Are one armed kettlebell swings better for Jiu Jitsu?

Are one armed kettlebell swings better for Jiu Jitsu?

Well if you're short on time and want an exercise that develops better core strength through causing instability (which is probably more specific to Jiu Jitsu) then one armed swings could be a better option to have in your program.

The results of this study may be fairly intuitive, although backing up what you do with real results is important. It is one of the first, if not the first, to see the differences in muscle activation between one armed and two armed swings.

It found significantly higher muscle activation in the upper erector spine (upper back spine muscles) and rectus abdominis (your front stomach muscle) when doing the one armed versus the two armed swings. Also, important to note that the erector spinae saw higher activation on the opposite side and the rectus abdominis saw higher activation on the same side of the arm the kettlebell was being held in.

So, if you're short on time then going for one armed swings is going to provide greater work on the upper back spinal muscles and core, although make sure you do both sides! ​

The core concepts of doing either the one or two armed kettlebell swing are the same, learn them here in this article


You can access the study by clicking on the link below.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/m/pubmed/26473519

​Andersen, V., Fimland, M. S., Gunnarskog, A., Jungård, G., Slåttland, R., Vraalsen, Ø F., & Saeterbakken, A. H. (2016). Core Muscle Activation in One-Armed and Two-Armed Kettlebell Swing. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research,30(5), 1196-1204. doi:10.1519/jsc.0000000000001240