Batman bench and Darth vader deadlifts

[confuzzl3don3]

Now that i've got your attention, can i ask some questions about my lifts?

From today's workout:
Bench: 57kg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=da20nQEkeJc

Is the form ok? Am hitting too low on my chest? and should my bar path be like vertical? I see like a little loop at the bottom where the bar gets further away from me. Is that right?

And deadlifts: 112.5kg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CB1FdoeLeDE

Once again i see the lower back rounding but i seriously don't know how to fix it. It seems like my natural setup position is already quite parallel to the ground making it easy for me to become more rounded. But if i try to lower my hips before the lift, it makes me in a crappier position to begin the lift and i often end up returning to the original position after that rep. Would it be because i'm standing on a board so that i'm slightly higher up than i should be? Back at the uni gym i would use the deadlift platform that had bumper plates which had a greater diameter so the bar could sit higher up. Do i need to somehow artifically raise the plates by maybe putting some boards under them?

Thanks again guys.

[nisora33]

First, why I are you standing on the board, out of curiosity?

Second, in a recent thread Rip revealed a neat little cue that he uses to get guys to arch their backs at the bottom of the squat: at the bottom, think about dropping the head of your dick down and back between your knees.

No joke. Try it and see if it works. Otherwise, you can try any of the number of tricks he uses to teach a hard arch and that are described in Starting Strength.

-Stacey

[confuzzl3don3]

First, why I are you standing on the board, out of curiosity?

Second, in a recent thread Rip revealed a neat little cue that he uses to get guys to arch their backs at the bottom of the squat: at the bottom, think about dropping the head of your dick down and back between your knees.

No joke. Try it and see if it works. Otherwise, you can try any of the number of tricks he uses to teach a hard arch and that are described in Starting Strength.

-Stacey

Haha ok. You mean for my deadlift not the squat right. Or for both seeing as u should have an arc (or at least flat back) for both anyways. And i'm standing on a board because it gives me a harder surface rather than the carpet underneath it. It's like squatting/lifting in runners on carpet

[Kenny Croxdale]

Now that i've got your attention, can i ask some questions about my lifts?

From today's workout:
Bench: 57kg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=da20nQEkeJc

Is the form ok? Am hitting too low on my chest? and should my bar path be like vertical? I see like a little loop at the bottom where the bar gets further away from me. Is that right?

Confuzzl,

It hard to tell from the angle you shot it. But overall it look good.
Dr Tom McLaughlin (Bench Press More Now) in a biomechanical analysis determined in the bench press trajectory/bar path is driven back toward you head, not vertically/moving in a straight line.

McLaughin also wrote an article, "Bench Press Technique For Elite Heavyweight Powerlifters". The article demonstrates the bench press bar trajectory/bar path of lightweigh as well as heavyweight lifters.

If you interested in the article, I can email it to you.

And deadlifts: 112.5kg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CB1FdoeLeDE

Once again i see the lower back rounding but i seriously don't know how to fix it. It seems like my natural setup position is already quite parallel to the ground making it easy for me to become more rounded. But if i try to lower my hips before the lift, it makes me in a crappier position to begin the lift and i often end up returning to the original position after that rep.

Strengthening you abdominals will solve some of your rounding. Also, you want to perform an isometric action with you abdominals, basically locking your trunk into a ridig unbendable position.

A good method of cueing your abdominals to do this is to wear a powerlifting belt. Prior to pulling the weight up, push your abdominals into the belt.

However, in a max attempt of the deadlift some rounding of the back will usually take place; but it should happen with light/moderate loads.

From what I can see, your start position looks pretty good to me. In the deadlift you want more of a high hip position placing you legs in a quater squat postion. The quater squat position is much stronger than a lower/half squat position.

Kenny Croxdael

.

[nisora33]

Kenny, I guarantee a good coach could fix his round back problem in a jiffy without any added abdominal work or a belt. I've not found anybody who, given enough time and practice, couldn't get their back hard-arched with some quality supervision and coaching. Confuzzled's issue, I guarantee is more of a mind-body problem at this point. My 2 cents.

[confuzzl3don3]

Thanks both of you for the excellent advice. I'll work on trying to keep a rigid trunk when deadlifting. It's just funny that when i actually pull it doesn't seem like it's rounded that much but when i look on the vid it tells a diff story.

And about the bench, so it shouldn't be vertical? So i'm not hitting too low on the chest?

[Platus]

And about the bench, so it shouldn't be vertical? So i'm not hitting too low on the chest?

Correct. As Kenny noted, although from a mechanical standpoint a vertical bar path would be the most efficient, from a biomechanical standpoint the most efficient path tends to touch somewhere on the chest at the bottom and end towards your head at the top.

[confuzzl3don3]

Correct. As Kenny noted, although from a mechanical standpoint a vertical bar path would be the most efficient, from a biomechanical standpoint the most efficient path tends to touch somewhere on the chest at the bottom and end towards your head at the top.

sweet thanks for clearing that up for me then

[Kenny Croxdale]

Thanks both of you for the excellent advice. I'll work on trying to keep a rigid trunk when deadlifting.

Confuzzl,

A powerlifting belt can be used as a "cueing" device to insure that you remain rigid. Pushing your abdominals into your belt provides you with feed back. Dr Mel Siff noted that in his book, Supertraining.

Another function of the belt when lifting heavy loads is that pushing your abdominals into your belt, increases support for your lower back.

You want a belt that is just as wide in the front as it is in the back. (Some exception exist). That enables you to have a greater surface to push against with you abdominals. Thus, powerlifing belts that are about 4 inches all the way around work best.

The lower back support provided by pushing you abdominals on the belt has to do with (Dr Mel Siff--Facts and Fallacies and Supertraining) Intra Abdominal Pressure, IAP. Greater Intra Abdominal Pressure increases stabilization of the erectors.

Intra-Abdominal Pressure

"Pressure within the abdominal cavity. Increases in intra-abdominal pressure during lifting stiffen and support the lumbar vertebrae to help prevent the spine from buckling under compressive loads. The action of the abdominal muscles can increase this pressure and contribute to spinal support." http://www.answers.com/topic/intra-abdominal-pressure

And about the bench, so it shouldn't be vertical?

No, you push the bar back toward your head. I can email you/anyone interested McLaughlin's research article, "Bench Press Of Elite Heavyweight Powerlifters".

The article goes into the bench press technique used by lightweights, too. The article provides pictures breaking down the biomechanics of the bench press.

So i'm not hitting too low on the chest?

Your bar position on your chest looks good to me.

Kenny Croxdale

[knox]

Confuzzled - have you actually read Starting Strength? You claim that you have, but most of the questions you ask about proper lifting form are covered directly and in detail in the book.