Many people who lift weights either love or hate the deadlift because it is a very raw test of physical and mental strength. There are no gray areas. Either the bar leaves the ground, or it doesn't.
The deadlift is a movement that targets multiple joints, including the hamstrings, quadriceps, glutes, calves, core, and back. It is an effective exercise for building muscle mass and increasing strength.
This article provides information on the proper way to set up and perform a deadlift, as well as tips to improve your technique.
Why should you deadlift?
The deadlift movement benefits every muscle in your body and is functional for your day-to-day.
You'll be amazed at how much better you'll be able to do everyday tasks by improving your deadlift form and strength.
Deadlift set-up and movement
As with every big lift, the set-up is crucial. Before you even think about lifting the bar off of the floor, consider these points:
- Use bumper plates when loading the weight onto the barbell. This will reduce the impact when the weight hits the floor, which is better for joint health.
- Stand in the middle of the bar with your midfoot directly underneath.
- With an overhand grip, grip the handles outside hip-width apart.
- Bend at the knees and hips and pull yourself down so that you can retract (pull back) and depress (push down) your scapula (shoulder blades). Make sure your spine is in a ‘neutral’ position.
- While keeping your arms straight, pull tight on the bar so there is no ‘slack’. You should be able to feel the weight of the bar and brace against it. Squeeze your arms against your sides, imagining your holding something tight in your armpits. This should help keep your shoulder blades in place and help activate your lats.
- Tense your triceps to keep your arms straight. This is the start and finish position for each rep.
When performing the deadlift movement, it is best to wear flat-soled shoes. These shoes provide more stability than running shoes with a cushioned sole.
Once you have nailed your set-up, you can begin the deadlift movement:
- Stand up by pushing your legs into the floor and pushing the hips forward (‘opening up at the hip crease’).
- While keeping the spine locked in a neutral position, focus on pushing through the centre of your feet. When upright, do not lock out your knees – keep them slightly bent.
- Return to the start position by bending at the knee and at the hip. Avoid bouncing the weight onto the floor.
- Repeat for the desired number of reps.
Now that you understand the basics of a good deadlift set-up and movement, here are 8 tips to help you improve your form.
1. Centre the bar before you deadlift
To be able to lift the heaviest weight possible, the bar must stay close to your body and travel the shortest distance.
This means that if the bar is not in the center line, less weight will be lifted. The barbell should be in the center of the foot on set up.
The main error people make when doing this exercise is not placing the bar in the center of their foot, but rather the middle of their forefoot. The bar should go through the middle of both arches of your feet. If you set it up correctly, your shins will be close to the bar, perhaps only an inch or two away, before you start to bend down to grab it.
2. Improve your grip before you deadlift
One ineffective component in the chain will stop advancement, and that component is usually grip. The firmer your grip, the stronger your lift will be. Your nervous system won’t engage the maximum amount of muscle mass if you are uncertain of your grip.
If your grip is limiting your deadlift, you can use lifting straps as a quick assessment. Try using straps on a weight you’ve previously failed to lift. If it goes up easy, you know that it wasn’t your total strength that was lacking; it was your grip.
3. Pin the bar to you before you deadlift
Even though you shouldn't lift the bar so that it hitchs up your thighs, you should keep the bar as close to your body as possible. This means that your legs should always be in contact with the bar. You may scrape your shins occasionally if you keep the bar close enough to your body.
If you are lifting a heavy weight and the bar drifts slightly forward away from your body, the force on your lower back will increase a lot, and you will miss your lift.
If you are going for repetitions, your back will round and cause undue stress on the spine.
4. Get low to the floor before you deadlift
Take those spongey running shoes off.
Removing your shoes will add weight to your deadlift for three reasons.
The first benefit of using a shorter barbell is that you won't have to move the weight as far. Some trainers could be adding two or three centimeters of height that you would now need to move the weight over, which can make a big difference.
The second reason why it is better to remove your trainers when lifting is that they absorb some of your force. Running shoes or other activities shoes are designed to be soft in order to absorb the impact and forces, however when you are lifting, this same impact absorption takes away from your power. Imagine if you were to try and jump in deep sand, you would not be able to jump as high because the sand would absorb the impact of your jump. This is the same with trainers and lifting.
The third reason for stability is to prevent your weight from shifting to one area of the foot more than another during your lift. The soft sole of the shoe will collapse in that area if you are not balanced, resulting in lifting less weight.
5. Nail your deadlift set-up
Your deadlift set-up will depend on your range at the hips and from what stance and height you can reach the bar while maintaining a neutral spine (i.e., keeping your back straight as if a broomstick were passing from your head down to your tailbone).
Lift the bar by taking a big breath in and hinging from the hips. If you are having trouble keeping your spine neutral when lifting the bar from the floor, try changing your stance. A conventional deadlift stance (feet hip-distance apart) is the best way to keep your spine neutral. If you can't do so without flexing the spine, try a semi- ‘sumo' stance.
N Blocks can be placed underneath the barbell to help you keep a neutral spine while performing various types of deadlifts.
6. Dead stop your deadlift
It is tempting to give the bar a slight bounce when doing repetitions of the deadlift. However, you will get more long-term benefits from putting the weight down and resetting your position. This not only helps you practice your set-up, but it also eliminates weaknesses from the floor. If you bounce the weight when doing repetitions, you will limit your deadlift significantly.
