Getting to a 400 lb. Deadlift

Off Topic
63

[quote]Kuz wrote:
What he’s then asking is where are those people out there?

Quite frankly, I agree with him in wondering where most of these people are in gyms.[/quote]

High school gyms, garage gyms, basement gyms. In our local high school alone (fairly small, big football program), I could show you half a dozen kids between 160-180 lbs that are near 400 in the dead, another 8-10 that are doing 400 or more, and another 8-10 kids under 200 lbs that are pulling 500+.

[quote]Kuz wrote:
I have lifted in a lot of different places in my 16 or so years of training, from “regular” gyms to hard core gyms. I very rarely see people who put up numbers like a lot of people on forums claim.[/quote]

I don’t know how “hard core” a gym you go to that nobody can pull 400. Look, go to any gym, anywhere. How many people that you see in there will still be there in 6 months? There is a constant turnover of people who get “burned out” after half-a-year.

If they can’t stay in a gym for more than 6 months, how could they ever be dedicated enough to put up any kind of numbers? In most gyms that I ever went to, I can’t remember seeing more than 2 or 3 people in each one who could bench 300, either.

[quote]Kuz wrote:
Does T-Nation attract a different crowd of lifters? I would like to think so, but from the sheer number of people on this site who talk about all of these lifts like they are no big deal (especially at some of the bodyweights they lift), I think it is not a complete leap of logic to say… where are those people in real life?[/quote]

Yeah, I would say so. You have a forum about lifting weights, visited by people who lift weights, and yet are amazed when people claim they can - LIFT WEIGHT!

Are some claims exaggerated? I’m sure. People are people. And by “sheer number”, what are you talking about 20? 30? Out of how many? If you really want your mind to swim, think about this: I’ll bet there are more people on this forum that can lift big weight and never say so, than there are people claiming to lift big weight. Now, I wonder where all those people are. . . .

64

[quote]Kuz wrote:
I have lifted in a lot of different places in my 16 or so years of training, from “regular” gyms to hard core gyms.[/quote]
I would hope that in any real hardcore gym you would have seen more than 10 people pulling 405 just in that place alone.

[quote]
Does T-Nation attract a different crowd of lifters? I would like to think so, but from the sheer number of people on this site who talk about all of these lifts like they are no big deal (especially at some of the bodyweights they lift), I think it is not a complete leap of logic to say… where are those people in real life?

You would think I would have seen more than 10 of those people in 16 years… but I haven’t.[/quote]

First, you gotta realize how much of a small percentage of gym-goers the entire T-Nation community makes up. Many readers here lift at home or in private and garage gyms.

Second, many competitive powerlifters and deadlifters just don’t do the actual movement that often. So someone may claim a 4 plate pull, because he knows he can hit it, but hasn’t actually done the full movement in 2-3 months. Of course, you’re not going to run into most of these guys in commercial gyms anyway.

All this aside, we all know there are liars in every forum, so what’s the point of this thread? Just a little bit of common sense and you should be able to pick out the liars.

65

[quote]HOV wrote:
T.J. wrote:

I truly beleive its the other way around, 95% of the population COULD deadlift 400 pounds with proper training. Your saying only 1 out of 20 men have the potential to work up to a 400+ pound deadlift in their life, hahaha. Please. 1 out of 20 men could probably deadlift 400+ in the first 5 or 6 workouts. Not including any kind of equipment, the deadlift is pretty much the strongest exercise the human body is at. It is fully able to deadlift 400 pounds.

I didn’t say potential, I said ability, as in ability to do so now, without any additional training. I’m sure that less than 1 in 20 men on the street can deadlift 400 lbs. Most of the people I see on the street are skinny, fat, or skinnyfat.
[/quote]

I’d agree with that. But probably only a few of that 20 lift weights at all. And less than 1 in 20 trains hard and properly.

There might be less than 1 in 20 who actually knows what a deadlift IS. So it makes sense that less than 1 in 20 would be able to deadlift 400 lbs. None of those people who don’t work out or don’t work out right are going to be posting on T-Nation or other internet training forums.

66

[quote]thunderbolt23 wrote:
This is just one more post in what seems to be an endless stream of them where California Law whines about sub-200 pound guys not lifting enough weight or eating enough to get huge or being idiots for not wanting to look like him or…

I wonder if we could track these posts with a monthly cycle?[/quote]

LMAO!!

As for not ever seeing anyone pull 405…

I was at a regional high school PL meet back 5 years ago assisting our then-coach with getting the kids to their events on time.

