10 Ways On How To Improve The Deadlift
by: Brandon Richey–Get Updates And Free Training Guides Here
10 Ways On How To Improve The Deadlift
You probably noticed that the photograph above represents every strength and conditioning coach’s dream laboratory for building athleticism! That’s because this particular facility pretty much is a dream laboratory since it happens to be the newly renovated weight room for the University of Georgia football program, just in case you failed to notice the “G’s” slapped on the side of all the equipment. Yep, that’s my old stomping ground. Ok, not literally that weight room because it’s brand new, but it’s in the same building. Anyways keep on reading and I’ll tell you more about it and how to improve that deadlift.
There’s More Than One Way To Skin A Cat…
So last season I was able to make my way over to Athens to go watch the last home game of the season with UGA taking on Kentucky. During the day I was able to head over to check out the newly renovated weight room and indoor practice facility. These were all expansions of the Buttes-Mehre Heritage Hall and the new facilities were incredible to see. It’s also probably a good time to mention that if any donors are out there and would like to build one of these bad boys for me to run for you feel free to hit me up at anytime. 😉
Aside from all the bells and whistles (which are great to look at) it’s important for a strength coach to be principled in his or her approach when implementing a S&C program, otherwise they can fall into a trap of too much variety and not enough mastery! The point is that this crossed my mind as I was walking around taking in the new scenery on that day.
Check out these cast iron kettlebells to help you master some basic strength movements
I was literally staring at one of the power platforms and all the sudden started thinking about ways to improve the deadlift! I know the weirdest things enter the ‘ole brain sometimes, but then again I was standing in the middle of a newly renovated 2 million dollar expansion of the weight room and indoor performance arena! I guess the thought was destined to occur.
10 Ways To Improve The Deadlift…
1. Train The Grip: You can only pull as much weight as you can hold on to with your hands. Make sure you strengthen your grip by using kettle bells, ropes, and totes of various kinds.
2. Do Some Planks: Yes, building a solid core will help you to stabilize your body by better creating more intrathoracic pressure when exerting yourself under load during a deadlift. Planks are great for helping one to achieve this.
3. Include Unilateral Leg Training: I’m a huge proponent of unilateral leg training. Training unilateral movement is great for joint stability and can help to reduce compressive forces on the spine when the body is under load. Engage in lunges, step ups, and pistol squats when you can.
4. Fluctuate Your Load Intensity: This should go without saying, but play with fluctuating your lifting intensity. Make sure you develop an organized plan in your training by adjusting your volume and intensity to cater towards improving your deadlift. This will cycle your body so that you will allow a healthy dose of stress for your body’s nervous system to peak and recover at the correct times.
5. Feed Your Strength: You’ve got to eat to get stronger. I once heard a great quote that said “Meat for your muscles, vegetables for your health!” Forgive me because I can’t recall where I heard that. I’m paraphrasing, but the point should be clear unless you happen to be a vegetarian! 🙂
6. Engage In Partial ROM Rack Pulls: Rack pulls are great because you can set up a squat rack or platform to allow for only a partial ROM deadlift. Start these with the bar at about knee height. This short ROM allows for you to load up more weight than usual to achieve a big powerful ball busting pull! By doing this you can really stress the body for strength while not taxing your nervous system by grinding a heavier load in a full ROM deadlift! It just simply allows for more heavy ass pulls.
7. Keep Your Hips Mobile: Yes, this is a big one. Stretch, stretch, and stretch some more! Make sure you keep those hips mobile so that you can get your body into the optimal position to pull that bar off the floor with some gorilla like fury!
Check out this helpful guide for tremendous flexibility!
8. Incorporate Some De-load Weeks: This one sort of relates to #4 in a way. However a de-load week could be that you work more on bodyweight resistance, you skip deadlifting, or you take an extra couple days off altogether. The point is that you’re searching for a week to lighten the stress on the body to allow for ample recovery.
9. Foam Roll And Massage: Myofascial release is a necessity. Look the fact is that stretching “alone” isn’t going to cut it. You’ve got to work on breaking up the soft tissues that get tight over time from stress and other lifestyle factors. Invest in a foam roller, a couple of lacrosse balls, and if you really need some extra help go to a massage therapist.
10. Deadlift Often…
Yes, that about wraps it all up my friend. The point is that if you incorporate all 10 of these into your training not only will you improve your deadlift, but you will also improve the rest of your strength performance as well. The key is being consistent and focused. Please feel free to drop some of your own ingredients for improving your deadlift in the comment box below this article. Remember that most anyone can train hard, but only the best train smart my friend.
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10 Ways On How To Improve The Deadlift
