Deadlifts with pre-loaded barbells

punkeson

Hi guys,
I've started including deadlifts in my workouts and they are fast becoming my favourite exercise! However the barbells at my gym are preloaded if you get my meaning - the weights on the ends are small round cylinder shapes, not flat plates - so even a 30kg barbell does not sit very far of the floor. For this reason I've been picking the bar up with bent knees and an underhand grip, moving it to my middle and starting the deadlift movement from the top down and then coming up ( for 3 sets of 8 reps, romanian deadlifts). This is because I'm concerned that if I start the deadlift movement from the floor as you normally would, I would be leaning over too far because the bar is so close to the ground - it would be outside of the normal range of motion for that movement.
Does this sound like the right way to go with this limited equipment? I know that I'm not getting the full benefit of a deadlift in that I'm not starting by lifting of the floor, but it seems better than doing no deadlift at all? I've done loads of research on form etc and am feeling it the next day in my hamstrings, so as far as I can see this is the right way to go?
Thanks x

djprice_69

I don't subscribe to the Romanian Deadlift nor the stiff-leg deadlift very often, but from what you're describing, so long as you're not rounding your back a ton when you initially pick up the bar you should be fine.
Personally, my thoughts would be to have a fairly wide stance & bend your knees like a typical deadlift to get the bar up to your waist, adjust your stance if need be, then go back to your typical deadlifts. A couple of simple tips when doing a regular dead lift: back straight, chest up/forward, don't let your knees bend inward, etc. It seems like you're able to get a great workout with a relatively light weight so I'm guessing your chances of injury are pretty slim so long as you keep proper form!
I'm happy to hear someone else enjoys deadlifts as much as I do :-)

lauren_gibbons

How about putting a step on each side so the barbell sits on that and is a little more elevated?

dieselbyte

It would actually be considered a deficit deadlift if you lift from the floor, since it requires more mobility than the normal range of motion with a regular bar and plates. Deficits are a great variation that builds strength from the bottom, and depending on weight, also helps with lockout. However, you are doing romanian deadlifts, so the starting position doesn't matter as much as your form throughout your reps and sets. So you aren't really losing anything setting up this way form RDL's.

Edit for: The bars will help though if you are working towards a 1rm on traditional DL's or sumo DL's

erickirb

I suggest propping them up on something that way you don't go to far down on each rep either

jacksonpt

erickirb wrote: »

I suggest propping them up on something that way you don't go to far down on each rep either

This was going to be my suggestion as well.

And FWIW... I do something similar to you - my reps start and stop at the top, not at the floor.

punkeson

Thanks guys! Is there an optimal distance the bar should be from the floor?

SonyaCele

why can't you get a bar and load it? You're gonna out grow those preloaded bars really fast.

ana3067

I start from the floor (granted, I use an olympic bar with loaded plates), bending my knees as I go down to pick up the bar. After that, I raise the bar normally and then pretty much lower it to the ground with minimal knee-bending until I get to the point I need to put it on the ground again. I've tried stopping higher up but I don't quite have the grip strength to do that for every rep.

SonyaCele wrote: »

why can't you get a bar and load it? You're gonna out grow those preloaded bars really fast.

This isn't going to raise her bar any more than her pre-loaded barbell if she's lifting about 60ishlbs. I started out with preloaded as well.

randomtai

punkeson wrote: »

Thanks guys! Is there an optimal distance the bar should be from the floor?

I use the competition standard of the distance from the floor using a 45lb plate. Seems to be like a foot or so.

dbmata

randomtai wrote: »

punkeson wrote: »

Thanks guys! Is there an optimal distance the bar should be from the floor?

I use the competition standard of the distance from the floor using a 45lb plate. Seems to be like a foot or so.

8.75 inches, I do believe.

feralX

I'm not exactly clear on what you're doing once you have the bar at waist level. If you're keeping a slight bend in your knees, but locked in that one position, and pushing your butt backward to lower the bar, then you're doing the Romanian DL. You will only be lowering the bar to mid shin height, and will be targeting your hamstrings primarily, which it sounds like you're doing. But if you're bending your knees and going lower, then essentially you are doing a DL or at least a partial DL, and you'll be engaging your glutes as well. If you're lowering the bar to a height of 9 inches, you are doing the full DL range of motion. If you're going below 9 inches, you're doing a deficit DL.