Just a little back ground on my town and school. The “city” has a population of 700 if you count stray dogs. Our school system has 220 kids in grades K-12. No - not 220 in each grade - 220 in the entire school district.

We had a sophmore pull 650+ in that regional meet in the 182lb class (I think that’s the right weight class - I’m not a PLer). He went on to the state meet and pulled over 700. We had a junior in the 160-something class pull 460 and change.

So you have been to gyms all over the world. I have never been to a real gym, except for the crazp they call a weight rom up at the school - and I have seen several teenagers pull 405+.

Not saying that all kids can pull that much - but maybe traveling the world isn’t a requirement to seeing a 405 DL.

67

400lb squat is more impressive then a 400 lb deadlift. I was able to do that on my 2nd day doing deadlifts ever. I HATE doing legs, and since I stopped that routine 8 years ago I haven’t done it since.

More people then you think can do 400lb deadlift specially if they played sports. But you won’t see people doing it in the gym because it’s just not fun.

I’m perfectly happy deadlifting 225 a few times. Then doing curls.

68

[quote]MO wrote:

Are some claims exaggerated? I’m sure. People are people. And by “sheer number”, what are you talking about 20? 30? Out of how many? If you really want your mind to swim, think about this: I’ll bet there are more people on this forum that can lift big weight and never say so, than there are people claiming to lift big weight. Now, I wonder where all those people are. . . .

[/quote]

I agree with that. And you have to keep in mind that the world is a very big place. All of the serious lifters on T-Nation [and this is not to say there aren’t plenty of wheenies or blowhards even here] make up an infinitestimal percentage of people who lift weights. I’m really not all that surprised that I’ve seen few people moving serious weight over the years.

They make up a very small segment of people who lift weights in some form at one time or another. But considering the vast number of people who ‘lift’ at least sporadically, the number of serious trainers in the world is still fairly large. It’s not all that surprising that many would find their way to these forums.

69

[quote]Airtruth wrote:

I’m perfectly happy deadlifting 225 a few times. Then doing curls.[/quote]

This has been my favorite response so far on this thread.

Thank you.

70

I dont know what kind of gyms you guys work out in, but a 405 deadlift isnt anything special. now granted i havent seen THAT many of them, but thats because no one deadlifts. of the people who do pull on a regular basis, a 405 deadlift is considered pretty low. IMO the deadlift is the only lift u can trust on the internet, because aside from outright lying, you cant fake it. you can quarter squat and put those numbers up, you can bench and not touch your chest, but theres no cheating a deadlift. sure you can hitch, but that doesnt add much to it.

71

[quote]Edders wrote:
Airtruth wrote:

I’m perfectly happy deadlifting 225 a few times. Then doing curls.

This has been my favorite response so far on this thread.

Thank you.
[/quote]

Are the curls in the squat rack?

D

72

[quote]Edders wrote:
Petedacook wrote:
In my humble opinion deadlifting from the ground using 45 pound plates or larger diameter is a joke.

If you want to seriously deadlift 400 pounds, stand on a box or use smaller diameter weight so the bar starts at your feet, instead of at your knees.

Ha! You call that lifting?

I put the weight in a hole, then I stand on a cement block just above the hole and with hands greased up (just to make it harder) I lift the weight.[/quote]

haha. That was very funny.

73

[quote]rainjack wrote:
thunderbolt23 wrote:
This is just one more post in what seems to be an endless stream of them where California Law whines about sub-200 pound guys not lifting enough weight or eating enough to get huge or being idiots for not wanting to look like him or…

I wonder if we could track these posts with a monthly cycle?

LMAO!!

As for not ever seeing anyone pull 405…

I was at a regional high school PL meet back 5 years ago assisting our then-coach with getting the kids to their events on time.

Just a little back ground on my town and school. The “city” has a population of 700 if you count stray dogs. Our school system has 220 kids in grades K-12. No - not 220 in each grade - 220 in the entire school district.

We had a sophmore pull 650+ in that regional meet in the 182lb class (I think that’s the right weight class - I’m not a PLer). He went on to the state meet and pulled over 700. We had a junior in the 160-something class pull 460 and change.

So you have been to gyms all over the world. I have never been to a real gym, except for the crazp they call a weight rom up at the school - and I have seen several teenagers pull 405+.

Not saying that all kids can pull that much - but maybe traveling the world isn’t a requirement to seeing a 405 DL. [/quote]

Most average guys who work a labor intensive job can deadlift alot… my old man has never lifted in his life, but picks up a 300 pound barbell like it’s nothing.

