The American Swing
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IronSmasher
Posts: 3,908 Member
http://breakingmuscle.com/kettlebells/rationalizing-the-swing-why-the-american-swing-is-wrong
Also an important comment on rationalisation.
Also an important comment on rationalisation.
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Replies
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http://breakingmuscle.com/kettlebells/rationalizing-the-swing-why-the-american-swing-is-wrong
Also an important comment on rationalisation.
That was a great article--thanks for sharing the link. I didn't know much about this sort of swing (didn't even realise it was known as the "American swing"), except that it always looked bizarre and totally awkward to me. This is the way KB swings are taught at my chain gym here in the UK.0 -
Currently, the instructors in the Pure Gym I'm in seem to favour the Jillian Michaels' technique.0
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It's also a very important point on rationalisation that could be applied to all the terrible PTs out there.0
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It's also a very important point on rationalisation that could be applied to all the terrible PTs out there.
Yeah--there's always that egocentric push to "modernise" something that simply doesn't need and will not benefit from modernisation or "improvement".
The butthurt comments from the CrossFit crew were pretty funny. I also loved it that Valery Fedorenko turned up to ask WTF? Lololol.0 -
I hadn't seen all that!
I used to like CrossFit when it was a good idea, before it became a religion.0 -
It's not the just the "American swing" that pisses me off. It has become next to impossible for me to buy kettlebells that are weighed in kilograms. They used to be everywhere, and now all I can find in stores are kettlebells in 5-pound increments. That may seem like a weird complaint to the average person, but when all of your training has been done in 4 kg increments, it makes a difference. I've been doing TGUs with 20 kg forever because I cannot find a 24 kg bell. It's either 50 lbs, which is not enough, or 55 lbs, which is too much. I know I can order them online, but then I have to pay an astronomical shipping fee. It's ridiculous. Why do Americans have to ba$tardize everything? Why can't we just accept the good foreign ideas and leave them alone?0
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Why do Americans have to ba$tardize everything? Why can't we just accept the good foreign ideas and leave them alone?
Like Elementary (vs Sherlock). Yikes. Although House of Cards was actually an improvement.
It is weird, people (not just Americans) often want to either do something "new" or put their own twist on it & label it as their own. This goes well beyond kettlebells & fitness.
I don't really understand the general Crossfit mentality for bashing through form to get high reps/#s - at least that's how it often appears to an outsider.0 -
It's not the just the "American swing" that pisses me off. It has become next to impossible for me to buy kettlebells that are weighed in kilograms. They used to be everywhere, and now all I can find in stores are kettlebells in 5-pound increments. That may seem like a weird complaint to the average person, but when all of your training has been done in 4 kg increments, it makes a difference. I've been doing TGUs with 20 kg forever because I cannot find a 24 kg bell. It's either 50 lbs, which is not enough, or 55 lbs, which is too much. I know I can order them online, but then I have to pay an astronomical shipping fee. It's ridiculous. Why do Americans have to ba$tardize everything? Why can't we just accept the good foreign ideas and leave them alone?
Oh! That's weird, and I can definitely understand how frustrating it would be.
I was already living here in the UK when I started using KBs, and I guess I just assumed they were in kilos everywhere. I should have known when I started hanging around message boards and there were people talking in pounds. Hmm. I suppose you've already scoured the internet for some sort of free shipping deal for KBs weighted in kgs...0 -
I think there were/are still some good things about CrossFit. I've been known to borrow a WOD from them now and again. I did the "Bear" complex yesterday, in fact. But I don't do the WODs for time, or crazy rep numbers.
I'm a bit disturbed by the general CF attitude towards overworking oneself, and the ease with which one can become a certified CF coach and box owner...yikes.0 -
I'm a bit disturbed by the general CF attitude towards overworking oneself, and the ease with which one can become a certified CF coach and box owner...yikes.
This. And the attitude toward injury. They talk about it like you are just not trying hard enough if you don't dislocate your shoulder or rupture your Achilles. I read one article where an instructor said one of his female clients hurt her shoulder doing pullups, and she stopped coming to the workouts. His solution? To tell people in advance "You WILL get hurt; it's just a matter of when."
