Week 30: High Frequency Deadlifts - Day 6
Deadlifts
140kg: 5x1
EMOM
Barbell Shrugs
140kg: 8,8,5,5
Mixed grip
Face-Pulls
Light: 4x20
Bodyweight: 96.7kg
I felt strong today so did my deadlift singles with 140kg which went well. I think that I’m going to jump between 120kg and 140kg depending on how I feel each day, rather than trying to follow a structures progression timetable. I then jumped in with a friend for some shrugs and facepulls.
Week 30: High Frequency Deadlifts - Day 7
Deadlifts
120kg: 5x1
EMOM
Bodyweight: 97.1kg
I did this at 6am before work and it felt much better than I expected! My grip was weaker than usual though.
Week 30: Summary
Bodyweight: 96.5kg
Training: Good - 6 deadlift sessions, but not a huge amount else. No horizontal pulling/pushing or squatting this week.
Nutrition: Still poor.
This was a very good week in terms of deadlifting and I’m happy that my bodyweight is down a bit. I think ideally I need to get a little extra assistance work in - I haven’t benched in a while and I haven’t squatted in ages. I think it would be ideal if I could do one pull assistance day, one push assistance day, one squat assistance day and one heavy swing assistance day.
Week 31: High Frequency Deadlifts - Day 8
Deadlifts
130kg: 10x1
EMOM
BW Squat/Pull-Up Superset
3x10/5
EMOM
The deadlifts felt good today. My new job and long commute are really sapping all of my energy, and I don’t think I’d be able to consistently follow a more intense routine. The bodyweight squats and pull-ups felt heavy. It’s all a real effort right now!
Week 31: High Frequency Deadlifts - Day 9
Deadlifts
100kg: 5x1
EMOM
Barbell Rows
60kg: 2x15
Bodyweight: 98.0kg
Just a short session before work today. My lower back was feeling a little rough so I dropped the weight right down to 100kg, but I still wouldn’t say it felt light. I think I’ll take a rest day tomorrow.
Week 31: High Frequency Deadlifts - Day 10
Deadlifts
120kg: 1
140kg: 1
160kg: 1 - switched to mixed grip, no belt
170kg: 1
180kg: 1 - beltless PR
Stationary Bike
30min
I wasn’t going to train today - I thought it would be a good idea to rest - but something really fucked up happened at work and, I dunno, I just felt the need to push myself. Get something out of me.
The deadlifts initially felt pretty heavy, but I got into a good rhythm from 140kg onwards. The belt that anyone can use at the gym was being used by someone else so I just went ahead and did all sets beltless, and I’m really glad I did. 180kg was quite a difficult rep, but it was so much cleaner than the first time I did it. I didn’t roll the bar at all, I just set up well and pulled with everything I had. Afterwards I felt like doing a tonne of cardio, but it was getting late and I’ve got to be up early for work tomorrow.
I’m sure I’ll feel very happy about this tomorrow, I guess it’s a pretty significant PR, but it’s been a weird day. I’m going on my honeymoon on the last day of September, and I’d like to have deadlifted 200kg (440lbs) by then.
Good attitude. Shoot me a message if you need a vent 
Thanks a lot @MaazerSmiit, I really appreciate that.
Week 31: High Frequency Deadlifts - Day 11
Deadlifts
130kg: 5x1
EMOM
Back Extensions
BW: 3x25
Bodyweight: 97.2kg
130kg felt pretty good today, but it really lit up my entire back from my rear delts right down to my erectors. I think they are getting hit so hard because I’m focussing on controlling the eccentric, as well as just because I’m training so frequently. I did some back extensions to get a good pump and to really get blood flowing into the area. I’m going to rest tomorrow and then do a decent session on Thursday, with bench and pull-up assistance.
I’ve taken a couple of rest days because I feel absolutely exhausted and yesterday didn’t end up being particularly restful lol - after work I ended up helping a friend move flat and it was pretty hard work. Loading a full-size fridge onto the roof rack of my 4x4 was definitely quite a workout. Tomorrow I’ll do something before work.
Week 31: High Frequency Deadlifts - Day 12
Deadlifts
140kg: 3x1
Push-Ups
BW: 25,20,20
Pull-Ups
BW: 3x5
Bodyweight: 96.1kg
Everything felt quite heavy today.
