Kettlebells: Hardstyle vs Sport Style

I will preface this by saying that this post is not about pitting the two common Kettlebell training "styles" against one another (that's not what the "vs" is for). I will not contribute to some religious war between the two because, to put it bluntly, it's dumb as hell. Both styles work. Period.

This isn't me trying to be the training equivalent of "politically correct". Both work, because they actually do. This isn't some ground breaking revelation either. I'm certainly not the first nor the last to say it.

The general recommendation when someone asks which "style" they should use is "if you want strength and power, do hardstyle, if you want endurance, do sport style". This is correct, of course. Who am I to disagree with people who have been training with Kettlebells for far longer than I have?

I will, however, disagree with the take-away point that some (most?) people will get from that statement.

The Nuance

I don't really like to make assumptions when it comes to how other people think. In this case, however, I don't think I'm wrong to assume that a significant amount of people will interpret "hardstyle for strength, sport style for endurance" to mean both the programming and the technique.

The assumption is that since sport style technique (which many sport style guys, especially of the old school variety, will simply call good technique) is meant to be efficient, it won't be as good for strength and power development. This is, of course, completely wrong.

Being as efficient as possible doesn't mean it won't build strength and power. It does take more brute strength and force to Clean, or Snatch, an equal amount of weight with the hardstyle technique, granted, but what the hell are you going to do when you reach a plateau doing it that way?

The Hardstyle Problem

Hardstyle Kettlebell training is what I'm used to the most. I never really considered myself a "hardstyle guy", per se, but it's the technique I've primarily used for the swing/clean/snatch, and my programming style is very similar to theirs (though I do a lot more volume/movements than most popular programs out there advocate for).

I also believe, rather religiously, in their "Big Six" movements: the Swing, Clean, Press, Snatch, Squat and Turkish Get Up (I believe in them so much that, indeed, I capitalize their name). I also firmly believe that your training week is not complete until you have performed all of these moves at least once. And yes, I'm ready to die on that hill.

There is but one issue with hardstyle training, or to be more accurate, its swing technique. If we're thinking about the swing as a foundation for the Clean and the Snatch, then the hardstyle technique isn't really conductive to lifting the most amount of weight you possibly can.

I get it, one of the principles of hardstyle is to get you as strong as possible with less weight. After all, they'll never go as heavy as a barbell can. But does that mean you should limit yourself to double 24kg, or double 32s?

True, being able to Clean & Press two 32KG Kettlebells is no small feat, but with hard work, you'll eventually get there. Should you stay there forever? Absolutely not (and that's also the point where switching to competition bells become really useful).

I used double 32s as an example here, but the following principle applies regardless of the weight: by learning, and using the sport style "pendulum" swing, you will make better progress over time, allowing you to become stronger and more powerful.

The "How"

First, I do not advise ditching the hardstyle Swing. These are fucking great. And no, there's no way to put it without swearing. No matter what you do, no matter how/why you train, whether you're a kettlebell guy, a barbell guy, a freakin' ballerina, the Swing is always going to be a great tool. Do 'em!

As to how you can utilize both, well, there's lots of ways. One way would be to stick to sport style when you move the heaviest weight, while using the hardstyle variation (perhaps just the Swing) as accessory/supplemental work.

Another would be to first use sport style when moving up in bell weight, and when you can do sets of 5, switch to hardstyle. And yet another way, if you like doing high rep sets, is to start with hardstyle and when the set gets harder, finish it with sport style.

These are just three examples. Be creative.

It goes without saying that this whole thing is when you train for general fitness/strength purposes. If you're interested in actually competing in Kettlebell sport, do not listen to my advice. Get a coach instead.

Some Notes

If you've never done kettlebell training before and wonder which version to learn first, I don't really have a specific answer. Opinions vary on that, and I don't think any of them are wrong. No matter which version you learn first, if you do it long enough the movement will become instinctive, and learning the other will mean fighting against your instincts.

Perhaps the answer is to learn both at the same time, and treat them as completely different movements (which they are, kinda). Learn the HS two hand swing, while practicing the sport style movement pattern without weight. When you're ready to add weight to it, do it light, one handed, and for reps.

It should also be pointed out that using the sport style pendulum swing does not mean you have to learn or use their rack position. I don't. My rack position is more of a hybrid, similar to Joe Daniels', simply because, much like him, I do not have the build (ie, upper arm length) to put my elbows in the iliac crest.

The KB sport rack position is, much like their swing, the more efficient way of putting the most amount of weight, for the most amount of reps, overhead, granted, but you have to make due with what you've got.