So I've been deadlifting wrong this whole time

[Torobestia]

First, a little background. In the past I've had very bad posture with regards to my neck position. This was due to studying, lab work, sitting at a computer, etc, plus being a tall guy with short friends. So while my shoulders were retracted and sitting back, and my chest was at a good position, and my abs and gluts were definitely fixed after I began working out, my neck still jetted out, so to speak.

Anyways, I always thought I had really great form on the deadlift, with one exception, which was that I would have a somewhat rounded upper back somewhere in the middle of the lift. It's truly nothing unusual if you look at powerlifters lifting at around 90% in their videos (so when I say it's not serious, I mean nothing that would cause injury in the short term). Normally when I deadlift, I will set up, and then when I pull I look up, and, well you know most of the rest of the story.

So yesterday, I was warming up and got to 455, and at that weight my upper back was rounding during the middle of the movement. It was at this point I was thinking "hmm, I wonder what it would be like if I not only looked up as I pulled first, but if I more than that set my head up and back like on a squat." What I mean by that is, not just pull my neck more backwards (so it's straighter), but also almost try to touch the back of my head on my traps (actually it would be touching my traps). I did that, and it was at this point I felt my spine truly straighten, almost arch actually. When I went to deadlift the 495 I hit a triple with absolutely no problem AND no rounding whatsoever until the third rep (was a grinder, not proud of doing that but proud of hitting a triple =p).

Just thought I'd share this story in case any of you see yourselves doing the same thing incorrectly with the deadlift and could use the form correction advice.

 

[Kevin James]

That's great! I'd love to hear some seasoned dead lifters weigh in on this.

 

[Resolve]

Yup, you want to minimize rounding of the back from top to bottom. That means tucking those shoulder blades back and down, and for some guys it means packing the neck, as toro was talking about, as well. It can make a world of difference immediately.

My big thing is that I recently switched to a hook grip. I hated it at first, but it's awesome now that I've figured it out and grown accustomed.

 

[SemiBulimic]

Keep the lower back arched but relax the upper back, focus on a point ahead of you and pack the neck (basically pushing your head back to give yourself a double chin). When approaching a max it will round regardless. Relaxing the upper back actually decreases the distance the bar has to travel. As long as your lats are tensed, lower back arched and your belly full of air you should be fine. If you really are concerned about rounding of the upper back then the technique detailed earlier can help. Things like good mornings and rows will also help strengthen the upper back, provided you emphasise the arch and tension in the lats

 

[Rodja]

I wouldn't say that you were deadlifting wrong, but you just weren't lifting to your strength. Some people have an incredibly strong upper back (BTW, Tate recommends to relax the upper back) and use this strength to help their leverages.

 

[Torobestia]

I wouldn't say that you were deadlifting wrong, but you just weren't lifting to your strength. Some people have an incredibly strong upper back (BTW, Tate recommends to relax the upper back) and use this strength to help their leverages.

Heh, yeah, I think that's what I should really say. I still could probably improve on my technique a bit I'm sure, but there's something there going on with my upper back that I'm doing that I hadn't done before, and it's helping.

My one thing is that I think I need to work a lot more on upper back strength. I don't know how much you know about DC, but when I do widowmakers (20 rep set) with squats I often have to re-rack it and set up again at around rep 15 because I lose my upper back form. If only I had a spotter that knew his **** I would love for him to weigh in on me doing some seated good mornings.

Anyways, thanks all.

 

[Kevin James]

What do you mean by it was a grinder, also hit a triple? Damn lifting slang lol

 

[SweetLou321]

I wouldn't say that you were deadlifting wrong, but you just weren't lifting to your strength. Some people have an incredibly strong upper back (BTW, Tate recommends to relax the upper back) and use this strength to help their leverages.

I use to deadlift like that, but found it didnt play to my leverages right. As soon as I started really pulling my lats back and down as hard as I could my deadlift started to move very fast. To each their own.

 

[Resolve]

What do you mean by it was a grinder, also hit a triple? Damn lifting slang lol

Grinder = hard, slow rep that you struggle through. Note that a grinder should still have decent form.

Triple = a set of three reps