Week 31: Summary
Bodyweight: 97.1kg
Training: Pretty good - 5 deadlift sessions with a sort-of PR. Not much assistance.
Nutrition: Poor
I’m pretty happy with how my deadlifts are going considering how much life is getting in the way right now. Going through a bit of a low motivation phase at the moment.
I read this and couldn’t help but think you and I are on a pretty similar wave length at the moment. Been happy with how things have gone in the gym but getting there and getting the mind rights is more of a chore than the workout itself.
Yes definitely sounds the same! Funny how motivation comes and goes like that, when I first started back after my injury I’d spend the whole day looking forward to my training sessions, but just now it feels like a real burden lol. Just got to keep on pushing.
I’m running into this exact same issue. It’s what inspired me to write my “Adversity Junkie” piece. As much as a horrific injury like your sucked, it can really light the fire to come back hard and fire on all cylinders. And then you recover and then…now what?
Competition can help I’ve found. Setting really ridiculous goals too. But even then, I’m struggling too.
I really miss that intense sense of purpose I had during the first few weeks following my injury, when every little gain meant so much to me. Now I’ve lost a solid 20lbs from my bench press, and I’m just not that bothered. It wouldn’t have made sense to me before, but I can totally relate to almost wanting to be injured just to feel that way again. I’ve recently been coming to the realisation that I’m a bit of an “adversity junkie” myself. It’s strange, I always thought of myself as soft and a little weak-minded, but looking back throughout school, university and my career I’ve always gravitated towards the hardest option, I think because I just really wanted to test myself. Same with flying actually - I absolutely detest flying, but after I got my finals out of the way I booked a flight to Australia for my elective and a big part of that was about taking myself straight back out of my comfort zone. It’s funny, I’d never really thought of myself in this way until recently, but (as usual) your article really hit home.
Week 32: High Frequency Deadlifts - Day 13
Deadlifts
120kg: 1
140kg: 1
160kg: 1 - switched to mixed grip
180kg: 1
Bench Press
100kg: 3
Crosstrainer
30min
Bodyweight: 96.2kg
I did this session at 1am after a long shift and in that context I’m happy with how it went. The 180kg deadlift was beltless and I feel now as if I’ve taken that weight from sometimes grindable to always grindable, if that makes sense. I really hurt my knee though, I think I must have put a lot more weight through it than previously. Benching was weak but meh.
180kg Deadlift (21-8-16)
Week 32: High Frequency Deadlifts - Day 14
Rack Pulls (Knee Height)
140kg: 1
160kg: 1 - mixed grip
180kg: 1 - hurt back
200kg: 1 - belt on
Back Extensions
BW: 45
Stationary Bike
30min
Bodyweight: 97.2kg
My knee has been really sore and stiff since yesterday’s session, so I decided to do rack pulls instead of deadlifts. Bang on cue, having chatted shit last night, I really hurt my back. To be honest I had been expecting it for a long time, and I’m very happy I hadn’t hurt it sooner. Limping around like a troll just now.
Week 32: High Frequency Deadlifts - Day 15
Deadlifts
100kg: 5x1
EMOM
Pull-Ups
BW: 3x5
Bodyweight: 98.0kg
It’s been a long time since my lower back felt like this! The first 24 hours after injuring it were horrible, it was quite debilitating, but things are improving now. I really felt these 100kg reps, and I was having to brace extremely hard. I’ve been getting carried away with this routine and going too heavy too often - I should still with 120kg for at least the next 5 sessions I reckon, and certainly not go above 140kg again for a while.
Two thoughts for you:
Somewhere back in my log, I had a day where I pushed a little too hard to grind out a second rep with 405 on a day where I just didn’t have it and should have known better. I completed the rep, but knew that I was really in pain for a few days. However, I did find that I was still able to deadlift 225 (in your case, 100kg) for the next week or two while I recovered, and in some ways it might have led to long-term improvement since I had to really brace my core to complete those reps when my back was still a little dodgy.
You’ve learned your lesson with the high-frequency deadlifts: don’t push the weight! Stay in that sweet spot of 65-75% most of the time, and reserve one or two days a week to go into the 80-90% range, maybe every other week trying for a 100-102% lift.