discussion

The PBS style swing with limited ankle motion and knees tracking the feet (external hip

rotation) could possibly create a shear force in the calcaneous joints as well as in the 4 th

and 5th metatarsal joints which could to trigger a gait reflex that inhibits extension on the

contra-lateral side. The problem seems to be solvable by changing the direction of force

application into the ground as well as aligning the body in a slightly more upright posture

while allowing the knees to move forward (increased ankle dorsi flexion). This is could be

obtained simply by applying force medially on the foot and having the knees track on the

inside of the proximal/distal phalanx of the hallux.

Benefits of the Experimental swing style

1) With a change in dynamic postural alignment to a slightly more upright torso (matching

torso and shin angle) in the bottom position of the swing will change the trajectory of the

kettlebell to a more vertical path as it is swung, cleaned or snatched overhead. This means

that more force can be generated and steered into the ground as the horizontal

displacement of the kettlebell is reduced. Furthermore, because of the angled knee

position as the result of taking off the pressure of the 4 th and 5th metatarsal joints the knees

and thereby the force vectors are changed in favor of more force being applied directly into

the ground instead of being displaced laterally.

2) The Mm. Quadriceps and Mm. Triceps Surae will be able to add to the force production

during the swing as they will experience a greater stretch on the downswing. This will form

more actin/myosin cross bridges within each muscle fiber and ultimately enable the muscle

to contract with greater force without decreasing force production in the hip extensor

muscles.

3) By changing the posture and allowing the knees to move forward and having the shin

and torso angle match, the strength of the dynamic structural body position is increased,

hence the ability to distribute, generate and direct force is improved as well. The

argumentation is based on scientific principles of mathematics and geometry. Consider

this example from an architectural viewpoint: Figure 1 and 2 (see below) represents two

different geometrical structures. Figure 1 has three distinct angles and figure 2 has no

angles. If we apply load straight down on each structure the displacement of force will be

different and the structural capacity to support that load will also differ. As force is applied

to structure 1 it is split up into two vectors: AB and AC. That means that once force has

travelled through point A it no longer gets further distributed but is steered down a


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straight line. Furthermore, if load (F) is applied slightly off the center (point A) of the

structure there is nowhere for the force to go other that straight down. If the force is great

enough it will go through the structure. Now, consider figure 2. If the same load (F) is

applied at the top of this structure the force will be distributed an infinite number of times

with the possibility of steering the force along the lines of the arch. This is possible

because an arch is simply the manifestation of an infinite number of angels in sequence.

Viewing athletic movement from this perspective and replacing the word angle with the

word joint it should become clear that the more joints you get involved in athletic

movement the better you will be able to steer and displace force during movement.

As force travels through a joint it has the potential to gain momentum and be amplified. If

there are more joints involved in the movement there is a greater potential for the force to

be amplified. This of course makes sense even without a background in biomechanics or

kinesiology. The joint is moved by muscle contraction that is greater than the internal

resistance otherwise no movement would occur.

Adding more joints to the movement

In short, trying to add more joints to the movement will likely give you the ability to the

following:

1) Direct/steer the force. Force generation is important but what does it matter if you

cannot steer it to where you want it to go? Consider the fact that the greatest athletes in

sports are rarely the ones who squat, bench and deadlift the highest numbers in the gym.


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2) Force distribution. Force can be distributed throughout the body structure so no part of

the body is loaded excessively. In the PBS swing the hips are dominating the action which

means that overloading this structure can create movement restrictions in the hip and Si-

joint. By changing the structure to the experimental style it will be able handle greater

loads more safely and it will take a greater outside perturbation to compromise the

structure. Geometry tells us that the stability of an arch is superior compared to an angular

shape. In addition, using simple mathematics it can be shown that anarch will cover a

greater area than any other structure (the arch that covers the greatest area will be a circle

if viewed in 2D. In 3D it will be a sphere). This is directly related to stability of structure and

pose an important aspect in contact activities and everyday life.

3) More force can potentially be generated faster. Not only is it safer you will also be more

powerful.

