Absolutly not. I swing much like you describe with my left hand resting on my left thigh, the right hand closer to the head about 5" from the left. I find I use my arms a bit more than my body but no way as much as with the axe. The handle is cut to my body height/comfort level so other folks may find it odd but still useable. I also find I have to compensate and lean to the right to achieve a level cut. So when finishing the joint I am leaning a bit to the right, because my left hand is on my left thigh causing the bottom of the blade to be out of level. I enjoy adze work, it is some what like yoga, I could take a nap when I'm done. Tim