Deadlifts
Deadlifts are the best mass building exercise there is. You are lifting heavy weight and putting that stress on your entire body at one time.
Primary Muscles Used
Deadlifts Instructions
- Position the feet shoulder-width apart (or not much more) with toes under the bar. The feet point straight ahead, or they can angle out slightly. Heels should stay flat on the surface. When you lift, the bar will travel close to the shins and may even graze them. Maintain a neutral spine position.
- Stabilize the abdominal muscles by bracing them.
- Squat down, bending at the knees. The form for descending to the bar is similar (but not identical) to the squat, with your back straight or arched slightly and not rounded at the shoulders or spine.
- Grasp the bar just outside the line of the knees with an overhand or mixed grip.
- Lift the bar by pushing upward with the legs from the knees. Breathe out on exertion. Be careful not to raise the hips first so the trunk moves forward and the back becomes rounded. Don’t try to haul the bar up with your arms. The arms stay extended under tension while gripping the bar as the legs push up. Think of the legs and shoulders moving upward in unison with the hips, the balancing point.
- The bar should almost graze the shins and rest around thigh level as you reach full height. Pull the shoulders back as much as possible without bending backward.
- Lower the bar to the floor with a reverse motion ensuring a straight back.
- Repeat.
Tim's list of benefits for Deadlifts
- The deadlift uses the hamstrings (back of thigh), quadriceps (front of thigh), gluteals (butt), and lower back muscles (erector spinae). The stabilizer muscles of the core, abs, shoulders, and upper back also come into play.
- Deadlifts are highly regarded for building muscle mass, which is desirable for bodybuilders and people who want to prevent or reverse muscle loss due to aging. Deadlifts will increase your metabolism. Lean muscle speeds your metabolism. By increasing the amount of lean muscle in your body, you can help give your metabolism a boost. Since deadlifts work with some of the largest muscle groups in the body, they are a good choice for building a greater percentage of lean muscle in your body.
- The deadlift is one of the best exercises for mimicking the lifting you do throughout the day, so it is a functional exercise. Learning to deadlift with good form, you will be able to lift and carry items with less risk in daily life.
Become a Member!
Are you ready to take your workouts to the next level? Are you interested in getting great recipe ideas? Do you want customized mindfulness excises and nutrition? We will set you up with your own custom program whether you workout in a gym, at your home, or anywhere in-between. Get real results, from a real expert! Click here to sign up!
Click here to go back to the exercise list.