Axle Deadlift

How to perform the Axle Deadlift

1. Set the thick axle over the mid-foot, take a double-overhand grip as wide as your stance, and hinge down with the hips back and chest up.
2. Pull the slack out of the bar and brace hard against it; the fat handle gives no knurl bite, so the setup and grip are the whole battle.
3. Drive the floor away with the legs and stand the axle up in one smooth pull, keeping it dragging up the shins and thighs and the back flat throughout.
4. Lock out standing tall with the hips through and shoulders back, fighting to keep the thick bar from rolling out of your fingers.
5. Perform the prescribed reps (or a heavy single for the event), and record the load lifted: the axle is scored by the weight your grip can hold, not by a rep target.

Default progression: manual.

Common mistakes

• •Setting the grip loosely on the smooth fat handle so the bar rolls out of the fingers on the way up.
• •Yanking the axle off the floor so the hips shoot up and the back rounds before the bar moves.
• •Letting the bar drift away from the shins instead of dragging it up close to the body.
• •Failing to pull the slack out and brace before the pull, so the first inch rips the position apart.

Variations & alternatives

Swap in one of these when the equipment is taken or the main lift has stalled.

Conventional Deadlift

Back · Barbell

Barbell Row

Back · Barbell

Pull-Up

Back · Bodyweight

Lat Pulldown

Back · Machine

Seated Cable Row

Back · Cable