The Quick & Dirty On Kettlebell Swings

I receive questions about kettlebell swings just about everyday—how many, how often, what weight... The truth is, heavier swings done for a small number of reps and lighter swings done for a whole lot of reps both have their place on the performance and healthy-living spectrums. Heavy swings raise the baseline of strength, and lighter swings build endurance and skill around that new strength benchmark. That being said, the number of people fit and skilled enough to perform 25+ high-quality swings in a set without losing technique is very small relative to the number of people swinging kettlebells, so this question is really only valid in the context of a skilled kettlebeller.

Once a person learns proper technique around the mechanics and properly swinging a bell, ideally by taking an HKC course or working with an RKC trained professional, they should use the following program to help determine their next workout’s acute variables:

Standard Weights / Weight Classes

Men under/over 175lbs: 20kg/24kg

Strong Men of any weight: 24kg

Women under/over 130lbs: 12-16kg/16-20kg

Strong Woman of any weight: 20kg

Workouts

Get Strong: 2-5 sets of 5 at 2X standard weight

Live Long: 3 sets of 10 at standard weight

Strength Endurance A: 2-5 sets of 15-25 reps at or below standard weight

Strength Endurance B: Breathing Ladders at standard weight (Rest period is measured in inhalations equal to half the number of reps performed in the Swing, often starting with 20 swings and dropped by two each round)

Aerobic Endurance: 1-3 sets of 50-100+ reps at 50-75% of standard weight

Next Steps

Naturally, once a person has 10,000 or so swings under their belt, they are going to become significantly stronger and much more efficient than they are today. Dedicated kettlebellers will need to raise their “standard weight” to 24-32kg or more with time, although the same reps and math will apply.