We all know the feeling of starting a new deadlift program and feeling invincible, adding weight to the bar every single week. But then week six rolls around, and the bar suddenly feels bolted to the floor. If you have hit this notorious plateau, don't panic. During your first month of heavy lifting, rapid strength gains are largely neurological as your central nervous system learns to fire muscle fibers efficiently. By week six, these neurological adaptations dry up, meaning future progress requires the much slower biological process of building actual muscle tissue. Furthermore, because the deadlift starts from a dead stop without an eccentric loading phase, it brutally taxes your nervous system. Pushing your limits for six straight weeks causes accumulated fatigue, forcing your body to pull the emergency brake and subconsciously limit your force output to protect you from injury.

To smash through this wall, your first step must be a planned deload week. Dropping the weight to about 60% of your maximum allows your nervous system to recharge and dissipates the hidden fatigue masking your true strength. Once recovered, you need to identify and aggressively attack your weak points using accessory exercises tailored to exactly where your lift breaks down. Additionally, strip away bad habits by fixing subtle form leakages and dedicatedly training your grip strength; even a slightly slipping grip will signal your brain to power down your legs and back. Plateaus simply mean it is time to adapt your stimulus. Still have questions? Pop in for a tour — no pressure, no pitch. We're at 14 Calvert Avenue, Shoreditch.