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

/ Testify Strength & Conditioning/

Are these two errors destroying your deadlift? Find out and fix them in under 2 minutes.

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

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STOP Making This Deadlift Mistake With Your Legs!

/ Testify Strength & Conditioning/

(A Blast from the Past article originally posted on 01/05/24)

Are you “kicking” the bar away from you with your shins when you deadlift? It’s killing your pulls, so knock it off. Let’s fix it real quick-like.

There are a number of reasons a deadlift can swing away from you, and we’re going to discuss one of them today: the error of accidentally pushing the bar away from you with your shins (i.e., “kicking” the bar with your shins) during the setup process. Two versions of this error are quite common, so let’s address them both, and this is explained and demonstrated in the included video as well.

Version #1: Bringing Your Shins to the Bar Too Aggressively
This error occurs during step 3 of the 5-step deadlift setup process. You can watch the included How to Start Lifting: Learn to Deadlift video for a more in-depth treatment of this setup process, but the quick version is as follows:

Step 1: Stance - narrow with shins 1” from the bar

Step 2: Bend at the hips to take your grip

Step 3: Bend your knees to touch your shins to the bar

Step 4: Squeeze your chest up to set your back

Step 5: Pull - drag the bar up your legs

If you bring your shins aggressively and quickly to the barbell during step 3, you may inadvertently kick the bar away from you (i.e., it will roll forward a bit).

To solve this problem, simply use the cue “shins to the bar softly” or “shins lightly to the bar.” The idea is to bend your knees just enough to bring your shins in contact with the bar - and no more than that. Next, squeeze your chest up (step 4), and then pull (step 5).

Version #2: Dropping Your Hips When You Set Your Back
This error occurs during step 4 of the setup process - the “squeeze your chest up to set your back” step. If you set your back aggressively (and by the way, good for you if you do!), you might accidentally drop your hips, which causes your shins to move further forward, which causes the bar to get pushed forward.

It’s worth noting that this can be fixed after the fact; you simply raise your hips back up a bit and roll the bar back to its original location, but we’ve now added more variables and steps to our setup process, and it’s better not to make this mistake in the first place. What to do?

When squeezing your chest up to set your back in rigid extension, use the cue “chest up AND hips up.” Of course, you’re not actually trying to raise your hips - you’re just using the “hips up” part of the cue to make sure the hips stay in place and don’t move downward. We use this cue quite regularly, and it has worked wonders for a number of lifters.

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.)

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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The BEST Barbell Collar Most Lifters Overlook (And It's Been Around for Decades)

/ Testify Strength & Conditioning/

Which barbell collar is actually the best? Starting Strength Coach Phil Meggers breaks down four common types, what each one does well, where each falls short, and which collar he'd choose.

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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The Testify Globe - September 14, 2026

/ Testify Strength & Conditioning/

THIS WEEK'S SUBMISSION

From our video 8 Tiny Habits That Make Lifting So Much Easier (click the title to watch):

JJ Squad
I loved this vid! I'm already using 5 out of the eight in my workouts, so I need to add chalk, lifting shoes, and a belt as soon as I need them. Currently, I'm rehabbing with lighter weights after having two surgeries and 9 months away from the gym (VERY difficult!), but as soon as I'm ready for the heavier lifting again, I will get those 3 things that you suggest. I'm an 80 yo woman and just before I had to stop lifting for those 9 months, I was deadlifting over 50 kilos, which I think isn't too bad for my age and size (5'2'' and 135 lbs).

Phil
That’s great to hear in a number of ways! Congrats on that 50 kg deadlift, and way to get back at it!

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

8 Tiny Habits That Make Lifting So Much Easier
Lifting should be challenging, but don't make it harder than it needs to be. Phil covers eight habits that make your workouts smoother, more effective, and easier to stick with. Click here to watch.

 

4 ERRORS Beginners Make that Experienced Lifters NEVER Do | Part 2 - The Press
Beginner lifters make these 4 mistakes in the squat, press, deadlift, and bench press. We explain and cover how to successfully fix them. This week’s article covers the press. Click here to read.

 

Blast from the Past: How to Get a Bigger Squat EFFORTLESSLY | 4 Mindset Shifts
Want to get a bigger, stronger squat? Here are 4 simple mindset shifts that will help. Click here to watch.

