The deadlift is a weight training exercise where a loaded barbell is lifted off the ground from a stabilized, bent over position. It is one of the three canonical powerlifting exercises, along with the squat and bench press.
Deadlift refers to the lifting of dead (without momentum) weight, such as weights lying on the ground. It is one of the few standard weight training exercises in which all repetitions begin with dead weight. There are two positions you can approach when doing the deadlift, which include the conventional deadlift and sumo-deadlift. In most other lifts there is an eccentric (lowering of the weight) phase followed by the concentric (lifting of the weight) phase. During these exercises, a small amount of energy is stored in the stretched muscles and tendons in the eccentric phase, if the lifter is not flexible beyond the range of motion.
Deadlifts are one of the major lifts to pack on slabs of muscle and get fit very quickly. However, it is slightly tricky to get right – especially because people dont teach it very well.
There have been good teachers like Rippetoe and Candito, but I have seen that by the time they are teaching it – they have lost the perspective of beginners. Well, here is a step by step guide to pull a deadlift.
Keep the Rod close to you
The rod should be touching your ankle. As rippetoe says in the video below, the bar must be over half your foot.
Also, when you pull your bar, it should come off the ground along your shins and thighs. If it’s not touching you, it’s too far away from you.
Keep the t-shirt logo up and your palms in your back pockets
The most important thing about deadlift is that your lower back must not round. The easiest cue for this is three fold :
look at a spot roughly 5-7 feet away (and your head position must match that). This means you are looking slightly down. Do NOT look up.
make sure people can see the superman logo on your t-shirt (push your breasts, if you had them, out)
try to take your palms (which are gripping the rod) to your back-pocket. you can only do this by adjusting your shoulders and traps. Do NOT try to tighten your traps, which will try to lift the traps (the weight wont allow it).
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=bt4m4zLioRw (from Gentilcore training)
Take a deep breath & Push your abs out
This will help ensure that your lower back and abs are braced for pulling. Kind of like a belt.
Push your heels down and lift the weight, till the weight reaches your knees.
Try not to use your back. Funny isnt it ? The Deadlift is more about pushing, though most people yell “Pull!!“.
Hump the rod
Try and have sex with the rod. Which means push your hips towards the rod (heel first!) and lift the weight. Remember, push instead of pull.
Now a bit of a clarification of what hump really means – it does NOT mean you hyper-arch your back and move your thighs closer. No. “Hump” means that you move as if you are having an orgasm – squeeze your glutes and use your hamstrings to pull the weight up. I suggest you get your form with light weights to really understand the meaning of “hump” here. This is the part where 90% of everyone screws up and ends up hurting their back.
Squeeze your glutes
Remember what happens when the deadlift rod reaches the top – people bend backwards. No! actually they dont. What you are supposed to do is squeeze your glutes and still try to hump the bar.
On the way back, pull out slowly
Again, hips first – pull out slowly (as if you were humping someone). Remember, the rod follows your thighs down the floor (dont rest them on your thighs, just follow them) – then straight down once the weight reaches the knees. At NO point does the weight move away from your body.