Why all athletes should deadlift in 54321

Before we get started, like all lift's the deadlifts can be both dangerous and safe - more falls on the coach than the athlete.  If you can’t teach the form then find someone who can or don’t use this lift in your program.  Good exercises mixed with bad coaching is always bad. 

1: Activate the hips

 

Your athletes will almost definitely have either weak hips or lack the ability activate the hips during a movement.  With a movement that is slower than the clean or box jump and more controllable than squatting the Deadlift can be the ultimate Hip Activating exercise for your athletes (from a coaching perspective where you can stand in front of the athlete and have them pause in certain spots as you explain how to utilize individual body movements).

During this lift you will be able to pinpoint weak areas and sections of the body where balance and stability fail.  As a coach, as you learn more about the deadlift and how to pick it apart you can adapt and rebuild the athlete into a much stronger/faster/more explosive athlete.

 

2: Joint impact free movement for increased jumps and explosive work

 

While jump based routines and speed movements are good, most athletes are already completely drained in this area and could use a rest from the impact they cause.  I’ve worked with teams whose coaches have stated their top player has sore / weak knees and ankles therefore should not deadlift but instead do endless box jumps and sprints.  The problem is, the lift isn’t hurting the joints, it’s the actual sport the athlete participates in.  Athletes are training after school for 2-3hrs 5-6 days a week, depending on their sport this could be made up of 90% running and jumping.  The amount of pressure this place on the joints is dangerous and typically unnecessary.  Have your athletes hit the barbells 10-12 months a year for 2-4 days a week and you will watch the injury rates drastically drop and their performance skyrocket.  Too many athletes are repeating and mimicking their sport movements too much and neglecting the areas that need the most focus. 

 

I have yet to see an athlete hurt their joints on a deadlift, I have seen athletes come into the weight room with bags of ice taped all over their body with a note from a coach detailing all the lifts that could hurt their athletes.  THE ATHLETE IS AREADY HURT and the barbells haven’t even been loaded yet.

3: Increased bone mineral density and testosterone

This will add both short term and long term benefits to the athlete that could change the outcome of a game while also changing how they move during adulthood.  A highly successful way to reduce injuries is to keep the bones strong and growing.  Imagine how much breakdown is happening to the body during 5k runs or 3 hours of basketball practice running 6days a week.  How about football?  The amount of impact and damage erupting in the body during these sports could shock the athlete’s body to the point of no return.  Train them hard on the field, track, and court but give them the tools necessary to recover and rebuild.  During the off season your kids should be hitting the weights at least 3 times a week.  If your school doesn’t have a weight room or a lifting program, I can promise you that every town has a local gym that your team can go to (ideally look for a privately owned on for the best results/financial deals).  One email from a coach or booster parent and I guarantee you these local business owners will jump at the chance to take a full team on at a discounted rate. 

4: Very little equipment or budget is needed.  

Deadlifts are cheap, like insanely cheap.  Honestly, if you are on a budget, you can search Facebook market and probably find enough for 6-10 athletes at a time for just a few hundred bucks.  The average booster club fundraiser could supple a team with enough barbells and weights and the will last years.  Going back to finding a local club, you would be surprised how affordable hiring a coach for a whole team can be and many local strength and conditioning facilities will have equipment your school and your local big-name gym would never buy (Small gym owners buy better equipment / specialty gear – schools and big gyms don’t).

5: Big numbers on the Bar = Big numbers in the Weight Room. 

 

After the first few weeks your athletes will see their Bench and Clean numbers plateau a bit and they are probably still getting used to the Squat (and not going down low enough to even count it) but the Deadlift is the KING of building a highly competitive environment where the athletes will see massive jumps for months straight creating an addicting atmosphere.  It’s hard to get excited about benching 95lbs for 1 then going in next week and doing 65lbs for sets of 8 but with the deadlift your athletes might deadlift 225 for a 1RM then go in 2 weeks later and hit 275 for a solid 3 reps in a row.  Flash forward 3 months and they are over 300lbs for 5 and getting excited about MAXOUT WEEK.  No other lift has caused so many athletes to gather around 1 individual and cheer him/her on as they break into a new PR.

 

We have created such an intense environment around the deadlift that 300+ for the high school girls and 500+ for the boys have become a normal occurrence.  While all teenage boys love the bench and our girls tend to pick bench and squat over deadlifts as their all time favorite, the deadlift has become the one lift that shows all new lifters (Freshman) what is expected in our weight room.

 

Check out our 2 most suggested products for deadlfits – Chucks and Leather Straps: