- Welcome to another episode of Dark Horse Rowing,
today we are talking about how the kettlebell swing
relates very closely to the rowing stroke,
and why if you understand the kettlebell swing,
you are on your way to already having a good stroke,
you just don't know it yet.
For those of you that haven't been here before,
my name is Shane Farmer, this is Dark Horse Rowing,
where we teach you everything that you need to know
about the rowing machine, as well as the sport of rowing.
Anything you need to know, we got you covered.
Thanks for hanging out.
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Let's get inside.
(upbeat hip-hop pop instrumental)
So what we're talking about is how this movement many of us
already understand, the kettlebell swing, is this really,
quite useful tool to understanding the movement of rowing,
where many people look at rowing as this thing unto itself,
when in reality, it's just a combination of things
that you already know and understand.
And so if we can borrow from these things
that you already know, we don't have to start from scratch,
and that's a really great thing to getting you learning
faster, better, with greater uptake of knowledge
and information, and less having
to recreate the wheel, if you will.
Nobody wants to do that.
What we're drawing from today is the kettlebell swing.
So what's really awesome about the kettlebell swing is
that we get to draw from this thing that we already
understand, because I don't want you frankly to have
to start from scratch, nor do I wanna go through the work
of having to teach you everything from scratch.
I'd rather be able to pull from something that you already
know, because I know that when we transfer it, you're
already gonna be able to understand.
You're gonna be able to pick it up faster,
more confidently, and you're gonna have that light bulb
moment of, oh, that's what he's talking about; immediately.
Alright, now if we can do that, that means that this whole
process of figuring out what we're doing on the rower,
is a much faster, much more cohesive learning process
that is less frustrating, and is gonna be easier
for both you or your athletes, if you're a coach.
So what we can draw from the kettlebell swing,
this is super fun, I like this,
let's look at the dynamics of a kettlebell swing.
It is simply a dynamic hip close, where we decelerate,
load posterior chain, and then accelerate
by squeezing the glute.
What would happen if I told you that it's that hip opening
by the way, this, is what drives the kettlebell forward.
That's what swings the kettlebell, it's not a lift
of the arms, it's a throw with the hips
where I squeeze my tokus.
Right, this guy gets nice and firm, and it throws
that weight forward, it's that dynamic opening.
If my hips are slow, the kettlebell's not gonna swing,
or it's gonna be very heavy and I'm gonna have to lift.
What we understand inherently is that the hips hinge,
right, this hinge happens, and if I told you
that you had to do, I don't know, 100 kettlebell swings
for time, but that you couldn't close your hips,
how would that go?
Right, like that's not-- you're gonna--
like, where do I...
Do I try and like, bounce it off
How does that happen?
It's not, you're not gonna be able to get
that kettlebell swing when you don't have the ability
to close your hips and open them again.
So, this is why we draw from it,
is because you already know how to open them dynamically.
So by taking your hips and opening them, we create force.
However, when a lot of people get onto the rower,
what we find is that their trunk gets stuck
in this 12 o'clock position,
and they just slide, back and forth.
Back, and forth.
Back...
And the problem with that, is that
they get zero dynamic hip opening.
And this hip opening is responsible for a pretty decent
amount of the power that you get
when you are actually on the machine.
If that trunk get stuck at 12, you miss, and it actually
creates a gap of power, because it's your hips
that connect the leg drive to the snap of the arm.
So if the hips don't open or close, then you have
no ability to connect the legs to the handle,
and you miss that transfer of power.
And that means that you're missing.
Not an exact science, but let's call it
40 percent of your power is held up
in that hip swing to the arm connection,
and without that, you're going to have problems.
So, what you wanna think about when you're on the machine,
your hips are gonna rock between 11 and one.
It's that dynamic hip opening and closing
that allows you to load posterior chain,
as well as to unload when you need to create
that force into the rower.
So, that is a really critical element that you can take
from kettlebell swings to transfer into the rower.
Just think about the way that your hips move
with the kettlebell swing, or even perhaps with a deadlift,
and how that creates force for you, and now apply that
to a horizontal pattern instead of a vertical pattern.
So in that horizontal pattern I'm gonna keep
that trunk locked in place,
leg drive leg drive leg drive, snap.
I'm gonna squeeze my butt, as I extent my knees,
and it's going to create, phwoomp, that element of power
right here, that swings from 11 to one,
and allows me to transfer to my handle,
that creates good force production for me,
and I'm going to be able to have
a much more effective stroke,
especially through the middle of the drive,
when a lot of people lose power.
So that is why a kettlebell swing is super helpful
when it comes to learning how to use
the rower as a training tool.
That's it. Simple.
Now get outta here.
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