6 Reasons Why You Should Deadlift More

In the world of strength and bodybuilding the squat is believed to be the "King" of all exercises, the answer to increase muscle mass, strength and power. But who came to this conclusion and how did it come to be so widely excepted? I believe that although the squat is a excellent exercise in itself it doesn't hold its appeal when compared to a deadlift. I say this more out of practicality and real world usefulness. The more I think about it, the deadlift is probably the best exercise one can do for real world strength and fitness. Real world strength and power is generated from the ground up and very seldom the other way. What I want to do is share six reasons you should consider including the deadlift in your training regime and let you come to your own conclusion.


1. The Deadlift Works More Muscle

The deadlift works all major muscles of the lower body (hips, quads, hamstrings, calves and glutes), the core (abdominals, lower back, obliques), the upper back muscles (lats, traps), arms (biceps, triceps and forearms). The squat mainly targets the lower body.


2. Minimum equipment is needed

With the deadlift all you need is a bar, plates, some chalk or weightlifting belt. So its great if you have limited space. The squat, you need a power rack which when combined with things you need for a deadlift it can be crazy expensive.


3. Core Stability

Here the squat and deadlift can be very simliar so not much to discuss here.


4. Safety

Deadlift, you don't need a spotter, you can either lift it or you can't. With the squat, once you start to put up so real weight you have to have a spotter and we all know how hard they are to come by.

5. Grip Strength

Grip strength is a necessity both in sport and the real world setting. Have you ever hear someone say, "I'm strong enough to lift the weight but my grip gave out" or older people complain they cannot open a jar of jelly?


6. Real life application

As I said in my opening paragraph, in the real world,strength and power begin from the ground up. People are more likely to pick objects off the ground than to have it all ready place upon their back. This can be seen when a mother picks her child up from the ground and onto her hip to a weight lifter performing a clean and jerk.

WOD
Kettlebell (KB) or Dumbbell (DB) Overhead Squat 5x1
Men (53 lbs)/ Women (36 lbs)

For time:

100, 80, 60, 40, 20 reps of:

Jump Rope or Squat thruster

Sit-ups (your choice of sit-ups; no crunches)

Post your time in the comments section.