starting strength gym
Page 1 of 3 123 LastLast
Results 1 to 10 of 27

Thread: Deadlift is stuck and weak / Squat is still going and strong?

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Feb 2017
    Location
    central Illinois
    Posts
    13

    Default Deadlift is stuck and weak / Squat is still going and strong?

    • starting strength seminar april 2024
    • starting strength seminar jume 2024
    • starting strength seminar august 2024
    Stats: (SS:BBT LP 3x5) started May 2017 at 33 years old.
    Height: 5'6"
    Weight: 195lbs --> 207now
    SQ: 265lbs --> 342.5 (3x5)
    DL: 315lbs --> 350 (1x5) and progress has stopped.

    Videos:
    Squat video (342.5lbs x 3x5): e20170721_Squat342.5.mp4 - Google Drive
    Deadlift video (350lbs x 1x5): e20170712_DL350.mp4 - Google Drive

    Notes:
    - So the good lord chose to bless me with near wiener dog proportions. I get the leverages associated with me having a strong squat and bench (282.5x3x5 lp) and relatively long back lever in the deadlift.

    - The deadlift video was last real attempt at hitting all 5 reps in a set. I've gone heavier with fewer reps, but will not continue lp until I fix the back rounding off of the floor. I might be too out in front of the bar, but sitting back helps only to a minor degree. I cannot seem to sync up the back extension with feet through the floor. For now, take my word on feet spacing (about 12" of heel width is comfortable with slightly rotating the toes and knees out.) The neck extension is a problem and I'm starting to work on it.

    - For squats, I might be coming into the knees a bit too hard at the bottom, but my attention was on hitting depth at this weight anyway. I also occasionally lose focus of the bar path and frequently end up over my toes instead of mid foot. (why I'm checking the squats now)

    Background: Like a true bro, I've trained bench and squats much more so than deadlifts back in high school. Large 15 year+ layoff in the desk jockey industry and like a true naive individual, I started back with unilateral db weights (think heavy lunges and SLDL) prior to starting a true SS bb lp routine in May. This clearly set me up for failure regarding back strength IMO.

    My deadlift hissy fits are starting to annoy my wife. Any help is greatly appreciated.
    Best,
    Nic

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Aug 2013
    Location
    Midwest
    Posts
    4,936

    Default

    Your deadlifts look good, IMO. Not sure what the reason would be for the stall. I would say programming, but since you are on novice LP it seems like you should be able to keep progressing. How often are you deadlifting?

    Seems like you get a bit loose at the bottom of the squat. Not much rebound. You're going deeper than you need to.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Feb 2016
    Location
    Camino, CA
    Posts
    1,499

    Default

    Squat: It's not the best angle, but you're doing something weird with how you're holding the bar. Watch your elbows move through the rep. You can get bent over more and sooner to get your hip into it. If you can, pull your rack out from the wall a few more inches and you can get under the bar better from the beginning. Get a whole lot tighter - you are wiggling around kind of a lot. You are a bit deep on some of them but I think tightening up and getting your hips into it more will help. Shoot another set and film from the back 45 degree angle, please.

    Deadlifts look pretty solid to me.

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Jun 2014
    Location
    MA
    Posts
    1,556

    Default

    Deadlift form looked pretty good to me, too. How solid is your grip? Are you still deadlifting twice a week?

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Feb 2017
    Location
    central Illinois
    Posts
    13

    Default

    Thanks for the quick posts. I'll post a follow up next week with another video.

    Deadlift comments:
    So it gets slightly more complicated with programming history in the mix:
    I've been resetting a couple times on squat and deadlift knowing that my form was off. I may be too critical, but I recently reset to 315 and DL'd every workout up to 345 with 5 lb jumps.) Now it's every other workout and only 2.5 lb jumps, but I still cannot seem to get all the reps without breaking down.

    Grip has been an issue with my smaller hands but I have also pulled heavier before (357.5 x 3+1+1 this morning actually) I use hook grip on the 28mm bar. I could see if alternating grip helps now, but I also peaked before using it at 360x2. Also, I'm trying to avoid excessive lat strain on my dominant (right) side by keeping both hands pronated.

    Squat Comments:
    I start the movement with a breath and "bending the bar around my back" and squeezing my traps into my lats, but probably lose this as I focus on other areas toward the bottom. I will take a video from another angle this coming week. Honestly, I am still trying to get a grasp on keeping the bar on my back without jamming my wrists into the bar.

    I do agree about being a bit loose and out of the hips at the bottom. I have been having issues with folding over if I concentrate a lot on sitting back. Maybe this ties into upper/mid back weakness.
    Today was about getting the knees out of the way by opening the hips in order to get to depth without rounding over. I tested this during light squats (255) Wednesday where I was going nearly A2G without realizing it, so now I will move back to staying tight and at proper depth.

    Thanks again

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Feb 2016
    Location
    Camino, CA
    Posts
    1,499

    Default

    From what I think you're saying, it sounds like you should change your deadlift frequency. Set them up so you deadlift up to one top set of 5 once a week. The other training sessions, use some other (lighter) pulling variant and maybe do them with straps. Rows, SDLs, something like that.

    For the squats, I'd try to not think so much about bending the bar around your back. I really think that cue can lead to people loosing back tightness. Pull your shoulder blades back and together and then pull your elbows hands in in order to tighten the hell out of everything in your upper back. Make sure your upper back is in extension. Make sure you watch your film between sets, starting with your empty bar warmups, so you better make corrections.

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Feb 2017
    Location
    central Illinois
    Posts
    13

    Default

    Thanks Jeff. I'll incorporate that into the next sets.

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Apr 2017
    Location
    Kansas City
    Posts
    308

    Default

    If you're still progressing on the other lifts and running LP, I see no reason you shouldn't be able to DL on the 1st and 3rd days. So M/F, for example, work up to one heavy set of 5 each day. W could either be a power clean day or another pull variant.

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Jan 2017
    Location
    Not Egypt
    Posts
    771

    Default

    Another option (advice I received from Austin Baraki) that has worked well for me is on Monday to deadlift 3x5@80% of Friday's x5 deadlift session. The 3x5@80% doesn't feel like you're doing much, but it's really helped to keep my top set of 5 progressing every week.

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Feb 2017
    Location
    central Illinois
    Posts
    13

    Default

    starting strength coach development program
    Thanks for the tip Aaron. I will still likely implement it, but...

    Couple concerns:
    -Have you noticed a tendency toward over training with the DL volume above?
    -My issue seems to be pulling heavy weight and any crazy form experimentation I do seems to work at that weight.

    Honestly, I am not really concerned about my other lifts at this point (except for squat form) as they have already exceeded the novice phase gains potential. This and other life factors are pushing me to an intermediate program and this appears to be an excellent transition for my lagging DL.

Page 1 of 3 123 LastLast

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •