The Deadlift: Sock it to Me, Baby

/ Testify Strength & Conditioning/

effective . . . and stylish

(A Blast from the Past article originally posted on 05/28/21)

Want an easy way to improve your deadlift?

Wear long socks. Seriously. When you deadlift, wear socks that go over your calves and up to a point just below your knees. Of course, sweatpants or leggings will work as well, but for pure fashion - and I’m an expert on this topic - I recommend the classic, old-school tube sock with the horizontal stripes.

Why long socks? Two reasons:

First, you’ll keep the bar closer. Remember, step 5 in the deadlift setup is “drag” - i.e., drag the bar up your legs. This keeps the bar close to your body, over the middle of your foot, and it makes for the most efficient pull. Have you ever tried holding a jug of milk out at arm’s length? It’s a lot easier when you keep it close to your body, and the deadlift is no different. Lifters will automatically keep the barbell closer to their legs when they’re not worried about scraping their shins, which brings us to . . .

Second, you’ll prevent yourself from having bloody shins when you actually succeed in keeping the bar close. You don’t want bloody shins - once they bleed, it’s amazingly easy to break those scabs back open again in successive workouts - and we don’t want your DNA on the bar.

Now, if you’ve never let a deadlift drift away from your shins, and if you’ve never had bloody shins when pulling, then feel free to ignore this advice, but your day will come too, my friend, and when it does, you’ll wish you had a pair of those sweet socks.

As always, we hope this helps you get stronger and live better.

-Phil

PS: Whenever you want even more Testify in your life, here are some free resources:

  • Book a free intro and strategy session with us HERE.

  • Pick up a free copy of Testify’s Squat Guide: 12 Tips to Improve Your Squat Now HERE.

  • Get our free weekly email - containing useful videos, articles, and training tips - HERE.

  • Follow Testify on Instagram HERE.

  • Subscribe to Testify’s YouTube channel HERE.

(Some links may be affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, Testify earns from qualifying purchases.)

At Testify, we offer small group training, private coaching (in-person or remotely via Zoom), online coaching, and form checks. Interested in getting stronger, looking better, and having more energy?

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You’re Probably Bench Pressing Wrong, and It’s Ruining Your Lifting

/ Testify Strength & Conditioning/

Most lifters are benching wrong in at least three of these ways. Watch all 7 mistakes — and stop wrecking your lifts before your next session. Starting Strength Coach Phil Meggers explains.

Whenever you want even more Testify in your life, here are some free resources:

  • Book a free intro and strategy session with us HERE.

  • Pick up a free copy of Testify’s Squat Guide: 12 Tips to Improve Your Squat Now HERE.

  • Get our free weekly email - containing useful videos, articles, and training tips - HERE.

  • Follow Testify on Instagram HERE.

  • Subscribe to Testify’s YouTube channel HERE.

At Testify, we offer small group training, private coaching (in-person or remotely via Zoom), online coaching, and form checks. Interested in getting stronger, looking better, and having more energy?

book a free intro

Testify Standard - October 13, 2025

/ Testify Strength & Conditioning/

THIS WEEK'S SUBMISSION

From our video When Deadlifting Heavy, Don't Stand Up & Try This Instead (click the title to watch):

Winston Smith
Awesome advice. Thanks. That cleared up some issues I've had. Definitely dropped my hips to get the chest up in the setup, and also tried get my torso vertical way too early in the pull. I'd given up on deadlifts, but this makes me want to try again.

Phil
Those are both very common issues, and I'm glad you want to give it another shot!

TESTIFY ONLINE COACHING

Interested in getting stronger working one-on-one remotely with us? Click here to book your free strategy session.

Get Stronger. Live Better. Start Today.

ARTICLES & VIDEOS

Don't Perform a SINGLE Squat at the Gym Until You Watch This
This mistake hides in plain sight—and it might be holding your squat back more than you think. Phil covers this foundational squat issue with 4 important tips. Click here to watch.

 

2 Clues to SPOT Your Terrible Deadlift EARLY!
Is your deadlift drifting away from you? We help you learn to notice the problem before it happens as well as how to fix it. Click here to read.

 

Blast from the Past: What is a Power Clean? | Olympic Weightlifting Technique
What is a power clean? How is it different from a hang clean, hang power clean, or clean? We cover it all here in about a minute. Click here to watch.

 

Blast from the Past: Everything You Need to Know About Lifting Belts . . . QUICK!
Phil covers the 4 Ws of lifting belts: width of belts, when to use one, where to wear your belt, and what to do once it's on. Click here to read.

“GET STRONGER - LIVE BETTER” SHIRTS ARE AVAILABLE!

Why do you train? Because getting stronger makes everything else easier. Get stronger. Live better. “Testify” to this message and represent your favorite gym with this shirt in several color options.

Click here to head to the Testify Store.

WHAT'S COMING UP

Below are a few of our upcoming events, and you can find out what else is on the calendar by heading to our events page at www.testifysc.com/events.

Kansas City, MO: Starting Strength Squat & Deadlift Camp

  • October 25, 2025

  • Spend the day learning the theory and practice of the low bar back squat and the deadlift.

  • Participants will spend lots of time on the platform receiving coaching and instruction on the squat and deadlift in a small group setting. We will also have a lecture and discussion on programming and cover how to identify and correct common technical problems.

  • Click here to register or for more information.

Benching Bonanza! The Annual Testify Bench Press Jubilee

  • November 21, 2025

  • Benching Bonanza is a strength meet wherein the only contested lift is - not surprisingly - the bench press. There will be one bar, and the meet will be conducted in a "rising bar" format, so the weight on the bar only goes up! It’s a great time for all involved, and we hope to see you there!

  • Click here to register or for more information.

Testify Christmas Classic

  • December 13, 2025

  • The Christmas Classic is a team strength meet wherein the contested lifts will be the squat, press, bench press, and deadlift. Competitors will form teams of 2-4 lifters/team and perform all 4 lifts; each lifter will receive 3 attempts for each lift.

  • Click here to register or for more information.

THIS WEEK’S CONDITIONING

Option 1
Sled
Outdoors:
10 rounds of:
Push sled 100 ft
Pull sled 100 ft (hand over hand)

Indoors:
20 rounds of:
Push sled 50 ft
Pull sled 50 ft (hand over hand)

Compare to 2025.09.08.

Option 2
Bike/row:
5 min on
4 min off
4 min on
3 min off
3 min on
2 min off
2 min on
1 min off
1 min on

Record distance for each interval and add for total distance.

Compare to 2025.07.21.

Option 3
5-10 rounds of:
30 sec ME tire flips
30 sec rest

Compare to 2025.06.23.

Option 4
For time:
500m row
5 x 80m sled push (200 ft if indoors)
500m row

Rest 1 minute after the first row and after each sled push.

Compare to 2025.06.23.

As always, we hope this helps you get stronger and live better!

Whenever you want even more Testify in your life, here are some free resources:

  • Book a free intro and strategy session with us HERE.

  • Pick up a free copy of Testify’s Squat Guide: 12 Tips to Improve Your Squat Now HERE.

  • Get our free weekly email - containing useful videos, articles, and training tips - HERE.

  • Follow Testify on Instagram HERE.

  • Subscribe to Testify’s YouTube channel HERE.

2 Clues to SPOT Your Terrible Deadlift EARLY!

/ Testify Strength & Conditioning/

If you've got a deadlift that's drifting away from you as you pull, that's a problem.

Let’s fix it.

Why Does This Happen?
This problem is often caused by accidentally “getting forward” during the setup process. In other words, during the five-step setup for the deadlift, you accidentally allow your balance to shift forward, and this almost always happens during either step two or step three of the setup process. 

I would strongly recommend watching the short video below to see these errors and their solutions demonstrated.

A brief recap of the five-step setup for the deadlift:

  1. Stance: Take a relatively narrow stance wherein your vertical shins are one inch from the barbell.

  2. Grip: Bend over to grab the bar, but do not move the bar, and don’t touch the bar with your shins (keep the shins vertical) just yet.

  3. Shins: Bend you knees slightly until your shins touch the bar.

  4. Chest: Squeeze your chest up (without dropping your hips) and set your back in flat, rigid extension.

  5. Pull: Drag the bar up your legs.

Problem During Step 2
Remember that midfoot balance is assumed, i.e., you want to be balanced on the middle of your foot and not on either the balls of your feet or on your heels. However, people often allow their balance to shift forward to the balls of their feet when - during step 2 - they bend over to take their grip.

step 2: Taking the grip incorrectly with balance forward (left) and taking the grip correctly with balance over midfoot (right)

If you find yourself doing this, simply cue yourself “midfoot,” or you can even overcue yourself “heels.” We don’t actually want to be balanced on our heels, but this type of overcue can be useful to prevent ourselves from rocking forward.

Problem During Step 3
During step 3, you should bend your knees slightly (i.e., drop your hips slightly) until your shins touch the barbell, but people will sometimes accidentally rock forward to bring their shins to the bar instead.

step 3: bringing the shins to the bar incorrectly by rocking forward (left) and bringing the shins to the bar correctly by bending the knees (right)

If you are committing this error, use the cue “hips drop slightly” or simply “bend your knees” to ensure that you’re bringing your shins to the bar by bending the knees and not by shifting your balance forward.

After that, squeeze your chest up and pull as usual, dragging the bar up your legs.

As always, we hope this helps you get stronger and live better.

-Phil

PS: Whenever you want even more Testify in your life, here are some free resources:

  • Book a free intro and strategy session with us HERE.

  • Pick up a free copy of Testify’s Squat Guide: 12 Tips to Improve Your Squat Now HERE.

  • Get our free weekly email - containing useful videos, articles, and training tips - HERE.

  • Follow Testify on Instagram HERE.

  • Subscribe to Testify’s YouTube channel HERE.

(Some links may be affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, Testify earns from qualifying purchases.)

At Testify, we offer small group training, private coaching (in-person or remotely via Zoom), online coaching, and form checks. Interested in getting stronger, looking better, and having more energy?

book a free intro

What is a Power Clean? | Olympic Weightlifting Technique

/ Testify Strength & Conditioning/

What is a power clean? How is it different from a hang clean, hang power clean, or clean? Starting Strength Coach Phil Meggers covers it all here in about a minute.

(A Blast from the Past video originally published on 02/11/23)

Whenever you want even more Testify in your life, here are some free resources:

  • Book a free intro and strategy session with us HERE.

  • Pick up a free copy of Testify’s Squat Guide: 12 Tips to Improve Your Squat Now HERE.

  • Get our free weekly email - containing useful videos, articles, and training tips - HERE.

  • Follow Testify on Instagram HERE.

  • Subscribe to Testify’s YouTube channel HERE.

At Testify, we offer small group training, private coaching (in-person or remotely via Zoom), online coaching, and form checks. Interested in getting stronger, looking better, and having more energy?

book a free intro

Everything You Need to Know About Lifting Belts . . . QUICK!

/ Testify Strength & Conditioning/

(A Blast from the Past article originally posted on 07/14/23)

Today’s topic is a quick dive into lifting belts - specifically, the four Ws of belts: width, when, where, and what. We covered how to efficiently and quickly put on your belt in another article about a month back, so feel free to click here to read that article or watch the associated videos.

Width
If you can get your back set in rigid and flat extension on the deadlift using a 4” belt (i.e., the belt is 4” wide), then go ahead and get a 4” belt. If you can’t, then you probably need to go with a 3” belt. It’s possible that you need a 2.5” belt, but 3” and 4” are the most common widths.

When
When should you put your belt on? A good rule of thumb is to put your belt on for your last warm-up set and then wear it for all of your work sets as well. Time and experience will help you decide if you want to eventually take a different approach, but this is a good guide to start with. I recommend taking your belt off (or at least loosening it) between sets.

Where
Where should you place your belt? You can start by centering it on your belly button as a rough guideline, but the most important landmarks are your hips and your ribs. The belt should sit between your hips and your ribs, and it’s the space between these two regions that will largely determine your choice of a 3” or a 4” belt. It’s worth noting that you especially do not want your belt running into your ribs. It makes for a memorable - and uncomfortable - experience.

What
What do you do once your belt is on? Take a big breath, hold that breath with tightly contracted abs (i.e., Valsalva maneuver), and then perform the lift (watch the video on breathing and bracing). Release your breath only after the rep is completed - remember that if the bar is moving, you’re not breathing.

Don’t complicate the breathing, and don’t try to push your belly out against the belt. Simply take a breath, hold it, tighten your abs as if you’re about to take a punch or as if you’re constipated, and then continue holding that breath throughout the entire rep. You can do this with either a closed mouth or an open mouth - you shouldn’t be holding your breath against your lips with puffed out cheeks. Instead, you hold your breath against a closed glottis, which is located in your throat. Say the word “hick” out loud and hold the “ck” sound at the end - that’s how you do it.

Need to Buy a Belt? Watch This First.
If you’re getting ready to buy a lifting belt, I’d recommend watching the included video here to get a good sense of what to look for when purchasing one. You’ll also find some links below to a few belts we recommend to our members.

Belts
My belt is from Best Belts and I’d love to recommend them to you, but they’ve closed up shop, so with that in mind, here are the belt options we typically recommend:

As always, we hope this helps you get stronger and live better.

-Phil

PS: Whenever you want even more Testify in your life, here are some free resources:

  • Book a free intro and strategy session with us HERE.

  • Pick up a free copy of Testify’s Squat Guide: 12 Tips to Improve Your Squat Now HERE.

  • Get our free weekly email - containing useful videos, articles, and training tips - HERE.

  • Follow Testify on Instagram HERE.

  • Subscribe to Testify’s YouTube channel HERE.

(Some links may be affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, Testify earns from qualifying purchases.)

At Testify, we offer small group training, private coaching (in-person or remotely via Zoom), online coaching, and form checks. Interested in getting stronger, looking better, and having more energy?

book a free intro