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Thread: Deadlift: bad at reps or good at 1RM?

  1. #1
    cutlet# Guest

    Default Deadlift: bad at reps or good at 1RM?

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    I hit a 1RM deadlift of 505 lbs two weeks ago, and today failed to make a 5RM at 425. Only got 4 reps. (DL was done first in both cases.) According to various 1RM calculator, a 4RM of 425 gives me a 1RM of 465 to 480.

    Do other people have a larger discrepancy between 1RM and 5RM on the deadlift than on other lifts?

    Do I suck at getting reps?

    Am I good at putting my all into one lift?

  2. #2
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    Quote Originally Posted by Root View Post
    I hit a 1RM deadlift of 505 lbs two weeks ago, and today failed to make a 5RM at 425. Only got 4 reps. (DL was done first in both cases.) According to various 1RM calculator, a 4RM of 425 gives me a 1RM of 465 to 480.

    Do other people have a larger discrepancy between 1RM and 5RM on the deadlift than on other lifts?

    Do I suck at getting reps?

    Am I good at putting my all into one lift?
    The calculators are just bad estimates. And your 1RM varies from day to day.

  3. #3
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    You were probably very strong the day you hit 505. Some days you are under recovered, have accumulated some fatigue, or otherwise are not 100%. Plus 5rep maxes on deadlift can be mental rape jobs, a little bit of mental weakness or error and you will miss. That being said I think heavy 5 rep work is more productive for training effect than a max single.

  4. #4
    cutlet# Guest

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    Quote Originally Posted by Bryanccfshr View Post
    That being said I think heavy 5 rep work is more productive for training effect than a max single.
    Well, this is what I'm really thinking about: how to progress. I did 3s on deadlift for a long time last year, and I think it worked really well for me. The 425 that I only got 4 reps on actually didn't feel that hard for the first 3 reps. So if I could manage 445 for a triple (and I think I could), that seems like it would have more effect than lifting something I can get for 5 and not run out of juice, like maybe 415.

    I'd rather do three hard reps, than do three moderate reps, followed by two hard reps that are only hard because my energy drops off hard at the end.

    Then again, maybe I should specifically train what I know I'm not good at.

  5. #5
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    Triples or fives ?
    My preference is based on " in season" vs " offseason " Mentality. Most of the time I am training i am not inside 12 weeks to a meet. Most of the time I want to build strength, I still believe an all out set of 5 ( sometimes 5-9 when i am trying to force growth)is most productive for developing strength while I use triples , doubles and singles to continue to move heavier weights over 90%. As part of regular training but the all out set of 5 builds while closer to a meet or peak phase more effort is moved to lower reps to convert that strength into the ability to display a better 1 rm.
    Deadlift is a different beast than the other lifts and you may get better results with triples. ( I prefer to keep my volume work in that range in pulling to keep form in check) .
    Just a thought.
    There are plenty of folks here pulling heavy 5s with above 500 and progressing. I am sure it sucks much more than pulling four and a quarter for 5...( my latest 5rm is 427.5)
    Last edited by Bryan Dobson; 11-04-2013 at 02:25 PM.

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