@JessicaD,
A few suggestions:
-- Be patient. Tranferring the hinge pattern from the deadlift to the swing is difficult for a lot of people. It can be a process that takes a while. Don't be afraid to spend a long time just patterning the hinge before even trying swings, and slowly mixing in attempts at swings proper.
Then be patient with mistakes in the swing. For instance with the towel swing, of course the bell is flopping everywhere. If it weren't, the drill wouldn't be necessary because her swing would already be good. The reason for using the towel is that the drill give immediate feedback when you do it wrong and when you get it right.
Coach through the floppiness. Use simple cues, and not more than one cue per set. For arm pullers, I'll use "dead arms!" or "chains!" to emphasize that the arms are just passively holding onto the bell rather than actively pulling. For squattiness, "sit back!" or "touch the wall" (to connect with the touch the wall drill) to emphasize the idea of horizontal hip displacement, or "attack the zipper" to emphasize keeping the ball high on the down swing.
The idea is to stumble upon that one good rep so the student learns what it feels like. Then try to recapture that again. Then try to do it more consistently. Then try to do it every time.
--I am not a fan of dead swings or low/hover swings. I find they reinforce the problem of swinging too low and don't effectively establish the right groove. As an alternative transitional drill, I prefer goat belly swings (Dan John's term). If you're not familiar with the goat bell swing, it's basically a hinge with the weight cradled against the chest.
--A heavier bell can help with squattiness and arm pulling, but only go heavier if the student is keeping a flat back.
--A few other "bag o' tricks" kind of things to try:
- The following three cues can be used with deadlifts, goat belly swings, and band swings, as well as swings propper:
- Band swings. Place a Jump Stretch band around the front of the hips. Stand behind the student, hold the other end of the band and apply tension. The band will pull the hips back into the hinge (the direction you want them to go) instead of down, and the student will have to drive the hips forward against the band tension to stand back up.
- Place your hand or hold a stick just in front of the base of the knee. Tell the trainee not to let the knee hit the object.
- Lightly touch the top of the calf with you hand or a stick. Tell the trainee not to break contact.
- Belt swings. Use a lifting belt or dip belt and chain or webbing to attach a KB. Like the towel swing, the bell will flop around unless you do it right, and depending on the length of the chain/webbing, the bell will hit the ground if you are too squatty. The advantage over the towel swing is that you are only working on one problem (hip action) at a time. The disadvantage is the it can be awkward to set up and needs to be done outside or on matting that won't be damaged if the bell slams into it.
Don't shotgun these techniques one after the other without working with each one a bit. Remember, don't expect an instant fix (although you may sometimes get one). You're just trying to establish that one accidental, random good rep, and then trying to replicate and build on it.
Good luck and hope this helps.
