BBB: Deadlift 5x10 @ 50% = Killing Me?

Hey Guys,

Just curious, how do you guys handle the deadlift 5x10 @ 50% (=65kg, max = 3x 130kg) in the BBB-template? I just finished my first cycle with Wendler’s program and tbh this is just killing my back. Maybe my form gets sloppy due fatigue or maybe it’s just that that lactic acid is building up in my lower back due a volume the muscle is not used to…

… Thoughts, experiences?

Maybe you’re just not strong/conditioned enough?

[quote]mmatt wrote:
Maybe you’re just not strong/conditioned enough?[/quote]

No doubt! But what should I do now? Since the next cycle is going to next week… at 60% o.0

[quote]Kardash wrote:

[quote]mmatt wrote:
Maybe you’re just not strong/conditioned enough?[/quote]

No doubt! But what should I do now? Since the next cycle is going to next week… at 60% o.0[/quote]

If you finished all your reps, go up. It’s supposed to be hard.

Sounds laike you on the BBB 3 months challenge, but haven´t even tried BBB in its standard setup.
A bit to ambitious in my book.
But its going to hard and humbling.

FWIW I did not like the 3 month challenge. I believe I lost strength. Thats just me though.

You should try GVT: 10x10 @ 60% RM. That will make BBB a bit easier :stuck_out_tongue:

But seriously, just keep working at it. The first few times are always the hardest, so keep going. Also go into it with the mindset that you will finish it. Where your mind goes, your body will follow.

If powerlifting/strength is your main goal then pick a template from the powerlifting ebook or do “periodization bible”

Personally I hate high rep deadlifts. They never worked very well for me. TONS of people make great progress with high rep deadlifts, both lighter (BBB style) and heavier (5 x 5 or starting strength style), but personally, that never worked for my deadlift.

SO, if you’ve only done the 5 x 10 for one cycle, you might want to just stick with it and keep working, maybe in a few months you will see some SERIOUS gains.

But If you’re looking to try something different, I would suggest doing 5 x 10 good mornings. They work a ton of the same muscles and will help your hip, back, and hinge strength. They have a great carry-over to squats too.

Another suggestion is to fool around with speed deadlifts. These, more than anything else, have helped my deadlift. I know they don’t really follow the BBB template, so if you are committed to following the program as written than so be it. But again, if you’re not loving the 5 x 10, adding some speed pulls in after your heavy stuff might really help.

[quote]666Rich wrote:
FWIW I did not like the 3 month challenge. I believe I lost strength. Thats just me though. [/quote]

I didn’t like doing it for 4 weeks and had similar results. It got to the point where I was annoyed with doing the BBB part. Doing reps and thinking “this is dumb, why am I doing this?” wasn’t the most ideal thing. I dropped the BBB and did some isolation work and found that to be much more worthwhile. 5/3/1 itself is still one of my favorite programs though.

I think BBB is more effective with the less weight (?)

eg. Deads<Cleans<Bench<OHP<curls

[quote]caveman101 wrote:
I think BBB is more effective with the less weight (?)

eg. Deads<Cleans<Bench<OHP<curls[/quote]

Hey mate, I didn’t really get this one. What do you mean?

I would do 25 x 2 (instead of 5 x 10) and time yourself, I found stealing this little trinket from the WSB accumulation phase (credit to STB) works much, much better.

[quote]buddaboy wrote:
I would do 25 x 2 (instead of 5 x 10) and time yourself, I found stealing this little trinket from the WSB accumulation phase (credit to STB) works much, much better.[/quote]

That sounds interesting - though I would probably lose count lol. Time myself in what way?
Oh, and does this still serve the purpose of BBB, or is this just a gimmick with which I can claim volume? Because I became quite the Wendler-follower lol.

[quote]buddaboy wrote:
I would do 25 x 2 (instead of 5 x 10) and time yourself, I found stealing this little trinket from the WSB accumulation phase (credit to STB) works much, much better.[/quote]

Whaddyu know! I’m trying something like that. Except not quite as much volume. For week 1, 14x2; week 2, 17x2; and week 3, 20x2. I can keep rest periods really low and I find I use better form and have more speed that way. With lower volume there, more recovery to be used to develop general conditioning and weak points. BBB makes me feel slow as hell on the main lifts. For the deload I might just do 8x2.

I have yet to know if this will work for me though.

[quote]Kardash wrote:

[quote]caveman101 wrote:
I think BBB is more effective with the less weight (?)

eg. Deads<Cleans<Bench<OHP<curls[/quote]

Hey mate, I didn’t really get this one. What do you mean?[/quote]

in order of effectiveness from right to left.
Squatting is the exception, squat loads!