When your primary goal is to build muscle, you should ideally work on lifting weights which usually cause a tear in your muscle tissue invariably making them grow back bigger and stronger. Deadlifts are single-handedly one of the best strength training workouts to follow.
A deadlift is an exercise where a weight is lifted from the floor without any momentum. Deadlifts come under compound exercises as they involve multiple muscle groups at once. This quality makes this exercise a vital part of strength training.
Now that you know how crucial deadlifts are in strength training, you must wonder how to perform these compound exercises. In this article, we have covered the advantages of deadlifts, their variations, and the muscle groups involved along with explaining how to perform them.
Go ahead and read the article before you start your strength training.
How to perform deadlifts?
The deadlift involves lifting weight from the ground while bending at your hips and waist. The most commonly used weight is a barrel.
- Step 1: Stand behind the weight with feet shoulder-width apart.
- Step 2: Drop down your hips while keeping your back straight and chest lifted. Now, bend forward and hold the barrel with one palm up and the other palm facing the floor or both the palms facing down.
- Step 3: Press your feet into the floor and raise back your hips.
- Step 4: Now push your hips forward to come into a standing position. Make sure your legs are straight, knees locked and your shoulders are back. The barrel should be held with straight arms a little below the hip height.
- Step 5: Squat down until the weight touches the floor while placing your back straight, bending your knees, and pushing your hips back.
- Step 6: Repeat.
The number of reps depends on the weight you are lifting. Aim up to 2 to 6 reps and do 3 to 5 sets. If you are a beginner, start with the standard barrel (20.4 kg or 45 lbs). Gradually increase the weight on each side. This depends on your fitness levels. It is advised to increase the weight once your form is perfect.
Being a beginner you need to focus on perfecting the form first rather than doing multiple reps or sets. Less number of sets with good form is way more beneficial than multiple sets with a bad form.
Furthermore, you risk injury if you are performing deadlifts with bad form. Take the help of a fitness expert until you perfect the form. Also, remember that deadlifts are to be done only 2 to 3 times a week. Your muscles need time to rest and recover.
Muscles involved
Deadlifts are extremely beneficial as they involve various muscle groups. This exercise, performed with the right technique can strengthen all these muscles at a time.
Major muscles that get trained with deadlifts are:
- Back
- Hips
- Glutes
- Trapezius
- Hamstrings
- Core
- Quadriceps
It is very effective as they activate most of the major muscles of the lower body and help in increasing overall strength.
Advantages of deadlifts
By incorporating this compound exercise with simple equipment into your workout routine, you can successfully improve your functional strength. It is scientifically proven that deadlifts have numerous health benefits.
Deadlifts not only improve your strength but also comes with many day-to-day advantages.
Here are a few ways your deadlifts benefit you:
Back pain
Back pain, especially in the lower back is the most common complaint we see in people of any age group, most adults. Regardless of the cause of this lower back pain, deadlifts have been proven to be quite useful in the treatment and reducing this pain.
The proper technique needs to be followed while performing deadlifts. Otherwise, there are high chances that deadlifts can intensify the pain. That is the reason it is necessary to take the advice of a doctor before you seek deadlifts as the treatment for your lower back pain.
Moreover, make sure to perform deadlifts under the surveillance of a fitness trainer or an expert to correct your form.
Improve your metabolism
Weight loss can be achieved by burning more calories than calorie intake. Many weight loss regimens involve the same. Furthermore, boosting your metabolism can be an important factor in losing weight. Strength and resistance training plays a vital role in improving your metabolism.
Resistance training like deadlifts helps you burn more calories in less time. Also, these are beneficial in burning calories at rest.
Activation of hip extensors and core
Deadlifts are crucial for both hip extensors and the core. Hamstrings and gluteus maximus muscles are involved in hip extensors. Deadlifts not only strengthen these muscles but also increase their size. Though other exercises activate these muscle groups, deadlifts are proven to have better effectiveness.
Overall fitness requires a well-strengthened core and trunk muscles. Stabilizing your spine can be possible by performing numerous exercises but deadlifts have shown improved efficiency.
Increase the mineral density of the bone
As you age, the mineral density of your bone reduces. This can be associated with osteoporosis which may cause fractures easily in older adults. Many researchers have proved that exercises like deadlifts regress this process.
Deadlifts being exercises for the hips and legs, when combined with other resistance training may improve bone mineral density of the entire body.
Usage of basic equipment
Despite requiring simple equipment, deadlifts are more advantageous than many other exercises which require a power rack or very specific gym equipment. To do deadlifts all you require is a barrel with plates or any heavy object which has a handle.
There you go! These are a few of the many health benefits of deadlifts. Now that you know how to perform deadlifts and their advantages, here are a few variations of this resistance exercise that you can incorporate into your workout routine.
Variations of deadlifts
Deadlifts are the best to work your back, legs, hamstrings, core as well as butt. This resistance exercise comes in wide variations. You can choose which variation works the best for your body based on your current fitness goal.
There’s no bench rule that there’s a specific variation of deadlifts for a particular goal or a body type. It completely depends on your body, capability, and your fitness level.
Take suggestions from your fitness guide or a trainer as It is better to know which variation of this exercise suits you well.
Below are a few variations:
Romanian deadlift
This is the most fundamental deadlift. It is important to perfect your form at this basic type before trying out the other variations. Stand with feet hip-width apart. Slightly bend your knees. Now, hold one dumbbell in both hands at the level of your thighs.
Lean forward pushing your hips backward with a straight back and upper body almost parallel to the ground. (Hip hinge) The dumbbells should reach just below your knees (shins) Now push your feet flat on the floor and stand straight back up. Make sure that your core is tight.
Pause at this position. This is your one rep.
Kettlebell Romanian deadlift
If you are just starting on resistance training, you can choose this variation of deadlifts. Do you not have extensive workout equipment? Worry not! This is a simple deadlift as you just need a kettlebell. Stand with feet hip-width apart. Slightly bend your knees.
Now, hold the kettlebell at the level of your thighs with both your hands. Lean forward hinging at the hips with a straight back and upper body almost parallel to the ground. (Hip hinge) The base of the kettlebell should touch the floor.
Now push your feet flat on the floor and stand straight back up. Make sure that your core is tight.
Pause at this position. This is your one rep.
Offset load deadlift
For this variation, you can hold a dumbbell or any weight in one hand and no weight in the opposite hand or you can choose to hold a heavier weight in one hand and a lighter weight in the other.
This deadlift is very challenging as it works on your core as it needs you to be stable, and maintains a flat back without rotating the torso.
Stand with feet being hips-width apart. Now hold the weights (or weight) with straight arms. Lean forward hinging at the hips with a straight back and upper body almost parallel to the ground. (Hip hinge)
Now push your feet flat on the floor and stand straight back up. Make sure that your core is tight and the weights are close to the shins. Pause at this position. This is your one rep.
Conclusion
There you go! You have a complete guide here on deadlifts. If you just starting on your fitness journey, deadlift exercises are one of the best to incorporate into your workout routine. Any fitness expert would want you to add resistance and strength training to your regimen as they help you strengthen your core, back, and your entire body.
Out of all the resistance training exercises, deadlifts are the best which help strengthen your core, back, hamstrings and glutes. We advise you to perform deadlifts under a trainer’s assistance as this exercise requires you to perfect the form.
It will be challenging at first but do not give up as deadlifts offer you a wide variety of benefits.