Who Should Do?
Strength And Power Athletes
The barbell deadlift is a fundamental movement for powerlifters, weightlifters, and strongmen. It builds strength through the posterior chain and helps improve squat, clean, and snatch performance.
Bodybuilders
As a bodybuilder, your main goals are to develop size and strength. Performing compound movements and enough volume are both important factors for muscular hypertrophy.
The barbell deadlift helps bodybuilders develop size, strength, and symmetry in the back muscles, glutes, and hamstrings. It targets several muscles at once, assisting with overall hypertrophy and definition. Deadlift variations like Romanian and trap bar deadlifts allow bodybuilders to target specific muscle groups.
Beginners To Resistance Training
The barbell deadlift teaches beginners basic weight training movement patterns like the hip hinge and core engagement. It helps build a foundation of strength through the posterior chain that transfers to other lifts like squats.
Make sure to consult the help of a professional if you’re unsure of the correct form. As a beginner, it’s important to learn correctly as your muscles continue to develop.
Athletes
The barbell deadlift improves explosiveness in a range of sports, including football, rugby, basketball, and track and field. It helps athletes sprint faster, jump higher, and tackle harder.
During sports performance, movement requires strength and power. Examples include explosive sprints in football, high jumps in basketball, powerful tackles in rugby, and rapid accelerations in track events.
The deadlift helps to develop this because it strengthens the posterior chain, which includes the hamstrings, glutes, and lower back. This enhances the ability to generate force from the ground up. This is crucial for explosive movements and maintaining stability during high-impact actions.
Most sports teams program the deadlift as part of their lifting program to build foundational strength and power.
Who Should Not Do?
People with Existing Back Problems
People with pre-existing back issues, such as a herniated disc should not do the deadlift. The spinal compression may worsen their condition. When performed incorrectly, the deadlift places a lot of stress on the lumbar spine.
Instead, they should focus on exercises that strengthen the core and back muscles without placing excessive strain on the spine. A healthcare provider or physical therapist can provide the needed guidance.
Pregnant Women
Pregnant women should avoid this exercise due to the risk of abdominal strain and lower back discomfort. This can be harmful to both the mother and the developing baby.
Alternative exercises like the dumbbell deadlift can be used to maintain strength without the same level of risk. These modifications help ensure that pregnant women can continue to exercise safely, supporting overall health and fitness during pregnancy. Consulting with a healthcare provider is also recommended.
Benefits Of The Barbell Deadlift
Better Functional Movement
The barbell deadlift improves hip hinge mechanics and strengthens the posterior chain. This combination develops functional strength, improving lifting mechanics in sports and daily activities. By improving your functional strength, you will also reduce your risk of injury when lifting a couch or carrying a wheelbarrow.
Improved Grip Strength
The barbell deadlift develops a strong and secure grip. This benefits other lifts that require a firm grasp, such as pull-ups and the farmer’s walk. It will also improve your functional ability in daily tasks such as carrying groceries and lifting heavy objects off the ground.
Interestingly, hand grip strength has been proposed as a vital sign of health. Factors such as nutritional status, hospitalization, and quality of life have also been linked.
Help Maintain Bone Density
The deadlift is a weight-bearing exercise that loads the spine and lower body. It stimulates bone growth and helps maintain bone density. This is good for all people but is especially beneficial for seniors and postmenopausal women. These populations are at a greater risk of fractures and osteoporosis.
You don’t need to join a gym to get an awesome back workout at home!
Frequently Asked Questions
For optimal grip strength and stability, use an overhand or mixed grip. For the mixed grip, one hand faces palm-in and the other palm-out. Experiment with the two options to find which feels most comfortable and secure for you.
Have yourself videoed or have an experienced person observe your deadlift. To maintain proper form, check that your back stays flat and your hips hinge back. The barbell should move close to your body throughout the lift.
No, you should not deadlift every day. Deadlifts are taxing on the central nervous system and muscles. Allow at least 48 hours between sessions to recover adequately.
The deadlift is one of the more complex weight training exercises. It requires mastering hip hinge mechanics and proper form but becomes manageable with practice.
Resources
Endomondo.com refrains from utilizing tertiary references. We uphold stringent sourcing criteria and depend on peer-reviewed studies and academic research conducted by medical associations and institutions. For more detailed insights, you can explore further by reading our editorial process.
- Martín-Fuentes, I., Oliva-Lozano, J.M. and Muyor, J.M. (2020). Electromyographic activity in deadlift exercise and its variants. A systematic review. PloS one, [online] 15(2), pp.e0229507–e0229507. doi:https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0229507.
- Schoenfeld, B.J., Grgic, J., Van, D.W. and Plotkin, D.L. (2021). Loading Recommendations for Muscle Strength, Hypertrophy, and Local Endurance: A Re-Examination of the Repetition Continuum. Sports, [online] 9(2), pp.32–32. doi:https://doi.org/10.3390/sports9020032.
- Schoenfeld, B.J. (2010). The Mechanisms of Muscle Hypertrophy and Their Application to Resistance Training. Journal of strength and conditioning research, [online] 24(10), pp.2857–2872. doi:https://doi.org/10.1519/jsc.0b013e3181e840f3.
- Schoenfeld, B.J., Contreras, B., Krieger, J., Grgic, J., Delcastillo, K., Belliard, R. and Alto, A. (2019). Resistance Training Volume Enhances Muscle Hypertrophy but Not Strength in Trained Men. Medicine and science in sports and exercise, [online] 51(1), pp.94–103. doi:https://doi.org/10.1249/mss.0000000000001764.
- Arias, J., Coburn, J., Brown, L. and Galpin, A. (2016). The Acute Effects of Heavy Deadlifts on Vertical Jump Performance in Men. Sports, [online] 4(2), pp.22–22. doi:https://doi.org/10.3390/sports4020022.
- Ramirez, V.J., Bazrgari, B., Gao, F. and Samaan, M. (2022). Low Back Biomechanics during Repetitive Deadlifts: A Narrative Review. IISE transactions on occupational ergonomics and human factors, [online] 10(1), pp.34–46. Available at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9837526/#:~:text=Results%3A,during%20repetitive%20deadlifts%20were%20found.
- Martín-Fuentes, I., Oliva-Lozano, J.M. and Muyor, J.M. (2020). Electromyographic activity in deadlift exercise and its variants. A systematic review. PloS one, [online] 15(2), pp.e0229507–e0229507. doi:https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0229507.
- Raju Vaishya, Misra, A., Abhishek Vaish, Ursino, N. and Riccardo D’Ambrosi (2024). Hand grip strength as a proposed new vital sign of health: a narrative review of evidences. Journal of health, population and nutrition, [online] 43(1). doi:https://doi.org/10.1186/s41043-024-00500-y.
- A Ram Hong and Sang Wan Kim (2018). Effects of Resistance Exercise on Bone Health. Endocrinology and metabolism, [online] 33(4), pp.435–435. doi:https://doi.org/10.3803/enm.2018.33.4.435.
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