Reply With QuoteHow long did you go before LOADING a 1RM deadlift?Originally Posted by BareSteel
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Alternative to rack pull / block pull
This year, I committed to partial ROM deadlifts for the first time. It was appropriate for my level of training advancement. Heavy day alternated between haltings (1 set of 8) on Week A, then block pulls (1 set of 5) on Week B.
While the haltings were legitimately tough, both physically and mentally, I never felt that I was getting enough out of the rack pulls (block pulls, to be exact). I set the bar at my tibial tuberosity as planned. The loads I could move just never exceeded my halting pull by a large amount. I understand that part of this is just related to individual pulling mechanics.
I'm open to hearing ideas for intermediate pulling that might be a little different than the halting / rack pull design. Currently, I'm on a 3-day HLM. Heavy day is the question mark, but the other two days are power cleans and rows. Side-note: I went nine months without pulling a full ROM deadlift, until I did it at WFAC for a training camp. That was too long and I definitely felt a bit rusty, even though my technique was still approved by Rip and Nick. I hit a small PR by year-end, but overall feel that the block pulls may not have been effective for me.
Thanks for your ideas.
TMPHBITEU
How long did you go before LOADING a 1RM deadlift?
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The PR I pulled was a 5RM around Thanksgiving, about 11 months since starting the halting/block pull programming. I used the WFAC trip as a sort of reset and started performing full ROM pulls again, just with the intent to gain back old ground. Unexpectedly, I PR'd my top set of 5 around Thanksgiving.
I attempted a 1RM a few weeks later to see where that was at - first attempt in over a year - but had had a rough week in general that week and could not budge it off the floor.
✓ Member
For what it's worth, I consistently find the DL to be most fickle lift when it comes to recovery. A week and more after I reach for a big PR, it's usually stapled to the deck at weights that were warmups for that PR. Then that goes away, and it's back to the usual groove. You may not have been fully recovered from the 5RM by the 1RM attempt.
You say you alternated HDL/rack pulls for 11 months - were those progressing linearly throughout? When you went back to full-range DLs, did those progress? For how long? Do you strap?
Rip, do I correctly recall you recently saying that you're now leaning more toward 5s on HDLs as well, vs. previous recommendations for doing 8s?
TMPHBITEU
Correct.
✓ Member
Thanks - they've definitely been working that way for me of late.
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I stated very conservatively. Progress was mostly linear, except for a few off days and one significant block pull reset (I was doing a double knee bend and had to sort out my technique to perform these properly).
DLs progressed nicely, full ROM, since WFAC pretty much up until now. They're just a bit heavier than when I first decided to convert to haltings and block pulls. I'm hooking all reps right now, but close to needing straps on work set of block pulls.
I wonder if deadlifts with chains added might be an alternative to block pulls. They'd be lighter by default, but they'd also provide a little more work off the floor, which is where I need the most work, while still overloading the top a little bit. I guess another cycle of block pulls are possible - just not sure they helped much.
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Oops, typo above. I meant to say "started very conservatively" not "stated."
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Tonight's session was close to another 5RM PR. It's time for me to dial back on that though and get back into a more sustainable program. Reflecting on 2023's routine, the halting and block pull setup was brand new to me, and both movements presented a learning curve (the block pulls were tougher to learn). I likely needed more frequency of full ROM deadlifting to keep the movement sharp, but I don't know what a minimum effective dose would have been. Some lifters only pull full ROM at meets, which typically means a 12-week training cycle.
I'm going back to the drawing board on this one and am going to consider some other programming options that allow more frequent full ROM deadlifts, but something still appropriate for an intermediate that can't recover quickly enough for weekly NLP jumps. Having second thoughts on deadlifts with chains. Your ideas are welcome.
TMPHBITEU
Deadlifts with chains add weight at the top, not at the floor.
Member
Understood. The comparison I meant to draw was that DL with chains still includes the pull from the floor (albeit lighter), while overloading the top. Block pulls and rack pulls exclude the first few inches of the full ROM deadlift entirely and only focus on the top.
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