The Best Deadlift Program for Beginners
What is the best deadlift program for a beginner in fitness?
You know the impressive benefits of deadlifts to lean out your body and gain strength.
Therefore, you want a deadlift program for strength, body transformation or to compete in powerlifting.
This 12-week program will help you accomplish either goal.
No matter what your age.
Deadlifting for Weight Loss and Fitness
Did you ever think of deadlifts as a tool for weight loss and fitness?
There is a good chance that you have not.
Walk into any gym, and you will see more treadmills than deadlift platforms.
Go to the weight training area, and you still will not see many deadlift workout stations.
You will find various isolation machines to work individual muscles, benches for dumbbells, bench presses, and incline bench presses.
But, you will rarely see a deadlift workout area (unless you’re in a powerlifting gym.)
Instead, you find:
- power racks for squats and the Romanian deadlift variation.
- Barbells and kettlebells,
- Heavy dumbbells
But you will not find a specific workout station to do deadlifts.
When you want to deadlift, you have to improvise where you can do your deadlift program:
- Inside a power rack, with the safety rods removed.
- Outside the power rack, but you run the risk of getting in the way of people walking by.
- Find some other patch of gym turf where you can set up for deadlifts.
- Create a home gym or garage gym.
The point is that when people go to a gym to work out, they are usually not thinking of deadlifts, especially if you’re overweight or obese.
Most people gravitate to machine exercises:
- treadmill
- recumbent bike
- leg extension
- sitting bench press machine or the
- leg curl machine
When do you see an overweight man or woman doing a deadlift workout?
The Power of a Simple Deadlift Program
A simple deadlift-only program accelerates your quest to get fit.
If you are overweight, it is time to consider deadlifting.
Because the conventional deadlift is an excellent tool for weight loss transformation and fitness.
The free weight room is intimidating, granted.
But, you will make significant fat loss progress if you:
- learn how to deadlift for beginners
- stick with a beginner deadlift program (with your doctor’s permission).
- eat right, strength train with deadlifts, and rest!
If you do these three things, you will change your body fast.
You only need to deadlift once a week.
Some advocate deadlifting every other day or twice a week.
But, even a deadlift workout once a week is sufficient to see results.
Especially if you also squat and bench press on other days of the week.
If you squat, do your deadlift workout about three days after your squat workout.
They both work your legs hard, and you need rest to increase muscle mass.
Why the Deadlift of all Exercises?
The most straightforward answer is that the deadlift works more muscles than just about any other strength training exercise.
Other than the squat, the deadlift reigns king over all other strength training exercises.
Why go to the gym and sit in a chair to lift weights?
You are just isolating specific muscle groups.
You will gain much more by targeting the muscles of your entire body at the same time. And even better, deadlifts will work your entire posterior chain, the much neglected back half of your body.
The deadlift is the full-body weapon to accomplish that goal.
And, the deadlift is not a very complicated move.
You bend down and lift the weight off the ground to a standing position, which is why even overweight or obese people can deadlift.
But, it is not easy either.
Many great athletes have focused on deadlifting to improve their skills, even in sports that, on the surface, have little to do with deadlifting.
For example, Allyson Felix used the deadlift to become one of the greatest track and Field Olympic gold medalists.
Allyson Felix Deadlift Programming Results
Barry Ross, US Track and Strength Coach created one of the most famous strength programs for Allyson Felix back in 2002.
He chose the deadlift as the centerpiece of her strength training workout.
Why?
Because the deadlift works most of the muscles of your body and involves multiple joints.
“Why waste time and energy on squats or leg press machines?” Ross wondered aloud in his 2004 article ‘The Holy Grail of Speed Training”.
Barry Ross revealed his breakthrough weight training and deadlift program in his book Underground Secrets to Faster Running.
In ten months, Allyson’s deadlift went from 125 pounds to 300 pounds.
As a result, her 200-meter sprint time improved, and she ran the fastest 200 meters in the world (without resorting to drugs) for all women.
The deadlift helped Allyson Felix win gold at the 2012 Olympics in the 200 meters.
As a result of becoming a phenomenal Olympic champion, Allyson Felix’s net worth is now over 8.5 million dollars.
If world-class athletes can benefit from deadlifts, so can you.
You just have to start.
Deadlift 1RM Calculator
Learn how to calculate your 1 rep max deadlift in 5 easy steps, or use this convenient Fit Apprentice deadlift calculator:
Enter weight or reps
| % of 1RM | Weight | Reps |
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12 Week Deadlift Program for Beginners to Crush Obesity from Hashi Mashi – Overview
Deadlift once per week.
Start slow, with a lighter weight or even no weights.
