Kettlebell Swing (Two-Hand)

HingeKB

The foundational ballistic hip hinge. Kettlebell floats to chest height driven purely by hip extension — not a squat, not a front raise. Builds posterior chain power and conditioning in one movement.

Demo: StrongFirst

Sets

5

Reps

10-20

Rest

1 min

Contraindications

Acute low back pain — regress to KB deadlift first. Wrist bruising if not caught properly.

Setup

KB one foot in front of you on the floor. Hinge back, grip the horns with both hands, hike the KB back between your legs.

Execution

  1. 1Aggressively drive hips forward to snap the KB up
  2. 2Arms are ropes — no shoulder muscle involvement
  3. 3KB floats to chest height at the top
  4. 4Guide it back down, catching with a hinge, not a squat

Key cues

  • Hike it like a football
  • Hips snap, not arms lift
  • Vertical forearm at the top
  • Attack the zipper on the way down

Common faults

  • Squatting the swing (using knees, not hips)
  • Using arms to lift the bell
  • Overextending the low back at the top
  • Bell drops too low between the legs

Tweaks

  • Add a pause at the top (isometric)
  • Alternate hands (H2H swing)
  • Deadstop swing — reset each rep from the floor

Regressions

Kettlebell Deadlift

Muscles

Primary: Gluteus Maximus, Hamstrings, Erector Spinae

Secondary: Latissimus Dorsi, Core, Forearms

Notes

Considered the single best conditioning movement in the KB canon. Master this before any other KB ballistic.

Sources

Attribution: StrongFirst / Pavel Tsatsouline