Deadlift 101
DSmallDivide
Posts: 4,565
This is a blog I've read over the net on how to perform a "proper" deadlift and some tips. Credits to "cookiemonster" @wordpress.
For the whole article (w/ video demos) you may go here: http://fortheloveofcookies.wordpress.com/2012/01/22/deadlifting-101/
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The deadlift is by far one of the easiest compound exercises to learn, in my opinion. Then again, there are technicalities to it that cannot be avoided, and if done improperly, deadlifts can leave you in a lot of pain due to strain or injury.
So while it’s not a difficult lift in theory (pick up the weight, put it down again), there are right ways and wrong ways to do it.
I’m going to break it down in points, and hopefully you can note an issue that you may be having as well and how you can fix it. This post will be covering conventional deadlifting.
[align=center]THE SET-UP[/align]
Everyone has a certain stance that suits them best. I have seen some people pull with feet no more than an inch apart, and I have also seen people pull in a semi-sumo stance, with their arms still on the outside of their knees. The key here is finding a stance that works for YOU. If you do not know exactly what that is, a good starting point is having your feet hip-width apart, or a little bit narrower.
If you are a slow puller off the floor (i.e. harder for you to lift the weight the first 2-3 inches rather than locking out), you should aim to have your feet a little straighter in front of you, at least while in training. Doing so will help you be a little faster off the floor. Pointing your toes out slightly will make it a little easier to engage your hamstrings and get your hips through at the top, which will support your lockout if you have the opposite problem (weak lockout, strong off the floor.)
After you have gotten your foot width decided, the next step is to see where the bar is relative to your feet. You want the bar right over the middle of your foot. You do NOT want to start with the bar already at your shins.
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Next is your hand placement. Place your hands just outside your knees. I find that the closer my arms are to my legs, the tighter everything feels. I also use a mixed grip, which means one hand under and one hand over. It’s much easier to lift heavier weights with this grip rather than double-over-hand. Especially if your grip is weaker and you are still building it up.
Some people prefer to bring their hips down and hold that position for a few seconds before pulling. In my opinion and in my own experience, this is very inefficient. I like to make use of a bit of stretch reflex at the bottom before I begin pulling, since it helps me engage everything and make sure that my muscles are tensed and ready to go rather than relaxed. So after I set my feet, I always set my hands, and then I do not dip down until I am ready to pull. I find that waiting in the pulling position before you begin limits the amount you will pull, because your muscles are not as tense and there is no “bounce” in a way.
SO. Set your hands first, and bring your hips down to pull only right before you start to make sure that you are engaging everything properly with no muscles relaxed.
[align=center]THE PULL
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A big problem some people have that can result in bad injury is retracting their shoulder blades before they begin the pull. This is an absolute NO, and should never be done. When you stand up your shoulders are going to come back anyway. Retracting your scapula before pulling will only lead to injury.
Now that everything in the set-up is correct and you have your hands in place, bring your hips down just low enough so that your shins touch the bar. This is where you should be pulling from.
However, there are those of us who are a little bit at a disadvantage due to leverages, and sometimes you get what is known as a “high hip puller”. I am one of them. Even bringing my hips down until they touch the bar is not always enough sometimes. What I suggest in this situation is a little bit of a “dip” at the bottom.
What I mean by dipping, is to bring your hips down a little lower than you would normally pull from, and then “bounce” them up to the correct height. The second you feel that your hips have met the appropriate height, begin your pull.
Again, this is what I do because I have a short torso and long legs, so it works well for my leverages. If you have great deadlifting leverages and can pull without having to dip down, then that’s awesome. If your hips are too high at the start, try dipping down like I suggested. It makes a world of a difference.
Remember to keep your chest up and out. Take a deep breath and hold it. Arch your back. Your head should be in a neutral position. Fix your gaze on a spot in front of you and/or slightly down. Slightly up is fine, and I find that looking up as I’m locking out can help sometimes. Never look straight down on the floor when you pull because you will throw yourself off, and of course, never look in the mirror.
As you begin the pull, you want to keep the bar as close to your body as possible and try as much as you can not to let the bar drift in front. Ever see those guys with bloody shins after a deadlift? That’s how close the bar needs to be to your body. Keep it in at all times.
