The Brief History of Barbell Height

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If you can’t dead-lift from the floor it doesn’t make you less of a person.

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If you can’t dead-lift from the floor it doesn’t make you less of a person.

Why are barbells about 8.75 inches off the floor anyway? Is it meant to establish a standard for dead-lift height?

Nope.

It's meant to keep you alive! It has absolutely nothing to do with “normal” human movement.

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Back in the late 1800's and early 1900's, strongmen trained with barbells that look like the image above. Looks awesome, they look strong, but it also looks a little scary. Turns out it was scary. When strongmen made mistakes they dropped the barbell, fell to the floor, and were smashed by the barbell. This was because the globes on the end weren't big enough to keep their heads from being crushed.

So what did they do? They measured the height of an average human head and added an inch or so. They took that measurement (~8.75 inches), and made weight plates. Now, when accidents happened at least you wouldn't be crushed.

Unfortunately, people soon forgot why the barbell sat at this new height. Instead people started to believe that this was a standard for dead-lift height. Just like squats, no dead-lift fits all. Some people can dead-lift from the floor without an issue. Others can dead-lift from a deficit. While others should dead-lift from an elevated surface. The dead-lift that fits your body, at this current moment, is your dead-lift.

Pick the dead-lift variation that works for you. Pick the one that meets you where you are. Don't just dead-lift from the floor because the bar is there.

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This is a snippet from our most recent Strength Coach Roundtable Podcast on Row Perfect UK. Find the full episode below.

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