Can't squat. What now?

Okay first up.  I think my knee tweak is due to some imbalances of my lower body.  I'm gonna get it checked out at Fitology on Monday and see what they think about it and what their recommendations are.  In the meantime, to play it safe I have laid off squatting.  But laying off squatting doesn't mean I laid off lower body work.  I shall sub it with my favourite lift:  the deadlift!

Okay, so many people say that the deadlift is more of a low back and traps exercise rather than a bona fide leg exercise.  That's actually not accurate.  The deadlift is a very versatile exercise and has many variations.  These variations serve to focus more on well... stuff you want to focus on while also still hitting the traps and low back.

Still not clear?  Look at the pics below:

Snatch grip deadlift gives more emphasis on upper lats and upper back

For more glutes emphasis, use the sumo stance.

Wanna target you hamstrings and calves?  Hit the romanian deadlift

Duck deadlift for more quad development.  Turn your feet and knees out approximately 45 degrees.

The beauty of rotating various types of deadlifts in your training routine is you still get to work your legs but avoid burning out and frying your CNS which is common when you train using one type of deadlift on a regular basis.

Best way is to change to a different type of deadlift every 4 weeks.  

I'm starting a new programme by Jason Ferruggia this Monday and I will be subbing the squat for sumo deads for the first 4 weeks.  Let's see how it goes.