The Athletic Hinge
LOADING THE QUADRICEPS
[DOUBLE KETTLEBELL CLEAN TUTORIAL]
The combination of strength and speed is the ultimate athletic sophistication. The athletic hinge is a multifaceted position that determines our force production potential, its repeatability, and is the base of Hardstyle Kettlebell Training Ballistics.
The Swing, Clean, and Snatch are athletic hinging movements. Although they largely derive their power from hip extension, the athlete cannot neglect a secondary focus on knee extension for an ideal projection of the kettlebell(s) from backswing to finish.
This article dissects the practical applications of a deeper knee bend for vertical and horizontal power generation through trajectory, load, and movement pattern. I will demonstrate cues of athletic hinging using the Double Kettlebell Clean as example.
Because the Double Kettlebell Clean (+ Jerk) relies on repeated successful cleans, this movement must maximize vertical force with a reliance on increasing efficiency. I hope to convince you that bending the knees is warranted and highly vital to this end.
The Athletic Hinge: Double Kettlebell Clean using 28kg+28kg Kettlebells. When performing Double Kettlebell Cleans, I argue that its more efficient to bend the knees in the backswing to engage (even if they come forward) the quadriceps. Performed properly, this “squat” amplifies vertical forces. In effect, the kettlebells will drop downward from the rack position (but also backward). This positioning of the load will ensure that the athlete’s athletic hinge will give the bells a vertical trajectory.
The Athletic Hinge
“THE HINGE IS NOT A SQUAT! THE HINGE IS NOT A SQUAT! THE HINGE IS NOT A SQUAT!” - This mantra was constantly repeated at my SFG I in 2014 - San Diego, CA
But what if it is?
Having graduated my StrongFirst SFG I in 2014, I have seen many teaching standards and philosophies evolve. Depending on the experience (and age) of the coach, there are dramatic differences in critiques, focal points, and overall nuance in training style.
As an athlete with a decade with of kettlebell experience I have developed my own philosophies and methods in training. However, I do not believe one should break the rules until they know them first - hence my affiliations with StrongFirst principles.
As a coach with 15 years of experience, I take offense to maniacal, matter-of-fact coaching styles. This is why I want to discuss the athletic hinge, showing how nuance of style (more knee bend) promotes enhanced vertical (and horizontal) engagement.
Why is this important? Typical StrongFirst principles relay the hinge as a pure posterior chain movement. For example, the swing should focus on a deep hip hinge with minimal knee bend. But what if the athlete felt better with a bit more knee bend?
Thesis
The kettlebell athlete should experiment with higher degrees of knee bend (squatting) in their athletic hinge to find their ideal power generation zone. This applies to both single and double kettlebell movements and varies depending on the load and trajectory of the movement ie; Swings, Snatches, Cleans.
Article Roadmap
StrongFirst Standards: Double Kettlebell Clean/One Arm Swing
Breaking the Rules: Two Hand Swing
Breaking the Rules: Double Kettlebell Clean
Defining the Athletic Hinge
Horizontal Force: Long Jump
Vertical Force: High Jump
Vertical Force: Vertical Jump
The Hinge Continuum by Dan John
The Double Kettlebell Clean - My Ideal Position
The One Arm Kettlebell Swing - My Ideal Position
Should You Squat Your Double Kettlebell Cleans?
Conclusion: Blending Nuance
Double Kettlebell Clean Standard
Via StrongFirst SFG I Manual
All of the points that apply to the swing*, minus the arm extension requirement on the top and the float requirement.
The kettlebells, the elbows, and the torso “become one” on the top of the clean. The shoulders must be pressed down. The wrists must be straight (neutral wrist).
The kettlebells travel the shortest distance possible.
The kettlebells come in contact with the forearms on the top of the clean with no impact.
Ladies may not hit their breasts with their arms or kettlebells for health reasons.
*One-Arm Kettlebell Swing Standard
The back is neutral. The neck is slightly extended or neutral on the bottom of the swing.
The heels, toes, and the balls of the feet are planted and the knees track the toes.
The shoulders are packed.
The kettlebell handles passes above the knees during the backswing.
The arm is straight in the bottom position.
There is no forward knee movement (increasing ankle dorsiflexion) on the upswing.**
The body forms a straight line on the top of the swing: The hips and knees extend fully, the spine is neutral.
The kettlebell forms an extension of the straight arm at the top of the swing. A slight elbow bend is acceptable.
