How does the overhead finish change the swing?

Each rep takes longer, but the evidence on extra hip work is mixed. In a study of 15 healthy adults, overhead swings took 34% longer per rep than shoulder-height swings with nearly identical peak hip moments, while 15 kettlebell-trained women swinging 12 and 16 kg bells produced about 42% more peak hip power overhead, and those authors suggested trying a heavier bell before moving from shoulder height to overhead.

Should I do American or Russian swings?

Learn the chest-height Kettlebell Swing first, since it asks less of the shoulders and lets you use a heavier bell for power work. Add the American swing when your training calls for it, as many CrossFit workouts do, and your overhead reach is good enough to finish without arching the lower back.

How do I know if my shoulders are ready to swing overhead?

Lie on your back with the ribs down and glutes tight, and raise straight arms overhead toward the floor. If your lower back lifts before your arms get there, finish your swings at eye level for now and build reach with Wall Shoulder Flexion.

What weight should I use?

Start lighter than the bell you swing to chest height, because the bell travels further and has to be controlled overhead. For reference, CrossFit's Helen workout prescribes 53 lb (24 kg) for men and 35 lb (16 kg) for women, and scales the load down for anyone who cannot keep the reps clean.

Kettlebell American Swing

What Is the Kettlebell American Swing?

Kettlebell American Swing is a compound exercise that primarily targets the glutes and hamstrings and also engages the lower back, core, lats and shoulders. It is an intermediate-level movement that takes the explosive hip drive of the Kettlebell Swing and carries the bell all the way overhead, finishing with straight arms and the bottom of the bell pointing at the ceiling.

The American swing is the standard swing in CrossFit, where it appears in benchmark workouts such as Helen, three rounds of a 400 m run, 21 kettlebell swings and 12 pull-ups. Outside CrossFit it is used the same way as other swings: as a power drill early in a session, or as high-rep conditioning in circuits and intervals.

The overhead finish is the subject of a long-running debate. Supporters argue that the longer path means more work on every rep. Critics, many of them from the hardstyle tradition behind the chest-height Russian swing, argue that the overhead position asks a lot of shoulder and upper-back mobility, invites an arched lower back or an arm-driven lift at the top, and limits how heavy the bell can be. Both sides agree that the hips should do the work, and that the chest-height swing should be learned first.

The glutes and hamstrings drive the bell in both styles. What the overhead version adds is the top of the arc: the shoulders and lats have to guide the bell into a stacked position over the head and control it on the way down, and the abs have to keep the ribs down so the lower back does not arch to make up for missing shoulder range.

It suits trained clients who already swing well to chest height and can raise their arms fully overhead with the ribs down. Anyone short of that should build the hinge with the Kettlebell Deadlift and the Kettlebell Swing first, and many coaches use an eye-level finish as a middle step while overhead reach improves.

Muscles Worked

MuscleActivation

Biceps Femoris: Primary
Gluteus Maximus: Primary
Erector Spinae: High
Semitendinosus: High
Adductor Magnus: Medium
Deltoid: Medium
Latissimus Dorsi: Medium
Rectus Abdominis: Medium
Serratus Anterior: Low
Vastus Lateralis: Low

Instructions

Stand with your feet about shoulder-width apart, toes turned slightly out, and the kettlebell on the floor about a foot in front of you.
Hinge at the hips with a slight knee bend and grip the handle with both hands, palms facing you. Brace your core and keep your spine neutral.
Hike the bell back between your legs, high and close to the groin, until your forearms touch your inner thighs.
Drive your hips forward and squeeze your glutes to stand up tall. Keep your heels down and let the bell float forward on straight arms.
As the bell passes shoulder height, let its momentum carry it on and guide it upward with straight arms. Keep your ribs down and your glutes tight.
Finish with your arms straight overhead, biceps beside your ears, and the bottom of the bell pointing at the ceiling. The bell sits directly over your shoulders, hips and mid-foot, with your hips and knees fully straight.
Let the bell fall forward and down along the same arc. Stay tall until your forearms meet your thighs, then hinge and guide the bell back between your legs.
Repeat in a steady rhythm. To finish, hike the bell back once more and set it on the floor in front of you.

Common Mistakes

Arching the lower back at the top
Flaring the ribs and leaning back to get the bell overhead puts the strain on the lower back instead of the shoulders and hips.
Lifting the bell with the arms
Pulling the bell up with the shoulders and traps turns the swing into a front raise; the hip snap should float the bell, and the arms only guide it.
Squatting the swing
Bending the knees deeply instead of pushing the hips back shifts the work to the quads and robs the swing of hip drive.
Letting the bell drift behind the head
A bell that overshoots the stacked position pulls the shoulders and lower back into extension; finish with it directly over the shoulders, hips and mid-foot.
Forcing the full overhead finish
Swinging higher than your shoulders allow with the ribs down makes the lower back pay for the missing range, so stop at eye level until reach improves.
Hinging before the bell drops
Folding forward while the bell is still high lets it drag you into a rounded back; stay tall until the forearms meet the thighs.

Injuries

Kettlebell American Swing is a medium risk exercise when performed with proper technique. The hips do the same job as in the Kettlebell Swing, but the overhead finish adds two strain points: the lower back, which tends to arch when the shoulders run out of overhead range, and the shoulders, which reach full flexion while controlling a moving bell. The bell also falls from higher, so there is more speed to absorb as it passes between the legs, which loads the lower back if the spine rounds.

Check your overhead reach before you swing heavy. Lie on your back with the ribs down and glutes squeezed, raise straight arms overhead, and note where the lower back starts to lift off the floor. If it lifts before the arms reach the floor, finish your swings at eye level instead of overhead and work on reach with Wall Shoulder Flexion. Use a lighter bell than you swing to chest height, and keep the backswing high and close to the groin.

If form breaks down, go back to the Kettlebell Swing or the Kettlebell Deadlift to retrain the hinge. Once the overhead finish is clean, the Kettlebell Snatch takes a single bell overhead with one arm. Stop the set if you feel pinching at the front or top of the shoulder, pain in the lower back, the ribs flare to get the bell up, or your grip starts to slip, since a bell that leaves the hands overhead is dangerous to you and anyone nearby.

Overview

Primary Focus: Full body
Equipment: Kettlebell
Modality: Strength
Difficulty: Intermediate

Alternative Exercises

Other Names for the Kettlebell American Swing

The Kettlebell American Swing is also known as:

Overhead Kettlebell Swing

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: How does the overhead finish change the swing?: Each rep takes longer, but the evidence on extra hip work is mixed. In a study of 15 healthy adults, overhead swings took 34% longer per rep than shoulder-height swings with nearly identical peak hip moments, while 15 kettlebell-trained women swinging 12 and 16 kg bells produced about 42% more peak hip power overhead, and those authors suggested trying a heavier bell before moving from shoulder height to overhead.
Q: Should I do American or Russian swings?: Learn the chest-height Kettlebell Swing first, since it asks less of the shoulders and lets you use a heavier bell for power work. Add the American swing when your training calls for it, as many CrossFit workouts do, and your overhead reach is good enough to finish without arching the lower back.
Q: How do I know if my shoulders are ready to swing overhead?: Lie on your back with the ribs down and glutes tight, and raise straight arms overhead toward the floor. If your lower back lifts before your arms get there, finish your swings at eye level for now and build reach with Wall Shoulder Flexion.
Q: What weight should I use?: Start lighter than the bell you swing to chest height, because the bell travels further and has to be controlled overhead. For reference, CrossFit's Helen workout prescribes 53 lb (24 kg) for men and 35 lb (16 kg) for women, and scales the load down for anyone who cannot keep the reps clean.