24 Deadlift Variations: Which One Fits You The Best?

I’m a big fan of having multiple variations of each move in your toolbox.

You pick the variation of the move (in this case, deadlift) based on:

• Which one usually fits your body the best
• Which one fits the number of reps per set you are doing
• Which one feels the best in your body today

When I write programs — 90% of the time — I’m more concerned about getting in a deadlift than I am about getting in a specific kind of deadlift.

Fits Your Body

Most people seem to like, feel strong, or feel more comfortable in one variation of the deadlift.  I’m fine with them doing that most of the time.  Maybe we’ll switch it up every fourth month just for a change of pace, but we can keep coming back to the one that really works for you.

Or, if people have fairly good mobility and can do many of them well (this would be the ideal to work towards) we might do 3 month blocks of one variation, then do a three month block of a second variation, followed by a three month block of a third variation.

Works for the Sets and Reps in the Workout

Sometimes, one deadlift makes more sense for the workout than another.  For example, we’re more likely to do Romanian Deadlifts with higher reps.

How it Feels on a Given Day

With my in-person clients, we’ll change the version of the deadlift, on the fly, if one feels terrible on a given day.

This video by Marshall Roy was so awesome, I just had to blog about it!