what kind of weight do you use (percentage of what you would normally be able to dead lift) when you partial dead with a shrug. I can pull 405 for about 6 reps from knee level, but there is no way i’m shrugging that for a full ROM at the top of the movement. thanks.
Now that I’ve gone back and analyzed my movement, I realize that I’m not really shrugging the bar at the top. Rather I’m pinching my shoulder blades together as hard as I can and sticking my chest out proud. As compared to regular deads from the ground, when I pull at knee level from the rack I’ll usually add about 25% more weight. Even though it was not a shrug, my traps, upper and lower back, hams, and forearms got worked hard.
Jason: Same here…Rack Pulls…I tell you…I’ve liked these puppies as a mass builder since I saw Kamali do them in his tape.(By the way…he doesn’t do them with a shrug…and if you haven’t seen him do them…the man is pushing some SERIOUS iron, baby!)
Why are you doing partial deads instead of full deads? When you can pull 405 from the floor, you’ll be able to shrug 405 too. If I can’t shrug the same weight I can deadlift, then I fix it so I can.
Choad, Thank you for your words of wisdom! I know my traps should be as strong as my hip extensors and low back, but i guess i’ve just been slackin’ off. Man, who the hell was i trying to fool?
I do deadlift from the floor, but that wasn’t my question. The purpose of doing partials and then shrugging the weight is to maximize the amount of weight being used during the shrug portion of the lift. Obviously other muscles will be called upon during the initial part of the movement. Ever do a clean and press instead of a Cuban press, or how bout utilizing a movement such as the push jerk in place of standard military presses.
Shrugs aside, the partial deadlift will allow you to train your lower back with an intesity that you could never even come close to with convential deadlifts. Do some pinwork for a few months and then try pulling from the floor…Wow! you just added about 50 lbs. to your deadlift without pulling from the floor once in the past 2 months. Both are great movements, but you’d be doing yourself a diservice by not throwing in some pinwork every once in a while.