Having a strong lower back throughout our lives is especially important, moreover as we age. Many people experience lower back pain due to a weak core, being overweight, and sitting behind a desk all day, without any form of core, back and hip training. Making deadlifts a part of your routine will help alleviate lower back pain and prevent it from developing later, in the future.
The Deadlift can help prevent injuries by increasing the strength of your muscles around critical tendons and ligaments, of the core, the lower back, the glutes, and the hips. Supporting joints with strong muscles are crucial in preventing any unwanted or unnecessary injury. This also aids in preventing muscular imbalances. This is so, since you are making sure you work out both your upper and lower body during the entire deadlift movement. The most important part of the body to ensure this is the core, which is targeted during a deadlift.
Deadlifts helps to improve posture by keeping the shoulders, spine, and hips in alignment. Since deadlifts require proper form, you will have to keep your shoulders squeezed back, spine straight, and hips mobile. Combined, these factors result in better posture over time. Improving your posture is vital, as research shows that it can lead to back pain if left unfixed.
Research has also shown that deadlifting increases core strength and adds to core stability. Deadlifting targets all the muscles responsible for your posture and enables you to keep your back straighter during regular daily activities.
Burn fat? And what about naturally synthesised hormone levels in the body?
Deadlifts aid in increasing your basal metabolic rate (BMR), which is the number of calories you burn at rest. A 2014 study performed by the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition found an average of a five percent increase in subject’s metabolism after nine months of resistance training.
This classic multi-jointed exercise works the biggest muscle groups in your body, perfect for manufacturing more testosterone. The Journal of Strength of Conditioning Research found a significant T increase in college-age men after performing heavy deadlifts. This exercise recruits and stresses many muscles, and causes the release of key anabolic hormones, such as testosterone and HGH. Having higher testosterone levels and HGH comes with a host of benefits, including more strength, muscle and tissue growth and repair, increased fat loss, energy, and improved libido.
References:
Berglund, Lars1,2; Aasa, Björn2; Hellqvist, Jonas1; Michaelson, Peter3; Aasa, Ulrika1 Which Patients with Low Back Pain Benefit from Deadlift Training? Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research: July 2015 – Volume 29 – Issue 7 – p 1803-1811 Doi: 10.1519/JSC.0000000000000837
Sharrock C, Cropper J, Mostad J, Johnson M, Malone T. A pilot study of core stability and athletic performance: is there a relationship? Int J Sports Phys Ther. 2011;6(2):63-74.
Nowotny J, Nowotny-Czupryna O, Brzęk A, Kowalczyk A, Czupryna K. Body posture and syndromes of back pain. Ortop Traumatol Rehabil. 2011 Jan-Feb;13(1):59-71. English, Polish. Doi: 10.5604/15093492.933788. PMID: 21393649.
Bohannon RW. Grip Strength: An Indispensable Biomarker for Older Adults. Clin Interv Aging. 2019; 14:1681-1691. Published 2019 Oct 1. doi:10.2147/CIA.S194543
Aristizabal, J., Freidenreich, D., Volk, B. et al. Effect of resistance training on resting metabolic rate and its estimation by a dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry metabolic map. Eur J Clin Nutr 69, 831–836 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1038/ejcn.2014.216
Shaner, Aaron A.1; Vingren, Jakob L.1,2; Hatfield, Disa L.3; Budnar, Ronald G. Jr1; Duplanty, Anthony A.1,2; Hill, David W.1 The Acute Hormonal Response to Free Weight and Machine Weight Resistance Exercise, Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research: April 2014 – Volume 28 – Issue 4 – p 1032-1040 Doi: 10.1519/JSC.0000000000000317