It's one thing to warn your clients that any type of exercise may lead to injury (in fact, I'm pretty sure that it's required by law). But preventing injury should ALWAYS be part of the mission. Telling clients that they will for sure get injured (which is, in itself, an implication that lack of injury means you aren't working hard enough) is just absurd.0 -
They have to sign an informed consent form for me, but I can't get them to sign away my responsibility to minimise risk of injury.
They CrossFit guy's rant is funny, because you just have to stamp CrossFit on an exercise to make it legit. It's clearly an organisation that has nothing to do with the article topic, which is rationalisation.0 -
Really good article. As a newbie, I'm so glad I didn't learn the "American" swing first. And I don't understand how CF trainers have a leg to stand on in the argument that their way is good and correct-- it just seems unnatural when you look at the anatomy in motion.0
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I've seen this swing as well as a bunch of other swings. We spent a few minutes one day in my KB class reviewing them. The instructor (RKC) talked about a few pros and cons for one or two of the variations. Then we went back to the RKC hardstyle swing that is our norm. I guess I missed out on the CF controversy. Never interested me much.0
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It's not the just the "American swing" that pisses me off. It has become next to impossible for me to buy kettlebells that are weighed in kilograms. They used to be everywhere, and now all I can find in stores are kettlebells in 5-pound increments. That may seem like a weird complaint to the average person, but when all of your training has been done in 4 kg increments, it makes a difference. I've been doing TGUs with 20 kg forever because I cannot find a 24 kg bell. It's either 50 lbs, which is not enough, or 55 lbs, which is too much. I know I can order them online, but then I have to pay an astronomical shipping fee. It's ridiculous. Why do Americans have to ba$tardize everything? Why can't we just accept the good foreign ideas and leave them alone?
I hear you re: the kilogram issue. Every so often, performbetter.com will have a free shipping event, or a sale on their kettlebells, and they are available in 2 KG increments, from 2kg to 48kg. If you keep your eyes peeled for the free shipping, you will save yourself a bundle! You could sign up for their email alerts if you wanted.
Actually, it looks like they are currently having a sale on kettlebells... check 'em out and see what the shipping might be, and if it would be worth it to you!0 -
Long live the RKC Hardstyle Swing!0
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It's not the just the "American swing" that pisses me off. It has become next to impossible for me to buy kettlebells that are weighed in kilograms. They used to be everywhere, and now all I can find in stores are kettlebells in 5-pound increments. That may seem like a weird complaint to the average person, but when all of your training has been done in 4 kg increments, it makes a difference. I've been doing TGUs with 20 kg forever because I cannot find a 24 kg bell. It's either 50 lbs, which is not enough, or 55 lbs, which is too much. I know I can order them online, but then I have to pay an astronomical shipping fee. It's ridiculous. Why do Americans have to ba$tardize everything? Why can't we just accept the good foreign ideas and leave them alone?
I hear you re: the kilogram issue. Every so often, performbetter.com will have a free shipping event, or a sale on their kettlebells, and they are available in 2 KG increments, from 2kg to 48kg. If you keep your eyes peeled for the free shipping, you will save yourself a bundle! You could sign up for their email alerts if you wanted.
Actually, it looks like they are currently having a sale on kettlebells... check 'em out and see what the shipping might be, and if it would be worth it to you!
When I started buying kettlebells to use at home I read something (I think it was on dragondoor.com) that I try to buy kettlebells locally. The reason was the cost involved in shipping weights makes it economically inefficient to ship long distances. Sure enough when I bought a kettlebell from dragondoor (Pavel's site) the shipping cost as much as the kettlebell. For subsequent purchases I sought out my local RKC instructor and he pointed me towards a local retail store that sold several brands.
I really didn't care if it showed pounds or kilograms, however the ones I get from Apollo show both. I was concerned with the handle size and width and how it balanced and whether I thought my hands could deal with swinging it for an hour. I had gone to several shops and some of the kettlebells had handles so wide that you could never swing two at a time. Alternatively, some of the handles had diameters so small I just couldn't image doing a workout with them. I had to laugh at one 32 kg kettlebell with handles the same diameter as my road bike. Anyway, I had expected the one from dragondoor to be the best, but that didn't turn out to be the case. I found the 24kg (53 lb) one from dragondoor became so slippery once I started sweating that I was at risk of losing my grip even with chalk.0
