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The Origins of the Dead Swing
Dead Swing. Power Swing. Hike-Swing-Park. “Rif” Swing. Whatever you choose to call it, this single repetition kettlebell swing should be in your training toolbox. It’s equally fantastic as a corrective...
View ArticleHow to Sync Your Breathing for More Kettlebell Power
Kettlebell ballistics have very little to do with the kettlebell—and everything to do with how you move your body. When it comes to rhythmically repetitive power work like swings, snatches, and cleans,...
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Two Swing Cues to Unlock your Power, Posture, and Athleticism
There is a big difference between swinging a kettlebell around and executing a powerful kettlebell swing. The first is common with kettlebell beginners who often start by mimicking what they think...
View ArticleThe SFG Clock—A Guide for the Swing, Clean and Snatch
“If you don’t know where you’re going, any road will get you there.” George Harrison Over my years as a coach, I have seen many people demonstrate a variety of kettlebell movements with differing...
View ArticleNever Quit
I am a SFG Level I candidate scheduled to attend the certification in Las Vegas in February 2021. In truth, my goal is to reach the StrongFirst Elite status which means instructor status in all three...
View ArticleKeeping A Resilient Back as We Age
Meeting Pavel for the first time about twenty years ago changed my life. It is a story that has been told in these pages before. I was impressed with this quiet gentleman who knew so much about...
View ArticleA StrongFirst Protocol for Mountain Hunters
I exist in a dilemma. One of my favorite pastimes is Western hunting, usually in the mountains. I love the animals, love the physical beauty of the terrain, and I love the challenge. The problem is...
View ArticleAvoid the Traps of Intuitive Training
An Excerpt from Iron Cardio By Brett Jones, StrongFirst Director of Education “It’s a trap.” —Admiral Ackbar Intuitive programs can fall into a few traps: Always intense Always increasing Increasing...
View ArticleHow to Increase Power with “Grinds”
The good old days of bigger, faster, stronger are long gone. We know better now. Times have changed. The game of strength has new rules. It is not just about strength. It is about strength AND speed....
View ArticleBlindfold Training for Mental Focus
In my last article, “From Wheelchair to Sinister: The Importance of Mental Strength,” I wrote about the power of mental strength. I am back today to discuss the mind once more, but this time the...
View ArticlePunch the Clock
I think it was Dan John who said something to the effect that “the majority of your training will be a ‘punch the clock’ kind of session.” The younger generation might not be familiar with the...
View ArticlePutting the Wind Beneath the Stones, Part II
Lifting the Dinnie Stones is a challenge for which strength enthusiasts from all over the world travel to Scotland. Donald Dinnie not only lifted but carried the “Steens” across the Potarch Bridge in...
View ArticleThe Get-up and the Shoulder Mobility Dilemma
The get-up is one of the foundational exercises of kettlebell training. I suspect that most people who follow StrongFirst are quite familiar with this exercise. If you are a StrongFirst Certified SFG...
View ArticleRediscovering Resilience: Unifying Literacy and Strength
“No man may indeed become wise before he has had his share of winters in this world’s kingdom.”—Author: Unknown (Date: Impossible to Determine). The moment I read that out of an incredibly old...
View ArticlePreparing Swimmers for the Olympic Games: A Three-Year Strength and...
In September 2018, I was fortunate to join the elite swimming club Olympique Nice Natation (ONN) as a strength and conditioning coach. Fortunate because this meant working with Fabrice Pellerin, one of...
View ArticleThe Art of Appreciating One Thing
(An Excerpt from Kettlebell Axe) “Do you know what the difference between great people and regular people is?” says a coach to an athlete in Yevgeny Yevtushenko’s novel Don’t Die Before Death. “A great...
View ArticleSimple and Sinister—Help, I’m Stuck
“Dedication, absolute dedication, is what keeps one ahead.”—Bruce Lee Simple & Sinister embodies the quote above. Dedication to achieving Simple and continuing to Sinister has led students on...
View ArticleThe Iron Monkey Deep Six Challenge
Many years ago, StrongFirst Certified Master Instructor Jon Engum published an article using his Deep Six practice that tested an instructor candidate’s readiness to pass the SFG Level I Certification....
View ArticleJust Swing a Kettlebell: Undertaking the “Simple” February Swing Challenge
My Background I’m a 55-year-old male (schoolteacher by day) who weighs 177 pounds and stands just over 5’9”. The focus of my forties, honestly, was CrossFit. This included eight years of WODs, Metcons,...
View ArticleHow I trained for Super Sinister
In my previous article, “Introducing Super Sinister,” I introduced a new challenge for Sinister athletes. Classic Sinister requires you to perform 10 one-arm swings (48kg for men/32kg for women) every...
View ArticleThe Kur for your Kettlebell Swing and Clean
It has been stated that the swing is the center of the kettlebell universe, and it is a well-known fact that the kettlebell deadlift is the foundation of the swing. Every StrongFirst student begins...
View ArticleRedefining Strength Training for Pregnant and Postpartum Women
Pregnancy and the postpartum period often come with misconceptions regarding strength training, particularly when using traditional tools like kettlebells. Historically, medical advice has recommended...
View ArticlePrepare to Train, Don’t Just Warm Up
In April 2024, I achieved my StrongFirst Bodyweight Certification and became a StrongFirst Certified Elite Instructor. I had been working toward this goal for about three years, and it felt great to...
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