deadlift technique

[wbsgn12]

mark-

finally have gotten away from sinking my hips, and have raised them up to create that "hinge" in the deadlift. I can feel a lot more hamstring tension now.

I am, however, still struggling technique wise. My back is simply curving way too much. I can squat 355*5, and bench 230*5, yet have major back rounding by my second deadlift rep at 315, and struggle with this weight. I deload constantly in order to try and fix technique, but always run into trouble once the weight breaks 300ish.

My question for you is what should be my first movement to get the bar off the ground? My hamstrings are tight and my hips are high-I am in the correct 'set' position. From here, do i raise my but and lower back? Or Should I just take a deep breath and pull the bar? It's obviosuly an abstract question givne that you cannot see me lifting, but hopefully one that you encounter often and can answer?...

thanks either way.

[Mark Rippetoe]

Once again: The Deadlift: Perfect Every Time

1. Take your stance, feet a little closer than you think it needs to be and with your toes out more than you like. Your shins should be about one inch from the bar, no more. This places the bar over the mid-foot – the whole foot, not the mid-instep.

2. Take your grip on the bar, leaving your hips up. DO NOT MOVE THE BAR.

3. Drop your knees forward and out until your shins touch the bar. DO NOT MOVE THE BAR.

4. Hard part: squeeze your chest up as hard as you can. DO NOT MOVE THE BAR. This establishes a "wave" of extension that goes all the way down to the lumbar, and sets the back angle from the top down. DO NOT LOWER YOUR HIPS – LIFT THE CHEST TO SET THE BACK ANGLE.

5. Squeeze the bar off the floor and drag it up your legs in contact with your skin/sweats until it locks out at the top. If you have done the above sequence precisely as described, the bar will come off the ground in a perfectly vertical path. All the slack will have come out of the arms and hamstrings in step 4, the bar will not jerk off the ground, and your back will be in good extension. You will perceive that your hips are too high, but if you have completed step 4 correctly, the scapulas, bar, and mid-foot will be in vertical alignment and the pull will be perfect. The pull will seem "shorter" this way.