Deadlifters

navyrigger46

Do you drop the bar when you deadlift? I drop the bar at the top on my working sets. My lifting buddy hates it, he doesn't deadlift because "it's bad for your back, power cleans are better." I drop the bar at the top on both exercises and it drives him crazy. What's your position on this?

I should add that my buddy threw his back out power cleaning last week on the descending portion of the movement. :grumble:

Rigger

kalyrichmond

I drop the bar. (LOL Had to comment now that you got me over my fear of dropping it)

MaeRay007

I don't drop the bar. I hate it too. Some guys do it, some girls do it. If there is a benefit of doing one over the other, I don't know.
Each exercise has it's own benefits.
Each movement can be bad for you if you don't have good form.

LoraF83

I don't drop the bar for a couple of reasons:

1. No bumper plates in my fitness room (it's at work...we are slowly adding more equipment)
2. The room is next to some offices and dropping weights is very noisy for them.


I may drop it the last few inches, but definitely not from the top of the set.

mikemc620

I don't drop the bar when deadlifting. I can see how it would be a good thing when working near max weights as its another place to get tired and potentially injured. I have steel plates with a small pad over a concrete floor in my basement so I can't really drop the plates.

wolfsbayne

I don't drop the bar.

Helloitsdan

Better strength with lowering the bar while maintaining control.

cwolfman13

I don't drop the bar with dead-lifts. I only drop the bar with cleans if I'm working heavy enough to where I think I'm going to shred my shoulders otherwise...but I don't usually work that heavy and when I do I grab one of the trainers to let them know what's going on as it is typically not allowed in my gym but they will make occasional exceptions.

Leadfoot_Lewis

Nope I do not drop the bar

soehlerking

I don't drop b/c it seems impolite.

...damn, now I feel like a girl.

SapiensPisces

Better strength with lowering the bar while maintaining control.

^ This.

yankeedownsouth

Better strength with lowering the bar while maintaining control.

This...

liftsforchocolate

Nope I don't, but I've seen maybe 2-3 guys do it. One of gym friends does it every time but he's also really huge and grunts a lot.

DopeItUp

I have dropped it a handful of times on occasion (usually grip failing) but dropping the bar purposefully every time is pretty much a *kitten* move. There's really no reason for it. I'm talking about deadlifts specifically. Cleans can be a different story.

SrJoben

I don't drop them from the top. But I do lower it ask quickly as possible. It lands with a thump not a crash.

This seems like the best compromise with regard to safety, noise, and potential equipment damage.

Anecdotally a lot of DL injuries seem to happen when people try to lower the weight slowly. I do feel I have trouble keeping my low back from rounding on the decent if it's close to my max.

JoRocka

no dropping-unless I'm one rep/maxing whatever- and i drop it from mid height- I lower it back down as if I were completing a rep-
Mentally I count a dead lift is up- and then back down.

while I understand technically and competitively this is not the reality- it's not practical for day to day lifting unless you lift in a gym like that- so in my head I just say a rep is up and down- like a squat- up and down.

most gyms aren't set up for dropped weights- usually it's a modified concrete floor with rubber mats- it's loud and more than likely going to damage the floor- plus bumper plates- don't have those either.

If I'm doing cleans I set it up with extra yoga mats to help cushion. .

ironanimal

If I had my own gym or was in a powerlifting facility, I'd let it drop from the top. As it is at the moment, I just vaguely guide it's path down to the floor, not providing much resistance at all.

The only times I have completely let it go have been to yell and vigorously pound my chest after a new PR.

Because I'm a bro like that.

SaintGiff

Why would you drop on a dead lift? That's just silly. As for Power Cleans, it's actually pretty smart to drop from the top. That transition back down to the top of a dead lift is dodgie under the best of circumstances. But on a dead lift? No.

ElliottTN

No, until I set an Olympic record, I prefer not to be a dramatic asshat.

JoRocka

also dropping = rolling

rolling = bashed shins.

no thanks.

SaintGiff

No, until I set an Olympic record, I prefer not to be a dramatic asshat.

That

CassandraBurgos83

I don't, but I only DL 110 lbs and I'm already close enough to the ground where i'm short....

Operation_Shred

No, until I set an Olympic record, I prefer not to be a dramatic asshat.

^^ nailed it.

usmcmp

No. The negative portion of the lift is good for the posterior chain and you should consider doing it. You should see your deadlifts improve. At my powerlifting meet every single person followed the bar down. Nobody dropped it. Some were a bit harder set downs than others, but nobody dropped it. If those guys can do it with 700+ pounds you can too.

Snow3y

Dealifts bad for your back but he does power cleans? ahahaha Tell him to look into the knee injuries involved with that vs amount of people doing deadlifts

I "drop" the weight yeah, they've put special flooring for a reason. I'm not gna sloooowly lift and slooooowly release the weight, I'm working on strength which I need to do with less time-under-tension

a_stronger_me13

No, until I set an Olympic record, I prefer not to be a dramatic asshat.

This. And unless you have bumper plates, the equipment isn't intended to be dropped outside of an emergency situation.

There is also a difference between dropping it from waist level and a controlled drop. Once again, you really shouldn't do either without bumper plates and proper flooring. Respect the equipment, you pay dues but you don't own the place.

skullshank

i dont drop.
at heavier weights i will lower it rather quickly, but like dan said, i prefer to maintain control on the entire movement.

Jacwhite22

If I dropped the bar I would no longer be allowed to deadlift at my gym.....

bizco

No, until I set an Olympic record, I prefer not to be a dramatic asshat.

^ This. I hate it when people drop the bar. They're seeking attention and it disrupts other's concentration.

DeadliftAddict

I control it on the way down.Strength Camp did a video on dropping the deadlift at the top. Only reason to control it down is for the hypertrophy effect.

DopeItUp

No. The negative portion of the lift is good for the posterior chain and you should consider doing it. You should see your deadlifts improve. At my powerlifting meet every single person followed the bar down. Nobody dropped it. Some were a bit harder set downs than others, but nobody dropped it. If those guys can do it with 700+ pounds you can too.

In most federations that I've seen, dropping the deadlift isn't even allowed at all. The bar must be lowered under control.