Learn how to deadlift with good form, read:
- How to Deadlift for Beginners – A Step by Step Guide
- 50 Essential Deadlift Tips and Tricks Every Beginner Should Know
- The Deadlift Setup – Deadlift Like a Boss in 5 Simple Steps
- The Essential Proper Form Deadlift Checklist
- 29 Best Brian Shaw Deadlift Tips that Will Make You Fit
- 15 Most Important Proper Deadlift Form Tips You Need to Know
Are you wondering how much you should be able to deadlift?
Mark Rippetoe and Lon Kilgore, estimate that an average 198-pound male can lift 155 pounds even without training (i.e., untrained beginner lifter).
After a couple of years of proper training, that same lifter should be able to deadlift 335 pounds (i.e., intermediate lifter)
- Warm up before your deadlift workout.
- See One Great Deadlift Workout Routine for an excellent deadlift warmup and deadlift workout.
- For example, walk, run, do elliptical, jump rope, or jumping jacks for at least five minutes.
- After, do a self-myofascial release on your hamstrings and quads, the back and front of your legs.
- Then, do good mornings with a resistance band or barbell, and a farmer’s walk with kettlebells.
- This warmup is explained in detail in this beginner deadlift workout routine for powerlifting and fitness.
- Focus on excellent nutrition.
- Eat vegetables, fruits, nuts, lean protein to fuel your body.
- Learn the simple secrets of the Hashi Mashi diet and avoid processed restaurant and take-out food.
- Learn how to cook for yourself.
- To learn more about better nutrition, read about the impact of eating real food, and how real food daily transforms your body fast.
- If you need to lose weight, this guide on how to lose 20 pounds in 3 months will work magic.
Week 1 of Your Deadlift Programming
Every deadlift workout will follow the same pattern.
We will use an estimated 1RM of 200 pounds to illustrate a sample deadlift program.
If you are not sure, here is how to calculate your 1 Rep Max for this deadlift program.
- First deadlift warmup set: 5 reps using 100 pounds or 50% of your 1 Rep Max.
- Rest 3 to 5 minutes.
- Second warmup set: 3 deadlifts using 120 pounds or 60% of your 1RM.
- Rest 3 to 5 Minutes.
- Third warmup set: 2 deadlifts using 150 pounds or 70% of your 1RM.
- These are your deadlift work sets.
- Rest 5 minutes
- Three sets of a rep range of 4 to 6 reps with 160 pounds starting with 75% of your 1RM.
Week 2 Work Sets are with 80% of 1RM
Week 3 Work Sets are with 85%
Weeks 2 – 6 of Your Deadlift Program
- When you can comfortably handle six reps at 75 percent of your one-rep max, now you can increase the deadlift weight to 80 %.
- Gradually increase the weight, using 5 or 10 pounds of additional weight. You will find fractional plates useful as well. If you cannot increase by 5 pounds, then add 1 pound, 2.5lbs, or 1.25 lbs.
- Work up to 95% of your baseline one rep max.
- Start your work sets at a new weight using a rep scheme of 4 reps and build up to 6 reps. Then you can increase your deadlift weight again.
- When you reach 95% of 1RM, retest and start the program again for weeks 7 to 12.
- Record all your workouts as Ed Coan testifies that his progress came from consistent and accurate record-keeping of his deadlift workouts.
Take a Break
It is not a bad idea to schedule a break of 1 week after every 6 or 12 weeks of deadlifting. You can do accessory work like
- stiff leg deadlifts,
- Romanian deadlifts,
- deficit deadlifts,
- leg curls,
- good mornings, or
- kettlebell swings
and then begin a new 6 – 12-week deadlift program cycle.
You have to go on vacation or do something else a few times a year, right?
If you are an experienced lifter, check out this advanced deadlift strength program from Josh Bryant.
Avoid These Common Deadlift Mistakes
Deadlift Gear You Need for the Program
See the recommended gear for this program in the best Deadlift Equipment for Beginners – Start Getting Fit Today!
Beginner Deadlift Program – Final Thoughts
You do not have to become the most muscular guy or woman in the gym to benefit from deadlifts.
You do not need to use heavy weights, insane volume, or heavy deadlifts to get leaner and stronger than you think possible.
This 12-week deadlift program will help you lose weight and get fit.
The deadlift is one of the most powerful tools I used to lose 75 pounds and 18 inches off my waist in 6 months.
Yes, I was as shocked as you will be.
Food is your friend, not your enemy.
Just eat the right foods, and you will see results.
Deadlifts are one of the most powerful exercises in your arsenal.
Feeling and getting fit, getting as healthy as possible, is the real goal, not just losing weight.
The best deadlift program is the one you stick with, so, don’t give up!
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Rich is a NASM-CPT (Certified Personal Trainer), an