In short, the following benefits are revealed:

1) In order to form arches mobility is required,

2) when the body is a 3D arch the greatest stability is obtained and

3) the 3D curved dynamic structural alignment allows the display of greater force

generation and steering- hence strength/power is increased.

Bone rhythm

Bone rhythm is a concept that

goes hand in hand with arches in

movement and the validation is

also to be found in basic

geometry. As simple as the

concept is, it is much overlookedand yet a fundamental part of

efficient movement. Basically,

bone rhythm refers to the skill of

reaching end-position extension

and f lex ion in mul i t i - jo in t

movements at the same time.

Combining that with the arches

vs. angles principle you will find that the bone rhythm of movement happens much more

fluently if the joints in question have similar distances to cover. If the angular distances are


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Figure 3: Summation of force illustration from a baseball batswing (www.baseballanalysts.com). The principle remains thesame when swinging a kettlebell.
http://www.baseballanalysts.com/http://www.baseballanalysts.com/


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the same (or close to) the joints can move at the same speed (or close to) in order to

reach end-position at the same time. If this does not occur and one joint locks out before

the other joint there is no summation of force but instead a decrease in net torque with the

result of a decreased weight lifted and possible overload of individual body structures.

Being a performance coach and having a degree in exercise physiology from the

University of Copenhagen Department of Exercise and Sports Sciences I have seen and

analyzed the best athletes across sports. One thing that stands out whether looking at

Michael Jordan, Sotomayor, Bruce Lee, Tiger Woods, Roger Federer, Manny Pacman

Pacquaio, Michael Laudrup, Karelin or Ronaldo is that their structure when performing, is

the embodiment of a three dimensional arch. The greatest athletes seem to be

incorporating as many joints as possible in a rhythmic fashion whenever they move. It isalso interesting to think about that these athletes are usually also the ones with the longest

careers and the least amount of injuries. As the kettlebell, and the PBS approach to lifting

it, has become increasingly popular in football (i.e. the NFL), fighting sports (i.e. the UFC)

as well as other sports, the argument could be made that keeping the movement of the

kettlebell ballistics true to powerlifting might be an acceptable approach from a pure

strength perspective but from a movement perspective focusing on health (not interfering

with primitive reflexes) and dynamic structural athleticism (actually practicing positionsrelevant to the way the body moves most efficient forward/lateral/vertical) proposes a

nuanced, neurological and SAID-principle based alternative that might very well be worth

practicing.

Consequences of the PBS swing

Short-term consequences

The restriction of ankle dorsi flexion can possibly lead to a loss of mobility and a

subsequent arthrokinetic reflex (AR) response from the immobile joints. Given the amount

of swing-based repetitions even in a single training session (several hundreds) with body


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loading up to 6-8 times the kettlebell weight at relatively high speeds this loss of mobility

and AR response can occur instantaneously.

Long-term consequences

Potential long term ramifications of repeatedly executing PBS swing lifts and thereby

triggering primitive gait reflexes without gait occurring could be considered quite severe.

This is indicated by longitudinal unofficial observations of the impaired gait mechanics

(more specifically the SI joint function) of people who have tens or even hundreds of

thousands repetitions of PBS swing practice in their training history. The discrepancy

between the triggered reflex and the actual action of the body for repeated repetitions

under significant load and speed is of serious concern, as altering a primitive reflex will

potentially interfere with the bodys neurological hardwiring. As the brain is anticipatory innature, triggering of the aforementioned gait reflex will cause the ocular motor reflexes to

anticipate locomotion. When locomotion does not occur but the brain thinks it does it will

cause confusion in signal interpretation in Central Command. Central Command will in turn

increase the sensitivity of central and peripheral protective mechanisms (Golgi tendon

organs etc.) thereby limiting force production, force direction, ROM, flexibility etc. The

obvious question then has to be asked: Could this be the reason why an increasing

number of people as they gain experience and accumulate repetitions in a PBS settingalso develop movement restrictions (decreased mobility) that ultimately causes pain and in

some cases structural injury?

