Pay attention to your lower back: Your complete guide to the deadlift

My preference is to replace the deadlift with squats and glute bridges or hip thrusts, which when combined will also strengthen components of the posterior chain. The squat is quadriceps-focused and the glute bridges or hip thrusts load the glutes and hamstrings. This combination of two exercises is much safer and will provide the same outcome.

Technique

If you still choose to deadlift, please heed the following:

Remember – the lumbar spine is where the greater proportion of injuries are experienced (distantly followed by the shoulder and knee).

Ensure that you can see your lower spine by tucking your T-shirt or singlet in at the back and positioning yourself side-on to a mirror. Ideally have a qualified professional overseeing your lumbar control.

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The lift is a hip-hinging movement – meaning that your centre of movement is at the hip joints. So the spine should stay neutral and be held in this straight position from the start of the movement to the end. This is the injurious component of a deadlift – when the lumbar spine moves.

Your feet should be shoulder-width apart. This then dictates your hand position, which will be on the bar just wide of your shins, so your knees can stay directly over the top of your feet.

Keep your neck neutral. That means your eye line will start by looking at a point on the floor about a metre in front, and as you lift it will follow a line to finish at eye level directly ahead.

Drive from the hips to lift the bar straight up past the shins and stand tall.

Be careful not to bend your lumbar spine to start the movement and ensure that your hips stay high (higher than your knees) throughout. Also keep your spine neutral and avoid arching backwards at the end of the movement.

Be mindful where you feel the burn – you should feel it in your glutes, hamstrings and quadricep muscles. Importantly, not in your hip or knee joints. And, above all, not in your central lower back.

Ensure that your sets and reps represent your gym objectives – most people are striving for strength, so three sets of 8-10 repetitions are recommended with at least one rest day between sessions.

Watch the amount of weight you stack onto your barbell. You don’t need huge amounts for the movement to be effective. Lifting a lighter weight helps you to adhere to the wise gym mantra that “form is king”. Good technique means more continuity and less injury. If you continue to deadlift with heavier weights, consider wearing a weight belt.

If you have decreased ankle range of movement you might want to find a short platform to stand on (such as 20-kilogram barbell weights) so that your feet are completely grounded at the start of the movement.

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Modified deadlifts can be safer and easier to perform. Sumo deadlifts carry the same risks as a regular deadlift, however the Romanian deadlift is a much safer option because the weights don’t go all the way down to the floor, meaning the range of movement is smaller and easier to control while still targeting the desired muscle group.

Luke Pickett is a physiotherapist who has worked as a head physio for AFL, AIS and Australian sporting teams. He is director of Melbourne Physio Clinic.

Also check out his complete guide to the squat and the bench press.

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