Another Beginner Deadlift Form Check

A little background from another post I have in the injury rehab section. I recently went to a PT who suggested I stop chest exercises and focus solely on my upper back. My chest is very tight and comparably strong to my very weak upper back. This imbalance is causing my posture to breakdown significantly.

To build my back I will be incorporating chin ups and various rows, but will plan on the deadlift being a critical building block. Below you can see how immobile my mid/upper back is, but I’d appreciate any suggestions on how I can improve and maximize the benefit of the lift.

Thanks for your time, and I appreciate the help.

Random question…while deadlifting I shred my shins with the bar…is that normal or another form error?

some people shred their shins, some don’t. really just depends on overall body positioning/leverages. If you’re deadlifting this far from your max though, I don’t see why you would have to do that. Set the starting position more at the mid foot than right at your ankles. You don’t HAVE to scrape your shins, some people just do it.

Perhaps taking off the weightlifting shoes would help… why are you wearing them in the first place? I honestly don’t understand why anyone who is not an experienced lifter would even own a pair, but I guess that’s beside the point. Might as well throw money around if you have it. The actual point is that they aren’t meant for deadlifts. Wear flat soled shoes, no raised heel. That could actually fix the shin issue, since weightlifting shoes shift your ankle positioning.

When I do max effort work, I wear good soccer socks because I have that tendency.

Good idea, I’ll give it a try.

Even though I’m not lifting a lot of weight I’m still giving my best effort. I’m trying to get tight and pull the bar into me to get my lats as tight as possible.

x2

I like weightlifting shoes for squatting, but they are not appropriate for deadlifting.

Get some football socks to where to not shred. Fan set up is legit too.

I got a great deal on the Addipower’s and really like them. I began lifting in Chucks, but the Addipower’s for me make all lifts feel so much more stable. I gain mobility in squats, my back is better aligned for over head press, they even provide more support benching. The big thing for me is no matter what I’m doing my feet feel completely supported and locked to the ground.

In terms of dead lifts I personally don’t feel any negative impact like being pitched forward, maybe because my floor slopes and I’m lifting against the incline negating some of the heel lift. The shoes also give me great awareness of my mid foot and heel. Probably better to switch shoes, but at this point I just prefer them.

Do you see any form issues I should be working on? Any negatives attributed to the shoes like leaning too far forward? In terms of shins I’m gonna wear some socks, and possibly not pull the bar in so tight.

Thanks for the insight, I really appreciate it.

Living in Phoenix my garage hits 105-115 daily during the summer months, and drops to 90-100 in the AM when I lift. Without those fans, lots of chalk and towels, I’d be dead :slight_smile:

Those fans are monsters and move a ton of air! So strong I don’t even point them directly at me. Next step is to wall mount them to free up my workbench. If interested they’re Lasko Max Performance High Velocity shop fans.

It’s been lot’s of fun piecing together my little garage gym.

That’s fine. I feel the same for squats: better mobility and the feeling of being “locked to the ground” - but that doesn’t mean they’re the best option for deadlifting.

This is going to sound pretty dickish, because you have a pretty good attitude, but please just pause for a moment and consider the irony of starting a thread titled “beginner deadlift form check” and pushing back against advice from two guys with 550+ deadlifts (flipcollar is over 600, I’m pretty sure) by saying “Nah, I don’t think it’s the shoes, anything else you guys would comment on?”

To be honest, I think form videos shot with less than about 80% are of limited value anyway, so it’s hard to tell if you’re actually pitched forward on a heavy pull, but just know that most experienced lifters would recommend the same thing. Weightlifting shoes with a raised heel are not meant for deadlifting; they’re for squatting (or more directly, for Olympic weightlifting, where getting from an extended-vertical position into a deep front-squat or overhead-squat position in half a second is a necessity of the sport). I know that the allure of the “locked to the floor” feeling is strong and I love it for squats, but you can feel even MORE locked to the floor pulling in bare feet or socks, IMO.

I’d say that for one, you should try pulling in just socks for a few workouts, and for two, you should shoot another form-check video pulling closer to your 1RM. If you don’t really know your 1RM, then shoot us a video of a weight that’s hard to pull for more than 3 reps.

1 Like

I know a lot of people with good deadlifts and none of them pull in Oly shoes. Not one.

Zero push back on my part, any and all suggestions and insight are both hugely appreciated and welcome.

I’ll swap shoes and post another video with a heavier weight. Is the camera angle OK? Any other tweaks I can make that would help you and others make a better assessment?

As always, thanks for the feedback!

Try getting a BIG belly full of air and push out against your diaphragm. Brace. HARD. Almost like you’re about to get punched in the gut. I like to do this while I’m standing up, then I set-up and pull.

This is also way too light to really see any form breakdowns.