I love it when I pick up a pair of pants that I haven’t worn for a while, reach into the pocket and discover money. It’s incredible how a crumpled $50 note that belonged to me already, and that I hadn’t noticed missing, makes my day brighter and more enjoyable. It would be crazy for me to take that cash and throw it on the ground, toss it in the bin or burn it, but that’s what some people do with a crucial and incredibly valuable part of their training that is, essentially, found money.

What if I told you that there was something that could improve your swing, your snatch, your clean, and your press, and that was really, incredibly easy to make much better. Would you be interested?

Such a mystical thing exists, and you’re already doing it, but if my experiences coaching have taught me anything, you’re probably doing it badly… Meaning that it’s diminishing your power in all the movements alluded to above.

Some of you may have guessed it already. I’m talking about your set up.

How can I improve my kettlebell swing?

Start with your set-up. The set up is our basic starting point. It helps to set our intentions, lets us pre-load a bunch of muscles, it helps us to identify how we’re feeling as well as what obstacles our body might present today. Importantly, we aren’t rushed when we set up. We can engage in a ritual that will let us provide powerful support to every ensuing movement, and we don’t need to do it at anywhere near the same speed as a snatch or a clean. I see so many people who struggle with their ballistic movements because they spend the first several reps trying to establish the posture that they could have established before they even performed their first rep. 

Our set up is great, not just because it supercharges our first couple reps, it is also fantastic because of the way in which it gives us a line to follow as we engage in our hinge patterns. Our set up for our ballistics will be very similar to the bottom of our hinge. You may find that you’re a little deeper or shallower depending upon your bodies shape and size, but in general they are going to be two very closely related positions.

Hopefully at this stage you’re convinced that you shouldn’t be rushing or ignoring your set up, in the video above I’ll run through a basic set up for approaching a kettlebell (a conglomeration of things that I’ve learned helping to teach at StrongFirst events, as well as things that I’ve personally found helpful along the way - including some tips to help you coach people). If you can master this position in slower or even static positions, then you’ll be able to look forward to seeing your ballistic movements skyrocket in their ease and power heading into the future.

If you’re interested in learning how to effectively use kettlebells in your training, come along to our next beginner workshop and learn the swing, get-up and goblet squat!