Questions and answers about a great, but often neglected, exercise
BY KIM GOSS, MS s with the squat and the bench press, the deadlift has been a staple in the workouts of serious athletes for many years. Football players, weightlifters and even bodybuilders frequently include this total body movement in their workouts. In fact, three decades ago bodybuilder Franco Columbu reportedly lifted 780 pounds in this exercise, which at the time exceeded the world record at his bodyweight, and if you spend enough Atime in cyberspace you’ll find a photo of Arnold Schwarzenegger pulling 710 pounds.
The deadlift has been a part of the BFS program for over 30 years because it’s a great lift that, like the squat, works a lot of large muscle groups that are key to running faster and jumping higher. The one major change over these 30 years is that BFS has come to prefer the hex bar deadlift over the straight bar deadlift because it’s easier to teach and places less stress on the lower back. If you want to subject your brain to information overload, check out a copy of Bill Pearl’s classic exercise reference book, Keys to the Inner Universe. However, don’t go overboard with daffy deadlift variations.
One recent study published in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research looked at the effects of performing deadlifts while standing on a BOSU DeAnn Pertz, our 2008 BFS Female Athlete of the Year, performing the hex bar deadlift. DeAnn is a forensic science major at Duquesne University, where she is also on the swim team. ball or a rocker board. The researchers found that deadlifting on unstable services “does not increase performance, nor does it provide greater activation of the paraspinal muscles, leading us to question their value in the performance of other types of exercises.”
In other words, not only do these types of deadlifts expose the user to a high risk of injury (from falling off these unstable surfaces), they have no special strength training effect. Although it’s a great exercise, the deadlift has lost much of its popularity among strength coaches. One factor to consider is that many young strength coaches have not performed the lift as part of their training, and as such they are not comfortable teaching it. Another reason is that many coaches believe that the deadlift, and for that matter the back squat, is too dangerous, especially for young athletes.
To take a closer look at the risks and benefits of this exercise, I contacted Canadian strength coach and posturologist Paul Gagné. Gagné has done extensive study on the biomechanics of the deadlift, which he uses with many of the professional and top amateur athletes he trains.
Canadian weightlifter Marilou DozoisPrévost placed 10th in the 2008 Olympics and uses snatch-grip deadlifts while standing on a platform as a key auxiliary exercise.
Dawn of the Deadlift Two of the most popular deadlifts are the conventional style using a barbell, and the hex bar deadlift, which uses a horizontal barbell that enables individuals to perform the lift with their hands positioned at their sides. Another version is called the sumo style, which has the lifter start with the feet positioned wider than shoulderwidth, the hips lower and the torso more upright. According to Gagné, the sumo style puts less compressive forces on the lower back and also works the inner thigh (adductor) muscles harder. “I often use the sumo style with my hockey players, as the adductors of the thighs are especially important in skating.”
Additional forms of deadlifts commonly used by powerlifters and strength athletes include partial-range deadlifts. These deadlifts can focus on the top, middle and bottom portion of the exercise. The most popular type of partialrange deadlift is performed in a power rack with the barbell set on pins, such that the lift begins from a higher starting position. Most individuals can handle more weight with this type of movement, but for some the lockout position is the most difficult part of the deadlift, and this variation enables them to focus on improving their weakness.
Gagné says that partial-range movements can also be used for knee rehabilitation and to correct muscle imbalances: “I’ll start with a short range of motion, such as from the mid-thigh to lockout, and then lower the pins as the knee become stronger and the muscle imbalances are corrected.” Another type of partial deadlift Gagné uses has the athlete standing on a low platform, with the barbell lifted just to the knees. He says this type of exercise increases the involvement of the quadriceps, and that for his especially tall athletes “the range of motion more closely approximates that of a squat. Many of the professional hockey players I work with are not proficient in the squat.
I would prefer that they squat year-round, but often I can work with many of these athletes only a few weeks out of the year. For these BFS PROGRAM hook grip (fingers wrapped around the thumb) like weightlifters use. With a hex bar, the hands are in a much stronger position, leverage-wise, and the barbell is less likely to roll out of the athlete’s fingers.” Deadlift Safety Asked about the differences Asked about the risk of injury, between men and women that can Gagné says that those who are most affect performance of the susceptible to injury with deadlift, Gagné says that the deadlift are those with the wider pelvis of a woman postural problems.
“If an often causes the knees to individual has disharmonic buckle during the exercise. feet, which basically means He says that because of you tend to carry more this anatomical difference, weight on one leg, they coaches should pay special will twist their spine on attention when coachthe deadlift. This twisting ing women to ensure they creates unnatural shearing maintain proper alignment forces on the spine that can of the feet with the knees easily damage the disks.” (BFS Absolutes #4 and #5). Gagné says that dishar“Again, you must never monic feet can often be sacrifice form in order to corrected with special lower lift more weight.”
