Well, weak everything, but especially DL. Bench press is 240, Squat 325, and I feel like I could do a little more on those, I just started too low (doing maxes this week). But my DL is only 355.
I have rack-pulled 405 from just above the knees, with no problem. Grip feels strong. So I think the problem lies in my lower back. I’m thinking of working my back twice a week for a while, something like:
Day 2
DL 5x5
Rack Pulls
pullups 5x5
Bent rows 3x8
Day 5
DL 8x1 @ >90%
Good Morning 3x5
Single arm dumbbell rows 3x8
Pullovers 3x8
I have no idea what set/rep would be best for the rack pulls. Still doing research on that.
Basically what I want to know is; Am I on the right track here, or am I ass backwards? Other than that, any opinions or suggestions are welcome and appreciated.
Oh, yeah, I’ve considered form being the issue. Next week I’ll video myself and maybe post it.
What’s your program right now look like? You may be deadlifting too often, you’d probably do well with a form check as well. DLing from a deficit has helped me a lot.
I wouldnt deadlift heavy x 2 a week that close to each other. With a deadlift in the 3-400lbs range pulling once a week heavy with the right assistance and squatting should yield results.
[quote]1000rippedbuff wrote:
What’s your program right now look like? You may be deadlifting too often, you’d probably do well with a form check as well. DLing from a deficit has helped me a lot.[/quote]
Right now DL is on back day, once a week.
DL 5x5
pullups 5x5
Single arm dumbbell row or bent row 3x8
pullovers 3x8
[quote]zephead4747 wrote:
you’re doing too much.[/quote]
Just took a look at sheiko to get some more info. You’re right, DL’ing 2x a week would be too much. How about if I split my back work up in two sections and added some good mornings on leg day like this:
Day 1 (back)
DL
Rack pulls
single arm DB rows
Day 3 (legs)
Squat
Reverse lunge
Leg ext
Good morning
Day 5 (back)
Pullups
Good morning
Bent rows
pullovers
I’m also thinking about just going ahead and doing sheiko. We’ll see. I have until Tuesday to decide.
Thursday:
deads
pullups
Bent rows
pullovers
biceps
[/quote]
This is just about exactly what I do now. Well, here, I’ll give you my entire routine.
Day 1 AM
Grip/forearms PM
Squat
Reverse Lunge
Leg Curl
Leg extension
Day 2 AM
Biceps PM
BB Bench
Inc DB Press
Flyes
Wide-Grip Pushups, feet elevated
Day 3 AM
Triceps PM
Deadlift
Pullup
Bent row or single-arm DB row
pullover
Day 4 AM
Calves PM
Shoulder Press (ceiling not high enough for mil. press)
Lateral Raise
Rear Delt Raise
DB Shoulder Press
Day 5
repeat day 2 because my bench was low and my biceps are lagging a bit
I know it seems like a lot, but I’ve built up to this over the past few months. I was pushing 200, pulling 300, and squatting 255 when I started this program in November. I also vary the reps per set every couple of weeks.
After talking to a few lifters I know, it may be my stance that’s giving me problems. I’m going to experiment with it over the next few weeks and hopefully I’ll see an improvement. Think it’ll be ok to DL twice a week for a couple weeks just to get the extra practice?
Alright, maybe I shouldn’t have, but you know how it is. I just tried my max from the other day, using a wider stance. It was a little easier, but the main thing I noticed was waaay more leg and glute involvement.
After thinking about it and experimenting a bit, I’ve decided that my posterior chain is just plain weak. I don’t do enough DLing to get stronger at it.
But I’m also going to heed the advice not to DL more than once per week. So I’ve decided to split my back work into two days.
Back day:
pullups
rows
shrugs
pullovers
PC day:
DL to knees
good mornings
rack pulls
stiff-legged RDL’s
BTW, how much would DL’ing from a 1/2" deficit affect your max? I just put down some good rubber mats in my gym, and I noticed that the floor is uneven. It’s about 1/2" higher in the middle of my rack than on the ends.
