The deadlift is one of the most functional and natural exercises that we can use in the gym. If you've ever picked something up from the floor, you've performed a "natural" deadlift technique to accomplish it. Ironically, what should be a highly intuitive and second-nature way to move is one of the least understood and often incorrectly performed exercises seen today. And the only thing worse than not including deadlifts into your routines is by performing these highly effective and challenging exercises with poor form (or in this case, probably the most horrible thing that I think that I've ever seen in my entire life):
One of the keys to performing a perfect deadlift is in keeping your spine in its natural alignment and learning how to move with the hips and not with the low back or even the knees (the knees will bend in a deadlift, but even this is dictated by the hips first. Never try to "squat your deadlift"). By moving your hips backwards and keeping the back naturally arched, holding the shoulder blades tight and depressed down (the opposite of a shoulder shrug), you will train your posterior chain (all of the muscles that span the back of the body) both safely and effectively.
The problem is, most people won't realize that they've got it wrong until it's too late and they've developed back pain and damage from years of bad deadlifts, both in as well as out of the gym. So here's an easy test to see if you've got it right:
Stand roughly 10-12 inches away from a wall (depending on how tall you are) while holding a broomstick in your hands with the back straight and your abs braced tight (i.e. in a deadlift position). Now, try and get your glutes to touch against the wall by moving the hips back towards the wall and keeping your back straight without losing your balance. This is hip flexion. If you can't do this, you're mistaking the motion of lumbar flexion (the bending of your lower back) for hip flexion.
Hopefully you understood this motion and got it right...if not, you've got some lifting homework to do.
-Jonathan
Saturday, March 1, 2008
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2 comments:
Thanks for teaching me the right way to lift. That video is SO hilarious.
Great test. Although my DL's aren't as bad as that moron in the video... it took a couple of tries until I was able to get my butt to touch the wall. I immediately felt the difference. Now, to get that to carry over to the gym...
Thanks for the tip.
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