How to Properly Deadlift: Top Tips for a Strong and Healthy Spine

Want to deadlift MORE weight while keeping your spine safe? Today you'll learn 3 tips to perfect this lift and minimize your risk for back injury. Collab with Micah Marino!
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[@SENZABeotos]

I had lower back spasm after i did deadlift with heavy weight. After i watched a lot of deadlift videos last 2 months on this channel, I did 100kg deadlift today with pain free. Thank you, Dr. Aaron Horschig. 🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻

[@Jwiznat]

great job. continue working on your technique and you will hit 150kg soon!

[@Muahahaha234]

Congrats! Now sky is the limit 😊

[@DrSpooglemon]

I work in construction and when I try to tell guys about the importance of good lifting form a lot of them tend to just look at me funny - like I'm trying to get them to go vegan or something. Guaranteed, those same people will put their bad back down to "getting old".

[@ightimmaheadout290]

​@@DrSpooglemonThey are absolute clowns if they ponder why good form is important for health especially physical jobs

[@DrSpooglemon]

@@ightimmaheadout290 We're talking about the kind of people who think you are weird if you object to breathing in concrete dust. Just morons really.

[@501Labs]

You only gotta injure your back once before you find these videos 😅. You dont realize how important your back is until you literally cannot walk for an entire month and realize the amount of movements that depend on it.

[@gamerkyle14]

Did my first 90kg deadlift other day, thought id been doing it right, but as soon as you said the isolaged lower back feeling, ive realised ive been doing something wrong, frustrated, but thankful i havnt injured myself , thabsj fornthe video , time to half my weight, and practice this form before i pull my back out 😂

[@barefootbrooutdoors4981]

“You can put your shift durn” had me dying

[@GabrielDoesAThing]

After passing a certain weight my grip started to become a bottleneck for me, personally I prefer straps over an 'over under' grip, and I was then having trouble with my brace, as I am more comfortable bracing at the top rather then bent over, and a friend gave me a great piece of advice, which is to start the deadlift in a kneeling position, this let me brace straight-up, with straps in place and has helped me make strides in my deadlift, I was wracking my brain until he clued me in, so figured I would share it.

[@LeeH3nson]

Love the longer form videos

[@SquatUniversity]

Thank you!

[@Jwiznat]

i’ve had great results by adding lat cable pullovers to my upper body days. really helped me learn to engage the lats without a rowing/pulling movement. highly advise for anyone who struggles with this.

[@Muahahaha234]

Very solid advice. I like doing those and a few wide grip, very slow pull-ups as part of my warm up to really "wake up" those lats before my first set

[@AjaychinuShah]

@@Muahahaha234 thanks, “asymmetrical pre-exhaust and activation.” Thanks 😂

[@adammiller9179]

I've used Lat Prayers as a warm-up for DLs.

[@freddieodonnell]

Just hurt my back doing squats. Been binge watching this guy. Incredibly helpful. Much better than anyone else I’ve seen

[@scubastevesnider8010]

Ive always had lower back pain and after watching these vids and doing deadlifts 2x/week, my back pain is pretty much gone... im doing other exercises too so i cant say its 100% due to deadlifts but i AM sure that deadlifts are strengthening my lower back and glutes more than anything... so thanks :)

[@maratheleo]

I learn so much from your videos and get me pumped for my next lifting session. Thank you!!

[@MikeWick718]

Helped me overcome my QL injury from last week. Excellent breakdown, thank you for all your years of service to the world 👍

[@jfp17]

Need this right now. I workout at home, and have been having a rough time with deadlifts physically and mentally. Thank you!!

[@SquatUniversity]

You’re welcome!

[@Muahahaha234]

The education I've received from this channel has helped me lift significantly more weight than ever before, while pretty much eliminating all of my back pain i used to have after lifting for over 10 years

[@phacocataractdrlvkraju5]

Awesome content as always. Thank you

[@omariwest9068]

love, love, love you channel!!! Deadlifitng and squats and all the biomechanics involved is such an underserved subect matter that many people get wrong, and even personal trainers don't properly know how to train. Thanks for the clear and comprehensive and understandable tips!!! subscribed now!!!

[@dmitriiglushchenko5658]

Thank you for all that incredible work you are doing! It is really helpful

[@iAmBeauty-]

GREAT VIDEO. I'll keep it in mind

[@ImKezo-kq4pq]

This information is golden ❤

[@enteoz1694]

This is great glad I found this channel

[@Martineschido]

Muchas gracias maestro!! Extremely valuable information explained by two top tier professionals. And the humor you added ... fantastic 😄 Greets from Mexico.

