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Thread: Tall newbie deadlift form check

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Jun 2020
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    Default Tall newbie deadlift form check

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    Hi there, just started strengthening recently, and I found I'm having trouble with my deadlift form, I'm 6 foot 4 and it always seems like I have close to a horizontal back angle when I'm in the starting position and I have a slight hump in my lower back even when I do my best to set my back and brace correctly. Thanks for your time.
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  2. #2
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    Jun 2014
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    Quote Originally Posted by nBenjaminw View Post
    I'm 6 foot 4 and it always seems like I have close to a horizontal back angle when I'm in the starting position
    This is not uncommon for lanky people. We don't prescribe a specific angle of the back because we know people are built different. The diagnostic points are 1) bar over the middle of the foot and 2) scaps over the bar. You're setup a little too far from the bar for your build. Get a hair closer.

    Quote Originally Posted by nBenjaminw View Post
    and I have a slight hump in my lower back even when I do my best to set my back and brace correctly.
    Your first rep setup gets your back pretty flat. What you're probably seeing is the muscle bellies on either side of the spine are bigger than the muscles up the rest of the back. As long as you set the shit out of your back for each rep, and work to keep it locked in place, you'll be fine.

    You're also putting the bar down around your knees on the way to the floor, so it ends up even further forward of midfoot for the subsequent reps. Send your ass back and let the bar travel down the legs as you return it and don't bend the knees until the bar gets past them.

  3. #3
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    Jun 2020
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    Thanks immensely for the reply, I think I just watched to many form guides from differently proportioned people on YouTube and assumed I should look like them, instead of paying enough attention to the steps outlined in the book. I definitely see what you mean by moving around my knees now, I'm also unconsciously moving the bar further and further away from me each rep when I do that, which certainly doesn't help.

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Sep 2019
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    Pete -- I often see these deadlift form checks where the lifter is not looking down enough, so the cervical spine is not inline with the rest. I also see it rarely corrected. Why don't you tell him to look down? I'm not questioning your ability as a coach, I'm just genuinely curious why that part of the form is not emphasized more.

  5. #5
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    Nov 2009
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    Quote Originally Posted by m s View Post
    Pete -- I often see these deadlift form checks where the lifter is not looking down enough, so the cervical spine is not inline with the rest. I also see it rarely corrected. Why don't you tell him to look down? I'm not questioning your ability as a coach, I'm just genuinely curious why that part of the form is not emphasized more.
    Prioritization and progressive correction to avoid overwhelming lifters.

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