RDLs and GMs instead of GHR

[Notrhwoods]

Mark,

I am an intermediate lifter who works out at home and was wondering if I were to cycle Good Mornings and Romanian Deadlifts instead of doing Glute-Ham Raises if I would be missing any important parts of the posterior chain. I ask this because I do not have a GHR bench and probably won't buy one if I can cycle GM and RDLs instead. My plan is to do GMs after heavy squats for a couple months then RDLs after heavy squats for a couple months, then back to GMs, etc...

I trust you as a source for this question because when reading through Starting Strength you seemed to really know a lot about human anatomy (I certainly don't).

Thanks!

[Mark Rippetoe]

I don't think back extensions/GHRs are absolutely necessary, at all, and especially if you don't already have access to the bench. GMs and RDLs accomplish the objective of providing some assistance work, and actually do a better job of being incrementally loadable. And they are MUCH easier on the knees at heavy weights.

[xagent]

Everytime I used to do GHRs at the end of a heavy sets of squats or deadlifts, I'd strain/pull my calf muscles. Sharp pain shooting through it, sore/tender rest of the day. Any idea what I was doing wrong? Wouldn't happen with just bodyweight, but when I added about 20 lbs or I'd always hurt it.

So, I stopped doing them altogether and replaced it with power cleans and RDLs for my assistance (i'm doing 5/3/1 so PCs aren't one of the main lifts - I do PCs as assistance after squats, and RDLs as assistance after deadlifts)

[Mark Rippetoe]

Since your gastrocs cross the knee joint posterior, they are knee flexors. You work them when you do GHRs. You probably had the bench adjusted wrong, hip pad too close to the heel rollers.

[spiderbro]

xagent: Try keeping your ankles dorsiflexed as much as you can, solved the problem for me. Although I did unweighted "natural ghetto" GHRs which do not limit ankle flexion like a GHR bench probably does.

[Mark Rippetoe]

An actual GHR requires contact between the ball of the foot and the plate -- it requires the use of the gastrocs -- and therefore requires plantar flexion.