He says body exercises, the use of if despite the best efforts of postural insoles or orthotthe coach a woman athlete’s ics, and sometimes by knees continue to buckle simply wearing weightliftwhen performing the lift, the ing shoes, “which can often athlete should consult with help to properly align the an appropriate health care feet with the bones of the professional, such as a podialower leg.” Paul Gagné working with Joe Rullier of the Boston Bruins. trist, to see if their feet are Foot problems aside, the cause. “If an athlete has arches that contribution of the legs.
At the start of Gagné says the reason many individueasily collapse, among the possible soluals experience back pain from deadlift- a deadlift your head should be in line tions are to wear weightlifting shoes, with your spine, which may result in ing is poor technique. “The deadlift is use postural insoles or orthotics, and to a complex exercise that requires proper the head being tilted slightly down, perform special exercises such as seated instruction to perform correctly.” One and at the finish you should be looking calf raises to help correct the feet.” straight ahead.”
cause of poor technique is trying to Regardless of the athlete, there Another technical issue Gagné says lift too much weight. As Gagné points is probably a deadlift variation that is important to address is the grip. To out, “One should never sacrifice form will have a positive influence upon prevent the barbell from rolling out of on the deadlift in an attempt to use performance. And if you follow the their hands many athletes use a mixed more weight, as often this leads to advice in this article, you will proggrip, with one hand facing the body rounding the lower back. Rounding ress rapidly with little risk of injury. and the other hand facing away.
Gagné the back places unnaturally high Hopefully, more coaches will see the says that using a mixed grip can easily compressive forces on the disks of the injure the biceps, especially if an athlete value of the deadlift and will resurrect lower back, especially the three lowest it in their strength and conditioning has flexibility issues with the shoulder. lumbar vertebrae, L3-L5.” programs. “It would be better to use straps or a The position of the head (BFS individuals, I often recommend that they focus on these longer-range types of deadlifts rather than risk injury from squatting incorrectly.”
Absolute #6) is important to deadlift safely. “You need to align your head with your spine when you deadlift,” says Gagné.
“Many athletes will start the deadlift looking up in an attempt to make their back tighter, but this results in placing excessive tension on the lower back muscles and reduces the '($'/,)7)25/,)( Original Hex Bar X7KHFODVVLFPRGHO X7KHEHVWZD\WRSHUIRUPGHDGOLIWVDQGVKUXJV X+H[EDUGHVLJQRIIHUVJUHDWHUVWDELOLW\WKDQ WULDQJOHGHVLJQ X:HLJKVOEVZLWKVROLGµ2O\PSLFVOHHYHV X+ROGVÀYHOE6OLPOLQHSODWHVZLWKFROODUV X+DQGOHVDUHµKLJKHUWKDQRULJLQDO+H[%DUWR DFFRPPRGDWHWDOOHURUELJJHUDWKOHWHV X$PXVWIRUEDVNHWEDOOWHDPV X:HLJKVOEVZLWKVROLGµ2O\PSLFVOHHYHV X+ROGVÀYHOE6OLPOLQHSODWHVZLWKFROODUV X&RPELQHVWKH+LJK+H[DQGUHJXODU+H[EDUV X6LPSO\ÁLSRYHUWRFKDQJHH[HUFLVH VWDUWLQJSRVLWLRQ X:HLJKVOEVZLWKVROLGµ2O\PSLFVOHHYHV X+ROGVÀYHOE6OLPOLQHSODWHVZLWKFROODUV X%XLOWIRUWKHELJJHVWDQGVWURQJHVWDWKOHWHV X:HLJKVOEV X6ROLGµ2O\PSLFVOHHYHVDQGDWKLFNHUVWHHOIUDPH X+ROGVXSWRQLQHOE6OLPOLQHSODWHVSHUVLGH X&RPELQHVWKH+LJK+H[DQGUHJXODU+H[ X6LPSO\ÁLSRYHUWRFKDQJHVWDUWLQJSRVLWLRQ X*UHDWIRUWHDFKLQJSHUIHFWWHFKQLTXH X:HLJKVRQO\OEV X6OLJKWO\VPDOOHULQGLDPHWHUZLWKVKRUWHU VOHHYHV X,GHDOIRUUHKDEDQGXSSHUERG\H[HUFLVHV X8VHGLQWKH%)65HDGLQHVV3URJUDP DEDICATED TO HELPING ATHLETES SUCCEED SINCE 1976
From BFS Magazine — January/February 2011. Part of the BFS Magazine Archive (1980–2014).
