Taking on a fitness, mindset, or diet challenge is a fantastic way to have some motivation and structure to help you improve your health and reach your goals.
A 100 kettlebell swings a day challenge is a great way to not only improve your cardio fitness and build strength but also establish a fitness routine and lose weight (if weight loss is a goal!).
In this 100 kettlebell swings a day challenge guide, we will discuss how to do kettlebell swings, potential 100 kettlebell swings a day results, the calories burned for kettlebell swings, and a 30-day 100 kettlebell swings a day challenge for beginners.
We will look at:
- How Do You Do a Kettlebell Swing?
- What Are Kettlebell Swings Good For?
- How Many Calories Do Kettlebell Swings Burn?
- What Is the Best 100 Kettlebell Swings a Day Challenge Plan?
Let’s get started!
How Do You Do a Kettlebell Swing?
If you are going to be doing 100 kettlebell swings a day, using proper kettlebell swing technique is paramount.
Here are the steps for how to do a kettlebell swing:
- Stand upright with your feet slightly wider than shoulder-width apart, gripping the side/top of the kettlebell handle with each hand (one hand around each “corner” or bend of the handle top).
- Your arms should be fully extended so the kettlebell is hanging down in front of your body.
- Keep your heels firmly planted, but allow a gentle bend in your knees.
- Engage your core and glutes as you press through your heels and explode through your hips to drive the kettlebell upward until it’s roughly chest height with your arms fully extended out in front of you.
- Control the kettlebell as it descends back down. Allow the weight to swing backward through the space between your legs. Keep your glutes and lower back tight.
- At the end of the arc of the swing, snap your hips forward again to drive the kettlebell back up to chest height.
- Move in a smooth and seamless pattern from rep to rep without stopping.
What Are Kettlebell Swings Good For?
Although the kettlebell swing can be a little difficult for beginners to master, it is truly one of the foundational kettlebell exercises.
According to a research study conducted by ACE Fitness, kettlebell swings are one of the most effective hamstring exercises.
Plus, studies have found that the kettlebell swing exercise is a highly effective movement for improving functional strength and decreasing the risk of lower back pain.
The kettlebell swing is also a great total-body conditioning exercise and an excellent kettlebell exercise for metabolic conditioning (met con) workouts and CrossFit workouts, especially if you are building up to doing 100 kettlebell swings without stopping.
How Many Calories Do Kettlebell Swings Burn?
The number of calories you burn doing any exercise depends on the actual exercise, as well as your body weight and the intensity with which you perform the exercise.
So, how many calories will you burn doing 100 kettlebell swings?
According to the Compendium of Physical Activities, the METs for kettlebell swings and similar vigorous circuit training exercises performed without stopping is 8 METs.
Calories burned per minute = METS x 3.5 x body weight in kg / 200
For example, if you weigh 165 pounds, which is 75 kg, the “kettlebell swings calories per minute” is 8 x 3.5 x 75 / 200 = 10.5 calories per minute.
Then, we can use the METS for kettlebell swings to answer the question: “How many calories does kettlebell swings burn if I’m doing 100 KB swings?”
In order to do this, we need to determine how long it takes to do 100 kettlebell swings.
One small study found that the average of two-handed kettlebell swings per minute was 22.
Note that the study population was college-aged males trying to perform as many kettlebell swings in 12 minutes as possible using a 16kg kettlebell (35-pound kettlebell).
Therefore, you may do fewer kettlebell swings per minute (or more), depending on your fitness level, how many kettlebell swings you are doing without stopping, and the kettlebell weight.
If we go with approximately 20 kettlebell swings per minute, it will take 5 minutes to do 100 kettlebell swings in a row.
Therefore, for the 165-pound (75 kg) person, we would multiply 10.5 calories per minute times 5 minutes of kettlebell swings, which is 52.5 calories.
The more you weigh, the more calories you burn doing kettlebell swings.
What Is the Best 100 Kettlebell Swings a Day Challenge Plan?
There isn’t necessarily a single best 100 kettlebell swings a day challenge program for everyone.
The best 100 kettlebell swings a day challenge for you will depend on several factors including:
- Your current fitness level
- Your intended 100 kettlebell swings a day results (100 kettlebell swings a day weight loss results vs. 100 kettlebell swings a day for building muscle, etc.)
