One of the most common questions I get asked is:

“What are the differences between a trap bar and barbell deadlift?”

In this short video, I talk about the two major differences I see, and how they can help you determine which lift is best for you, your clients, and/or your athletes to perform.

Check it out!

Regardless of which variation you choose, a few notes on performance:

• Work to get your hips down and back flat. Deadlifting should not hurt your back. If you struggle to get your hips down into an ideal starting position with a barbell, considering using a high-handle trap bar.
• Think about PUSHING through the floor. With the hips in the correct position, I like to think about pushing through the floor to stand up. This helps ensure that my hips and shoulders rise at the same time (versus my hips shooting up first).
• If you’re going to powerlift, spend most of your time with the barbell variation. There’s really no way around it – if you want to powerlift, you better get comfortable with a barbell in your hands. You do have the option of going with a sumo or conventional set-up, however. If you’d like a tutorial on how to sumo deadlift effectively, drop me a note in the comments section and I’ll see what I can do later on!

As always, thanks for your support and I hope this video helps you out!

All the best,
MR