[@vaniswatchingyoutube]

clear instructions and demo! thank you

[@MissMelissaBarouki]

You explain things so well. Thank you 😁

[@heyselice]

Super good tips, I always used to feel my low back doing deadlifts. Gonna refer to this when I add them back in next meso!

[@iunderstanphotography2780]

I feel my lower back at times as well. i had lower back pain caused by my uneven hips and went to therapy because of it. I learned your breathing and tightening stomach technique there, so i need to apply it to deadlifting too

[@pangimak4341]

Thank you. This really helped me make some much needed adjustments to my technique. Just cracked 200 kg. Appreciate it.

[@amandaserrano1972]

this helped a lot ,thanks

[@nutritionbyelsa]

super super awesome, thank you

[@davidferrer65]

I sometimes struggled getting a low back pump with deadlifting. Reminders like this helps

[@tabithasantos9809]

great stuff thank you

[@ArticGunship]

It’s interesting in terms of timing when doing multiple reps. I “pause” between reps when the bar is down and sometimes find myself struggling to initiate the last one as I need to “stiffen”being down. I will try to do as shown and do the breath and brace when I’m upwards. In addition I realise it’s really mentally challenging to start all over again from the down position. Thanks for the tips!

[@Major.Tom.1973]

I think you saved me from potential injury with what you said at 07:17 Thank you so much!

[@shahreyaralam1019]

Lovely video

[@kozuekurokawa8853]

Brilliant thank you

[@christopherjohnson5961]

Lay queue was very helpful to me. Also I’m finding that weak core is very big contributor to form related injury. I feel like I have a pretty strong core but it is definitely lagging compared to the other muscles required in deadlift. I can’t safely lift more than I can appropriately and consistently brace to support. That means lower weight with focused reps to improve form and all the supporting core stabilization in order to progress weight. Thanks for the tips!

[@noeljrdelacuesta3211]

Thank you for the scientific advice, dr! I just hope that you’d curate playlists based on muscle groups, like, exercises for back and how to properly do them. It’s kind of difficult to filter through the numerous shorts 😅

[@giacomoleopardi5776]

Oh Man🍀🙏... All your Stuff is so helpfull... Thank you 1000 Times... Watched very much of your Stuff,hits my weakness in Shoulder and Hips.. Thank You🙏👍🍀🍀🍀

[@Waruto]

best lifting channel by far

[@daysoftheboo]

Thank you this is very important for me to get this move right especially since I have osteoporosis I need to strengthen my spine , I did struggle with the breathing part though , I don't really understand the breathing part I just breathe however feels comfortable to me I hope that's still good enough

[@romiopiopio]

brilliant!

[@user-ow9jy8ss8u]

GRATE TIPS!

[@helenhaile2591]

Thank you 🙏🏿

[@Sienn0]

It's always nice to have reminders on these lifts. I plan to do deadlifts on my upcoming leg day workout anyway 😤

[@SquatUniversity]

Hope this can help!

[@Sienn0]

@@SquatUniversity Yes it has. I look forward to seeing if I can make the most of your advice. I decided to go back to basics and make sure that I get everything on point before I attempt my PB later in the year. Thank you.

[@mikeymyke]

I just use a trap bar, it virtually eliminates the back pain risk, and I feel my back getting stimulated just as much. Only time I use a barbell for deadlifting is doing RDLs, since it's awkward to do it with a trap bar. If anyone is afraid of doing deadlift, I highly recommend getting a trap bar.

[@gokul-3539]

A perfect video ❤❤

[@XxGranddudexX]

Good video. I always had a problem with low back pain doing deadlifts until I saw a video that talked about stacking the spine instead of hyper flexing my lower back setting up for the lift. Could you address that in a future video?

[@KnightofKnots]

I love your videos, would you ever consider doing a tutorial on how to use the trap bar?

[@sudhirdahiya1273]

That’s quite holistic description also pls tell how to make your grip your strong because it becomes very hard when weight increases. Thanks

[@prathamharshana6732]

Best exercise for core strength and stability and please sir make a vedio on hex bar deadlift love from India

[@ivancorona7780]

Can you do a video on wrist pain? That would be so helpful!

