THE DEADLIFT: PRINCIPLE MOVEMENT

Many of the principles covered in THE SQUAT also apply to the deadlift such as the breathing, bracing and maintaining a neutral spine.

However, there are some key differences between the movements. Both are valuable exercises to incorporate into your training programme to improve your overall strength and conditioning.

Please make sure you are familiar with the squat before moving onto learning the deadlift and recognise the differences between the two movements, to read our blog on the squat click here.

Key Difference

Deadlift = HIP DOMINANT

• Requires a ‘Hip Hinge’ with soft knees.
• Flexible Hamstrings.

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Squat = KNEE/ANKLE Dominant

• Uses ‘Knee Flexion’ with some Hip Hinge.
• Requires good ankle mobility.

Maintaining A Neutral Spine With A Dowel

Use a dowel to maintain a neural spine and practice the hip hinge, I find it useful to do this, even if you have been deadlifting for a while. Particularly if you are experiencing lower back pain when deadlifting.

Remember the 'Head, Back & Crack'

• Holding a wooden dowel along your back, keep the 3 points of contact - Head, Back & Crack with your lower hand in the small of your back.
• Slowly hinge at the hip only, as though pushing your bum back.
• Contact with dowel should be maintained at ALL 3 points throughout the movement. 
  

PRACTISE WITH A DOWEL

Once you have practiced the hip hinge with the dowel on your back and you can maintain 3 points of contact, you can now move on and bring the dowel to your front as if you are holding a weighted bar. If you can not maintain the neutral spin, you may want to work on your flexibility before moving onto this drill. 

• Standing in an upright position have the dowel hanging in front of you.
• Shoulders are down & back into pockets (imagine squeezing oranges under your armpits)
• Same BREATHE & BRACE principles apply as Squat.
• Maintain 3 points of contact on feet.
• Go as far down as your hamstrings limit you to.
• There is no need to reach to the floor with your shoulders, this will cause you to lose the integrity of your neutral spine.
  
• Ideally you should be able to maintain a neutral spine throughout this movement, with the bar reaching just below the knee or to the middle of the shin​ - if not you may need to work on flexibility! 

WITH WEIGHT AND A BAR

Ok! Now you have good flexibility and are able to maintain a neutral spine, we can start adding a bit of weight to the bar!

Start with just a Barbell and if you have them, add some light training weights so that the bar is off the ground slightly, this will allow you to practice as if the bar was at the height it will be at with heavier weights.

If your flexibility still needs work, then you can make the bar higher by using some blocks or other weights to raise the floor higher. You should raise the floor as high as you need to be able to maintain that neutral spine position. 

• Stand with your shins close to the bar.
• The bar should be over your mid foot as you look down. 
• Deep breath in and fill up your belly and torso with breath & brace.
• Squat down to grab bar.
• Squeeze your shoulders into your pockets to brace your upper back and engage the lats.
• Push knees back, lift bum up to engage the hamstrings.
• You should feel the tension in the hamstrings and be ready to lift bar.
• Exhale on the way up to your standing position. 

When returning to the starting position:

• Repeat the breathing process so your core is braced. 
  
• Hinge forward at hips, driving the bum back.
• Once past knees, you can flex knees to replace bar to the ground.

DEADLIFT REMINDERS

• This is not a lower back exercise.
• It is predominantly Hamstrings & Glutes.
• Your shoulders should not shrug at the top ('keep your shoulders in your pockets').
• Squeeze feet together to activate adductors & hamstrings more.

Thank you for reading our blog, we would love to hear your comments below. 

If you want to recap the squat click here or watch our youtube seminar on the deadlift here.