Heavy Squats Don't Build Quads the Way Heavy Deadlifts Build a Back

If you deadlift heavy for long enough, you get a thick back. You don't have to think about it. If you squat heavy for long enough, you can end up with a big squat and quads that don't look like it. Deadlifts are the example I use for a lift where the muscle I want is the prime mover, so you just get stronger and it works. Quads are the example I use for the opposite: if you just sling weight, the quads aren't the primary mover. This lecture is about why the two behave so differently, and what I do about it on leg day.

1. The deadlift: just get stronger and it works

I'm a progressive overload guy, and I base my training around getting stronger on the core movements. When the muscle I want is the prime mover, that works almost on its own, and the deadlift is the clearest case.

You want a thick back? Start deadlifting. When you're deadlifting 600 pounds for 10 reps, you can want a narrow back or a thin back, but you're going to have a thick back. You can't help it. And I believe in that 100%.

It works because a deadlift leaves the back muscles nowhere to hide. They are the prime mover, so the form that lets you pull the most weight is the form that uses them the most. If you drift away from that form, the lift gets harder. So getting stronger at the lift and getting a bigger back are close to the same job. The bench press does the same thing for the chest.