For someone who’s trained in the lift, I can’t see it being that difficult to hit 400.

74

[quote]deputydawg wrote:
Petedacook wrote:
In my humble opinion deadlifting from the ground using 45 pound plates or larger diameter is a joke.

If you want to seriously deadlift 400 pounds, stand on a box or use smaller diameter weight so the bar starts at your feet, instead of at your knees.

How short are you?[/quote]

I am 6’1"

Not sure why you say I am short because I am well above the national average. However; if you look at the video the guy posted on page 1, you can see the weight is nearly at his knees, at least 2/3 up his shin bone. I am working out with 275, and I cannot fit my foot under the bar.

Like I said, stand on a box and lift the weight from your feet, not your knee, not your shin bone, your feet.

If you don’t get it, read this thread where everyone spoke about the difference in weight lifted when performing a dead from a box, as opposed to the floor:

http://www.T-Nation.com/readTopic.do?id=1404045

75

[quote]FightinIrish26 wrote:
Edders wrote:
Petedacook wrote:
In my humble opinion deadlifting from the ground using 45 pound plates or larger diameter is a joke.

If you want to seriously deadlift 400 pounds, stand on a box or use smaller diameter weight so the bar starts at your feet, instead of at your knees.

Ha! You call that lifting?

I put the weight in a hole, then I stand on a cement block just above the hole and with hands greased up (just to make it harder) I lift the weight.

haha. That was very funny.[/quote]

I got a chuckle out of it as well, eventhough I do not particularly care for Edders posts.

76

[quote]Petedacook wrote:
deputydawg wrote:
Petedacook wrote:
In my humble opinion deadlifting from the ground using 45 pound plates or larger diameter is a joke.

If you want to seriously deadlift 400 pounds, stand on a box or use smaller diameter weight so the bar starts at your feet, instead of at your knees.

How short are you?

I am 6’1"

Not sure why you say I am short because I am well above the national average. However; if you look at the video the guy posted on page 1, you can see the weight is nearly at his knees, at least 2/3 up his shin bone. I am working out with 275, and I cannot fit my foot under the bar.

Like I said, stand on a box and lift the weight from your feet, not your knee, not your shin bone, your feet.

If you don’t get it, read this thread where everyone spoke about the difference in weight lifted when performing a dead from a box, as opposed to the floor:

http://www.T-Nation.com/readTopic.do?id=1404045

[/quote]

My max for deads is 430lb, and I struggled with a 320 lb snatch grip defecit deadlift. (bar was 1 inch above top of foot).

77

[quote]Kuz wrote:
This thread is making absolutely no f-ing sense because it’s like 90% of the posters aren’t even bothering to read the original post.

He’s not saying he can’t DL 400. Alternatively, he’s not even talking or bragging about how much he can DL.

What he is saying (and I agree) is that there are a lot of people on this very forum who speak of particular numbers on a lot of the Big 3 lifts, and DLing at least 405 is one of those things. What he’s then asking is where are those people out there?

Quite frankly, I agree with him in wondering where most of these people are in gyms. I have lifted in a lot of different places in my 16 or so years of training, from “regular” gyms to hard core gyms. I very rarely see people who put up numbers like a lot of people on forums claim.

Does T-Nation attract a different crowd of lifters? I would like to think so, but from the sheer number of people on this site who talk about all of these lifts like they are no big deal (especially at some of the bodyweights they lift), I think it is not a complete leap of logic to say… where are those people in real life?

You would think I would have seen more than 10 of those people in 16 years… but I haven’t.[/quote]

This is exactly how I feel. Although I have been lifting for only about 3 years I rarely see anything close to what I hear here. The gym I go to is not a “soccer mom” type gym but it is not hardcore either. I have only once seen someone deadlift over 400lbs and it was a guy that competetes in strongman. I really believe most of the people at my gym are very neurologically inefficient because they always lift so light. There are a fair number of big guys at my gym(220 plus and lean) who can only bench 250-300. I have only seen 3 people deadlift at my gym in the whole 3 years I have been there and even the “big” guys were reping with 315.

78

[quote]Petedacook wrote:
FightinIrish26 wrote:
Edders wrote:
Petedacook wrote:
In my humble opinion deadlifting from the ground using 45 pound plates or larger diameter is a joke.

If you want to seriously deadlift 400 pounds, stand on a box or use smaller diameter weight so the bar starts at your feet, instead of at your knees.

Ha! You call that lifting?

I put the weight in a hole, then I stand on a cement block just above the hole and with hands greased up (just to make it harder) I lift the weight.

haha. That was very funny.