- Any other workouts that you are doing alongside your 100 daily kettlebell swings challenge program
In other words, if you just want to see if you can do 100 kettlebell swings a day and lift weights, do CrossFit workouts with kettlebells, or use a lightweight kettlebell for 100 kettlebell swings a day, you might be able to do a 7-day 100 kettlebell swings a day challenge that has you rather easily banging out 100 kettlebell swings per day in a week.
On the other hand, if you are a beginner, taking on a 100 kettlebell swings a day challenge for weight loss, or hoping to facilitate establishing a consistent workout routine moving forward, a longer fitness program such as a 30-day 100 kettlebell swings a day challenge is going to be more beneficial and likely to provide the results you are hoping for.
With that in mind, we have created a 30-day 100 kettlebell swings a day weight loss, strength, and workout habit-building challenge.
If you have the fitness and health to support skipping a few days or weeks of this 100 daily kettlebell swings training plan, you are welcome to do so; otherwise, we recommend following this 100 kettlebell swings a day training program for the full 30 days.
The reason we chose 30 days for our 100 kettlebell swings a day challenge is that if you are trying to lose weight, learning how to do kettlebell swings properly, or building muscle with 100 kettlebell swings a day, you need time to do so.
Even 30 days to achieve these goals is short.
Therefore, we highly recommend continuing this 100 kettlebell swings a day challenge once you have actually finished the 30 day 100 kettlebell swings training program so that you will continue to reap the benefits of doing 100 kettlebell swings a day.
The 100 kettlebell swings a day program that we have created doesn’t start with 100 kettlebell swings right off the bat, as this can increase the risk of injuries and induce severe muscle soreness, both of which will make it unsafe (and impossible) to keep doing the 100 KB swings challenge.
Instead, the 30 day 100 KB swings a day challenge will help you build up to doing 100 kettlebell swings a day and sustain your 100 kettlebell swings workout.
One of the most common questions that beginner athletes have before embarking on a 100 KB swings a day challenge is: “What kettlebell weight should I use for kettlebell swings, or what KB weight is best for 100 kettlebell swings?”
The kettlebell weight for doing 100 kettlebell swings should generally be much lighter than the kettlebell weight you would use for kettlebell swings for strength workouts or kettlebell swings for hypertrophy where you are only doing 5 to 12 kettlebell swings per set at most.
Beginners might start with just 6 kg or a 15-pound kettlebell, and advanced athletes will likely build up to a 16 kg kettlebell (35 pounds) for 100 swings or even a 20 kg (44 pound) kettlebell for 100 kettlebell swings.
Note that these recommended kettlebell swing weights refer to doing double-handed kettlebell swings, not single-arm kettlebell swings.
For the kettlebell swings challenge workouts that have sets of reps, take as much rest as you need in between each set, particularly if you are a beginner.
As you repeat the workout in subsequent days of the kettlebell swings challenge, try to decrease the length of time for the rest.
For example, if you start with 60 seconds of rest in between each set of 20 kettlebell swings, try to scale back to 45 seconds, and then 30 seconds, the next day.
If you are a beginner, you should take the prescribed rest days, but if you are an advanced athlete, you can certainly try doing 100 kettlebell swings a day and even modify this 100 kettlebell swings a day challenge so that all of the days have at least 100 kettlebell swings.
| Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Saturday | Sunday |
| 3 x 15 KB swings | 3 x 20 KB swings | Rest | 3 x 20 KB swings | 4 x 20 KB swings | Rest | 5 x 20 KB swings |
| 5 x 20 KB swings | 4 x 25 KB swings | 4 x 25 KB swings | 3 x 30 KB swings | Rest | 4 x 25 KB swings | 4 x 25 KB swings |
| 2 x 50 KB swings | Rest | 2 x 50 KB swings | 2 x 50 KB swings | 2 x 50 KB swings | 2 x 50 KB swings | 2 x 50 KB swings |
| 100 KB swings | 100 KB swings | 100 KB swings | 100 KB swings | 100 KB swings | Rest | 100 KB swings |
| 100 KB swings | 100 KB swings |
For more fitness challenges to help you get in shape, build muscle, lose weight, and achieve fitness goals you never thought possible, check out our landing page with all sorts of fun, 30-day fitness challenges here.
