The improvement of posterior chain strength provides many benefits to the football player. When the posterior chain is appropriately trained, athletes will become stronger, faster, and more durable. At Westside, we include posterior chain training every training day, whether it be back training on an upper day or glutes, hamstrings, and calves on a lower day. 

The deadlift is an exercise we use as both a main and accessory exercise to help athletes improve their posterior chain strength. Aside from the standard conventional deadlift, we can utilize many other deadlift exercise variations to change the training effect and deliver specific training outcomes based on an athlete's training needs or weaknesses. 

When deadlift training is appropriately implemented and executed, it provides tremendous upsides for the athlete. The strength and tissue quality improvements of posterior chain muscle groups will help athletes improve sports performance, durability, and resilience. This training can also potentially reduce the risk of injury to the spine, hips, or knees. 

Below, we will discuss how to properly implement deadlift training when using the Conjugate Method to train football players. 

Max Effort

Depending on the coach you speak with, you may get conflicting opinions on the use of max effort deadlifts with athletes. At Westside, we believe that no common exercise is inherently dangerous; it is the coach teaching or the athlete executing an exercise that decides whether the movement is dangerous or not. 

When we think about the standard max effort deadlift variations, such as conventional deadlifts, sumo deadlifts, deficit deadlifts, mat deadlifts, and rack pulls, it is difficult to think of other exercises that allow us to train at high intensity and maximally target the posterior chain in the same manner. With this in mind, there is no doubt that athletes should deadlift. 

Within the Conjugate System, we also regulate the amount of max effort deadlifts athletes execute each month. Typically, we will perform a max effort deadlift variation once every three weeks. This helps to ensure athletes appropriately recover from this training, considering recovery times from max effort deadlifts can be extended depending on the athlete. 

A coach may hear that we only perform max effort deadlifts once every three weeks and argue that the frequency is inadequate in terms of skill acquisition. However, if you know the Conjugate Method, you know deadlifts are performed weekly during dynamic effort lower. This mix of max and dynamic effort deadlift training helps to improve posterior chain strength, rate of force development, and technique rapidly. 

Here are a few recommended max effort deadlift exercises for football players:

• Conventional Deadlift
• Sumo Deadlift
• 2" Mat Deadlift
• 2" Deficit Deadlift
• Pin 3 Rack Pull
• Pin 5 Rack Pull

While these exercises will most often be performed using plate weight only, coaches can opt to add accommodating resistance to any of the exercises listed above. 

As mentioned above, our deadlift frequency will be set at one deadlift variation every three weeks. It is important to note that we can always increase deadlift frequency to every other week, depending on the athlete or the situation. However, the best results will likely be obtained if max effort deadlifts are limited to once every three weeks. 

Here is what a standard max effort lower training month could look like for a football player:

Week 1

Front Squat – work up to a top set single.

Week 2

Sumo Deadlift – work up to a top set single.

Week 3

Giant Cambered Bar Good Morning – work up to a top set of three reps.

Week 4

Box Squat – work up to a top set single.

The approach here is simple. Week one starts with a squat variation, week two is where we deadlift, week three follows up with a giant cambered bar good morning, and then we return to a squat variation with a max effort box squat in week four. It is important to note that good mornings will always be performed for either a top set of three or five when training at max effort intensity.

Dynamic Effort

Each week, we will execute a dynamic effort lower workout. This workout will include the use of two main exercises: a box squat and a deadlift variation. The goal of dynamic effort deadlifts is to lift submaximal weights at maximal velocity, focusing on improving explosive power by enhancing an athlete's rate of force development. 

While max effort improves peak force output, dynamic effort training decreases the amount of time it takes for an athlete to reach peak force output. The combination of these methods results in improved explosive power. An exercise such as the deadlift allows us to enhance an athlete's ability to achieve rapid knee and hip extension. 

Dynamic effort deadlifts will be performed using accommodating resistance. However, we will be biased towards the use of bands rather than chains. Chains can be challenging to set up for multi-rep deadlifts properly and cannot match the way bands force an athlete to accelerate through extension. 