I got a chuckle out of it as well, eventhough I do not particularly care for Edders posts.
[/quote]

Oh come on Pete let’s let the other thread die where I pointed out that you should have read that contract BEFORE signing it.

Dang…I hated mentioning that again.

79

[quote]unforgiven2 wrote:
XxMAGxX wrote:
To the OP - why is any of this a surprise?

No one on the internet makes as much money as they claim

No one lifts as much as they claim

No one fights like they think they would

No one fucks as much as they claim they do

No one’s dick is that big

I’m at a point where unless I see some hardcore evidence to prove any of the above, I just assume its some loser on the other end spouting off.

LOL, and you’re the real thing?
[/quote]

What have I ever claimed?

80

[quote]Edders wrote:
Petedacook wrote:
FightinIrish26 wrote:
Edders wrote:
Petedacook wrote:
In my humble opinion deadlifting from the ground using 45 pound plates or larger diameter is a joke.

If you want to seriously deadlift 400 pounds, stand on a box or use smaller diameter weight so the bar starts at your feet, instead of at your knees.

Ha! You call that lifting?

I put the weight in a hole, then I stand on a cement block just above the hole and with hands greased up (just to make it harder) I lift the weight.

haha. That was very funny.

I got a chuckle out of it as well, eventhough I do not particularly care for Edders posts.

Oh come on Pete let’s let the other thread die where I pointed out that you should have read that contract BEFORE signing it.

Dang…I hated mentioning that again.

[/quote]

I think you enjoyed it. But it is not your comments in that thread that cause my negative feeling toward you.
It is the totality of observations I have made about you:

You are new to this site. You do not know “us” and the frequent personalities that present themselves here, and you do not know the “person” that has been created by reading months of someone’s posts. Yet you coment as if you do.

I have reviewed your posts and they are quite often negative and abrasive in nature, if not down right trolling.

You have posted no pics.

You have no credibility, in my mind, at a bodybuilding forum. As far as I am concerned you should observe and shut up until you prove yourself.

I have seen no knowledge of bodybuilding shared, nor displayed by you in your posts. Simply comments here and there that amount to a lrge pile of fecal matter.

You seem to define a troll to me.

Hence my opinion, you suck, and your posts suck, eventhough I may chuckle at them from time to time.

81

i dont think a 405 deadlift is anything to speak of, i did 4 wheels like my second time deadlifting after getting a little bit of instruction, that said i can only hit 485 now and that about 5 months back i started dl’s, but its not like this site is full of people from one gym its people around the world who lift routinely, so lifts like that are probably queite frequent

82

[quote]Kuz wrote:
This thread is making absolutely no f-ing sense because it’s like 90% of the posters aren’t even bothering to read the original post.

He’s not saying he can’t DL 400. Alternatively, he’s not even talking or bragging about how much he can DL.

What he is saying (and I agree) is that there are a lot of people on this very forum who speak of particular numbers on a lot of the Big 3 lifts, and DLing at least 405 is one of those things. What he’s then asking is where are those people out there?

Quite frankly, I agree with him in wondering where most of these people are in gyms. I have lifted in a lot of different places in my 16 or so years of training, from “regular” gyms to hard core gyms. I very rarely see people who put up numbers like a lot of people on forums claim.

Does T-Nation attract a different crowd of lifters? I would like to think so, but from the sheer number of people on this site who talk about all of these lifts like they are no big deal (especially at some of the bodyweights they lift), I think it is not a complete leap of logic to say… where are those people in real life?

You would think I would have seen more than 10 of those people in 16 years… but I haven’t.[/quote]

I think the underlying, yet sad point of this thread, is who gives a fuck?

So what if people are on here claiming they can lift something or not? Why worry about other people? Like I said, this is a fact the OP and everyone will have to realize, there will always be other people stronger than you, much stronger than you and at a lighter weight.

I seriously doubt you have been in any serious hardcore PL gyms where people train for competitions. Because the ones I’ve been in and worked out in, there were filled with strong people. And like another poster said alot of people train in garage gyms and key gyms, not commercial gyms.

Instead of figuring out if someone’s numbers are “real” or not and wondering why he’s never seen someone lift these numbers, how about he get serious with lifting and maybe he can DL 400+ and then when he does he will realize its really not a a big deal. If he was DLing 400 lbs I doubt he would have even started this thread.

The very person he’s looking for in his gym, could be him if he worried about himself and focused on getting stronger instead of investigating the validity of every claim made on the internet.