Kettlebell Swings: Good for getting lean, ripped, and fighting pirates on the high seas

“Are kettlebell swings good?” is a common and useful question that gets asked in various fitness communities (join this one!). They can decimate body fat, develop intense hip drive, and can seriously improve your metabolic conditioning. So are they good? The answer to this question depends on your goals. Read on to see if your goals and the benefits of kettlebell swing matc up.

But before we dive into answering this question more fully, let’s first define what “good” means within the world of fitness and exercise. Cool? Cool.

Good [adj]: Description of an exercise that does no bodily harm, and effectively increases progress toward one’s goal.

With this working definition of the word “good,” let’s put it to the test, ready?

Question #1: Are kettlebell swings good for helping you fight pirates on the high seas?

Answer: Hmm, hard to say, but my guess is that they could be. Although, I would say increasing your skills with a long sword is probably a better use of your time.

Let’s try this again.

Question #2: Are kettlebell swings good for decimating body fat, building strength and hip drive that even “The Mountain” would be jealous of, and increasing your metcon abilities?

Question #3: Are kettlebell swings good for playing running back in the NFL?

Answers #2 and #3: Ah, now we are starting to get somewhere.

We’ll take a global look at the kettlebell swing first, then dive into the more nitty gritty of the 3 examples above.

The Kettlebell Swing: A Global Perspective

I’m making the bold assumption that you already know what a kettlebell swing is.  But just in case, watch this video anyways. It’s less than a minute and it’ll help level set what the proper technique of a kettlebell swing is:

The kettlebell swing is an amazing exercise, which has many incredible benefits, including:

• Teaching a proper hip hinge
• Rapid fat loss in minimal time
• Developing high capacity for hip power
• Learning how to absorb, and then redirect load
• Conditioning the posterior chain (namely the glutes and hamstrings)

In short, the kettlebell swing is a fantastic exercise. However, this statement alone doesn’t really answer the original question of “are kettlebell swings good.” So let’s dive deeper into several, more specific questions that will help get us answers.

1) Are kettlebell swings good for fat loss?

The answer to this question is a resounding YES.  Actually, it’s more like a HELL YES.

Kettlebell swings could quite possibly be the single most magical fat-stripping exercise in the world as we know it. I know that is a bold claim to make. When it comes to blow-torching fat right off your body, I’ll put the kettlebell swing up against any other single exercise in existence.

This comes down to metabolic conditioning, aka training the body with short, intense spurts of exercise that are taxing and keep the metabolic fires burning for hours after the workout is over. A simple workout made up of kettlebell swings, plank, and jump rope will be more of a challenge than it appears on paper, and downright effective.


2) Are kettlebell swings good for building strength?
The answer to this question is more along the lines of, “it depends.”

I know. I know. That is the ultimate cop-out answer in fitness. But, that doesn’t make it any less true. It depends on what you are trying to get stronger in.  For example: Will kettlebell swings help you PR your shoulder press?

Eh, there may be some global strength transfer from the swing to the press, but I am very hesitant to think that you can PR your shoulder press, simply from swinging a kettlebell.

How about for getting stronger in the deadlift?

Ok, now we’re onto something. You see, kettlebell swings, specifically of the heavy variety, develop tremendous hip power. This is good for increasing strength in the deadlift. In fact, it’s good for increasing strength in any hip dominant exercise.  

Heavy kettlebell swings can certainly be used to help ratchet up your deadlift numbers. Also, heavy swings won’t beat your body up as much as heavy deadlifting. Because of that, you can perform them with much higher frequency. And, if you simply want to maintain your deadlift numbers for a while, to focus on developing a different aspect of fitness, heavy swings are your answer.

So, the answer to the question of “are kettlebell swings good for building strength” is, it depends. It depends what you are trying to build strength in. But, for big hip dominant exercises, like the deadlift, heavy swings are a great strength building option.

Ok. Onto the final examination of the kettlebell swing.

Will the kettlebell swing help you land a 7-figure salary as an NFL running back?

The answer to this question seems like an obvious no, but is actually a bit convoluted. On the one hand, your skill as a football player is the ultimate factor determining whether or not you make the NFL. So, kettlebell swings probably aren’t your answer.

But… the ability to run fast is highly important for playing in the NFL. Even the 300lb offensive linemen are pretty quick.

And…kettlebell swings have been shown to increase net horizontal force production and power. In plain English; they can increase your running speed. Since increasing speed is all about power output at the hips, this is important to note, especially for anyone training to run fast (or, faster than they currently do).

So, while kettlebell swings probably aren’t THE answer to you NFL aspirations, they can definitely help you run faster than you currently do now. Which, in turn, could possibly be the difference maker on whether or not you get to play on the big screen for millions of dollars.

Wow.

We covered a lot of ground answering the question, “are kettlebell swings good.”

Before I send you on your merry way, let’s quickly recap the kettlebell swing from a 30,000 foot viewpoint.

Kettlebell swings…

• Are quite possibly the single best exercise for aggressive fat loss, leaning down quick, and placing eyeballs on your six pack.
• Can increase strength in hip dominant exercises (such as the deadlift); but likely won’t increase strength to a high degree in your shoulder pres
• Most certainly are not THE answer to making the NFL; but, they do increase horizontal force production and power output, which in turn allows you to run faster than you currently do.

In closing, it’s fair to say that the kettlebell swing is highly effective exercise to have in your workout arsenal. However, the answer to the question, “are kettlebell swings good” really depends on the goal you are trying to achieve. For some goals, the swing is superb. For others, the swing is good. And, lastly, for some goals, the swing may not be the right answer at all. Again, it depends what you are trying to achieve.

In the comments, let us know what goals you’re working towards now and let’s talk about if kettlebell swings are the right answer for meeting those goals.

P.S. After writing this article, I have in fact decided that kettlebell swings will DEFINITELY make you better at fighting pirates of the high seas. Argh! 

P.P.S. Don’t forget: Sharing is caring. Send this article is a friend who needs some kettlebell in their life.