Job start up properly Before training is a must, especially when training heavy. With Deadlift, warming up is extremely important, it affects training performance as well as safety when performing the movement.
So, what does a proper warm-up look like when practicing deadlift?
Based on strength and conditioning research, your deadlift warm-up should include four steps:
- Do a general warm-up to increase your body temperature.
- Mobility exercises to facilitate joint movement.
- Dynamic stretching to increase muscle length.
- Activation exercises to ensure stabilizer muscle groups are ‘turned on’.
Most people have one of these routines included in their deadlift warm-up, but lack incorporating everything together in a proper warm-up. The downside to not warming up properly for deadlifts is that your strength may be limited and you may put yourself at greater risk of injury.
Let me share with you what I’ve learned about warming up effectively for deadlifts below
See more: Instructions for performing the most detailed Deadlift exercise
1. General start-up
The purpose of a general warm-up is to increase the body’s core temperature.
The main way to increase your body temperature is through light cardiovascular exercise, such as cycling, walking/running or jumping rope.
Many weightlifters will skip this warm-up period because they have a negative perception of ‘cardio’ training. However, there is research showing that a general warm-up is an important part of boosting overall performance.
A study by Barroso et al. (2006) concluded that a 15-minute low-intensity warm-up was superior in improving 1-rep max strength when compared with other styles – “low-intensity” defined as sweating slight odor. The difference in 1-repetition maximal strength was 3-4% higher for the group that performed this type of warm-up.
Understandably, not everyone has 15 minutes to prepare for a general warm-up, so I’ll suggest three additional warm-up steps. However, other studies have shown that even just 5 minutes of a general “light sweat” warm-up can have a positive impact on performance (Wilson et al., 2012).
The lesson here is that not increasing your body temperature before moving on to the next warm-up phase is a big mistake when lifting weights.
2. Mobility exercises for Deadlift
The purpose of Mobility (flexibility) exercises is to facilitate easy joint movement.
The main way you can facilitate joint movement is by using self-massage techniques, such as foam rolling, to relieve muscle tension.
Every exercise in the gym, including the deadlift, will require a certain level of flexibility at the joint level to perform successfully. For deadlifts, you need adequate mobility through the knees, hips, and thoracic/lumbar spine. Therefore, you will want to release muscle tension without reducing the natural mobility of your joints.
My recommendation is to choose 1-3 exercises listed below, apply pressure to your muscles, and perform 5-10 reps in 60-90 seconds. You can choose exercises depending on the time you have.
For the entire thigh
Place the foam roller on your front thigh and find a tender spot where the muscles are tight. You can work out your inner or outer thighs or back thighs depending on where you feel it’s needed. Curved legs will allow you to roll forward and backward on the foam roller.
Glutes
Place your glutes on the foam roller and bend one leg over the other. By doing this, you will put more pressure on the glutes of the unbent leg. Use your arms behind you to roll forward and back.
Back muscle
Start by applying pressure from your upper back and move downward. Keep your abs tight as you apply pressure to your back.
Bucket muscle
Lie on your side on the foam roller and apply pressure to your lats. Roll the areas where you feel tight whether it is higher or lower.
3. Dynamic stretching for Deadlift
The purpose of dynamic stretching is to help increase muscle length.
Dynamic stretching means you will stretch through the range of motion of the exercise for 15-30 times.
At a basic level, you can think of lower body stretches as including movements like ‘leg swings’. You will feel a stretch in your hips and hamstrings as you perform leg swings, but you do not hold this tight position for any length of time.
You are simply going in and out of the range of motion ‘dynamically’. In contrast, ‘static stretching’ is when you hold a muscle in a specific range of motion for a prescribed amount of time (30-60 seconds).
In a study by McMillian et al. (2006), dynamic stretching has been shown to improve performance across a number of outcomes, including strength and speed, when performed before exercise. In contrast, static stretching does not affect performance or have negative effects when performed before a workout.
The lesson here is to perform dynamic stretching before your deadlifts (and then perform static stretching).
Here are some of my favorite lower body dynamic stretches for deadlifts. Choose 2-3 of these dynamic stretches and perform 1 set of 15-30 repetitions.
4. Muscle activation exercises for Deadlift
Performing these muscle activation exercises ensures the stabilizer muscle groups are ‘turned on’.
During the deadlift, you have prime movers that contribute to maximum force production, such as the thighs, glutes, and erector spinae. However, you also have smaller muscle groups that help stabilize the core muscles to limit inefficient movement patterns and support the joints. These stabilizer muscles should be warmed up before you begin the deadlift and ready to allow the prime movers to do their job to the fullest.
Below are my favorite activation sequences for the deadlift. Perform 1-2 sets of 10-15 repetitions with a light resistance band or your body weight. The goal here is to use a controlled tempo so that you don’t call in larger muscle groups. Feel free to rotate different activating exercises over time, even if they target the same stabilizer muscles.
Don’t ‘overdo’ these activation exercises, as you don’t want to fatigue your stabilizer muscles before the deadlift. You simply want to wake them up and keep them fresh for the main job.
Epilogue
Warming up properly when deadlifting requires coordinating all stages together. Doing just one or the other isn’t enough, but doing them together creates a great warm-up system that improves performance and reduces the chance of injury. The total time for each of these steps will take you no more than 15 minutes to complete.
See more: Types of bar grips when Deadlift that you need to know
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Barroso, R., Silva-Batista, C., Tricoli, V. Roschel, H., Ugrinowitsch, C. (2013). The Effects of Different Intensities and Duration of The General Warm-Up on Leg Press 1RM. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research. 27(4), 1009-1013.
McMillian, D., Moore, J., Hatler, B., Taylor, D. (2006) Dynamic vs. Static Stretching Warm Up: The Effect on Power And Agility Performance. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research. 20(3) 492-499.
Peacock, C., Krein, D., Silver, T., Sander, G., Carlowitz, K. (2014). An Acute Bout of Self-Myofascial Release in The Form of Foam Rolling IMproves Performance Testing. International Journal of Exercise Science. 7(3), 202-211.
Wilson, J., Marin, P., Rhea, M., Wilson, S., Loenneke, J., Anderson, J. (2012). Concurrent Training: A Meta-Analysis is Examining Interference of Aerobic And Resistance Exercises. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research. 26(8), 2293-2307.
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