I would say you are still doing too much on the PC day. You have 4 very demanding movements in there. TBH I think you should pick 2 and hammer the shit out of them. What helped my deadlift the most was doing deadlifts once a week, and doing
Deadlift day
Deadlifts several sets of heavy triples
RDLs 3x8-15
then back workout… 1 row and 1 lat move.
Seriously if your DL is only 355 (not to bash and we were all there but being serious now) you don’t need to do a whole lot to get it up to 400lb. I would say do plain old deadlifts hard and heavy several tough sets of triples for 2 weeks and one top set of 5-8 reps the third week and then repeat. For the other exercise pick something that will work your hams and lower back hard and do it moderate reps. This REALLY smashed my posterior chain and brought up my DL.
I recently started addressing a weakness issue in my lower back and it’s done wonders for my lifts. Not only will your deadlift go up, but your squat will too. It seems kind of obvious, but you should wear one of those leather weight belts for added back support.
Thats some work out you do, mornings and evenings, 5 days a week…i too struggle with the deadlift though i have never done a 1RM (not a power lifter so don’t see the point…) i’m currently on 330pounds for 3 sets of 8, my grip used to fail but i used to do forearms the day before… i changed this and now the grip is fine…have you tried doing your deadlifts following a rest day so your fresh? just throwing an idea in, i’m no expert just trying to help
I’m in the same area as you, Jaypierce. I’m using this approach…
Leg Day 1
Deadlift 3-10 sets of 3
Reverse lunge 3 sets of 6-8/side
Anderson Squat from pins 2 sets of 6-10/side
Core work 3-4 sets of 10-20 reps
Leg Day 2
Front Squat 3-10 sets of 3
Good Morning 3 sets of 6-8
Single leg RDL 3 sets of 8-10/side
Core work 3-4 sets of 10-20 reps supersetted with back extensions for 2 sets of 20 reps
My upper body stuff is pretty standard. When I do more towards 3 sets of 3 I really push for weight PRs like nuts. When I do more sets I’ll cut the weight down somewhat and just get solid heavy reps in. If I’m feeling in-the-zone I’ll push a PR regardless of the situation.
[quote]Der Candy wrote:
I would say you are still doing too much on the PC day. You have 4 very demanding movements in there. TBH I think you should pick 2 and hammer the shit out of them. What helped my deadlift the most was doing deadlifts once a week, and doing
Deadlift day
Deadlifts several sets of heavy triples
RDLs 3x8-15
then back workout… 1 row and 1 lat move.
Seriously if your DL is only 355 (not to bash and we were all there but being serious now) you don’t need to do a whole lot to get it up to 400lb. I would say do plain old deadlifts hard and heavy several tough sets of triples for 2 weeks and one top set of 5-8 reps the third week and then repeat. For the other exercise pick something that will work your hams and lower back hard and do it moderate reps. This REALLY smashed my posterior chain and brought up my DL.
Keep it simple.[/quote]
I probably should have elaborated a bit more, but I was trying to keep it short.
On the GM’s, I’m keeping the weight low (about 120) and focusing on hams. Getting a good stretch and pull. On the SLRDL’s I’m only using about 185 and focusing on perfect form for higher reps (10-12).
I tried the PC workout last night. It’s definitely an ass-kicker, but I was able to maintain form from start to finish. Keeping the back tight on those long sets of RDL’s is tough.
[quote]Triggerhappy wrote:
Thats some work out you do, mornings and evenings, 5 days a week…i too struggle with the deadlift though i have never done a 1RM (not a power lifter so don’t see the point…) i’m currently on 330pounds for 3 sets of 8, my grip used to fail but i used to do forearms the day before… i changed this and now the grip is fine…have you tried doing your deadlifts following a rest day so your fresh? just throwing an idea in, i’m no expert just trying to help[/quote]
I’ve worked up to this kind of volume over the past six months. Every time I push the volume up, I see better results. Of course, I eat like a pig. I average about 4500cal/day. I’ll probably have to increase it to around 5000, now.
You may have a point about DL’ing after a rest day. I’ll probably DL on day 1 of my next max week.