[@lvcky1033]

Almost broke my spine today while attempting a PR. This would help a lot next time

[@atzeamsteppen5992]

Today i did 150 kg easily with not a single attempt before with that much weight only because i watched tons of videos from squat university, you see you don't even have to Train just watch everyday this channel that should do the trick

[@MOVIEKICKS]

These tips are golden! What about squeezing the glutes?

[@bakayk4328]

When you strengthen your core, it helps stabilize your spine and pelvis during heavy lifts like deadlifts and squats. This stability reduces the risk of your lower back rounding during deadlifts and eliminates buttwink in squats. Core stability exercises improve your ability to maintain a neutral spine position, which is crucial for proper form in these lifts.

[@annafilou]

"If you get done with the deadlift and you feel isolated low back fatigue, that showed me that you have failed" - felt like he was speaking directly to me 🙈

[@tolulopeobe]

😥😥😥 I feel like I do all these but I still get some low back fatigue after heavy conventional deadlifts 😮‍💨😮‍💨😮‍💨

[@brandonalcanter4349]

Can you do a video on zercher lifts? (Squats, deadlifts, good mornings, and carries) I've recently decided to switch out my back squats completely for zercher squats and I added zercher good mornings as well. I was already doing zercher deadlifts. There aren't a lot of videos explaining the pros and cons of them. I practice jiu jitsu and I figured this would carry over really well to that, but I don't just train for performance. I also have aeathetics as ones of my goals and I hope I don't lose anything changing the back squats out for zerchers.

[@Postfrogish]

All great advice. But let's add an often overlooked point: Activation of the pelvic floor musculature! Think kegels or holding back a fart with force 😅. Doing this will activate a muscular synergy that causes the pelvis to tilt into a strong spinal position. Working as a physio this advice alone helps so much more in correcting people's pelvic tilt than trying to get patients to correct the angle of their pelvis. Also, and maybe most important, your pelvic floor will be braced for the pressure. Avoiding Pelvic Floor Disorders while lifting needs more awareness.

[@RaoBlackWellizedArman]

Can you elaborate on this a bit more? Thanks

[@Postfrogish]

@@RaoBlackWellizedArman Which part? Braced pelvic floor during liftin? Or correcting pelvic tilt with kegels?

[@hollya3339]

Does pilates help with training pelvic floor before attempting deadlifts for newbies?

[@Postfrogish]

@@hollya3339 i have no experience practicing pilates. Do you actively engage your pelvic floor musculature during pilates workouts? I tend to advise either isolated pelvic floor exercises/kegels to start with - then progressing to kegels during other activities. Those could be pilates or bodyweight squats and so on

[@ak4vr]

U should do an ultimate guide routine u would recommend for all around wellness, like a combination of all the essentials

[@abhistraj4284]

Great 🔥

[@venkybly]

Tq 👍🏼

[@yesitsme6]

great

[@danmetallica2973]

Ive always wanted to do deadlifts but have been scared to try them lol, im probably gonna go practice them with light weights this weekend

[@thebeandistributor9507]

I needed this video. The first time I ever deadlifted I managed to get 140kg with some truly horrendous form. 2 weeks later today with proper form I could barely get 100 kg off the ground with better form and it was a massive blow to my ego.

[@Jack_Mehoff]

Gotta leave the ego at the door to properly weightlift

[@fabionezi5658]

Hi Aaron, thanks for your always interesting videos! How can I set properly the stand of the Sumo DL?

[@whitestaff1]

Hey great video ! Can you tell what program you are using for visualization of the movement ?

[@mayasl1339]

2:29 is worth gold

[@malikking179]

Thank you for the help with improving my mobility i can kick much better but i would like to know where did you go to learn all of this information at

[@AjaychinuShah]

I used a hot and warm mat to get the Technique enabled. Not cold boots!

[@12mentalstars]

Can you do a video for trap bar deadlifts?

[@AjaychinuShah]

I used a descent or passive band placement for superior gains. Idk, every one is different, do what works for you.

[@mikeblxde4735]

Any tips for a guy with scoliosis, I have tight spinal muscles on right side of upper back and have torn muscles in that area three times. Trapezius between my shoulder blade and spine.

[@ElBoyoElectronico]

Any tips for Diastasis Recti for men? This would awesome!

[@Miller2h41]

Locking the lats is key

[@tigeruppercut2000]

Yep I messed up and didn't do research before deadlifting. Now (based on your videos) I got sciatica, and it's affecting my day and productivity

[@kosc88]

Well timed, I just started doing DLs with slow eccentric and been having trouble bracing my core, I did this exercise for the first time and my back was bending all over the place during eccentric and gave me terrible soreness days after. Hope this helps in my next session, especially breathing tips.

