The Deadlift: Do It or Ditch It?

Picking up something heavy off the ground has been a mode for bros to prove their strength to each other from deep in our pre-verbal roots. The deadlift clearly indicates your bodily ability to lift something heavy - Did I do anything with it once I picked it up? Only set it back down, but that's not the point: With a deadlift you can assess a person's grip strength, ability to create a rigid torso, the strength of the legs and hips, and often times their determination and work ethic.

But not everyone is interested in trying to prove how they strong they are. Surely there are some people who don't need to perform the deadlift, and using so much heavy weight should definitely be out of the question for the young and senior groups, right? Here we can dispel any notion of the need to exclude anyone from performing a deadlift, especially if the lift is distilled to its core element. Most people imagine the deadlift being performed by the hulking figures in the corner of the gym banging the weights on the floor and grunting with each rep, and while that is one way to do them, there are plenty of variations for the lift that make it accessible to everyone else.

The core element of the deadlift is a movement pattern called a 'hip hinge'. In this pattern the hips move backwards then forwards in space while tilting forwards then backwards, respectively, managing the center of mass over the feet, the emphasis being on hip flexion and extension. This motion is different from a squat, in which the hips travel up and down and the emphasis is on knee flexion and extension. While squats and hinges both train the legs, glutes and low back (both are important compound lifts), hip hinges challenge the hamstrings and the other muscles in a way unique from squats.

Compound lifts like hip hinges are important to include because they utilize multiple muscle groups to perform the exercise, and as such they stimulate the nervous, cardiovascular, musculoskeletal and respiratory systems in unique ways that they might not be exposed to during everyday life. This large general stimulus of a person's bodily systems thereby benefits the person by way of a requisite strengthening of those systems. The strength of the hamstrings, glutes and back are essential for young athletes to develop for sport, and important for adults of any age to maintain the highest quality of life.

So in answering the deadlift question, it comes down to the person and their goals when deciding what style of hip hinge to perform. A conventional deadlift demands the lifter be able to lower themselves to the weight, using knee bend to get into position, brace their core while exerting force against the load to get it off the ground; it takes quite a bit of coordination to start with the weight on the floor, and this can sometimes feel limiting. I think for a wide variety of people, rather, a straight leg deadlift is a great option. Instead of starting with the weight on the ground, when performing a straight leg deadlift the barbell (dumbbells or kettlebells) can be taken from a rack or stand, allowing the movement to start in the standing position where it can be easier to brace the core before the movement. Starting from an upright position also allows people to work within their competent range of motion (not going to deep at first), which increases the safety of the lift. Taking the time to learn good technique for the straight leg deadlift allows you to safely and effectively target the hamstrings, glutes and back (a.k.a. the posterior chain), with the possibility for substantially increasing the weight and your strength as training progresses.

The straight leg deadlift is only one of the many ways a person can train their hamstrings and glutes with a hinge motion. Widening stance width, staggering the feet, or performing the exercise on a single leg are all options a person could implement for this movement pattern. These changes can also make the movement accessible to more people, and allows for a custom approach to their goals. If designing your own routine, experiment with some hip hinge variations using light weights and if you find a style of hip hinging that you like, try to use it for at least four weeks; four weeks being a general recommendation of time in which you can increase your proficiency and/or strength with the exercise, according to your goals. A good trainer or strength coach should already have some type of hinge motion in their clients program, and a person need only ask their trainer for more emphasis or variety for that movement should they desire.

"And it's okay for young people to perform deadlifts?" Hip hinging as a way to strengthen the posterior chain is fundamental in the development of athletes from a young age. Especially as they begin training with weights for the first time, an emphasis on proper technique (across all the exercises used in a program) teaches their young nervous systems good coordination and muscular recruitment, setting the stage for them to safely pursue greater strength. The muscular coordination and general increase in strength they can achieve in their early training years may be some the largest gains in their individual safety on the field of play. Do I think young athletes need to test their conventional deadlift 1 rep max every other week? definitely not! Simply including some variety of a hip hinge with a moderate load adjusted for the athletes training age and ability once or twice a week is a good place to start.

"But there's no way my grandma could do that, it'd snap her in half!" There can be certain stigma about a person's age, and what that might mean for their abilities, but I personally have had much success when teaching my older clients to perform hip hinges. Especially if grandma has knee pain, a straight leg deadlift starting from the upright position might be the best opportunity that she has of utilizing an external load in a compound lift, important for that total body challenge. To start incorporating hip hinges, begin with no or minimal load and practice the hip hinge to become proficient with the technique. The learning period for a novice adult lifter may be very short, or it may take a few weeks to perform the movement well. When competent movement and gradual load progression is used, anybody will be able to get stronger with their chosen hip hinge according to their goals, regardless of their age!

There exist many good arguments in favor of using deadlifts in a workout program, but should they cause pain, disfunction, too much dizziness / lightheadedness, or in any way be unfavorable for your goals, there is no need to include them. There are many more compound lifts or other exercises available to improve individual fitness, and everybody can pick the method they find suits them best!