Deadlift benefit is enormous,reason is because this is the lift where you can move the heaviest weight for any person with no back problem when you train the movement.So,when you deadlift the heaviest weight it will also help you move heavier weight at other movement because you already moved XX amount of weight that will be the heaviest
1 Like
This is just plain inaccurate. But brings up a thought. There are a good number of powerlifters who can squat quite a bit more weight than they can deadlift. In fact, back in the 1980ās a good lift in the powerlifts for both the squat and deadlift was 2 times your body weight.
I challenge all of you to train to get your squat to be as strong as your deadlift. It can be done if you make the effort. Back in 1976 my best competitive lifts in the squat and deadlift were:
- Squat: 490lbs
- Deadlift: 650lbs
I worked on my squat both the most efficient movement and focused on it as a priority. By the time I was 42 my squat and deadlift were:
- Squat: 495lbs 2 sets of 10 reps
- Deadlift: 505lbs 2 sets of 10 reps
Whatās the world record for squat?I only knew the deadlift is 501KG by HafĆ¾Ć³r JĆŗlĆus Bjƶrnsson
I found Dave Hoff had a 577.5kg squat in 2019
Charles Bailey (275lb Class) did 1100lb squat but could only pull the mid 700lbs in the deadlift. He trained at the gym I did.
@Njord yes sir!! Iāve recently added them and I agree!!!
1 Like
Trends come and go in the fitness world, as @RT_Nomad pointed out with his timeline earlier.
Canāt keep monetizing the same old same old, so ideas are shelved and recycled with slight variations to re-market every few years.
Right now the hot shit is Carnivore diet and and from what I see a form of cross-training that isnāt exactly cross-fit but incorpstes elements of athleticism with strength training. Fire, Ready, Strong for example.
Nothing wrong with that but itās always interesting to me that a certain contingency will go all in on whatever the new thing is and forget that incredible physiques, feats of strength and athletic accomplishments also occurred with bowls of wheaties and sausage for breakfast and āold schoolā training methodologies.
My back benefits greatly from the static hold aspect of stabilizing heavy deads, whether or not static holds and isometric training are part of the en vogue dynamism of trends today 
Iām glad theyāre working for you too!
Also, the squat will carryover to the deadlift more than the deadlift will carryover to the squat.
3 Likes
This shortcoming is at its peak when your deadlift has very little quad involvement. If your deadlift were sumo style there would be a good amount of carryover, but that would work in either direction.
2 Likes
Squat suits and knee wraps skew this though. Most raw lifters will be able to deadlift more than they can squat.
1 Like
I agree. But lifting straps were never allowed in any powerlifting meet that I ever competed. If you cannot hold onto the bar without assistance, how is that different than support gear for the squat. Also, there are support suits designed for deadlifting.
And āMostā is still the operative word. Two of the three powerlifts favor short limb people. So they have an advantage over the longer limb people, who only have the advantage deadlifting. I was one of those longer limb people. I always had a lot of weight to make up on the final lift, the deadlift. Usually I fell a little short.
I challenge you to make your squat stronger.
2 Likes
With straps or without? Hand size is a factor, hence why women use a smaller bar. Obviously, with the squat that significant limiting factor, grip, is not an issue.
Iām talking about competitive powerlifting, so no straps. And same size bar for the ladies as the men unless theyāve changed the rules significantly in the last 5 years since I stopped competing.
Most competitors sure like the smaller diameter and flexibility of the ādeadlift bar.ā
When I competed the same bar was used on all three lifts. Those with thick, meaty hands usually struggled holding the bar when weight got into the mid 500ās.
I did indeed like the smaller diameter deadlift bar when I competed. The deadlift suits help a bit, but not like a squat suit plus knee wraps does. In the 40+ meets I did over my ~20 years of competing, I can say my experience was that deadlifts lost due to failing grip were relatively rare. They seemed more common in feds that didnāt test (maybe water retention plus people just being stronger?) but still werenāt common. I had fat, meaty hands when I competed. My best raw deadlift was 606 and grip was never a limiter for me.
1 Like
Which is not really a concern with this thread.
Grip is not a significant limiting factor for the vast majority of people in the deadlift. Unless for some reason they are choosing to pull double overhand. If it were, youād see tons of raw powerlifters who squat more than they deadlift, and this is not the case.
Iāve never witnessed a lifter with a raw squat higher than a raw deadlift, but Iāve only ever been around a couple of high-level lifters. My old lifting partner was very close on his, but we never really maxed out on either lift in the year or so we were consistent partners. He easily squatted 555 with only a belt but struggled to deadlift 585, which probably was close to a max for him at the time.
Plus he was on the sauce, which seems to help drive that squat up in relation to the deadlift.
It seems like almost everyone starts out with a greater deadlift but some eventually overtake it with their squat when their potential gets maxed.
A quick check at this website shows plenty of squats above deadlifts among top male raw powerlifters.
2 Likes
In 1975-6, when I competed with our team in powerlifting meets, our 242lb Class lifter who had thighs like tree trunks (we called him the Great White Rhino), he was just under 800lb squat to just over 800lb squat, where the most he could deadlift was 650lbs. Every meet that I saw him lift, he was the last person to squat. Every meet was a Raw meet. Surely, you donāt count Ace wraps that we bought at the local drug store as gear.
Whether true or not, the majority of people who lift are not powerlifters. Powerlifters are not concerned with the benefits of deadlifting as they have to do them regardless of any benefits.
I would argue that the reason why you may see more hobby lifters with higher DL numbers is that they donāt train the squat as hard. Itās easier to see DL numbers go up than squat numbers. Also, the squat is a harder lift to perform and train.
Iād put those in the same category as the neoprene sleeves I wear. They might give you a few pounds but donāt fundamentally assist the lift like PL wraps.
The high level guys Iāve been around were all full gear powerlifters or my BJJ coach, who competed in Olympic lifting. I donāt think he ever deadlifted on his way to a Team USA masters gold.