Featured Assistance Movement of the Week #2: The Kettlebell Swing

By: Brian Carroll

I’ll be covering an obscure or special assistance movement each week that I feel is important and should potentially be considered as an addition to your programming in some capacity.

One Arm Kettlebell Swing:

This is an exercise Dr. McGill personally worked with me on while I was visiting for a follow up for my back in October 2013. He was showing me the best way to improve my back strength, and overall core development, while minimizing injury. The video below with the good doctor is the first time that I have ever worked with a KB.

Before visiting Dr. McGill, I never attempted any kind of real KB work, especially a swing. If someone were to ask me to try it before this day; there is a very good chance I would have laughed at them or brushed it off entirely. I was mistaken.

This movement is the exact movement that you should be starting every single squat with, as well as picking up anything from the floor, i.e. a deadlift. It is a simple hip hinge.

Break at the hips, then the knees. Sit back first and then open your knees up. This is the definition of a hip hinge and it will save your back. Contrary to what I did the first 10 years of my lifting career.

You use one hand a time and you push your hips back. This is not a squat but more like the pull-through exercise you would do with a cable or band. The swing is much better. Keep a stiff and rigid core; you don’t use momentum to swing the bell, focus on using only your core. You do not squat the weight up like you see in so many YouTube videos, you swing under control and while staying tight.

You want to start off with a very light KB and iron the form down. Once your form is solid; slowly progress in weight. I suggest 8-12 reps and 3-4 sets to start.

These are a fantastic warm-up to start your training session to get a sweat going, and a cool down movement that you can do to finish off your day. You can eventually do these for time, high reps, added conditioning or as an accessory exercise. Keep your form solid, swing from the core, hinge your hips and… did I mention good form?

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Brian Carroll

Owner and Founder at PowerRackStrength.com
Brian is a retired world-class powerlifter with over two decades of world-class powerlifting. From 1999 to 2020, Brian Carroll was a competitive powerlifter, one of the most accomplished lifters in the sport's history. Brian started off competing in bench press competitions 'raw,' then, shortly into the journey, he gravitated toward equipped lifting as there were no "raw" categories then. You only had to choose from single-ply (USPF) and Multi-ply (APF/WPC). Brian went on to total 2730 at 275 and 2651 at 242 with more than ten times his body weight in three different classes (220, 242, 275), and both bench pressed and deadlifted over 800 pounds in two other weight classes. He's totaled 2600 over 20 times in 2 different weight classes in his career. With 60 squats of 1000lbs or more officially, this is the most in powerlifting history, regardless of weight class or federation, by anyone not named David Hoff. Brian realized many ups and downs during his 20+ years competing. After ten years of high-level powerlifting competition and an all-time World Record squat at 220 with 1030, in 2009, Brian was competing for a Police academy scholarship. On a hot and humid July morning, Brian, hurdling over a barricade at 275lbs, landed on, fell, and hurt his back. After years of back pain and failed therapy, Brian met with world-renowned back specialist Prof McGill in 2013, which changed his trajectory more than he could have imagined. In 2017, Brian Carroll and Prof McGill authored the best-selling book about Brian's triumphant comeback to powerlifting in Gift of Injury. Most recently (10.3.20) -Brian set the highest squat of all time (regardless of weight class) with 1306 lbs – being the first man to break the 1300lb squat barrier at a bodyweight of 303 lbs.
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