The biomechanical breathing match is used.
The abs and glutes visibly contract at the top of the swing.
The kettlebell floats momentarily on the top of the swing.
Breaking the Rules
Two Hand Kettlebell Swing
Using StrongFirst’s standards is pragmatic. However, well-intentioned coaches often become zealots with the overarching philosophy without first proving themselves in the court of popular opinion ie; their training skills match their coaching skills.
Prudent athletes and coaches know there is nuance to everything. In my view, if you’ve proven yourself as an SFG I, SFG II, SFL, SFB or Elite coach, you should voice your subjective option. I want to focus on Standards 4 & 6 from the One Arm Swing:
4. The kettlebell handles passes above the knees during the backswing
The Kettlebell Swing focuses on a horizontal trajectory. If the kettlebell were to pass below the knees in the backswing, the athlete might lose their abdominal brace. This would increase the chance of lower back injury and misalign the Swing’s orientation.
However, its shortsighted to think of the Swing as only horizontal. The purpose of a hinge (like in a barbell) deadlift, is to lift the weight upward. To initiate this vertical motion, we need a degree a bending the knees while pushing hard into the floor.*
My Sumo Deadlift technique is similar to my Kettlebell Athletic Hinge Position (but slightly wider). The Deadlift lifts the load vertically with as little horizontal deviation as possible. It’s prudent to take this into account during kettlebell ballistics. Since the kettlebell travels backward in the backswing, it can be projected forward.
But since I try to use my quads as much as possible to overcome the inertia of the barbell in the Deadlift, it makes sense to also use the quads to their fullest degree in a Kettlebell Swing.
*General Kettlebell Swing height is at least to the chest. Some athletes choose to swing to head level. This is hotly debated, but I think anywhere between the chest and head is A-OK. Remember if squatting the hinge, the trajectory might bring the bell higher.
6. There is no forward knee movement (increasing ankle dorsiflexion) on the upswing.I agree with this point. We do not “scoop” the kettlebells vertically like in a barbell Clean (they’re not heavy enough to need to do that). However, during the first ballistic or subsequents, I argue for increased dorsiflexion for more quad engagement.
I was scolded during my SFG II in January 2021 for allowing my knees to come forward during a heavy (32kg +32kg) Double Kettlebell Clean at the certification. There is a reason I did that: physics! Oh my! I needed to balance the 83% BW load.
Things change when loads get heavy. As the example above, same with a heavy Kettlebell Military Press. A “strict press” changes depending on the load of the bell and the size of the athlete lifting that bell. There will be some degree of lean to find proper leverage aka “wedge.”
Swinging the 60kg (132lb) RKC Kettlebell. At ~ 75% of my overall body mass, this monster bell causes me to break two rules! Increased ankle dorsiflexion and leaning back at the top of the swing. Am I wrong? Hardly. This is a heavy load and I move it with precision. If I don’t bend my knees (squat) more into my hinge, there is no way I’m swinging the 60kg to chest.
BREAKING THE RULES! LOL just kidding. This was my first set of 6/10 swings with the 60kg (During an AXE session). It took me until rep 3 to find my center of balance with the monster bell. Physics require higher ankle dorsiflexion/knee bend (squatting), and leaning back at the top of the swing. Nuance.
During a Weightlifting-style barbell clean, the athlete hinges from a deep squat. In my USAW instructor certification course, the clean and snatch were never taught as a hinge. Athletes are instructed to have their knees come over the bar and squat the weight into the first pull.
In effect, if the same goal of the lifting the load horizontally or vertically is applied to a kettlebell movement, we will see variation in the knee bend associated based on the athlete’s anthropometry and their need for recruiting the muscles of the lower body.
Breaking the Rules
Double Kettlebell Clean
Depending on the mass of the athlete and the load being moved, physics requires an increased center of gravity to offset the load. Training above 28kg+28kg, my torso will shift forward (through knee bend/dorsiflexion). → That’s over 72% of my overall mass.
Subsequent re-cleans get feedback from their being dropped from the rack. The athlete should keep the bells close to the body and drop them in a relatively vertical orientation [standard 3 (though they will still need guide them into the backswing)]
If the bells are dropped vertically, the torso can maintain a more upright position, requiring more “squat” or knee bend/ankle dorsiflexion. The knees will travel forward. So what? If squatting makes re-cleans more efficient ie; easier, I’m here for it.
