Tip Deadlift Right for Your Body Type Search Skip to content Menu Menu follow us Store Articles Community Loyal-T Club Loyal-T Points Rewards Subscribe to Save Search Search The World s Trusted Source & Community for Elite Fitness TrainingVideos Tip Deadlift Right for Your Body Type Unless you' re in a powerlifting competition deadlifting from the floor may not be right for you Here' s what you need to know by Dr John Rusin April 21, 2017April 5, 2021 Tags Deadlift, Exercise Coaching, Powerlifting & Strength, Tips Far too many lifters pull from the ground when they shouldn't be. If you have to round your back, shift your weight, and cause yourself pain just to move some iron off the floor, chances are your depth is less than ideal. To fix the problem, elevate the bar to maintain a neutral spine. One of the most effective deadlift modifications you can make is pulling from a higher position. What position is ideal? It depends on your body, your skill level, and your goals. Not everyone is built the same, has the same goals, or experience, so why would everyone deadlift with the bar from the same height? The answer is that they shouldn't. There's a simple test to determine your optimal pulling height: the bodyweight hinge. The Body Weight Hinge Test Place your feet in your deadlift stance. Brace your spine into a neutral position, tense the glutes and hamstrings. Slowly drive your hips back, maintaining a neutral spine. Keep your hands vertical to the floor at your side. Hinge as far back as possible until you can no longer maintain spinal position. At terminal non-compensated end range, bring your hands down to your legs. Note the height of your knuckle of the second finger relative to your leg. That's your starting point based on a bodyweight test. This is a good place to start, but the real test is getting load on the bar at that height and monitoring your spinal position. A vast majority of people do well pulling from between 3-8 inches below the kneecap. Take the test, then try it out in training, and modify based on spinal position and stability. Get The T Nation Newsletters Don' t Miss Out Expert Insights To Get Stronger, Gain Muscle Faster, And Take Your Lifting To The Next Level related posts Training Tip Take These 4 Rowing Challenges Get your metcon on and have some "fun" too. Here's how. Metcon, Tips, Training Eric Cressey April 9 Training Tip Improve Thoracic Spine Mobility Start or finish your workout with these three quick drills and you'll feel awesome. It Hurts Fix It, Tips, Training Dr John Rusin July 11 Training Build Your Chest Without Bench Presses Everyone wants a muscular chest. So why are they doing heavy barbell bench presses? There's a better way. Bodybuilding, Chest, Training Eric Weinbrenner January 28 Training The Lifter s Treatment for Elbow Pain Stop working around your elbow pain and fix it for good. Here's your complete guide to getting back to normal without taking months off. It Hurts Fix It Jon Habeshy April 21