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Upon returning to the gym after welcoming baby Santi, Eva Longoria decided to start incorporating strength training into her workouts. In less than a year, the actress' legs and body look toner than ever. Both the actress and her coach Grant Roberts have turned to social media to share her fitness routine, among which deadlift has been a favorite for the businesswoman.
If you want to lose fat, tone or gain strength, deadlift is the exercise for you. This full body workout stimulates the shoulders, back, buttocks, legs, and calves all in one movement. To deadlift, you'll need a bar and weight discs that you can gradually increase or the hexagonal bar like the one Eva uses. The trap bar is used by those who want to be more cautious and reduce tension on the knees, hips, and lower back.
It is important that you take a series of precautions when performing this exercise because, if done incorrectly, it can cause dangerous back injuries. Beginning with the correct position ensures you will successfully lift weights with zero harm.
To start, we recommend standing with your legs apart at shoulder width. Your feet should face forward or slightly outward, without raising them. Bend your knees and keep your back straight as well as your neck and head, fully aligned. The buttocks should point backwards as if you were sitting, while your arms should be stretched at shoulder level with a raised chest.
To properly hold the bar, place your palms facing you and your thumbs around the bar. You can also grab the bar as if your hands were a hook or clamp. Some even combine the technique with one hand palm up and the other palm down.
The lifting movement must be parallel to the body, slow and controlled. When you lift, keep the weight from moving forward. Squeeze the buttocks and abdominal region to decrease any extra effort of your back. The actress' coach suggest trying the movement with repetitions and three-second pauses. Of course, you can increase the weight over time.
While you might be tempted to weight train everyday, the muscles must rest so you can see the results. Although it is important to incorporate weight training into your fitness routine, you should not do it more than twice a week. We recommend training five out of seven days a week with two rest days in between. You'll see much better results faster!