10 Best Vertical Swing Alternatives for Hamstring Strength

Original Exercise: Vertical Swing

Primary Muscle

Hamstrings

Equipment

Dumbbell

Difficulty

Intermediate

Type

Compound

Secondary Muscles: Glutes, Quadriceps, Shoulders

How to Perform Vertical Swing

1. Allow the dumbbell to hang at arms length between your legs, holding it with both hands. Keep your back straight and your head up.
2. Swing the dumbbell between your legs, flexing at the hips and bending the knees slightly.
3. Powerfully reverse the motion by extending at the hips, knees, and ankles to propel yourself upward, swinging the dumbell over your head.
4. As you land, absorb the impact through your legs and draw the dumbbell to your torso before the next repetition.

Pro Tips

• Category: Plyometrics
• Force: Pull
• Movement type: Compound

Best Vertical Swing Alternatives

Best Match

1. Barbell Straight Leg Deadlift

85.2% Match

Hamstrings Barbell Intermediate Isolation

How to perform this exercise

1. Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and your toes pointing forward.
2. Hold the barbell with an overhand grip, hands slightly wider than shoulder-width apart.
3. Bend at your hips and lower the barbell towards the ground, keeping your back straight and your knees slightly bent.
4. Lower the barbell until you feel a stretch in your hamstrings.
5. Engage your hamstrings and glutes to lift the barbell back up to the starting position.

2. Barbell Good Morning

81% Match

Hamstrings Barbell Advanced Isolation

How to perform this exercise

1. Start by standing with your feet shoulder-width apart and the barbell resting on your upper back.
2. Keeping your back straight and your core engaged, hinge forward at the hips, pushing your buttocks back as if you were trying to touch the wall behind you with your glutes.
3. Lower your torso until it is parallel to the ground, feeling a stretch in your hamstrings.
4. Pause for a moment, then return to the starting position by squeezing your glutes and pushing your hips forward.
5. Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.

3. Clean

80.1% Match

Hamstrings Barbell Advanced Isolation

How to perform this exercise

1. With a barbell on the floor close to the shins, take an overhand (or hook) grip just outside the legs. Lower your hips with the weight focused on the heels, back straight, head facing forward, chest up, with your shoulders just in front of the bar. This will be your starting position.
3. Begin the first pull by driving through the heels, extending your knees. Your back angle should stay the same, and your arms should remain straight. Move the weight with control as you continue to above the knees.
4. Next comes the second pull, the main source of acceleration for the clean. As the bar approaches the mid-thigh position, begin extending through the hips. In a jumping motion, accelerate by extending the hips, knees, and ankles, using speed to move the bar upward. There should be no need to actively pull through the arms to accelerate the weight; at the end of the second pull, the body should be fully extended, leaning slightly back, with the arms still extended.
5. As full extension is achieved, transition into the third pull by aggressively shrugging and flexing the arms with the elbows up and out. At peak extension, aggressively pull yourself down, rotating your elbows under the bar as you do so. Receive the bar in a front squat position, the depth of which is dependent upon the height of the bar at the end of the third pull. The bar should be racked onto the protracted shoulders, lightly touching the throat with the hands relaxed. Continue to descend to the bottom squat position, which will help in the recovery.

4. Clean Deadlift

78.9% Match

Hamstrings Barbell Intermediate Isolation

How to perform this exercise

1. Begin standing with a barbell close to your shins. Your feet should be directly under your hips with your feet turned out slightly. Grip the bar with a double overhand grip or hook grip, about shoulder width apart. Squat down to the bar. Your spine should be in full extension, with a back angle that places your shoulders in front of the bar and your back as vertical as possible.
2. Begin by driving through the floor through the front of your heels. As the bar travels upward, maintain a constant back angle. Flare your knees out to the side to help keep them out of the bar's path.
3. After the bar crosses the knees, complete the lift by driving the hips into the bar until your hips and knees are extended.

5. Barbell Glute Bridge

75.1% Match

Glutes Barbell Intermediate Isolation

How to perform this exercise

1. Start by lying flat on your back on the ground with your knees bent and feet flat on the floor.
2. Place a barbell across your hips, holding it securely with both hands.
3. Engage your glutes and core muscles, then lift your hips off the ground until your body forms a straight line from your knees to your shoulders.
4. Pause for a moment at the top, squeezing your glutes.
5. Slowly lower your hips back down to the starting position.