When performing dynamic effort deadlifts, we will often alternate between sumo and conventional stances. Meaning, we will perform one wave using the sumo stance, and then the next three-week wave will be performed using the conventional stance. However, we can also opt to utilize deadlift variations such as deficit or block deadlifts.

For most athletes, alternating between sumo and conventional stances wave to wave will be ideal. However, if we are working with an athlete who has a significantly strong deadlift and displays a high level of movement competency, we can opt to include additional variations. 

As far as set and rep parameters go, we will typically perform two reps per set, waving the number of sets performed throughout a three-week training wave. Most often, we will perform six sets in week one, five sets in week two, and four sets in week three. 

Here is what a three-week dynamic effort deadlift wave could look like:

Week 1

Sumo Deadlift + Bands: 6 x 2 @70% (45% bar weight / 25% band)

Week 2

Sumo Deadlift + Bands: 5 x 2 @75% (50% bar weight / 25% band)

Week 3

Sumo Deadlift + Bands: 4 x 2 @80% (55% bar weight / 25% band)

As you can see, the dynamic effort deadlift volume decreases as intensity increases throughout the three-week wave. Once this wave is complete, we could transition to conventional deadlifts or any other common deadlift variation. 

Repeated Effort

The repeated effort method is a training method used each training day to improve strength, physical composition, and work capacity. Knowing the posterior chain benefits the deadlift provides, it only makes sense that we include repeated effort deadlift variations within our lower body accessory exercise work. 

When we add deadlift training into our accessory exercise work, we will typically perform these movements immediately following the main exercise when energy levels are still optimal for the execution of heavy multi-joint movements. Considering the risk associated with improper deadlift technique, we do not want athletes performing multi-rep deadlift sets in a highly fatigued state. 

The deadlift variations used during accessory exercise training will be similar to those used during max and dynamic effort training, with a few other exercises, such as Romanian deadlifts and Dimel deadlifts, included as well. 

Set and rep parameters will follow typical primary accessory exercise volume prescriptions. Most often, we will aim to perform 4-5 sets of 3-5 or 5-8 reps. The only time we will perform ten or more reps with a deadlift variation would be when Romanian or Dimel deadlifts are utilized. 

Here is an example of how we would go about including a deadlift variation into the accessory exercise training of a football player:

Primary Accessory Exercise

Romanian Deadlift – 4 x 5 

Secondary Accessory Exercises

Hack Squat – 3 x 10-12

Reverse Hyper – 4 x 12-15

GHD Sit-Up – 4 x 12-15 or AMRAP

As you can see, we execute the deadlift training immediately after our main exercise when energy levels are optimal for this type of work. We then work through a basic assortment of secondary accessory exercises targeting both anterior and posterior chains. 

A Final Word on Technique

There is no doubt that deadlifts can be dangerous when performed improperly. If a coach fails to educate athletes properly and the athletes solely focus on gripping and ripping the barbell, there is no doubt that bicep, shoulder, and back injuries can occur. This is why coaches need to focus on movement competency and education, not just loading up a barbell and screaming "let's go" as loudly as possible.

The deadlift variations described in this article are some of the most efficient means of improving posterior chain strength. While there are certainly exercise alternatives, none can match the ability of the deadlift and its many variations to strengthen the posterior chain and make athletes brutally strong. 

If athletes are new to the deadlift, there must be a strict process in place to properly introduce, teach, and escalate the movement over time. We don't want to throw an absolute beginner into a scenario where they are going to perform a max effort deadlift in week one. Know the individuals you are working with, and tailor training accordingly to yield the best outcomes. 

Again, there are no common exercises that are inherently dangerous. The competency of both the coach and athlete, along with the quality of the instruction, will have the most significant effect on the injury risk associated with training and training outcomes. 

For more information regarding the Westside Barbell approach to football strength and conditioning, check out the Conjugate Football EBook.