Tall and Lanky - Can't Seem to Deadlift Correctly

Training
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Hey all,

I’m a pretty tall and lanky dude (6’2", 165lb), and while I have been working out on and off over the years, I still consider myself a beginner.

I’m having issues with my deadlift - it doesn’t really feel right. I’m having issues progressing, my lower back often feels sore, and overall it just doesn’t ‘look’ right.

I’d be very appreciative if one of you with a more experienced eye can give me a few pointers.

Thank you!

Links:

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Try looking on youtube for a step by step guide
How ive learnt over the years to set up is set your bar and walk up, bar midway over the foot and get in your “strong stance”.
What that is may vary between people, but imagine youre looking directly up and take a decent jump in the air. How your feet land and at what angle they land is your strong position. Do it a couple of times away from the bar and see where you feel most comfortable.

Now set that foot position up underneath the bar, and get down so the shins are about an inch away from the bar, with your shins being vertical.
Brace your core (clench your glutes and brace your abs), roll your shoulderblades back and down to activate your lats, and look about 4 feet infront to the ground, youre wanting to keep your spine straight, watching your video youre heads moving all over the shop. Keep it rigid and fixed, concentrating on the brace on the vertical pull

Always pull vertical, if you watch back youll see your bar travels back and fowards over the shins, knee and quad… you need to eliminate that
Imagine youre not pulling the bar up, but pushing the earth away from the bar

This is a great article to follow of why we do these things. Ableit it is very technical, but a great read nonetheless to how and why we pull the way we do. Big believer in stripping something back down to basics and starting anew
Go get the barbell, 2 light plates and get the form 100% until you start adding weight

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You’re going a bit too fast. Take your time when you’re getting close to starting the rep. Let the tension build up before you do the pull.

Would you say your torso is long? It looks like your legs aren’t that long compared to the torso. If yes, I’m the same, and a semi sumo / squat stance is going to save your lower back over the long run.

1 Like
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I’m tall as well and I find most tall guys need to keep their hips high. In the second video, when you first touch the bar with your hands, that’s where your hips should be (maybe, just providing a suggestion, not an absolute truth). Search youtube for deadlift in 5 steps. That’s how I learned.

Right now your hips are dropping so low that the first thing they do is shoot up in the air, even before the weight has moved. You’re locking out your knees quickly and finishing with the back.

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Consider changing your stance. Semi-sumo often suits taller guys better. This explains how to do it: A Brand New Way to Deadlift - Bigger Stronger Leaner - COMMUNITY - T NATION

There’s absolutely zero rule that says you have to do conventional deadlifts.

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You start elevating your hips to begin the movement. Try pushing your hips forward/upward to initiate the movement. Maybe some glute activation work to warm up with.

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I’m no expert, but I personally feel that I cannot wear any type of shoes when deadlifting. When I do it without, everything feels more smooth.

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I’m also one who never wears shoes deadlifting or squatting.

Great suggestions so far. How many warmup sets do you do? Any stretching for your lower back if it feels tight? I do the upward/downward dog yoga poses before starting my deadlift warmup sets.

I’ve had to do a pretty toes-out stance, medium width. Some people recommend more of a toes forward stance, but that just doesn’t fit my bone structure.