Undeadlifts? DL Rep Work

Ive always heard that you should always completely set the weight down after each rep, hence the “dead” in deadlift. Ive also heard, to stand up and resetup between each rep. This has worked very well for me, especially when reps are low in the 1-3 range.

But what about when your doing repetition work. If Im doing a set of 5-10, this method may not be as practical. Im gonna be using deadlifts in EDT, and thus I will be doing sets of 5, and trying to get as many reps in 15 minutes. Also, from previous experience, doing partial deadlifts, there are benefits to not removing the tension between reps.

Also, you could tap the weight on the ground, but this will most likely decrease the amount of force needed to lift the bar. I could put a foam mat at the bottom to reduce this collision.

Whats the verdict on this one? Should I set the weight down at the bottom, tap it lighly on the ground, or stop before the ground?

My experience is to treat a set of deads as a giant set of singles. If I’m doing 3 reps, I’ll treat each rep as a single. Set up normally for the first rep and pull it. Set it down, don’t release the bar, take a breath or two, pull it again, and repeat. I compete in powerlifting, so only the first rep counts, so I assess my progress off the quality of the first rep of a set.

I have guys in my gym that can do what I call “bounce” reps with 495 and only max deadlift 525-530. Their first rep is always hard because they don’t have tension and stretch reflex built up. Reps 2-5 are easier due to this. Take this into consideration when programming your plan.

Ya those were my thoughts pretty much, the only other problem i have, is that my gym has those damn hex plates, so when you set the bar down it gets all twisted and rolls away. If your gonna set it down, you gotta completely let go and reset. I’ll probably do less reps then, and hold the lockout for a few seconds. At least that way my forearms and traps will get some extra tension as well.

If you powerlift I think it benefits you more to release at the bottom and make each rep a true rep. Bouncing a dead is sort of like doing a 2 board press sure you can do more and go heavier and train your top 2/3 of the lift more. Just don’t be deceived that what you are doing would apply to a full range movement.