You’ve been training for just about a year now. You’ve read every muscle magazine and body building article. On your quest for fitness and physique, you find throughout each article you read or page you turn, there seems to be one exercise you can’t escape: the deadlift.

The deadlift seems to find its way into everything you’ve been reading. You’ve looked at the pictures and watched the videos, and you’re finally feeling confident to add deadlifting into your lower body training. When you get to the gym, you load a plate on each side, visualize the picture you saw earlier on the Internet, and go to work.

Everything was great; the lift was challenging, and you were sweating and feeling good. Then, the next morning comes and you’re heartbroken. Instead of sore hamstrings, glutes, and quads, your back is stiff and sore. A few days pass and you’re finally getting over your lower back soreness, but now you’re questioning if deadlifts are good for you or if you’re better off keeping them out of your program.

When done correctly deadlifting is one of the best exercises for building