Sumo by far. I actually do a “semi sumo”
I can’t manage to keep my back straight for conventional
For anyone who thinks sumo is cheating, if it’s good for powerlifting champions, it’s good enough for me
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Ehh about 50/50 down the middle.
It shows up the most in my squatting actually. I tend to never really deadlift from the floor unless I’m specifically testing an RM, or back when I competed. I do still like to test my RMs because a lot of the volume training styles I like use a percentage of it, so I like to have some base number to go off of.
I went back to conventional deadlift because I realized my lower half was picking up the slack where my upper half wasn’t yet strong enough. I used to rely heavily on a short ROM with sumo, but funnily enough conventional was the stance I took when I blew my back out lol. Sumo was kinda exacerbating it a bit.
But overall deads don’t cause a flare up like squatting does. I’m a bit of a Jack of all trades when it comes to squatting. I can kind of maneuver between low, mid, high bar and wide, mid, narrow stance and move relatively the same weight. I kinda chalk that up to leverages though since I’m overall short, and have a torso that’s a bit longer than my…femur? Is that the right bone name? Lol.
But I think what causes the sciatica is a whole lot of over usage with the glutes/hips because I still kinda baby my lower back. My hips are quite stiff if I’m being honest. Once at the bottom I’ll immediately gather force to the hips/butt and then follow through on upwards. Whereas in my earlier lifting days I’d let my quads take most of the work, but kinda good morning right as I’m getting out of the bottom.
Glad to hear you healed up from the dirt bike accident though.
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Here’s a 335 lift
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And a straight set of 10 with 245
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And rack pulls with 315. I will usually default to rack pulls, trap bar deads, or a deficit pull usually as of late.
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If you try the program, it calls for two complexes a session, but Thibs himself said it is fine to do just one if two is frying you.
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@donnerschweer yes, I remember that you train horses… that is so cool! I’m embarrassed to say that I’ve never even rode a horse in my life. I think they are beautiful, powerful and amazing animals but thinking about sitting on one terrifies me.
I like to try and do things that scare me to get over my fears so perhaps getting on a horse is in my future!
Back to the point… what do you think about 6 Weeks to Superhero? I looked at it again this morning and I remember you mentioning that you’ve had a lot of injuries in the past but you’re pain-free now. It could be a “nice” change for you. 
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@anna_5588 I love sumo deadlifts! I do a modified sumo as well with a narrow(ish) stance. I’m like a T-Rex because I have a VERY long torso and VERY short arms so it’s hard for me to get into a good position for conv or sumo.
My best sumo deadlift is 460 and best conventional is 420 but I can honestly tell you that I’m not built for either. I just love to deadlift and I do my best with my mash-up of limb lengths 
Sumo is cheating… pfffftttt! I have heard that so many times, lol. I respect anyone who deadlifts regardless of their style and how much they lift. I LOVE DEADLIFTS!
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Yes, that could be true. I have extremely tight hips and glutes as well and I’m subconsciously guarding my lower back at all times.
Have you heard of Romwod? It’s basically like yoga for lifters. I feel like it has helped me with my flexibility and helps prevent injuries. Only takes about 20min everyday and you follow along with the video for the stretches. It would be very helpful for your glutes/hips. I get bored very quickly and if I try to do it without these videos I will hold a stretch for about 5% of the time I should and then move on… it helps me be accountable and keeps me on track that’s for sure.
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That is awesome!! I was primarily a high bar squatter until I met Ed Coan in 2014 and he taught me how to low bar squat… I added almost 30lbs onto my squat right away!
Was your 405 squat a low bar squat? Do you use sleeves or wraps?
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holy crap! those are HUGE numbers!!!
I’m hoping to get to 3 plates (3x bodyweight) by next may.
@planetcybertron Holy! That’s a powerful girl right there 
Thank you for sharing your vids. Keep up the hard work and take care of your body… you have a very promising future in powerlifting!
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@anna_5588 you can do it!!!
I always tell people that if I can do it, they can. I truly believe that because I assure you that I have a body that isn’t built for deadlifts but I was determined to figure it out.
In 2008 I was so frustrated because I couldn’t even figure out the movement because it was so awkward for me to get into a good start position but I kept working on it.
Fast forward to my first 3 plate deadlift in 2010 and then it was up and up from there!
How much can you lift now?
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Also… you sound like a little ball of energy with all of your daily steps!!!
Less stepping… more lifting = bigger deadlift 
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My 1rm last time I tested was 285lbs
Pre pandemic, I pulled 120kg at 40kg but then gained weight 
I’m now 105-106lbs (probably closer to 106 ) and my strength hasn’t caught up to my weight gain in terms of ratio. I’ve been trying to get back to 3x for deadlift
I really want to get back to 103-104, but I seem to lack discipline to stick to a deficit. My weight (and bodyfat %) seems to keep creeping up and I’m really scared
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If you want to take your lifting seriously (which I believe you do) then you need to understand that your body is going to go through a transition phase as you scale back on the excessive stepping and put more energy into your lifting. It’s hard for me to believe that you’re not in a deficit with the amount of cardio you are doing daily… due to the stress on the body I expect that you will experience some weight gain because you’ll be eating enough in order to help fuel your muscles for training/recovery/growth. Doesn’t mean it’s fat gain… a lot of it will be from water retention and muscle.
This is completely normal and you need to give your body time to adapt to a new “normal”. In time, your strength will go up significantly and you will be in a better position to manipulate your body composition.
The transition is inevitable and the scale is NOT the place you want to focus on.
You are young and time is on your side. You got this 
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I wanted to run this by this thread.
My oldest niece reached out to me about a workout program that will help her build upper body strength. She wants to get into the Air Force Academy and needs to pass the fitness test. Her goal is 8 pull ups and 50 push ups. She currently cannot do a single pull up and only and handful of pushups. I feel under qualifed to offer her any kind of coaching, but also flattered that my mom told her to reach out because “I know what I am doing”. She has about a year to prepare.
I am having her start with a bodyweight circuit 3x a week.
I read the pull up discussion earlier and will be using those pointers for her as well. I too, use bands for pull up assistance. I am only up to 4 unbroken, unassisted pullups myself.
I honestly do not know if she will be consistant or take it seriously, but I am excited for her to try lifting and I hope she likes it!
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For this test, body weight is important. The less one weighs the less resistance for both of those movements.
I think with both of these movements that practicing the pattern will yield fast results. Many people can go from a 25 rep max push up to 40 reps in a few weeks by getting the form and tempo (very important to do them fast) down.
8 pullups is a lot though. I would say start with a band and do lots of sets leaving a few in the tank. Adjust the band or use a lighter band as progression occurs.
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I had not thought of this. I will absolutely have her work in the tempo once she can hold the form for a few reps.
8 is a lot. From what I can find on a quick Google, the minimum is only 2 for women. I guess she wants to shoot above that, which is great. She likely has more idea what is competative than I do.
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I can’t link it here but google Dana Linn Bailey first pull. She has a really good video on exercise progression for pull ups.
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