6. Band Good Morning (Pull Through)

74.3% Match

Hamstrings Band Intermediate Isolation

How to perform this exercise

1. Loop the band around a post. Standing a little ways away, loop the opposite end around the neck. Your hands can help hold the band in position.
2. Begin by bending at the hips, getting your butt back as far as possible. Keep your back flat and bend forward to about 90 degrees. Your knees should be only slightly bent.
3. Return to the starting position be driving through with the hips to come back to a standing position.

7. Clean Pull

74.2% Match

Quads Barbell Advanced Isolation

How to perform this exercise

1. With a barbell on the floor close to the shins, take an overhand or hook grip just outside the legs. Lower your hips with the weight focused on the heels, back straight, head facing forward, chest up, with your shoulders just in front of the bar. This will be your starting position.
2. Begin the first pull by driving through the heels, extending your knees. Your back angle should stay the same, and your arms should remain straight and elbows out. Move the weight with control as you continue to above the knees.
3. Next comes the second pull, the main source of acceleration for the clean. As the bar approaches the mid-thigh position, begin extending through the hips. In a jumping motion, accelerate by extending the hips, knees, and ankles, using speed to move the bar upward. There should be no need to actively pull through the arms to accelerate the weight; at the end of the second pull, the body should be fully extended, leaning slightly back, with the arms still extended. Full extension should be violent and abrupt, and ensure that you do not prolong the extension for longer than necessary.

8. Double Kettlebell Alternating Hang Clean

73.7% Match

Hamstrings Kettlebell Advanced Isolation

How to perform this exercise

1. Place two kettlebells between your feet. To get in the starting position, push your butt back and look straight ahead.
2. Clean one kettlebell to your shoulder and hold on to the other kettlebell.
3. With a fluid motion, lower the top kettlebell while driving the bottom kettlebell up.

9. Dumbbell Sumo Pull Through

70.7% Match

Glutes Dumbbell Intermediate Isolation

How to perform this exercise

1. Stand with your feet wider than shoulder-width apart, toes pointed outwards.
2. Hold a dumbbell with both hands in front of your body, arms extended.
3. Bend your knees and lower your hips down into a squat position, keeping your back straight.
4. Lower the dumbbell down between your legs, keeping your arms straight.
5. Drive through your heels and extend your hips forward, pulling the dumbbell up and in front of your body.

10. Dumbbell Clean

70.4% Match

Glutes Dumbbell Advanced Isolation

How to perform this exercise

1. Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart, holding a dumbbell in each hand with an overhand grip.
2. Bend your knees and lower your hips into a squat position, keeping your back straight and chest up.
3. Explosively extend your hips and knees, driving through your heels to jump off the ground.
4. As you jump, shrug your shoulders and pull the dumbbells up towards your shoulders, keeping them close to your body.
5. Catch the dumbbells at shoulder height, with your elbows pointing forward and your palms facing up.

Why You Might Need a Vertical Swing Alternative

You may substitute the Vertical Swing because of pain, missing equipment, or a need for more targeted loading. Low-back or shoulder discomfort often requires reducing dynamic hip-hinge stress; opt for an RDL with lighter load and cue a neutral spine and a slight knee bend to shift force into the hamstrings rather than the lumbar spine. If you lack a dumbbell or need unilateral correction, single-leg RDLs improve neuromuscular control while glute-ham raises raise eccentric hamstring activation. Choose based on your pain profile, available gear, and whether you need tension (RDL) or power (swing).

How to Choose the Right Substitute

Match the substitute to movement pattern, equipment, and training goal. For hypertrophy pick exercises that preserve long time under tension like Romanian deadlifts or weighted hip thrusts; cue a long hip hinge with weight over the midfoot and a controlled eccentric. For power or conditioning use dumbbell swings with an explosive hip drive and short ground contact. For imbalance correction choose single-leg RDLs and cue a straight line from crown to heel to maintain pelvic alignment. Also consider grip limits and your ability to maintain spinal neutrality under load.

Frequently Asked Questions

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