Are You Ruining the EASIEST Part of the Deadlift?

/ Testify Strength & Conditioning/

Lowering the deadlift back to the ground should be the easiest part of the lift, but for many lifters - usually newer lifters, but not always - this portion of the lift presents some difficulties. Let’s remedy this situation (and for a look at these solutions in action, check out the included short videos).

The Problem
When we teach the lowering portion of the deadlift, we cue people to reach back with the hips and slide the barbell down the thighs, bending at the hips in the process. A significant (and common) problem arises, however, when the lifter tries to keep his back vertical while setting the bar down. We have these wonderful things called knees, and when we try to keep the back vertical (i.e., when we try to remain upright) when lowering the deadlift, we end up having to lower the bar around the knees instead of in a nice, easy, vertical path straight back down to the ground.

Lowering the bar around the knees makes the lowering process much harder and indeed rather uncomfortable. Additionally, it causes the lifter to set the bar down in the wrong place (i.e., in front of the midfoot instead of directly over the midfoot), which means the lifter now has to correct the bar position before the next rep. This is an additional and unnecessary variable that now has to be handled, so let’s fix this with the two solutions below.

In what is a counterintuitive moment for many people, trying to keep the back more vertical actually makes things harder on the back . . . so let’s not do that.

Solution #1
One useful approach is to look at the middle of your foot when setting the bar down and tell yourself to sight the bar into place. In other words, you are aiming for the middle of your foot. The act of looking at the middle of the foot tends to cause most people to bend over, which is exactly what we want.

Solution #2
However, if that doesn’t work for you, give yourself the following cue: “Bow to the floor.” It’s that simple. The act of bowing to someone or something involves bending at the hips and keeping the knees relatively straight (we’re not looking for locked knees), and this is exactly what we want to do when setting the bar down. The knees do get to bend eventually, but they bend very little until after the bar passes them.

So, the next time you are lowering your deadlift, tell yourself to bow to the floor, and then set the bar down quickly. It makes life a lot easier, and you can use the energy you just saved on your next rep.

As always, we hope this helps you get stronger and live better.

(Some links may be affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, Testify earns from qualifying purchases.)

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Week 2022.10.10

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This Week’s Conditioning

Option 1
Sled Pyramid – 4, 5, or 6 tiers
Go up and down a 4, 5, or 6 tier “sled pyramid” – rest as needed. The distance for each round is 80 m indoors (a down-back on the 40m course) or 200 ft outdoors (2 down-backs on the 50 ft course). Rest as needed.

For example, Bob does the following (4 tiers):
Round 1: Empty sled
Round 2: 25#
Round 3: 50#
Round 4: 75#
Round 5: 50#
Round 6: 25#
Round 7: Empty sled

Compare to 2022.08.08.

Option 2
Bike/row:
4 x 3 minutes

Rest 3 minutes between each round. Score = lowest distance.

Compare to 2022.07.18.

Option 3
Outdoors:
5-10 rounds:
10 sledgehammer strikes (5R, 5L)
50 yd farmer carry (25 yd down-back)
Rest 1 minute

Indoors:
5-10 rounds:
10 sledgehammer strikes (5R, 5L)
100 ft farmer carry (50 ft down-back)
Rest 1 minute

Compare to 2022.06.20.

Option 4
1. 5 yoke carries @ 30 yd (15 yd downback) – work up to heaviest carry
2. 5 rounds of 5 reps on the axle “clean and press away” – work up to heavy set of 5

Compare to 2022.06.20.

Your Training Log - Part 3: The PR Sheet

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(If you like, you can scroll down to the end of this article and watch a video on this topic. This article is a Blast from the Past article originally posted on 01/15/21.)

A few months ago, we covered the importance of keeping a training log in Your Training Log - Part 1: Just Do It, and we also covered how to keep one in the cleverly titled article, Your Training Log - Part 2: How to Keep One. Today, we’re going to add to this series and discuss adding a PR sheet to your log.

The concept is very straightforward - simply designate one sheet of paper in your training log for keeping track of PRs (Personal Records). I would recommend using the first page of your book, the last page of your book, or you can keep a separate piece of paper in your book that is only used for PRs (but don’t let it fall out).

On this sheet, record your 1-5 rep PRs for the Big Four Lifts - the squat, press, bench press, and deadlift. If you snatch and clean-and-jerk, do the same for those lifts. Pull-ups? Absolutely. Curls? Sure. What about a 7-rep PR? Knock yourself out. If you compete, have two PR lists - one for training and one for competition (the competition list will only have 1-rep PRs). We’re not talking hard-and-fast rules here, but at the very least, having your 1-5 rep PRs written down for the Big Four is a good place to start.

Here’s a sample for the squat:

Weight Reps Date
310 1 03/25/20
285 2 05/18/19
275 3 02/20/20
4
265 5 10/18/19
250 3 x 5 10/06/19

It’s fine if your sheet has some blanks - as you can see, our imaginary lifter doesn’t have a 4-rep PR yet. You’ll also notice that this lifter recorded his “3 x 5” PR as well (i.e., the best he’s done for 3 sets of 5 reps), and that’s another solid idea.

