Well the football offseason has begun, and so has morning lifts. After 2 weeks of getting back into the swing of things, I’ve really begun to move up in weight again.
Well on my last set of three on deadlift, at my highest weight, my form seems to go to shit. I’ve been told I have perfect form (with lighter weights) but who hasnt. Technically I deadlift sumo style, but with a little narrower of a stance due to some hip and hamstring issues. The stance a little wider than shoulder width apart, with my hands and arms inside my legs. The stance has really seemed to work for me, until I get to higher weights.
On the first lift, I really focus on dropping my ass, so my back stays out of the equation. but no matter what i do, my first lift results in my back rounding, and my legs doing little work. Once I have it up, the next two reps are perfect form, due to momentum.
Most people I talk to say this happens to them too, but no one seems to know how to correct it.
if anyone has any imput id really appretiate it. I’ve looked all over but nothing seems to offer much help.
Treat your “max” as “the most weight you can lift in good form (no back rounding, proper setup etc).”
Then, train with weights below or, at the most, at that weight.
I think this problem is common to deadlifts for almost everybody. I would guess most people are ultimately capable of picking up more off the ground by letting their form go to shit, but don’t let the limits of your ability dictate the weight on the bar.
Well you don’t want to “squat” the weight up. The knees get in the way.
I’ve been told that a true max deadlift (or close to it) will round your upper back for sure and even the low back will lose that hard arch. That seems to be the case for me.
I believe the upper back rounding over a tad was desirable due to shortening the ROM of the lockout.
It could be that your hams are stronger than your erectors etc. are at the moment. Keep working with slightly lower weights if your worried about it. Build up the strength slowly.
[quote]derek wrote:
Well you don’t want to “squat” the weight up. The knees get in the way.
I’ve been told that a true max deadlift (or close to it) will round your upper back for sure and even the low back will lose that hard arch. That seems to be the case for me.
I believe the upper back rounding over a tad was desirable due to shortening the ROM of the lockout.
It could be that your hams are stronger than your erectors etc. are at the moment. Keep working with slightly lower weights if your worried about it. Build up the strength slowly.[/quote]
It depends on what you want to do here. Now I think you said you play football so your primary focus should be on getting stronger, not necessarily just getting the weight up any old way. The first 1/3 of the deadlift is the most difficult for your glutes and lower back.
However.
I am talking about a traditional deadlift done with excellent form, not a romanian deadlift which is what most max effort lifts turn into. Keeping your back at the 30-40% angle through the first third of the motion will create the most tension in your glutes in my experience, but your alot will be asked of your lower back as well. This will translate best to explosive movements. I always felt I gained more in the way of power and jumping running and hopping ability using great form instead of just jacking the weight up. I wouldn’t listen to advice of powerlifters because their goal is to lift a tremendous amount of weight with the shittiest form allowable. If you actually want to make yourself stronger and better on the field I would work on doing the exercises properly. And you want to keep your chest up and a slight arch. Think of when you hit someone in football, you want pretty much the same back position as a nice dead.