Standards 4 & 6 Broken.
Upside: More quad engagement, easier effort to re-clean double kettlebells.
I’ve developed my technique of the Double Kettlebell Clean + Jerk since 2017. I feel efficient, powerful, and highly enamored with this movement. I have shifted my style since 2019 to more of an upright torso by increasing knee bend/ankle dorsiflexion. My Re-Cleans became more efficient, leaving gas in the tank for more reps and higher load.
Kettlebell AXE - One Arm Swing: 40kg 6/30:00. For One Arm Swings, 40kg is the minimum I’ll swing. It’s enough load to provide a tremendous training effect, but not too heavy to be discouraging. Like the above examples, I’m focusing on squatting into my backswing. This cue along with continued lat engagement allows 180 successful reps per 30:00 session.
In the Clean above, I can keep my torso slightly more upright since the bells are traveling up. But the trajectory of a One Arm Swing is to the chest, so the kettlebell must travel further into the backswing, causing the torso more forward lean.
Defining the Athletic Hinge
Hinge vs Squat
The hinge is not a squat. In a squat, the knees move forward as the hips move down. In the hinge, the hips move to the rear, not down. The knees bend, but minimally.For the swing and the deadlift hinge, it’s about the “jump” position. Although the knees do not translate forward in the swing, this does not mean they do not bend nor that there is no downward force on the ascent. In fact, it is vital for maximal power production. Think vertical jump.Mark Reifkind in An Explanation of the Athletic Hinge
StrongFirst clearly emphasizes that the knees do not translate forward during Swings, Cleans, and Snatches. This is important. When learning these movements, I agree that standards must be met and we must be strict in reinforcing these subjective “rules.”
However, I have given examples of where the knees translate forward in my training and I will not be made wrong for clearly explaining this nuance. With my long jumping/sprinting background, I am experienced high speed/power force production.
So when I see comparisons of the Athletic Hinge to jumping, this makes total sense. Athletes dunk basketballs, athletes long and high jump, athletes hurdle. Techniques vary but there is a nuanced approach to how much hinge and how much squat.
My argument is not in “scooping the knees,” but in bending the knees more for horizontal and vertical oriented movements ie; Swings and Double Cleans. Let’s look at the total hinge and squat patterns of world class Field Athletes.
Horizontal Force Production
Long Jump
Long Jumping’s goal is maximal distance. To achieve this, the athlete will need to sprint to the line and jump at 45 degrees to maximize their vertical height. The approach speed will dictate the distance they jump, while the vertical orientation will maximize that potential. As you can see from this long jumper, his hips barely hinge and his knees barely bend. He does however go into triple extension of his jumping leg (plantar flexion - which we don’t use on our Double Kettlebell Cleans).
Vertical Force Production
The High Jump is a lot like the Long Jump except the athlete is going for maximal height. They still need enough horizontal speed to clear the bar. You can see this high jumper has a very similar hip hinge and knee bend (squat) to the long jumper. Crazy! So how much is enough? (Also he uses plantar flexion).
Since this athlete is only going for vertical displacement and is not performing an approach before his jump, he has higher degrees of hip and knee flexion prior to jumping. His positioning prior to take off is the closest example of what a heavy kettlebell swing or double kettlebell clean looks like (Again, he’s using plantar flexion).
Seeing a world class long jumper and high jumper barely bend their hips and knees to perform stellar long and high jumps (respectively) gives us nuance to the athletic hinge: its about the physics of the task being performed and the load being moved.
When we see the vertical jump attempt during the NFL combine, we see no demand for horizontal, but purely vertical forces. His bottom position looks a lot like the athletic hinge needed for moving heavy kettlebell(s) horizontally and vertically.
Author’s Note:
Caveat
A commonality in these comparisons is that each athlete uses triple extension of their hips, knees, and ankles. This is a common technique in weightlifting, but not generally used in Hardstyle Kettlebell Training (except during the jerk/push press).
So if we take plantar flexion out of the equation, we have our hips and knee musculature to move heavy loads. To me, this means we have to adjust the degree of hip, knee, and ankle flexion to match the load and task of the kettlebell ballistic.
Plantar Flexion
Since the athlete examples above are able to generate high amounts of power and vertical/horizontal displacement from strong plantar flexion, their physics differ from Kettlebell Athletes. In Kettlebell Ballistics, we keep the feet planted on the deck.