When you start out, you’re setting PRs every single session, so this might not seem all that useful at first. However, the longer you train and the stronger you get, the harder it is and the longer it takes to get stronger and set new PRs, so having multiple opportunities to set new personal bests can be very helpful in the motivation department. Plus, it’s a lot of fun to discover that you just pulled your old 3-rep deadlift max for a set of five, and how will you ever know unless you track these things? Give it a shot.

At Testify, we offer small group training, private coaching (in-person or remotely via Zoom), online coaching, and form checks. Would you like to get quality coaching from a Starting Strength Coach?

Click here to start today

Week 2022.10.03

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This Week’s Conditioning

Option 1
”Prowler Base+1”
1. Load up a manageable weight.
2. Sprint 40m at 85% intensity.
3. Rest 30 sec.
4. Repeat 5-15 times.

Courtesy of “Death by Prowler” (on Starting Strength).

Compare to 2022.08.01.

Option 2
Bike/row:
4 x 800m

Rest 3 minutes between each round. Score = slowest time.

Compare to 2022.07.11.

Option 3
Outdoors:
10 rounds:
25 yd yoke carry
Rest 1 minute

Indoors:
10 rounds:
30 yd yoke carry (15 yd down-back)
Rest 1 minute

Compare to 2022.06.13.

Option 4
10 x 50 ft farmer carry
Each carry is 25 ft down and 25 ft back and is for time. Rest 1 minute between carries.

Women: 97# per handle (80# of plates)
Men: 137# per handle (120# of plates)
(Note: Each handle weighs 17#.)

Compare to 2022.06.13.

Wraps and Straps and Gloves, Oh My!

/ Testify Strength & Conditioning/

You’re a lifter, so of course, you’ve got to accessorize. But with all the options for lifting gear and accessories out there, what’s useful and what’s garbage? This article is the first in a short series covering exactly that, and today’s topic is gear associated with your grip.

Lifting Straps
Also known simply as “straps” or sometimes “wrist straps” (which is inaccurate), straps are useful for pulling movements, such as deadlifts, rows, and even snatches. Do NOT use them for cleans, and it’s worth pointing out they are actually worn on the hand and not the wrist itself.

They save some wear and tear on the hands, and if you’ve got multiple sets on the deadlift, then a reasonable approach is to use your usual grip for the first set (hook grip or alternate grip) and then use straps for the remaining sets.

You can buy straps or make them (quite cheaply!), and we’ve got a few videos covering how to make them as well as use them.

Wrist Wraps
These are useful for pressing movements such as the press, bench press, close grip bench press, etc. Wrist wraps provide stability for the wrist by acting as a sort of belt or cast for the wrist. When the weights get challenging, a good approach is to warm up (mostly) without wrist wraps and then put your wraps on (tightly!) for your last warm up as well as your work sets.

Not surprisingly, we have a few videos covering this topic as well.

Gloves
Nope. Don’t use ‘em. They add something squishy and deformable between your hand and the bar, which is never good for force transfer. Also, because they add a layer between your hand and the bar, they effectively make the bar diameter larger, which makes it harder to keep your grip when pulling the bar off the floor with deadlifts, rows, etc.

Lifting gloves are stupid. I know this firsthand because I have worn them in a previous life. Don’t use them.

Ahem, we do not have a video on this topic.

Chalk
We’ll save this discussion for another day, but suffice to say chalk is very important for your grip. Use chalk.

As always, we hope this helps you get stronger and live better.

(Some links may be affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, Testify earns from qualifying purchases.)

If you found this helpful, you’ll love our weekly email. It’s got useful videos, articles, and training tips just like the one in this article. Sign up below, and of course, if you don’t love it, you can unsubscribe at any time.

At Testify, we offer small group training, private coaching (in-person or remotely via Zoom), online coaching, and form checks. Would you like to get quality coaching from a Starting Strength Coach?

Click here to start today

Week 2022.09.26

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This Week’s Conditioning

Option 1
“Prowler Base”
1. Load up a manageable weight.
2. Sprint 40m at 85% intensity.
3. Rest until breathing and heart rate slow down. (45 sec – 2 min)
4. Repeat 5-15 times.

Courtesy of “Death by Prowler” (on Starting Strength).

Compare to 2022.07.25.

Option 2
Bike/row:
4 x 3 minutes

Rest 3 minutes between each round. Score = lowest distance.

Compare to 2022.07.04.

Option 3
Outdoors:
5-10 rounds:
10 sledgehammer strikes (5R, 5L)
50 yd farmer carry (25 yd down-back)
Rest 1 minute

Indoors:
5-10 rounds:
10 sledgehammer strikes (5R, 5L)
100 ft farmer carry (50 ft down-back)
Rest 1 minute

Compare to 2022.06.06.

Option 4
10 x 50 ft yoke carry
Each carry is 25 feet down and 25 feet back and is for time. Rest 1 minute between carries.

Compare to 2022.06.06.