[align=center]QUICK TIP[/align]
What I like to imagine, is that I am not pulling the bar off the floor, but rather I am pushing myself into the ground. This automatically tenses your glutes and hamstrings, engaging them in the movement. If you concentrate of pulling the bar off the floor a lot of the tension tends to shift to your upper back, taking your legs out of the picture. Your legs play a big role in deadlifting, so make sure that everything is fired properly.
Also, when you feel like you’ve been grinding it for an hour, it’s probably been closer to a couple of seconds. Next time you feel like failing it when you’re almost there, just give it a couple extra seconds (provided your form is at least passable). It may be all you need to lock out the weight.
[align=center]FINAL NOTES:[/align]
Everyone has different pulling styles, and it takes time to find your own groove. The best thing to do is play around with different widths, hand placements, etc. and find which one suits you best.
Most basics have been covered in this post, and pretty much anyone can benefit from at least starting with this form, and from there tweaking it to match their own bodies perfectly.
Never be one of those people that trains AROUND their weak points. If you have lagging body parts, build them. If you don’t have good flexibility to get your hips lower, then stretch. Don’t be one of those guys (or girls) that says “Oh, I’m not flexible enough for that, I’ll just do it this way” or “My hamstrings are weak, so I have to pull more with my back”, etc. All I hear is a bunch of lame excuses for your ineffective training. Admitting to your weaknesses is one thing, so long as you make a constant effort to improve upon them. Admitting to them and then doing nothing to strengthen them is what’s the wrong thing to do.
Hope this helps. Happy deadlifting!
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For the whole article (w/ video demos) you may go here: http://fortheloveofcookies.wordpress.com/2012/01/22/deadlifting-101/
Comments
Yown nice magcomment din si sir Mighty.
Malaking tulong yan.
Ahahahaha! ninja
Paps, nung bago ka ba mag buhat, nananakit ba yung lower back mo pag nasa opis ka? Kasi dati nararamdaman ko yung lower back pain sa tagal ng pagupo.
Tanong ko lang dito kung merong kayang sabihin kung DOMS, injury o sa tagal lang nagpagkakaupo.
Kasi kahit ilang weeks akong di nagbuhat, minsan may biglang kumukrot sa lower back ko.
@ Master DS
Talaga? Hahaha
about sa question about sa kumikirot pag matagal nakaupo naexprience ko yan nung nagka mild injury ako dahil din sa DL and unfortunately i wasn't able to squat either during that time. so i had to let it recover muna now im focusing training my hips and posterior core since nafigure out ko na yun ang weakness ko that i need to work on.
Worst ko na yata ito ngayon, nag pop talaga lower back ko while doing DL. My bad of course.
ganyan din yun sakin last december nung nag max ako ung right side ko muna nadale then 3 weeks ago ung right ko naman ang nagkaron ng poppin sound pero ok naman ako ngayun, i just let it recover and dinaan sa foam rolling.
Try Dr. George Canlas of Institute of Orthopedics and Sports Medicine - St. Lukes Medical Hospital. Siya ang usually nag operate at doctor ng mga athletes.
Hanggang ngayon masakit.
Pati hamstrings ko parang namamanhid, hirap yumuko kahit sang angle kailangan ko pa alalayan ng isang kamay, ramdam ko pa din kahit naglalakad.
Pag hindi nakuha sa medical city try ko jan sa sinasabi mo sir mighty. But hopefully makuha sa mga rehab exercises/stretching.
@Sir DS - Pwede pa share ng link ng mga rehab exercises na ginagawa mo?
tapos ung sa stretch i just try to reach my toes habang nasa floor ng dahan dahan, it takes around 2-3 mins siguro to get the full stretch. 4-5 times ko yun inuulit everyday. then i do controlled BW squats tapos pause ako dun sa baba ng mga 2 mins then akyat mga 5 reps din yun. try mo muna lagyan cold compress ngayun para malessen yung soreness.
Patingin mo na nga kung unbearable na yung pain. Try mo Diesel Crew at Joe De franco sa YT for rehab and foam rolling exercises.
@ DS - Nilagyan ko na cold compress after workout kanina, then omega bago pumasok.
Wala akong foam roller, pero yung 2nd part ng sinabi mo subukan ko din gawin yan, thanks!