In our impression, the deadlift is a back training exercise that mainly targets the erector spinae in the lower back, but also works the lats and upper back muscles.
After repeated training, the grip strength of both hands and forearm strength can be enhanced, and the heart rate can be increased rapidly, thereby achieving a certain fat reduction effect.
In the actual operation, in addition to the back and arms, we also found that the leg muscles are also under stress, the greater the weight more obvious.
Then here comes the question: what if you use deadlifts to train your legs?
1. The traditional deadlift training method
Traditional deadlift, that is, standard deadlift, the barbell is Place it on the ground, stand with both feet in the middle of the barbell, present a stance that is less than shoulder width, lower arms on both sides naturally, and hold the barbell with both hands, slightly wider than shoulder width.
As you bend your knees, place your hips slightly higher than your knees, sink your shoulder blades, and tighten your core. At this time, your upper torso is in a straight line and your back is in a neutral position.
Grasp the barbell with both hands, take a deep breath, push up with both feet, and lift the barbell up until the barbell is over the knees and the body is completely upright, while exhaling, put the barbell back on the ground, and repeat Adjust your posture and start again.
Note: Traditional deadlifts engage the erector spinae, glutes and hamstrings in prep; lift the bar up , the arms, shoulders and upper back are more stressed.
It can be said that it can train the muscles of the whole body, mainly focusing on the muscles on the back of the body, and can also improve the muscles and core strength of the upper body.
The more weight you complete, the stronger your overall strength; the more reps you complete, the stronger your cardiorespiratory endurance.
2. Traditional deadlifts mainly target the hamstrings
The traditional deadlift itself can train legs, As you bend your knees, you stretch your entire posterior chain, including your hamstrings on the back of your thighs, in addition to your gluteus maximus.
On the one hand, it can exercise the flexibility of the hamstrings, and on the other hand, it can enhance the strength of the hamstrings. During the exhaustion stage and heavy training, the stability of the hamstrings will be very important.
If you can’t keep your back neutral when you are preparing for the posture, you can’t reach the required bent-over hip-flexion angle, and you are always in a bent-over posture, it means you The hamstrings are tense.
If you stretch your knees first and then stand up when you pull up the barbell, you obviously use your waist strength to do the movement, which means your hamstrings are not strong enough. The entire back is flexed.
Therefore, after continuous training of deadlifts, from light weight to heavy weight, the whole process can strengthen the hamstrings on the back of the thigh. Flexibility and muscle strength also help a lot with other leaning movements.
3. Variation deadlift leg exercise
①Straight-leg deadlift
The traditional deadlift is from The floor pulls the bar up, while the straight-leg deadlift lowers the bar from a standing position, the exact opposite of the movement flow.
The traditional deadlift bar is very close to the calf, forming a fixed bent-over knee angle; while the straight-leg deadlift is completely separated from the calf, the legs Get closer to the straight position, leaning down lower.
Traditional deadlifts focus on multiple parts at the same time, which can additionally train the muscles of the back of the thigh;The target muscles of the straight-leg deadlift are more concentrated on the hamstrings of the thighs, which are always in the pulling position. In the stretched state, the overall effect is better.
②Squat deadlift
Traditional deadlift, you need to lift the hips up and tighten, usually make sure the breech is higher than the knees , The muscles on the back of the buttocks and thighs have a strong sense of stretch, and the entire arm is vertically downward, forming a stable hinge that uses the back and posterior chain muscles.
There is also a movement that bends the knees until the thighs are parallel to the ground, and at the same time flexes the hips very little, and the back is close to a vertical position, which forms a bottom position similar to a squat, which can be called it For the “squat deadlift.”
It reduces the amount of hip flexion and increases the angle of knee flexion, moving from a pull-up to a squat, with more stress on the quadriceps on the front of the thigh. It’s the wrong move for the deadlift, but it works the leg from another angle.
③Sumo deadlift
The traditional deadlift has a narrower foot space, usually in the middle of the bar, smooth, and the arms Legs need to be wrapped.
If you keep moving your feet to the sides of your body, you will form a stance that is larger than your shoulder width. When you hold the bar down with your arms in the middle of your legs, it’s a brand new action called the “Sumo Deadlift”.
The sumo deadlift can reduce the pressure on the lower back, allow the use of heavier weights, and bring the upper torso closer to a vertical position when squatting.
The greater the distance between the feet, the better the stimulation of the adductor muscles of the thighs. When the barbell is fully locked, the glutes and hamstrings can also be exercised.
Overall: Straight-leg deadlifts can work the hamstrings on the back of the thighs, and squat deadlifts can work To train the quadriceps on the front of the thigh, the sumo deadlift can train the adductors of the inner thigh.
Personally, I recommend three different deadlifts to alternate training. It can also be trained on the same day, but the training intensity is a bit high.
For ordinary trainers, each exercise only needs to do 5 sets * 10 times, except that the weight of the straight leg deadlift is slightly lower, and the other two movements can use heavy weights.
Of course, if your overall strength is strong, of course, you should still focus on traditional deadlifting. When the action is the main one, their stimulating effect will be more obvious.