I go to a university gym and I guess they though having a super rubbery floor installed would be good considering all the guys who throw weights. The floor is so rubbery you can drop a 105 lb dumbbell from waist height and it barely makes a sound but it bounces all over the place.
I’ve been doing 5/3/1 for a few cycles and making good progress. However, up until this point I was deadlifting on a MUCH harder surface, essentially cement-like. Today was week 1 of deadlifts. I was repping out on my last set using 295 lbs when my actual max is 370.I only managed 3 reps and they felt impossible, i have done 315 for 7 so i know i should have gotten at least 9 reps.
I know everyone has bad days but I feel like the rubber floor had something to do with it. It felt almost like wearing a running shoe and I feel that it may have caused my power output to be dampened.
Has anyone else noticed a change in strength when deadlifting on a different suface? Im wondering if I should retest my max on this floor as it may be different
Man… you are thinking way too much.Just do it. Just go lift the weights. The floor doesn’t matter. That guy screaming while doing cable crossover curls doesn’t matter. Moving your weights matters.
If its that much of a mental block for you go find another gym. But that will cost you money and will probably bring about a whole new set of problems to deal with.
They put a similar floor in on an air force base I lift at. It was tiled rubber squares they laid out. They had some nonstick spray on them from shipping which got all over everything. The leg press plate and spotter stands were effectively greased.
My deadlift went from 405x5 to 405x1 when I was lifting on that floor. I was like shit I’m over trained, then went to another gym and I was good to go.
Thats a tough deal if thats the only gym you have to lift at.
I’ve been sending repeated emails to the rec director at the college gym I lift at telling him to get a glute ham raise and deadlift platform. I’m going to keep it up until he abides. One of these days I may even pay him a visit.
The rubber floor is not dampening your power output directly, as that is not how physics works. What is probably happening, is that the flexible floor is making your legs feel less stable. This causes your nervous system to prevent your muscles from pushing as much as they are capable.
But this is probably good for you. If you continue to lift in this environment, your leg stabilizer muscles will get much stronger. Probably over 8 to 12 weeks, you will gain your lifts back (and make improvements). But your stabilizers will be much stronger. This may end up benefiting you even when you are lifting on concrete.