How KB Swings Relate to Oly Lifting

Jesus was a great teacher because he taught in parables, gave examples, and was exceptionally talented at making his disciples see likenesses in things they may not have seen otherwise. He also taught principles that governed his followers lives.

I am no Jesus and never will be but it is my job to Coach everyone who walks through the door and help them connect the dots when it comes to movement and to teach you all principles.

One thing that we always say is that there are certain principles that never change and will always remain a constant no matter what exercise you are doing. For example, a flat back is a strong back. An athletic position allows for the most versatility. The more tension you have in your posterior chain the more power you can produce.

That last one is what I want to speak on. Today we did a ton of exercises with Kettlebells that required tension in the posterior chain for efficiency and power like KB snatches, high pulls, cleans, and swings. They all require the same amount of tension in the loading phase as you would need in the Hang position of a clean or snatch. In both positions a flat back is created by pushing the butt back allowing for the chest to protrude as far as possible over the bar or KB, to create tension in the hamstrings while maintaining a whole footed.

Here is the Hang Position in a Clean:

Here is the loading phase of a KB Swing:

 

You can see in both pictures the chest is as far over the toes as possible with tension in the hamstrings and the weight is balanced in the feet. That is always a position of power. This allows your posterior chain to fire efficiently and powerfully.

When you are doing any exercise remember that skills and principles transfer for one exercise to another so always recognize what principle is governing the exercise you are doing and practice is flawlessly so it transfer over to other movements.

Like the wind...

7/18/13

Warm Up: #3

Skill: Seated Box Jumps
3X6

Strength: Bulgarian Split Squats w/ Bar in Rack
3x6 (L/R) @ Heavy

Rest 60-90 seconds

Workout: Rough one...

Barbell Club

 Warm Up: #3

Skill: Seated Box Jumps
3X6

Strength:

Take 10 mins to work up to a heavy clean double

Front Squat:
1 FS every 15 secs for 1min (5 reps) @ 70% (don't rerack)
Rest 2 minutes
1 FS every 10 secs for 40 secs (5 reps) @ 80% (Don't rerack)
Rest 3 minutes
1 FS every 10 secs for 30 secs (4 reps) @ 90% (Don't rerack)