 

Blast from the Past: Antonio and the Deadlift
Phil covers how to correctly perform - and hold - the Valsalva maneuver when deadlifting. 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

Reminder: The gym will have modified training hours on Friday, 09/18/26, and Saturday, 09/19/26, as we are hosting the Starting Strength Coaches Conference that weekend.

  • Friday, 9/18/26:

    • 5:00 a.m. - 9:30 a.m. → Normal Training

    • 9:30 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. → Open Gym Training

    • Closed for afternoon and evening

  • Saturday, 9/19/26:

    • 7:00 a.m. - 9:00 a.m. → Normal Training

    • 9:00 a.m. and onward → Closed

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.

Push Pull Pandemonium

  • October 16, 2026

  • Join us for a Friday evening filled with benching, deadlifting, and general revelry!

  • Sign up by September 25 to get a meet shirt and avoid the late registration rate!

  • Registration ends October 15.

  • Click here to register or for more information.

Minneapolis, MN: Starting Strength Squat & Deadlift Camp

  • October 3, 2026

  • 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.

Kansas City, MO: Starting Strength Squat & Deadlift Camp

  • November 14, 2026

  • 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.

THIS WEEK’S CONDITIONING

Option 1
“Prowler Base+1”
1. Load up a manageable weight.
2. Sprint 40m at 85% intensity.
3. Rest 30 sec.
4. Repeat 5-15 times.

Courtesy of “Death by Prowler” (on Starting Strength).

Compare to 2026.08.10.

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 2026.06.22.

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

Compare to 2026.05.25.

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 2026.05.25.

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.

4 ERRORS Beginners Make that Experienced Lifters NEVER Do | Part 2 - The Press

/ Testify Strength & Conditioning/

In this multi-part series, we cover four mistakes that lifters often make when starting out. In part 1, we covered the squat.

Today, we’re covering the press, and specifically, we’re talking about the mistake of having to make unnecessary wrist and elbow adjustments. This error shows up in two different ways, so let’s identify and fix them.

Version #1: The Unracking Process
You begin to set up correctly – you take a relatively narrow grip and pronate your hands slightly to place the base of the palms firmly against the bar. Then, as you move to unrack the bar, everything goes to garbage, and you end up with elbows behind the bar and wrists bent back in full extension (Figure 1).

figure 1: Terrible elbows and terrible wrists . . . terrible all around.

As a result, you now have to fix these issues by making adjustments that shouldn’t have been necessary in the first place – you have to move your elbows forward, and you have to straighten your wrists to the point where the bar is sitting in the base of the palm (and not way back on the pads at the base of your fingers).

Of course, this isn’t difficult to do with an empty bar, but it’s a big problem at heavy weights, and it’s also a waste of time and effort.

The solution is to make sure that your elbows and wrists are correctly positioned before you unrack the bar.

When you take your grip, squeeze the bar as tightly as possible – “crush the bar” is a useful cue here – so that the muscles in your forearms tense up, which makes it easier to keep your wrists fixed in one position.

Also, dip down with your legs farther than you think so that your wrists don’t have to bend backward as you get under the bar. Remember that you unrack the bar with your legs, so dip down a lot as you rotate your elbows forward.

Dipping down farther is supremely easy to do, but many people simply don’t do it. Don’t be them. Bend your legs – this is why you have knees.

Here’s your check – after you stand the bar up from the hooks and step back from the rack, if you have to adjust anything from the waist upward, you messed up the unracking process.

Rack the bar. Fix it. Then unrack the bar again.

Watch the video below to see the solution to this problem in action.

Version #2: Post-rep
After you’ve successfully locked out a rep overhead, it’s easy to lower the bar casually and lazily to the wrong position, and once again, as with version #1 of today’s error, the wrists are bent backward and the elbows are behind the bar (Figure 2).

Don’t be that guy. Or gal.

figure 2: This fool lowered the bar in a careless manner . . . and it shows.

The solution is to visualize the start position and then move your body and the bar back to exactly that position.

Lead with elbows as you start the descent (i.e., keep the elbows slightly in front of the bar) and keep your wrists relatively straight as you lower the bar.

Finish the lowering process precisely where you started the previous rep.

Watch the video below to see this in action.

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

How to Get a Bigger Squat EFFORTLESSLY | 4 Mindset Shifts

/ Testify Strength & Conditioning/

Want to get a bigger, stronger squat? Here are 4 simple mindset shifts that will help - Starting Strength Coach Phil Meggers explains.

(A Blast from the Past video originally published on 07/31/23)

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