Deadlifts are one of the best exercises for those looking for ways to up their fitness game. The exercise engages multiple muscle groups, including the core and legs, which makes it incredibly effective for building strength.
Besides being useful for toning multiple points of your body simultaneously, the exercise offers many other benefits. Anyone who puts in the effort to master deadlifts is likely to experience a drastic improvement in their overall health and fitness.
Additionally, the regular practice of this exercise may make it easier to achieve fitness targets as it can level up the strength and endurance status of the lifters within a short time.
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Top Six Benefits of Deadlifting That Science Backs
Deadlifting may seem intimidating to those unfamiliar with weightlifting. However, it can provide a range of benefits if done consistently.
Several variations of this exercise can be integrated into the daily workout plan for building strength, power, and muscle. Some examples include Conventional Deadlift, Romanian Deadlift, Single Leg Deadlift, and Dumbbell Stiff Leg Deadlift.
This means the exercise can be proven suitable for a diverse group as it can cater to different fitness levels and offer quick improvement. Here, we have listed the top six scientifically proven benefits of deadlifting that anyone can acquire by adding exercise to their workout routine. Let’s have a look.
1. Helps Control Appetite
Deadlifts offer the added benefit of helping to suppress hunger by increasing the amount of glucose in your bloodstream. To back this statement, we have a recent study that shows that appetite can be controlled and managed with exercise and fitness activities.
Since deadlifts involve multiple of your muscles at once, it is one of the most effective options in this regard.
Doing just a few deadlifts can reduce your appetite and increase your body's ability to burn fat and shed calories. It will be even more beneficial if you combine deadlifting with a suitable diet; you can achieve good results for weight loss with this.
Additionally, it enhances your metabolism and quickly transforms muscles into the desired structure, making them more robust.
2. Increases Release of Testosterone
Adding deadlifting to your workout plan is also one of the most effective methods to increase testosterone production. Studies have found that performing deadlifts increases both circulating and free testosterone levels, which can help with muscle building.
The backing for this claim is that the engagement of multiple muscles in an active movement increases the metabolic stress on the body, resulting in a massive release of testosterone.
The increased testosterone levels in your body can improve your health in many ways. It can boost your memory, increase libido and help you have more pronounced muscles.
3. Assures Better Posture
According to a scientific study, fixing your posture with fitness activities is a great way to prevent decreased motor activities. Hence, keeping your posture in a proper configuration with deadlifting exercises can be a helpful activity for preventing a reduction in motor activities.
This is because while performing deadlifts, one has to straighten the spine and squeeze back the shoulders; meanwhile, the hips stay mobile. So this activity reinforces the correct posture and conditions the body muscles to sustain it.
4. Promotes Hand Grip Strength
Medical researchers have established through research that having a firm hand grip is a litmus test for an individual’s overall health and physical strength.
Deadlifts also help develop a firmer grip, as you need to hold on to the weight for extended periods. As your grip strength increases, this can transfer to other exercises and activities. This means you are improving your health in the long run and getting a better life experience overall.
5. Increases Human Growth Hormone (HGH)
We have already discussed that deadlifts are a compound exercise that works for several muscle groups simultaneously, including the glutes and legs. It requires a lot of energy and puts high pressure on the body, releasing different beneficial hormones.
Considering this, another advantage of deadlift exercises is that it leads to an increase in anabolic hormones like testosterone and growth hormone (HGH). Increased levels of these hormones can help you build muscle mass and burn more fat for energy.
Since research has proven that anabolic hormones start decreasing with age, a deadlifting routine can help keep them at a higher level. The release of these hormones promotes weight loss and muscle growth and defies old-age effects on the body, helping you maintain a younger look for longer.
6. Improves Athleticism
According to recent research, using deadlifts while following velocity-based training can be an ideal workout for sports and athletic activities as it simultaneously covers various fitness areas. You can get a stronger back and more muscular legs with deadlifts and other body muscles.
Improvement in your legs and back strength translates into a terrific betterment in your overall energy levels. You can be a better swimmer, runner, cyclist, hiker, and so on. So it is a win-win situation where you get better health while also scaling up your sports.
How to Perform Deadlift to Gain the Best Outcomes?
So far, we have covered some of the topmost benefits one can attain with the help of deadlift exercises. Let's look at the right way to perform deadlifting to maximize the impact to the fullest.
To perform a proper deadlift, you will need a barbell and weights. If you are a beginner, make sure you start by picking a lighter weight, so you do not injure yourself. Once you have the required equipment, follow the steps below:
- Stand straight with your feet wide apart and bend your knees slightly.
- Reach down and grab the barbell with an overhand grip, keeping your arms straight throughout the motion.
- Also, make sure your hands are not too close to each other.
- Now, lift the bar and bring it closer to your body as much as possible.
- Simultaneously, you should release pressure from your neck and look right ahead.
- Next, lift your chest and straighten your back while keeping your shoulders protracted.
- Now, bend your knees and lower your arms to put the weight back onto the ground.
- Repeat to complete your fitness coach's suggested number of deadlifts.
Tips to Avoid Injuries while Performing Deadlifting
Whether you are a beginner or a professional weight lifter, it is essential to know the harms of performing deadlifts incorrectly, as it can cause severe injury if not done correctly. Here, look at some practices that can lessen the chances of injury and improve your deadlifting technique.
Protect Your Back
Keep your back straight whenever you perform a deadlift, never rounding it. Also, keep the core engaged throughout the motion so that you have control over your back muscles.
You also need to keep your arms extended as you stand up to ensure that your back muscles are stable.
Extend Your Body to the Fullest
Another vital point to remember is to extend your muscles as much as possible while deadlifting. It should include the torso, hips, and legs. When you do not extend your muscles properly, you limit the engagement of your back, glutes, and quadriceps.
This means that these body parts do not get the maximum benefit of the activity. So engaging all of the muscles by extending your body is crucial to maximize the impact of the exercise on each of your muscles and help you attain the best outcome.
However, it is also important to note that extending your muscles to the point that will bend your back is rather harmful. So one should keep the back straight while stretching the muscles during the exercise.
Use Appropriate Gym Gear
If you use proper gym gear while deadlifting, you enjoy additional benefits, decreasing the chance of sustaining an injury. Some common things that gym goers can get for themselves before starting deadlifting include deadlift socks, weight lifting belts, weightlifting hooks, lifting straps, and so on.
Related Article: List of Essential Gym Gear for Men and Women
Maintain the Barbell as Close as Possible
When you deadlift, keep the barbell close to your body. This can help avoid back pain and maximize force production. The trainee can achieve quicker muscle modification and improved strength with maximized force production.
Conclusion:
All in all, deadlifting can be the primary exercise as it offers many advantages simultaneously. On the one hand, it can benefit your strength training targets, while on the other, it builds endurance to promote better athletic performance. The activity also stimulates muscle development and promotes muscle mobility. Moreover, deadlifting can also assist in controlling appetite and weight loss if done consistently.
Reading List
Article Sources
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- Carter, W. J. “Effect of Anabolic Hormones and Insulin-like Growth Factor-I on Muscle Mass and Strength in Elderly Persons.” Clinics in Geriatric Medicine, vol. 11, no. 4, Nov. 1995, pp. 735–48 https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0749069018302684
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- Vingren, Jakob L., et al. “Testosterone Physiology in Resistance Exercise and Training: The up-Stream Regulatory Elements.” Sports Medicine (Auckland, N.Z.), vol. 40, no. 12, Dec. 2010, pp. 1037–53. PubMed, https://doi.org/10.2165/11536910-000000000-00000.