Can Deadlifts Help You Hit Harder for Football?

Deadlifts are a compound exercise that work most of the major muscles in your body, but they focus specifically on your hamstrings, glutes, lower back and core. All these muscle groups play a pivotal role in your performance on the football field, particularly when it comes to hitting, tackling and blocking. By increasing your deadlift you can boost your strength and power, enabling you to hit harder.

  1. Muscles Worked

    • Your glutes, hamstrings and lower back are known collectively as your posterior chain, and it's this chain that the deadlift emphasizes. A stronger posterior chain will make you faster, according to strength coach Jim Wendler. By increasing your sprint speed, you can go into tackles at a higher pace and make a stronger impact when you tackle.

    Power

    • The deadlift is one of the three moves in any powerlifting competition. When performing a deadlift, your focus should be on moving the bar off the floor as quickly as possible by exerting maximal muscle force. Make sure to always concentrate on maintaining perfect technique. By using deadlifts to increase your power and force output, you'll be able to improve the power throughout your entire body, which will carry over to in-game scenarios.

    Injury Prevention

    • Injuries might not be something you consider when trying to hit harder, but reducing your risk of injury increases your confidence going into a tackle. If you know your glutes, hamstrings and lower back are strong and at a low risk for injury, you'll hit with more commitment. Your glutes play a crucial role in maintaining knee and lower-back health, according to physical therapist and powerlifter Mike Robertson. By increasing glute strength through deadlifting, you greatly reduce your chances of injury. After all, you can't make big hits if you're stuck on the sidelines with an injury.

    Deadlift Variations

    • You needn't stick to the conventional deadlift. Other types of deadlift can be just as beneficial and may actually suit you better. Conventional deadlifts involve a narrow stance with your hands outside your thighs, but try sumo deadlifts and trap bar deadlifts too, suggests Michael Palmieri, president and founder of The Institute of Sport Science. For sumo deadlifts, adopt an extra-wide stance and narrow hand spacing; for trap bar deadlifts, use a trap or hex bar and grasp the handles with your palms facing inward.