Alternatives when not flexible enough for regular deadlift?

Question

A friend is starting to work out with me. Normally we would deadlift, squat, and do upper-body pushes and pulls. However, my friend seems to lack the requisite flexibility for a full range of motion deadlift.

We're using standard-diameter bumper plates on a 45-pound Olympic bar. Gripping the bar causes either a rounded lumbar spine or a deadlift-grip squat, where the bar makes an S-curve around the knee. Neither of these are ideal.

What exercise can we substitute that will progress to a regular deadlift? We're looking for an increase in flexibility and heavy loading (akin to a deadlift) in the meantime.

Answer 1

You could start your deadlifts with the bar elevated higher off the ground - either on the lowest rack setting, or with the barbell-loaded plates resting on a stack of horizontal plates.

Pavel Tsatsouline advocates this approach in Power to the People, saying that it used to be called the "health lift".

I found that squatting under heavy weights quickly increased my hamstring flexibility.

Answer 2

Not everyone is built for conventional deadlifts. Whether it's due to flexibility issues, or simply the geometry of how they are built, crouching down into a conventional deadlift start position is just not working. A common group of people that fall into this category are folks with long legs. Another common group would be folks with short arms. Put them together, and you have a big problem.

The best alternative I've seen is the Sumo Deadlift.

• Start with your feet spread wide
• Reach down between your legs to grab the bar
• Stand

You can see another article about it here.

Answer 3

I've considered Romanian deadlifts. Since they start at the top and only go down as far as the hamstrings allow, the height issue is avoided.

While they don't allow for heavy loads like the sumo deadlift or raised-platform deadlifts, I have found that they rapidly improve hamstring flexibility (and strength, too).