The kettlebell snatch is great exercise, but learning good technique can be tricky.  Today’s post is the last in a three-part series on Mastering the Kettlebell Snatch.

In part one of the series, we talked about the lockout phase of the movement. In part two, we covered the downswing.  Now, in today’s final installment, we’ll cover the upswing.

Here’s a video that covers part three in detail – watch it first:

Video Recap

We’ve now progressed to performing a full kettlebell snatch. We’ll start with the ‘bell about one foot in front of us (the same set up as a swing).

To start the move, hike pass the weight back – again, the same ‘start’ as the swing. But, instead of swinging the weight in front of you and up to shoulder height, we’re going to go straight overhead with the move into a snatch.

Remember:

The arc of snatch is much closer to the body than the swing.

And so to drill this idea down, we’ll perform the following progression:

• Three one-hand swings.
• Three high pulls – try to make the ‘bell ‘float’ at the top by pulling the elbow back and snapping the hips simultaneously.
• Three snatches. The snatch will simply be an extension of the high pull. The weight floats at the top during the high pull, and then we get our hand around the ‘bell to finish the snatch.

Again, perfecting your form on the kettlebell snatch takes work.  If you’re having trouble learning the movement or if you’re just looking to refine your form, go through the three step learning progression I’ve outlined in this article and video series. Good luck and keep training hard!

Forest Vance, Russian Kettlebell Challenge Certified Instructor

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The kettlebell snatch is a highly technical move.  But taking the time to master it is well worth it – you’ll have a great exercise under your belt for power generation, world-class conditioning, and a whole lot more.

Over the next few blog posts, I’m going to teach you the three most important elements you need to learn to master the kettlebell snatch. In part one (this post), we’re going to cover the lockout.

First, watch this short video – it covers this first ‘phase’ of the learning process and some tips on how to practice:

Video Recap

You’ll start with a kettlebell between the feet in a sumo deadlift position. Cheat curl the ‘bell up to your shoulder and press it up over your head. All we’re trying to do is get comfortable with our overhead lockout position.

The bicep should be right by the ear. A common mistake is to hold the ‘bell slightly in front of the body. If you lack proper shoulder mobility, this is likely going to be a problem for you (all the more reason to practice your Turkish getups).

A great drill to practice and get comfortable in this lockout position is an overhead walk. To perform this drill, you would simply get the KB pressed over your head and walk around the room with it. If your elbow is bent, or the kettlebell is out in front of you too far, this is nearly impossible – and that this drill is very self-correcting is part of the beauty of it.

Developing a great lockout is critical to mastering the kettlebell snatch; with tips covered this article and video, you’ll have it down in no time. Practice what we talked about today, and I’ll see you next time for part two in mastering the kettlebell snatch series!

P.S. Don’t forget – if you want a complete guide to mastering the basics of kettlebell training – including the snatch – check out the KettlebellBasics.net Quick Start Guide by clicking here

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Here’s the third and final installment of the Kettlebell Swing Mistakes and Fixes series – in this one, I’ll cover how to fix the common range of motion problem I see in the kettlebell Swing.  If you missed the first two posts in this series, make sure to check those out, too – I’ll provide links to them at the end of this article.

As I discus in the video below, the Swing mistake here is not getting the ‘bell far enough back as the weight comes down between the legs and is ‘hike passed’ back:

The fix to the mistake discussed in the video is to think about getting the bottom of the ‘bell to face the wall behind you as it comes down and back.  This will allow a larger range of motion and enable you further to ‘pull’ on the KB, thus the ability to generate more force – resulting in a more powerful Swing.

The second fix to this problem (that I don’t cover in the video above) is the towel drill.  What you’d do is assume the bottom position of the Swing with a towel in your hands instead of a kettlebell.  You need a towel about 18-24 inches long, and you should be grabbing in the middle of the towel so the ends are hanging down loose.  Freeze in this bottom-of-the-Swing position, and then either have a partner grab the towel from the back, or loop the towel around something directly behind you to anchor it.  Take a small step forward to put tension on the towel – and get the ‘feel’ for that ideal Swing position.

