Better dead lifts!

[Cr33g]

My dead lifts suck. It's an exercise that I hate, yet adore at the same time due to the results they're potentially capable of.

 

My posture is pretty crap, especially when I sit down. I also find when I dead lift with heavy weights, my back tends to curve which I'm told can be dangerous.

 

For almost a year I've been working on form for dead lifts, working at only 100kg maximum (220Ibs) just to get the form right. Normally, I dead lift with a sumo stance, I don't do conventional very often. I've also been really trying to work on my core lately as well, to try and help stabilise myself so I don't end up curving.

 

Two days ago I managed to dead lift 140kg (308Ibs) and I did two reps, with very little negative change in my posture. The first rep I kept my posture up right, while the second rep my posture only went forward very slightly, so it wasn't concerning. It felt so much easier and it didn't feel "painful" like it used to. I also did it in a conventional stance rather than sumo, so I don't know what happened there. Maybe I'm finally starting to understand conventional dead lifting.

 

Regardless, I'm really happy with this result and I look forward to trying it again next week.

[JAGR]

You should be happy. That's an awesome lift!  Keep bending that bar, Cr33g!!

[Cr33g]

Thanks JAGR!

[Maledictus]

Nice.

[AllonsY!]

Way to go! A great tip I once heard for DL is to activate your lats and shoulders. Your arms are kinda like meat hooks in the DL but they're not inactive. Lock your lats down and put your shoulders back. If you put your back against a wall and push the wall with your palms those shoulder  muscles are the ones we're talking about. This will help keep your upper back very well stabilized as you ascend. 

[orcwarrior]

Nice job!  Sounds like you're making great progress!

[El Exorcisto]

EliteFTS has been putting up a series "So You Think You Can Deadlift?" You should really watch it. If it's anything like the series on bench and squatting it will have you ironed out totally by the end.

[Huntress]

Way to go! A great tip I once heard for DL is to activate your lats and shoulders. Your arms are kinda like meat hooks in the DL but they're not inactive. Lock your lats down and put your shoulders back. If you put your back against a wall and push the wall with your palms those shoulder  muscles are the ones we're talking about. This will help keep your upper back very well stabilized as you ascend. 

 

I second this. 

Well done Cr33g, congrats on your progress

[4114fly]

As best I can recall (1979) it took weight for me to really get the form right. Trying to work on form without enough caused form problems. Chicken or egg deal I guess. And I'll agree with AllonsY! on the upper back, shoulder and arm advice. Also, it helped me to think about getting power from hips.

[Cr33g]

Thanks everyone for the positive comments, input and advice. I really do appreciate it.

 

Last week I was able to pull off three reps at 140kg (308Ibs) so I was very happy that there was a one rep difference from two weeks ago, to last week.

 

I've really been focusing on just trying to keep my torso upright and tight, and focusing on my legs and heels to drive the lift upward to begin with (lift with your legs basically). I've also been ding extra core work three days a week which I think is improving my form on my dead lift.

 

Slightly off topic, last week on Friday, I went to the gym to work on legs. With my squats, I could only squat 100kg (220Ibs) with only three reps. Yesterday (Monday) I went back to the gym originally planning to do chest, but I forgot Monday is apparently International Chest Day, all the benches were taken so I decided to do legs again. Strangely, I did my 100kg squats but I did five reps, easy. So, I upped it to 105kg (231Ibs), another five easy reps. I tried 110kg (242Ibs) and I managed to pull off four reps. I have no idea where this improvement has come from? Could it be the additional core work I'm doing? Whatever it is - I'm happy.