Too much focus on strength

When single factoring out strength as the end all attribute to develop it has

consequences for the all the other equally important attributes that contribute to increased

performance. The late Dr. Mel C. Siff poses an interesting model in his classic bookSupertraining where he outlines several other attributes to equally focus on. Attributes like

speed and quickness, flexibility/mobility, individual style and endurance are all attributes

that needs to be developed, practiced and integrated in order to maintain homeostasis and

a balanced whole. The strength attribute is fine but with everything else if it is not balanced

and integrated with other attributes it will dominate the athlete in such a way that every

task/challenge is met by playing the strength card. This will in time create an imbalance

in athletic homeostasis. Imbalances can often be masked in the beginning but as time

progress it becomes increasingly difficult and movement restrictions, pain and injury

becomes a reality. This is of course confusing because that same focus on strength for


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most beginners often times actually decrease pain sensation and increases movement

ability. There is a thing as having too little strength but there is also the issue of having too

much strength without the ability to display it throughout the structure and it could appear

that is what happens to dedicated PBS swing practitioners.

Limitations of the present experiment

The experiment and the results reported in this article does NOT qualifyas peer review

level material. Plenty of factors can be pointed out as lacking in this experiment if going for

scientific publication (eg. no control group, no EMG, no video analysis, no intervention

period, not being randomized/blinded etc.) but that does not undermine the initial observed

results of changing the stance in the kettlebell swing. Furthermore, it has to be recognized

that almost all strength training technique and its instruction is purely based on experienceof the instructor and has little or no scientific backing. Plenty examples of this are to be

found on the internet and in books by self-proclaimed gurus. Hopefully, this will change so

an independent knowledge-base can guide the instruction of strength and conditioning

resulting in less pain, discomfort and injuries among the athletes.

The present experiment was conducted merely to illustrate points made in regard to the

problems observed with the traditional powerlifting-based swing style and its confounding

factors. Nevertheless the results are interesting and are backed up by anecdotalobservations made by other strength and conditioning professionals with a background in

the PBS swing methodology.

Conclusions

In this limited and initial experiment on differences in force output by changing swing

stances it was shown that for this test group the EXP style of the bottom position of the

swing was noteworthy and in some cases significantly better compared to the PBS

kettlebell swing position. The underlying mechanisms responsible for this are not clear,

however the triggering of primitive gait reflexes may play a role and further research

should investigate this.

Closing comments

While this is only an experiment and not a sanctioned study the results and the

extrapolations made in relation to discomfort, pain and possible injury are definitely

plausible based on current neuroscience. A lot of traditional rehab with corrective drills


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designed for building strength in specific muscles and positions have failed miserably

throughout the years and that is unlikely to change. The idea of just get strongerif there

is something you cant do - something advocated by many strength coaches around the

world - is an outdated ineffective approach to dealing with movement related discomfort,

pain and injury.

Being athletic is much more than being strong. Strength is one attribute that is important

but it is a mistake to make it the single factor in athleticism. Many more attributes exist and

should be equally acknowledged. What the strongest people do in a given setting is

usually not the most athletic to anyone else not competing in events based on strength as

the main necessary attribute. Well rounded athleticism and being able to move like an

athlete is so much more that displaying strength.

This article is for information purposes in an area that are dominated by a PBS

methodology and is meant as new inspiration and will hopefully inspire more people to

question what they are told in regards to lifting kettlebells. Further research can hopefully

clarify these observations in more detail so scientifically peer-reviewed articles can be

published and change the mindset of dedicated kettlebell athletes. As more research is

coming out on kettlebells I hope we will see more questioning of the classic/traditional

ways of lifting a kettlebell.

If you would like more information on this or have any questions please do not hesitate to

email me or stop by my website www.kennethjay.dk. Here you will find plenty more

information as well as the most recent peer-reviewed scientific articles on kettlebell training

as they are published.

You can friend me on facebook at www.facebook.com/coachkennethjay or follow me ontwitter @kenneth_jay. I am also available for workshops, lectures and seminars on

everything from kettlebell training to neuroscience. learn more at www.kennethjay.dk.


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A New Approach to Kettle Bell Lifting

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