How Barry Added 60kg to His Deadlift in 4 Months—Without Giving Up Running

Introduction

When Barry first reached out, he was stuck.

"I had no clear goals or progression, and I wasn’t as strong as I felt I should be"

On top of that, he wanted to balance strength training with improving his running—a challenge most people fail to programme for appropriately.

From chatting about his motivations, we realised that he really wanted to deadlifting 200kg, despite his most recent session putting his estimated 1RM at 140kg.

Fast forward less than 4 months, and Barry had added 60kg to his deadlift 1RM, while running twice per week.

Here’s how we did it—and how you can apply these lessons to your own training.

Barry pulling 130kg x 4 in late April

1. The Problem: Why Barry Was Stuck

Like many lifters, Barry wasn’t lacking effort—he was lacking structure and accountability.

❌ No Clear Goals: Without a goal and plan to get there, Barry had found himself plateaued in strength and muscle.

❌ Conflicting Goals: Improving both his deadlift and his running felt like a balancing act he couldn’t quite manage.

❌ Nutritional Gaps: He wasn’t being kept accountable to eating in a way that supported his strength goals.

Without fixing these areas, breaking through to a 200kg deadlift wasn’t going to happen.

2. The Plan: How We Fixed It

We focused on three key areas to unlock consistent progress:

✅ 1. Accountability

Consistency is king, and it's a whole lot easier to do when an expert gives you a plan and holds you accountable to it. I gave Barry a simple, effective programme to track his lifts and nutrition and kept him accountable to it with weekly check-in calls.

Barry smashed this aspect by having a compliance of >95% to the plan.

In his words:

"5 stars! No complaints at all! I loved the simplicity and consistency of the programme. I've made heaps of progress, and the logging for nutrition keeps me accountable. "

✅ 2. Getting the plan right

Barry needed a plan that worked for both strength and running. I designed a 5-day programme that prioritised his lifting, while leaving room for his conditioning work.

"Setting clear goals far in advance and working towards it steadily was key. Also keeping the goals in mind with every program"

👉 Example:

• Mon - Lower Body: Deadlift variations + posterior chain focus

• Tue - Conditioning: Medium/long distance run

• Wed - Upper Body: Heavy pressing + upper back work

• Thurs - Lower Body & Conditioning: Squats + Short distance run

• Fri - Upper Body: Volume pressing + arms

  
  
  
  
  
  

  

  Barry performing jefferson curls

  
  
  
  
  
  

✅ 3. Strategic Variation for Strength Gains

We used load and exercise variation to build strength without burning out:

• Heavy Singles & Triples: To build top-end power

• Hypertrophy work in the 6-12 range: To build muscle in the right places

• Deadlift variations: To make the regular deadlift feel like a cakewalk

  
  

This approach delivered steady, predictable progress, without risking injury or overtraining.

3. The Result: 60kg Added to His Deadlift 1RM

Between late April and early August, Barry crushed his 200kg deadlift goal, adding 60kg to his 1RM in less than 4 months.

Beyond the numbers, he also:

✅ Improved his running capacity without compromising strength

✅ Built better habits around training and nutrition

✅ Stayed consistent—without overcomplicating things

"I’m more in tune with my nutrition, I’ve hit a deadlift PR of 200kg and ran a half marathon. I’ve been in the best shape I’ve probably ever been in and I’ve had no injuries"

His favorite part? The simplicity of the approach.

Barry pulling 200kg in early August

4. What You Can Learn from This

If you’re stuck in your lifts—or struggling to balance strength and other goals—here are 3 lessons from Barry’s success:

1. Consistency Over Complexity: A simple plan executed consistently will always beat a complicated, inconsistent one. This is even easier when you have someone holding you accountable.

   
   

2. Balance Your Goals: Improving running and strength can be done, but you need to prioritise one and balance the programme accordingly.

   
   

3. Use Smart Variation: Combine heavy work with strategic accessories to break through plateaus while staying pain-free.

   
   
   
   
   
   

   

   
   

5. Want These Results? Here’s Your Next Step

Barry’s results aren’t a fluke—this is repeatable.

If you’re serious about getting stronger (without sacrificing other goals like running or staying pain-free), I can help.

👉 Want to see if I could help you add 60kg to your deadlift? 

Click here to book a free consult call.