Block Zercher Deadlift

Use blocks to elevate the height of your barbell to reduce the range of motion. “Blocks” can be soft plyo boxes like in the video, bumper plates, plastic exercise steps, stacked mats, plywood pieces, etc. Get into a modified sumo stance (slightly wider than shoulder width), with the feet facing either straight ahead or slightly turned out, depending on your hips and preference. Round the back and grab the bar with the crook of your elbows. Bring your hips up high with your knees bent, taking the slack out of the bar before lifting the bar off the ground using your legs and lower back. Extend the hips through and lockout the knees and glutes at the top when your back is straight. Lower the bar under control doing the exact opposite movement unless you are hitting a 1RM you can drop the bar.

This is a more advanced exercise that is very old school. Don’t be afraid of the rounded back positioning. Like ANY other exercise, it is safe as long as you safely and slowly progress and don’t rush lifting heavier weight that the tissues can’t handle. Lifting off of blocks reduces the range and allows someone with less mobility to build it up over time.

Pro Tip: Keep your arms parallel and separated when using light to medium weight. When the weight gets REALLY heavy, you may want to interlock the fingertips as seen later in the video.