How Often Do You Deadlift? Plus Set/Rep Scheme

Bigger Stronger Leaner
21

[quote]trap_builder wrote:
With this scheme, how can you activate your CNS to squat? Isn’t ut a bit too taxing on the CNS?[/quote]
I don’t understand what you’re asking.

But two answers. 1. right now I’m not squatting. 2. as far as “too taxing on the CNS”, I don’t really think that’s the right way to describe it. However, too much time near your 1RM can be stressful, in which case you just spend some time working the same pattern with lighter weight, i.e., a deload.

This particular schedule, though, isn’t particularly taxing even when nearing a new 5RM.

Also, kind of an important point, my 5RM is based on technical failure, not actual failure. There are certain areas where my form breaks down near a max, in which case I just call the lift.

22

3x weekly, currently 2x in the 70-80% range and 1x around 90%. However, those percentages will escalate each week until my meet, and the lower percentage lifts are deficits and halting deads, so the effort level is higher than what the percentage would suggest. As with any lift, build your frequency up over time. I didn’t go from low volume to 3x weekly overnight .

23

Personally I do a variation 3 times a week, Monday is just a few sets of speed deadlifts to hopefully keep form in etc, Wednesday I’ll do 1/3/5/5, with the single and triple using a belt and the 5’s beltless, the single is also basically my 1RM (which means I’ve pulled 600lbs for 3 weeks in a row…which is probably why my body threw the towel in on Monday and I pulled something on my pissing speed deadlifts). Then saturday 3 sets of 10 defecit stiff legged deadlifts.

Having said that I think I’m now going to do 3/5/5 at least until the few weeks before a meet when I’ll put in a few heavier singles. Mainly because my top single has just become a grinding horrible CNS sapping mess (okay not actually that bad but I feel it’s why I injured myself on the speed day)

24

I’m in no way big at all so take this with a grain of salt, but I did pull a 550 in an impromptu meet at a higher weight then I am now. What I did was just add deadlifts at the end of a back day work out. I always felt that a ton of excess deadlifting or a ton of supplementary exercises actually stalled me out. I worked up to a 5 rep max, do three sets and I’m done. If I did more, I might get more muscle growth but stalled in strength. I personally didn’t care because I did other things for muscle growth and that was just strength/ fun. Plus the only time I’ve ever tweaked my back was trying to go for 12 reps.

25

Some interesting responses here.
The Op clearly asked , “In order to get a huge back and magnificent posterior chain, how often do you my friends deadlift?”

What we got were lifters saying how they train their deadlift and almost all of them were for strength. The OP is clearly talking about hypertrophy.

My question would be does anyone believe the conventional deadlift is a useful exercise for hypertrophy? Or as the OP put it “to build a huge and magnificent posterior chain”.

By the responses I would say no. Deadlift variations yes as Romainain Deadlifts are excellent for hamstrings and glutes. Trap Bar deadlifts and rack pulls are also very good for glutes and erector spinae but convential deadlifdts don’t really appear to be good for anything accept for building your deadlift.

26

[quote]Angus1 wrote:
By the responses I would say no. Deadlift variations yes as Romainain Deadlifts are excellent for hamstrings and glutes. Trap Bar deadlifts and rack pulls are also very good for glutes and erector spinae but convential deadlifdts don’t really appear to be good for anything accept for building your deadlift. [/quote]

Conventional deadlifts have certainly helped build my neck, upper back, yoke, etc…

Is it the best way for hypertrophy. No, probably not.

27

[quote]Angus1 wrote:
Some interesting responses here.
The Op clearly asked , “In order to get a huge back and magnificent posterior chain, how often do you my friends deadlift?”

What we got were lifters saying how they train their deadlift and almost all of them were for strength. The OP is clearly talking about hypertrophy.

My question would be does anyone believe the conventional deadlift is a useful exercise for hypertrophy? Or as the OP put it “to build a huge and magnificent posterior chain”.

By the responses I would say no. Deadlift variations yes as Romainain Deadlifts are excellent for hamstrings and glutes. Trap Bar deadlifts and rack pulls are also very good for glutes and erector spinae but convential deadlifdts don’t really appear to be good for anything accept for building your deadlift. [/quote]

I’m going to strongly disagree with your opinion on the matter of deadlifts not being good for hypertrophy. I’m sure you’ll want evidence to back my opinion up but unfortunately I don’t have much, other than anecdotally since I’ve put deadlifts as a staple part of my routine my back has grown in size considerably.

Obviously it can always be argued that this was due to other reasons but I personally believe the main reason is the heavy deadlifts. Plus the only time I ever get back doms is when I do heavy deadlifts, yes I know this doesn’t necessarily mean growth but it can often be a good indicator.

Logically if you’re moving heavy weight for multiple reps with a fair amount of time under tension then whichever muscles are being used will grow, isn’t that kind of how this whole thing works?

If I had to pick one exercise for growing my back for the rest of my life then I would pick deadlifts without any doubt or hesitation.

28

[quote]Angus1 wrote:
Some interesting responses here.
The Op clearly asked , “In order to get a huge back and magnificent posterior chain, how often do you my friends deadlift?”

What we got were lifters saying how they train their deadlift and almost all of them were for strength. The OP is clearly talking about hypertrophy.

My question would be does anyone believe the conventional deadlift is a useful exercise for hypertrophy? Or as the OP put it “to build a huge and magnificent posterior chain”.