We must rely entirely on the hip and knee complexes to generate our power (with exception to the jerk/push press). In effect, the more we use our quads in a well-developed hip hinge, the more horizontal and vertical force production we can consistently use.
DAN JOHN: THE HIP MOVEMENT CONTINUUM
I came across this article by Dan John and thought the chart was interesting. For pure strength and conditioning purposes, it is useful. However, we must realize there is nuance and wiggle room between everything. For example, the left side of the chart:
If I saw a student swinging a kettlebell with such a deep hinge and no knee, I would ask them “do your hamstrings get sore?” They’re respond “yes,” and I’d tell them to try to bend their knees more in the backswing. “Oh now I feel it in my glutes.” Bingo.
And since we know that higher loads are instructive, I’d then give the student a heavy bell (over half bodyweight) and ask them to perform swings. They would naturally counterbalance the load with increased ankle dorsiflexion and a lean back at the top.
“Oh wow, now I feel it in my quads and my glutes. The bell is flying up! This is great!”
“I know.”
So why are we teaching the swing as a pure hip hinge? According to this school of thought, calling the Swing a pure hip hinge is akin to the athlete performing a Romanian Deadlift (RDL) or Single Leg Deadlift (SLDL) motion in the swing.
Imagine a swing like this….
That’s an ugly ass Swing!
So here are my thoughts: analyzing a chart like this, I would place the Kettlebell Swing and Double Kettlebell Cleans/Ballistics right around the vertical jump marker. Although slightly different, the Swing, Snatch, and Clean will fall close to this marker.
The kettlebells must go up in a Double Clean. Notice the similarities in position.
Now let’s compare the vertical jump athlete with my hinge on a very heavy Swing:
The 60kg Kettlebell’s momentum into the backswing is robust. It pulls me backward and my body must counterbalance with increased dorsiflexion and a forward lean of the torso. However, it still looks remarkably similar to the Double Clean, and mimics the vertical jump athlete.
Great athletes will look relatively similar in all of their kettlebell ballistic movements. I have noticed a great shift in force production from simply cueing myself to bend the knees more at the bottom of my double cleans. You should try this and get back to me.
60kg Swing, 64kg Double Clean, 56kg Double Clean. SWING: more hinge, slightly less knee bend. CLEAN: 64kg more squat, more hinge than with 56kg to accommodate the load. slightly more knee bend. During swings I’ll often keep my neck neutral to emphasize more horizontal displacement. During cleans I’ll often have a slight neck extension to keep my chest more upright for vertical displacement.
The Double Kettlebell Clean
Vertical (and Horizontal) Force Production
Double Kettlebell Clean: 32kg + 32kg - My Ideal Position
The One Arm Kettlebell Swing
Horizontal (and Vertical) Force Production
One Arm Kettlebell Swing: 48kg - My Ideal Position
Should You Squat Your Double Kettlebell Cleans?
The Athletic Hinge
Conclusion: Blending Nuance
In writing this article, I hope to challenge dogmatic principles. Without dedicated experimentation and skill development, we falter into the “old way” of doing things. What we should seek is the “better way” of doing things: this requires nuance.
To their credit, many instructors have evolved their thinking of the once “tippy bird”’ style of ballistic to a broader Athletic Hinge. However, each athlete will have to find and practice their unique power generation style themselves: all hinges look different.
I want to learn from the most-practiced, most-skilled, and strongest athletes and coaches. They usually have unique coaching cues that common lifters do not. I study strength athletes from all schools: we must approach our learning holistically.
In conclusion, I believe that the Athletic Hinge is built on both quadriceps loading (knee bend) plus an appropriate hinging angle based on the ballistic’s trajectory. What results? More power generation, easier repeatability, and enhanced tactile feedback.
And who fucking cares if you’re breaking someone else’s standards? Don’t your own standards matter more?
The Athletic Hinge Thesis:
The kettlebell athlete should experiment with higher degrees of knee bend (squatting) in their athletic hinge to find their ideal power generation zone. This applies to both single and double kettlebell movements and varies depending on the load and trajectory of the movement ie; Swings, Snatches, Cleans.
John Parker
January 13, 2024
[How To] Double Kettlebell Clean
The Double Kettlebell Clean Instructional Videos
Power Breathing
Stance, Positioning, Ritual, Loading, Grip
The Hike
Row to Clean
Dead Stop Clean
Dropping the Kettlebells
Full Clean
