How to Deadlift & Deadlift Benefits

Benefits of a Deadlift & Why Its a Must Do Lift

Easily the most beneficial lift, the deadlift stands out from squats and the bench press for the majority of exercisers. Deadlifting has the most advantageous transfer to normal life activities and is generally preferred to the squat, yet somehow elicits fewer tears. The following outlines the advantages of the deadlift.

 IMPROVE MOBILITY -  Deadlifting can instill correct movement patterns and ensure that proper form is maintained when engaging in daily activities. Practicing the deadlift has the potential to boost one's confidence and reduce the risk of injury incurred from subpar form.

Moreover, research has shown that up to 98% of people display poor motor control when handling relatively light loads, leading to a decrease in efficiency and an increased risk for injury. By engaging in correct deadlift mechanics, one can unlock the benefits of improved stability, balance, coordination, and overall stability, ensuring improved performance in any activity.  

 IMPROVE BODY COMPOSITION - The deadlift has many benefits when your goal is to improve body composition:

The deadlift works the glutes, hamstrings, quads, calves, trapezius, lats, and all of the muscles in the lower back, using the body's largest muscles.
By recruiting multiple muscles with just one lift, your body can markedly increase oxygen utilization during post-exercise recovery, a phenomenon known as EPOC, causing an augment in metabolic rate and higher caloric expenditure than at a resting state.

Incorporating deadlifts in a high-intensity workout with constrained rest promotes a heightened lactic acid state, correlated with growth hormone secretion. Stimulating the body's growth hormone leads to increased fat metabolism.
The deadlift technique is less complicated than that of the squat, even when fatigued, enabling a greater load capacity and permitting incorporation of strenuous circuits for improved metabolic disruption.

 DEADLIFT = STRONG -  Mention “strong” to a lifter, and they’ll likely think of the deadlift. It’s a lift that taxes the body's biggest and strongest muscles, initiating maximum motor-unit activation. Additionally, it requires considerable grip strength, arm robustness, and a robust back.  Research indicates that amongst strongman athletes, deadlifts are the staple lift for building maximal strength and power. Notably, a study found that deadlifts were the most prevalent traditional lift used by strongman competitors.

 BUILD MUSCLE FASTER -  The deadlift is an ideal choice for developing both muscular size and maximal strength, as maximal-load exercises successfully activate muscle-fiber-regenerating satellite cells. Heavy training is believed to be responsible for increased satellite cell production, leading to enhanced gains in muscle size.  Second, you benefit from enhanced training flexibility, allowing for technical failure, a proven enhancer of anabolic muscle signaling post-exercise.

 A MORE CHISELED SIX-PACK -  Research indicates that deadlifts are 2-3x more effective than crunches and V-ups, as they target all the core muscles in one lift.  Surveys of Olympic lifters training deadlift variations exhibit some of the most well-developed abs ever seen, likely from the strenuous overload of fast-twitch abdominal fibers imposed by the deadlift. The deadlift is a reliable method to rapidly improve strength and challenge yourself if you have been experiencing a plateau. 

"In order to limit the advantage of built-up elastic energy on the downward phase, consider “dead stop” deadlifts when you lack strength off the floor. Remain honest with yourself and reset for each rep for optimal performance."
If you've reached a stagnation in the squat, deadlifts with a 4-second eccentric and 2-second pause can help progress. Extremely challenging, this technique will inevitably prove its worth. Explosive concentric movements finish the rep.
Do eccentric-enhanced deadlifts; for beginners, a 6-second lowering time boosts their tension time.

Advanced lifters may utilise supramaximal eccentrics, which involves lifting a loaded bar from a power rack and then lowering it to the ground. Advanced lifters whose lower back is a limiting factor should use eccentric wide-grip deadlifts on a podium. Adding chains to the bar during rain stimulates a higher force output during the later portions of the concentric movement, as opposed to increasing strength from the beginning.

A STRONGER BACK -  Research reveals that, on average, the deadlift elicits muscle activity of 88%, with peak activity of 113.4% in the spinal erectors. The back extension and lunge, in contrast, generate significant muscle activation, demonstrating their value in a training regimen. However, other lower back exercises, like the single-leg body weight deadlift and the static bridge on a BOSU, fail to sufficiently activate underlying muscles and are thus ineffective.  Studies indicate that regularly performing deadlifts with a weight corresponding to 70 - 85% of the lifter's one-repetition maximum along with other complex lifts can be an efficient way to strengthen the lower back.

 IMPROVE POWER -  Deadlifts offer numerous techniques to increase power, such as chain training with an explosive cadence. Training the deadlift with chains attached at maximum velocity can maximize peak force and acceleration. Research indicates that 30 percent of 1RM is optimal for power development. Using chains can also increase peak power, with research suggesting that this technique should be used with 30 percent of the weightlifter's one-rep max for maximum benefit.