How to Deadlift | Set Your Back the RIGHT Way: Part 1

/ Testify Strength & Conditioning/

Do you have a tough time setting your back in flat, rigid extension when you deadlift? In Part 1 of this Saturday Shorts series, Starting Strength Coach Phil Meggers walks you through how to solve this problem.

(A Blast from the Past video originally published on 12/24/22)

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Don't start deadlifting before you've done THIS

/ Testify Strength & Conditioning/

It's simple. It's fast. And skipping it could wreck your deadlift. Starting Strength Coach Phil Meggers explains and demonstrates.

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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?

Your Rest Periods are Adorable . . . Now Quit It.

/ Testify Strength & Conditioning/

Things are harder than they should be because of your rest periods.

You are failing reps because of your rest periods.

So knock it off.

The Phenomenon
We see and talk to people who are missing reps a few weeks into their barbell journey, and the conversation often goes something like this:

Coach: “How long are you resting between sets?”

Lifter: “A couple of minutes, at least one or two, sometimes three.”

Coach: “That’s so tiny and cute. Let’s fix it.”

When members start training at Testify, we discuss the fact that, at first, they are going to rest three to five minutes between work sets. In other words, three minutes is the bare minimum for the first session or two, and that will increase over time as the weight on the bar increases and things become more challenging.

What is the Goal?
Keep the goal in mind, and the goal is to get strong, so here’s the quick and simple version (courtesy of the transitive property):

You want to get strong.

To get strong, you need to complete the prescribed reps.

To complete the prescribed reps, you need sufficient rest between work sets.

So, to get strong, you need sufficient rest.

Don’t Be Silly
Don’t worry, I’m not telling you to rest twenty minutes between your work sets. But if you want to get stronger - and I hope you do - then resting three to four minutes isn’t going to cut it after the first few weeks.

There’s a time to get sweaty and out of breath, and that’s during your conditioning, but in the wise words of one of our dads at Testify, don’t be one of those people who confuses “strength and conditioning” with “conditioning and conditioning.”

More Resources
To learn more about why you might be missing reps early in your training career, be sure to read “The First Three Questions” by Mark Rippetoe.

Finally, sometimes (perhaps most of the time) you’ve got to get your workout done in a quick and efficient manner, and the video below covers exactly how and where to save time at the gym.

As always, we hope these tips help 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?

2 Fatal Deadlift Mistakes: 1 Solution (Simple and Fast)

/ Testify Strength & Conditioning/

Let’s briefly cover two mistakes that might just be killing your deadlift, and while we’re at it, we’ll fix them with one simple cue.

A Problem of Balance
Typically, when balance is an issue in the deadlift, the problem is that of your balance and/or the barbell shifting or swinging forward. However, that is not the problem we’re discussing today - we’ve covered that in numerous videos and articles, and you can watch one such video below:

Today’s balance issue is less common but certainly common enough to warrant a quick examination. The problem is twofold and is that of either getting back on your heels during the deadlift or shifting your weight to the outside, “knife-edge,” aspect of your feet.

Mistake #1: Balance Goes Backward
When your balance shifts backward during the deadlift or any standing lift, you’ll feel the weight (i.e., the combined weight of you and the barbell) shift toward your heels, and you may even see (on video) or feel your toes start to lift slightly off the floor as shown in Figure 1.

figure 1: phil (left) demonstrates an exaggerated version of mistake #1 while becky (right) demonstrates slightly more subtle version.

This creates an unstable platform upon which to lift, and as a result, it makes for a weaker, harder, and less efficient pull.

Mistake #2: Balance Goes “Outside”
When your balance shifts to the outside edges of your feet, you’ll typically see the inside edges of your feet start to lift or “flutter” a bit off the floor (Figure 2).

Again, this reduces your ability to effectively transmit force to the floor and makes for a weaker, harder lift.

figure 2: phil and becky demonstrate mistake #2.

One Cue to Rule Them All
Both of these errors are more common when people pull in flat, soft-soled shoes (as Becky demonstrates in the pictures above) as the rigidity of a lifting shoe (which Phil is wearing) helps reduce the likelihood of these errors. That said, it’s possible to make these mistakes in any shoe, so let’s fix these issues quickly.

Simply cue yourself, “Big toe down.” In other words, you are reminding yourself to keep the big toe of each foot firmly attached to the floor.

The big toe is at the front of your foot, so this helps correct the error of your balance shifting backward, and the big toe is also on the inside aspect of your foot, so this helps correct the error of your balance shifting onto the outer edge of your foot as well.

Big toe down.

It’s simple and effective, and as always, we hope these tips help 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?

Slippery Lifting Platform?! Use THIS for Olympic Weightlifting & Strength Training

/ Testify Strength & Conditioning/

Do you have a slippery lifting surface? A slick platform can cause a lot of problems, whether you're snatching, clean-and-jerking, squatting, etc., so Starting Strength Coach Phil Meggers lets you in on a very simple (and rarely discussed!) method to make sure you've got good grip between your shoes and the platform.

(A Blast from the Past video originally published on 12/12/22)

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?

Are You Setting Your Back WRONG in the Deadlift?!

/ Testify Strength & Conditioning/

It's easy to set the back incorrectly by confusing shoulder retraction with back extension. Let's fix this in less than 2 minutes. Starting Strength Coach Phil Meggers explains.

(A Blast from the Past video originally published on 12/10/22)

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?