This will also help you practice tightening your entire body and removing any slack from the bar before lifting.
7. Heavier deadlifts are not always better
If you want to perfect your deadlift technique, you need to practice regularly. Even if you follow all the tips below, you won't improve unless you put in the work. Perfect practice makes perfect, after all.
Are you going to be able to maintain good form when performing really heavy reps?
If you want to continue building strength, you should keep lifting weights that are above 70% of your one-rep max. Even if you can only deadlift 140kg for one rep, doing reps with 98kg and above will help you continue getting stronger. The benefit of using lower weights is that your technique will look a lot better.
You will find that your deadlift will start to fatigue when you are performing a high number of reps, even with lighter weights. In this case, you would be better off performing a lower number of reps with the lighter weight, stopping before you start to fail at using good technique.
If you are a novice lifter, you will benefit from more practice.
8. Film your deadlift sets
We've all looked at someone else's deadlift and thought it looked terrible. Surely our deadlifts would never look like that, right? But you might be surprised.
If you are looking to change something about your workout routine, you should first measure and track your progress. This includes tracking the sets, reps and weight lifted for each workout. While recording the reps gives you a good idea of your progress, it doesn't give you an accurate representation of how those reps looked.
The deadlift can be improved by improving technique as well as the weight lifted. Good technique leads to being able to lift more weight. Use a camera to film your lifts so you can see your technique and track your progress.
Tips For Deadlifting Heavy And Avoiding Injury
Tip #1: Never, Ever Pull With A Rounded Back
This is a mistake that will cost you, especially if you're a heavy lifter. You may not see the negative effects of rounding your back now but they will catch up to you eventually.
Keep your back straight and your hips and upper back in line as you lift the weight. Use your legs to generate most of the power to avoid straining your back. Some people lift with their back because they don't know how to use their legs effectively, which can cause injury.
Tip #2: Maximize The Overhand Grip
We advise using an overhand, or pronated grip, because it is less likely to cause a bicep tear and it places both shoulders in the same position.
There is nothing wrong with using a mixed grip to lift weights, as it can help you lift more weight by preventing the bar from slipping. However, you should only use this grip if you are confident in your abilities.
An overhand grip is more likely to cause proper joint positioning in the shoulders and wrists, as well as improving grip strength. This is essential for those who want to maintain their deadlift performance without having to use straps all the time.
One study indicated that using a double-pronated grip during the deadlift leads to less asymmetry than using a mixed grip.
And another piece of research found that using an over/underhand grip during the deadlift resulted in bilateral symmetry in the biceps brachii, brachioradialis, wrist, and elbow due to the angle.
You should avoid using a mixed grip when working out to prevent muscle imbalance.
Tip #3: Stop Deadlifting and Instead Do The Rack Pull Below The Knees
We all have to accept reality at some point in time. This means that not everyone can do deadlifts, just like not everyone can squat.
Some people can't do deadlifts with a neutral spine if they start the bar from the ground. The solution is to start with the bar a little higher.
。 The rack pull is an excellent movement that is similar to the deadlift. The difference is that the bar is kept below the knees instead of above the knees.
The benefits of using a trap bar for rack pulls are that the weight is evenly distributed, which allows you to deadlift heavy safely, while also promoting good form with an acceptable range of motion. By contrast, standard rack pulls can be dangerous if not done properly.
Many people think that they can just load up the bar and pull with mostly their back muscles, but this can result in thoracic outlet syndrome and place dangerous pressure on veins, nerves, and arteries.
It is very important that your thoracic spine is able to extend and that your shoulder blades are able to move backwards.
Tip #4: Don’t Go Too Deep
It is okay to squat deeply, as you are trying to target the quads. However, the deadlift is different as you have to pull a lot of weight upwards. You will generate more power from your legs when they are positioned above parallel.
The main goal of deadlifting is to lift heavy loads as efficiently as possible. To do this, you should not get too deep into the lift, as this will make it harder to get back out. You can dip your bad down low before lifting it back up, but many people prefer to stay in a stronger position.
Tip #5: Keep The Bar Very Close
If you don't keep the bar close to your center of gravity, your back and performance will suffer.
Tip #6: Do A Static Hold For Your Last Set
You should challenge yourself a little bit so you can improve. For your last set of deadlifts, use a weight that is challenging, and then on the last rep, hold it as long as you can.
Make sure you keep everything pulled in close to your body, and arch your back slightly so your chest sticks out. Contract your abs and butt muscles so your lower back is supported.
You are learning to keep good form even when you are very tired. This will help you prevent a syndrome called Thoracic outlet syndrome and perform better.
You'll experience increased benefits by going above and beyond a standard set.
How often should you deadlift?
The key to making fast progress with different lifts is to find the right frequency. Heavy deadlifts are very taxing on the nervous system.
How frequently you work out will depend on how heavy you are lifting in relation to the rep range.
The more weight you lift, the higher the risk of injury becomes. Lifting very heavy weights requires more rest between sets so your nervous system can recover.
High reps deadlifts are not recommended because they require a lot of coordination and technique can start to fail at very high rep ranges. Poor form can increase the risk of a serious back injury.
There are a number of different deadlift variations, such as the Romanian deadlift or the rack pull. These exercises can help improve your conventional deadlift depending on the number of repetitions and the intensity.