In summary, the third kettlebell Swing mistake is quite simply improper range of motion.  The fix mentioned in the video above, as well as the towel drill, are two solutions to this problem.  Encorporate these two drills into your kettlebell Swing practice to improve your form today – and keep training hard!

Forest Vance, Certified Russian Kettlebell Instructor

P.S. If you missed the first two parts of this post series, the links below will take you to them:

Kettlebell Swing Mistakes And Fixes (part 1)

Kettlebell Swing Mistakes And Fixes (part 2)

P.S.S. Signed up for my weekly newsletter yet?  You’ll get new kettlebell workouts, videos, and training tips delivered straight to your email inbox when you sign up … just enter your name and email address into the box at the upper right of the page to do so today!

The industry standard research that experts refer to with regards to motor learning comes from a 1991 book called – you guessed it – Motor Learning by Doctors Richard Schmidt and Craig A. Wrisberg. In this book, Dr. Schmidt states with a flurry of charts and studies that it requires approximately 300-500 repetitions to develop a new motor pattern. Conversely, once bad or inadequate habits are already in place, he states it takes about 3000-5000 repetitions to erase and correct a bad motor pattern.

Interestingly, it seems that folks who are starting from a blank slate with kettlebells – who’ve never touched one in their entire life – are actually easier to teach proper technique to than folks who’ve been training on their own for a while and have learned some of the basics incorrectly.  I’ve observed this ever since I seriously started using kettlebells in my training practice – and the above research confirms this fact.

The moral of the story:  Spend the time to learn your Kettlebell Basics right the first time around, so you can spend more time training and making progress towards your fitness goals than practicing and correcting your technique and trying to avoid injury!

I’m going to take the next couple of posts to address some common mistakes folks make with the exercise that forms the foundation of our HardStyle kettlebell training – the Kettlebell Swing – and how to fix them.

For part one of this Kettlebell Swing Mistakes And Fixes series, start by watching the video below:

The mistake we’re talking about in the video above is lack of full hip extension.  If you’re making this mistake, you’re not getting a full application of the power that’s being generated by the lower body during the Swing.  Not only will you be weaker, but doing this puts the stress on the wrong muscles and wrong areas of your body.

Here are a few good cues to help you correct this issue:

1. Stand as tall as possible

If you think about standing up as tall as you can at the top of the movement, this will help you fully extend the hips and get full glute activation and application of power.

2. Pinch a coin

Tighten the glutes as hard as you can at the top of the movement.  Another way to think about this is at the top of your Swing as the weight comes up, if someone were to kick you in the butt, it would be rock hard, not soft.

A lot of folks have what we call ‘gluteal amnesia’ –  they’ve forgotten what it even feels like to activate the glutes.  So this ‘body hardening drill’ – where you actually have a partner kick you in the butt while you do a Plank or Sumo Deadlift – is a great way to get a feel for proper glute activation.

3. Pull the knee caps up

Instead of thinking about locking out your knees, you’re going to tense your quads and pull your knee caps up. This will help you again to bring your hips through and effectively transfer that force to your upper body from the lower body.

Remember, it takes roughly 300-500 repetitions of a new motor skill to learn it properly, but it takes 3000-5000 reps to correct it if you learn it wrong.  So take the time to learn the Kettlebell Swing right the first time around.  This being said, 99% of the technique mistakes people make with the HardStyle Kettlebell Swing can really be boiled down to a select few.  Lack of glute activation and full hip extension is a big one – so if you’re guilty of making this mistake yourself, take the tips in this article and fix your form.

P.S. Don’t forget – my Kettlebell Basics Swing Manual covers tips like these to help you perfect your technique and become a true Hard Style Swing master over the course of 12 weeks. To learn more about it, click the image below: