Two Squat and Deadlift Mistakes That Seem Right But Aren't

Lifters are making these two mistakes on the squat and deadlift — and have no idea. Starting Strength Coach Phil Meggers covers what's going wrong and what to do instead.

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The Knees Problem: If You Don't Change This, Your Deadlift Will NEVER Grow

Are you making a mistake with your knees in the deadlift?

If you are, you’re doing one of the following:

1. Pulling the bar around your knees during the ascent, or . . .

2. Setting the bar down in a curved path around your knees during the descent.

Both of these make the deadlift harder, less efficient, and fabulously uncomfortable, so let’s fix them both with the same concept and cue.

If you want to see these errors and their solutions in action, check out the short video below.

Error 1: Pulling Around Your Knees
We use cues such as “push the floor,” “straighten the knees,” and “pull your kneecaps back” regularly to drive home the idea that the deadlift starts with knee extension. This knee extension helps lift the barbell and gets the knees out of the way, so understandably, it’s critical to the lift.

figure 1: Mike and phil demonstrate the error of pulling around the knees.

However, if these cues aren’t working for you, and you’re still pulling in a curved path around your knees (Figure 1), try reminding yourself to “make the bar move vertically” and “get your knees out of the way.”

That’s it.

Picture the correct bar path and get your knees slowly but surely out of the way of that bar path, and you’ll be executing the lift correctly.

Error 2: Setting the Bar Down Around Your Knees
After you lock out your deadlift, you should reach backward with your hips, bow to the floor, and set the bar down in a nice, vertical path so that it ends up on the floor directly over the middle of your foot.

However, many lifters try - whether consciously or subconsciously - to keep their torsos vertical when lowering the deadlift, and this results in a bar path that curves out and around the knees (Figure 2).

figure 2: mike demonstrates the error of setting the bar down around the knees.

This is inefficient, inaccurate, and it feels awful on the knees and back. If setting your deadlift down isn’t the easiest thing you do all day, you’re absolutely committing this error.

Again, remind yourself to “make the bar move vertically” and “get you knees out of the way” (or “keep your knees out of the way” if you prefer).

Visualize the bar traveling vertically - and quickly - downward, and keep your knees out of the way until the bar passes your knees, and you’ll have nailed it.

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.

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2 Deadlifting Pieces of Equipment You NEED to Have!

(A Blast from the Past article originally posted on 10/13/23)

Let’s quickly cover two pieces of equipment that will make you better at deadlifting . . . instantly.

Item #1: Long Socks
We are talking very long - socks that go above your calves (i.e., almost to your knees). You will simply be better at keeping the bar close when wearing long socks. Sweatpants and leggings will do just fine as well, but long socks are so much more stylish.

“But Phil, I’m already pretty good at keeping the bar close.” Good for you, and in this case, you already know that - every once in a while - you nick your shin with the bar. Shins bleed easily, and now that you’ve done this, it is annoyingly easy to catch that new scab with the bar and break it open again.

Because of this - whether consciously or subconsciously - you now try to avoid hitting that scab. As a result, you are suddenly worse at keeping the bar close to your legs, and this makes your deadlifts that much harder. So . . . wear long socks.

As an additional note, you might not care if you get a little bloody when you deadlift, but everyone else who has to use that same barbell does indeed care, so do your training companions a favor. Wear long socks and keep your DNA off the bar.

Item #2: Chalk
We’ve covered this before, and we’ll cover it again - chalk is hugely useful for all of the lifts, but it is especially useful for pulling lifts such as the snatch, clean, and deadlift. Rock climbers and gymnasts use it to save their lives - we’re just using it to save our deadlifts. But the reason for its use remains the same - it absorbs the sweat and natural oil from your hands so that you have as much friction as possible when taking your grip.

Side note: If you’re training at a commercial gym and don’t feel like sneaking in the usual chalk, you can also use liquid chalk.

Still don’t like using chalk? You have two options - pull a Kelly Clarkson and just walk away since you’ve decided not to lift today or put on your big boy (or big girl) pants and use chalk because it’s the intelligent thing to do.

It makes your current deadlifts easier, and it allows you to lift more weight with less effort, which allows you to get stronger more efficiently. We’ve had numerous conversations with members who started using chalk a bit later than they should have (which is on day one) and were astounded at how much of a difference it made.

A reasonable approach is to rub some chalk onto your hands when you start warming up the deadlift (brush your hands together lightly to get rid of any loose chalk) and then chalk up again when you get to your work set.

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:

• Follow Testify on Instagram HERE.

• Subscribe to Testify’s YouTube channel HERE.

• 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.

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

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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?

Don't Let This Mistake RUIN Your Deadlift!

With a very simple cue, Starting Strength Phil Meggers addresses a common deadlift mistake that lifters make when setting their backs and starting to pull the bar off the floor.

(A Blast from the Past video originally published on 05/08/23)

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.

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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?

This Obsession is RUINING Your Deadlifts

Most lifters obsess over the wrong details in the deadlift - and it holds them back. Starting Strength Coach Phil Meggers covers the one thing he'd fix first with a lot of lifters.

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

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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?

Stop Using Your Arms to Deadlift

Your arms are not for pulling.

Not in the deadlift, anyway. Let’s use the squat to shed some light on today’s deadlift mistake.

Gravity likes things to be as low as possible, so to be stable in the squat, you stand with the entire sole of your shoe resting firmly on the ground.

You certainly do not squat on your toes with the heel of your shoe up in the air. Squatting in such a silly fashion means that your squishy, wobbly ankle ruins the efficiency of force transfer between you and the floor.

figure 1: don’t bend your elbows like this fool.

In the deadlift, an analogous error is pulling with flexed arms , i.e., bent elbows (Figure 1). This mistake shows up with both new and experienced lifters, and it makes the deadlift less efficient and harder than it should be.

(If you’d like to see both this error and its solution demonstrated, check out the short video below.)

In the 5-step deadlift setup, this problem usually occurs during step 4 – the “squeeze your chest up to set your back flat and rigid” step. If you commit this error, you are attempting to apply tension to the barbell as you set your back, which is good, but you’re doing so by actively pulling with your arms, which is bad for two reasons.

First, flexed arms give your shorter arms, and shorter arms are your enemy in the deadlift. You want long, straight out arms.

Second, you’ve created a force transfer inefficiency – a force transfer leak. Bent arms are weak and deformable, so they absorb some of the force that should be transmitted directly to the bar. Long, straight arms (Figure 2), however, are nondeformable, very strong indeed, and transmit force efficiently.

figure 2: long, straight arms . . . much better.

Bent arms make lift less efficient and actually feel heavier and harder to pull than it otherwise would with straight arms, so let’s fix this.

First, simply cue yourself, “Long arms,” when you squeeze your chest up to set your back.

If that doesn’t work well, try the reminder, “Straight arms.”

Another option is to tell yourself to “stretch out the arms” when you set your back (or even “Go go Gadget arms!” if you’re old enough to get that cartoon reference). The concept of stretching the arms leads us to the fourth cue . . .

“Get away from the bar.”

When you squeeze your chest up to set your back, you are obviously still connected to the bar via your hands, but you should be actively trying to move upward and away from the bar as you lift your chest. Flexing your arms pulls you down closer to the bar, so this cue has the opposite effect and helps you stretch the arms long and straight.

Don’t bend your arms when you deadlift. Don’t create a force transfer leak. Don’t give yourself stubbly little arms.

Your deadlift will thank you for it.

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.)

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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?