By the responses I would say no. Deadlift variations yes as Romainain Deadlifts are excellent for hamstrings and glutes. Trap Bar deadlifts and rack pulls are also very good for glutes and erector spinae but convential deadlifdts don’t really appear to be good for anything accept for building your deadlift. [/quote]

Whether or not my posterior chain is magnificent is certainly in the eye of the beholder, but I believe nothing has been more important to my lower/mid back development, and to a large extent my hamstring development, than conventional deadlifts. Traps too. I don’t do anything else for traps, and mine don’t suck. And I’m talking about size and thickness, not strictly strength. I’ll try to get someone to take a picture of my back sometime. My back training is almost strictly pull ups and deadlifts. Sometimes I do rows. I think for the lats, deadlifts aren’t sufficient for great development, but I imagine the OP is aware of this.

The OP titled this thread ‘how often do you deadlift?’ I’m sorry you believe that the answers here do not appropriately address this topic. I will have to disagree with you on that.

29

[quote]Angus1 wrote:
Some interesting responses here.
The Op clearly asked , “In order to get a huge back and magnificent posterior chain, how often do you my friends deadlift?”

What we got were lifters saying how they train their deadlift and almost all of them were for strength. The OP is clearly talking about hypertrophy.

My question would be does anyone believe the conventional deadlift is a useful exercise for hypertrophy? Or as the OP put it “to build a huge and magnificent posterior chain”.

By the responses I would say no. Deadlift variations yes as Romainain Deadlifts are excellent for hamstrings and glutes. Trap Bar deadlifts and rack pulls are also very good for glutes and erector spinae but convential deadlifdts don’t really appear to be good for anything accept for building your deadlift. [/quote]

I actually read it to mean “in order to achieve these goals, how often do you limit yourself on training the deadlift?”

I agree with the conclusions you’ve drawn here. I think the deadlift is probably one of the greatest tests of strength to exist, but find it to be a poor strength/size builder.

30

As far as “posterior chain” size, I can’t say I’ve given a proper deadlift the chance. I switched to mat pulls before I started training a hip hinge movement for size.

The changes I did make, to focus on increased tension and TUT:

  • added chains
  • focus on the hamstring stretch at the bottom, and glute contraction at the top
  • touch-n-go style, with very controlled eccentrics

I’m not using chains in the Westside/speed sense. For myself, I realized that once I get the bar off the floor, the rest of the movement is pretty easy. With the chains, it makes the whole movement “hard”, and forces me to work the whole time. There’s a lot more tension on my back this way. (Other people have more trouble with the lockout, in which case something like reverse bands might make sense.) My goal was to keep the applied force fairly constant through the whole movement.

After getting a bit of SI joint irritation, I looked for deadlift information on people with similar builds as my own. After watching a few of Richard Hawthorne’s videos, I adjusted my form to be more like his, starting with a strong “upper” hamstring stretch, and focusing on wedging my hips forward during the lift. Every rep gets a strong hamstring stretch, and a strong glute contraction.

The touch-n-go style, with all of the above, increases the total TUT. Every eccentric is controlled so that it’s reversible at any point. The plates touch, but they’re not bounced, and there’s no deload of the weights.

Growth has mostly been hamstrings, spinal erectors, and traps (mid, uppper, and lower), with some in my quads, glutes and lats. However, my glutes respond better to deep back squats, and lats respond better to weighted chins.

I haven’t done it, but I imagine those same ideas would transfer fairly well to a deadlift from the floor.

31

[quote]Angus1 wrote:
My question would be does anyone believe the conventional deadlift is a useful exercise for hypertrophy?
[/quote]

I do

32

Thursday evening: warmup sets 1x10 2x8 2x5 and then into 5x5 @ 85%.
Sunday morning 6am : 3 x 10 @ 70% Sunday Evening see above but for Squats 6pm.

Only 1rep max each every three months.
Prowler work 6am on Caffeine Tue/wed/thr.

Seems to be working well. Am increasing poundages at the rate of 2# per week.
But then again when you are going from Shit to Suck , you gotta start somewhere !

36

[quote]pushharder wrote:

[quote]T3hPwnisher wrote:

…I think the deadlift is probably one of the greatest tests of strength to exist, but find it to be a poor strength/size builder.
[/quote]

This an oft repeated mantra. Problem is it’s almost impossible to prove because if you’re building an impressive deadlift and gaining muscle size simultaneously you really don’t know EXACTLY what is doing the trick because you’re most likely doing a variety of exercises and protocols. The default answer, and probably the right one, is “it’s the combination of all you’re doing.”[/quote]

I find I can build an impressive deadlift with very little deadlifting personally, whereas when I was doing more deadlifting, I was not having as much success. It is why I reached the conclusions I’ve drawn.

You are absolutely right that it is difficult to prove. I actually find that to be the problem with all things in lifting. I’ve yet to see anything be proven, while almost everything has been refuted, haha.

39

[quote]pushharder wrote:

[quote]T3hPwnisher wrote:

I find I can build an impressive deadlift with very little deadlifting personally…

[/quote]

I believe you. I’m also convinced the groove needs greasing regularly with a lot of other folks.

[/quote]

Possibly. I rarely advise other people how they should train. I just tell people what has worked for me.

In my own training, I mentally separate “getting better” with “getting stronger”. I would consider greasing the groove training to get better at deadlifting, while I would consider the things I do to build a better deadlift to be getting stronger at deadlifting. I have found that deadlifting does not make my deadlift stronger, but if one is bad at the deadlift, I could very much see how deadlifting more could make them a better deadlifter. I’m doing the same thing with my axle cleans at the moment.

40

Can I propose that perhaps people with body leverages suited to the deadlift, find it poor for muscle building, whereas those folk for whom it is the opposite, find it to be a great tool for muscle building?