[@metrolifeg]

Hi , Could you provide some insight on how to correct knock knees in teenagers.

[@jonmolina948]

I like how he finds someone that can deadlift a car to demonstrate.

[@SquatUniversity]

I love using my elite powerlifters to demo!

[@Kampup]

you have a video for anterior pelvic tilt can you do one on posterior tilt? ty

[@Topher9203]

I feel my back activated more with a slight bend at the elbow. Straight arm doesn’t do it for me

[@karenaizirein8957]

My good sir do you have book recommendations in order to learn these instead of walking around in the dark?

[@gojosatoru24]

I have a question about grip width. As I deadlift with a grip width just outside the shoulders I feel working a lot the lumbar part of my latissimus dorsi, but I can't feel very much the mid and upper part of the same muscle. Should I take I wider grip or stick with the usual one?

[@SnakeAndTurtleQigong]

Thanks so much

[@SquatUniversity]

You’re welcome!!

[@taguro1006]

So do you stiffen the lowback as well when going down and up?

[@danielgray5756]

That lat position is the same for bent over rows

[@ginger2114]

How does using the belt help with core bracing? Does it make it easier?

[@imadork123]

If you can't brace without a belt, then you shouldn't use the belt yet. It helps to do that full around-the-torso tension by providing some resistance other than the stretch of your skin tissue. It is best used by lifters with good fundamentals of bracing, but who would like some additional tension to protect them as they go to heavier weight.

[@mnew4325]

Any advice for the wrists and hands? Even when not lifting they’ll hurt, and if I have to grip something really hard like wire cutters my right hand has this weird tendency to wanna stay closed

[@ladym7852]

Does your program have anything for folks that don’t have weights at home or gym membership? 🤔

[@joelhuffman5442]

What’s that song at the end? I like it

[@kadijaish]

Aaron, can you include MRI of your future back patients so we can get some insite and get hope for us in pain? I know, MRI is not everything, but it would be nice to see it

[@SquatUniversity]

I’ll see what I can do

[@kadijaish]

@@SquatUniversity Thank tou

[@richbun6435]

Does the brace technique the same for squat and bench also?

[@ryank.1214]

I’m only three more videos away from getting my Associate’s. #SquatUniversity

[@hollya3339]

😂

[@gmflashmx]

How do I brace on the way down if im NOT doing touch and go reps? Do I take a zip of air in the top position or do I hold my breath until I'm back down again?

[@RPhaF]

When you're doing RDLs, the bar never touches the floor so you don't have that time where you can just breath out and "unbrace". How do you adapt the bracing and breathing pattern in that case ?

[@jonathanwinspeare7314]

Now that's a good question

[@suyashmittal1944]

Hi pls tell that I have a hiatal hernia and it will be corrected by a chiropractor.But he says that I should not hold my breath or do bracing while doing compound movement because it increases intra abdominal pressure and thus will create hiatus hernia again. Can you pls tell then what to do???

[@Ratstick58]

I’ve heard that bracing can increase your chance of hernias. Any comments on that?

[@viiiRA_]

Yeah, unfortunately my form isn't as consistent as it needs to be. It's defo the reason why I've plateau'd. I should probably be nearing 600 at this point but I've been plateau'd at 515 for a couple months.

[@jeusen595]

This might be off topic but i need help! I have pain in my ellbow mostly when training but even holding my phone in my right hand (thats the arm that hurts) is enough to stress my ellbow. I went to many physios and they couldnt help. I even did an mrt scan (where you can see everything) but they said nothing is wrong. No tendon issue no muskel problem. I dont know what to do anymore i have this problem since last year (6/7 month) nothing helps. I stopped training many times but even now (last workout over a week ago) my ellbow feels so week and fragile and hurts all the time… pls someone help me

[@kramer911]

How do you avoid scraping the shins? I joined a new gym and the bar is wider and has more rough texture in the middle and I am constantly reopening my cuts on my shins now.. I even bought shin guards AND wear track pants but It still reopened my cut this week. It happened at my old gym too but never to this extent

[@Fatlad87]

Can you deadlift with an unfixed rotator cuff?

[@brandonsanchezr.7383]

I've been trying for days but can't get the handle of step 1. I can only do it forward and inward, not in a side/lateral motion :( Is there a video in this channel about how to breathe properly? Thanks