Exercise of the Week: Trap Bar Deadlift

One piece of equipment that was a must have for me when opening Accelerated Fitness was a trap bar. If you've been reading some of my stuff, you'll know I'm a big fan deadlifting. When people talk about functional exercise, there may be no more functional exercise than the deadlift. The weight is held in your hands. Your lower body is working. Your upper body is working. Your core is working. Just an overall great exercise.

The problem I have with traditional deadlifting for some people is that they lack the hip mobility and core stability to do the lift properly. A deadlift gone wrong is not a pretty thing. Doesnt't look good. Doesn't feel good.

This is where the trap bar comes in handy. Some will call it a half squat/half deadlift. Fine. The exercise still rocks. With the traditional deadlift the problem is the ability to maintain that neutral spine throughout the exercise because of where the weight is placed, out in front of your shins. By placing the weight to the side of the body by way of the trap bar it is much easier to maintain that neutral spine.

The other thing I like about the trap bar is the two sets of handles that allow you to pull from a lower or higher starting point. This gives you some variations without changing the lift entirely.