Deadlifts HELP!
LiveLoveFitFab
Posts: 302 Member
Hi all,
So I've done a lot of dead lifts in my work out life. My form is pretty good, but I need the bar to be at a certain height or I strain my lower back a lot. Up until now I've lifted mostly at home, but since I've moved I no longer have the home gym so I'm going to a public gym.
The bars at my gym weigh about 55lbs. I'm a pretty petite woman, and my starting deadlift for the 5x5 program would be around 100-105 lbs. So basically the bar and two twenty five plates. (please don't judge me for not being able to lift more, like I said, I'm a small woman)
At my old home gym, I used a lighter bar and two 45 plates and was able to lift with really good form.
The problem I'm running into is this. With the bar being so heavy, I can't use two 45 plates to bring the bar up high enough. And when I use the 25lb plates, the bar is so low that I end up straining my lower back and my form is awful. Lifting just one rep with such bad form almost threw my back out, and I had back spasms for days. So now I can't deadlift.
My gym doesn't have any lighter They do have bumper weights, but they are always just left on the bars in huge denominations, and usually are in use.
Right now I really want to get back into doing the 5x5 program, but I can't Deadlift at my gym. I don't want to substitute other exercises either. I want to Dead lift damnnit!
So what do I do?
So I've done a lot of dead lifts in my work out life. My form is pretty good, but I need the bar to be at a certain height or I strain my lower back a lot. Up until now I've lifted mostly at home, but since I've moved I no longer have the home gym so I'm going to a public gym.
The bars at my gym weigh about 55lbs. I'm a pretty petite woman, and my starting deadlift for the 5x5 program would be around 100-105 lbs. So basically the bar and two twenty five plates. (please don't judge me for not being able to lift more, like I said, I'm a small woman)
At my old home gym, I used a lighter bar and two 45 plates and was able to lift with really good form.
The problem I'm running into is this. With the bar being so heavy, I can't use two 45 plates to bring the bar up high enough. And when I use the 25lb plates, the bar is so low that I end up straining my lower back and my form is awful. Lifting just one rep with such bad form almost threw my back out, and I had back spasms for days. So now I can't deadlift.
My gym doesn't have any lighter They do have bumper weights, but they are always just left on the bars in huge denominations, and usually are in use.
Right now I really want to get back into doing the 5x5 program, but I can't Deadlift at my gym. I don't want to substitute other exercises either. I want to Dead lift damnnit!
So what do I do?
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Replies
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Have you asked any of the staff at the gym? Are there any other gyms nearby that you could check out? Short of building an extension on your new home to install a gym, you're stuck with what's at the public one so you need to ask the professionals what they suggest. They should know the equipment to know if there's a solution.0
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(I don't yet lift so this might be a really stupid idea.)
Could you buy a light set of bumper plates and bring them with you? Is that weird/awkward?0 -
Get some steppers and risers from the aerobics room and do deadlifts off of them.LiveLoveFitFab wrote: »Hi all,
So I've done a lot of dead lifts in my work out life. My form is pretty good, but I need the bar to be at a certain height or I strain my lower back a lot. Up until now I've lifted mostly at home, but since I've moved I no longer have the home gym so I'm going to a public gym.
The bars at my gym weigh about 55lbs. I'm a pretty petite woman, and my starting deadlift for the 5x5 program would be around 100-105 lbs. So basically the bar and two twenty five plates. (please don't judge me for not being able to lift more, like I said, I'm a small woman)
At my old home gym, I used a lighter bar and two 45 plates and was able to lift with really good form.
The problem I'm running into is this. With the bar being so heavy, I can't use two 45 plates to bring the bar up high enough. And when I use the 25lb plates, the bar is so low that I end up straining my lower back and my form is awful. Lifting just one rep with such bad form almost threw my back out, and I had back spasms for days. So now I can't deadlift.
My gym doesn't have any lighter They do have bumper weights, but they are always just left on the bars in huge denominations, and usually are in use.
Right now I really want to get back into doing the 5x5 program, but I can't Deadlift at my gym. I don't want to substitute other exercises either. I want to Dead lift damnnit!
So what do I do?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RRS-j5a38j8
She's using a special trap/hexagon bar, but you can see she sets it down on top of steppers.
A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
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Can't you just stack like 2 or 3 of the 45 plates and put your bar on them? or use a fitness bench that's adjustable.. or u can resort to the smith machine... ??2
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I've asked. They suggested I do less reps and just use the heavier plates. But two 45lbs and a 55 bar is really heavy for me. They suggested that if I come in when it's not busy, like at 5 AM that I could use the bumper plates, but those are always racked for power lifting, so I'd have to unrack them from their bars. The only other "gym" is Planet fitness. So they wouldn't even have the bars or the plates.0
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They have the fitness steppers in the womens room, but we aren't allowed to move equipment from one room to another. Maybe management will make an exception for me.
Ha ha, I can use all the plates I have to unrack to make it so I can at least lift the bar to make a stack to put my weights on.
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I'm kinda confused, you say at home you can use two 45lb plates and a lighter bar (so a normal 45lb bar?), but you're saying at the gym the bars at 10lbs heavier and you can't lift it? It's just 145 vs 135, just drop a rep from your sets if it's a big deal. I'm sure they have 45lb bars there too, the only 55lb bars I've ever seen are specialty squat bars and such. Weigh a few of them, I guarantee they aren't all 55lb bars in the place.
Worst case scenario, stack some boards, weights, platforms, whatever under the 25lb plates to get the right height. You could even put the bar in a power rack and set the safety bars low to simulate the height you need. Basically just rack pulls. Personally I'd just suck it up and steal a pair of 25lb bumper plates even if they're left on a bar somewhere. It'd take 30 seconds to pull even a bunch of plates off of a bar onto the ground. Lots of options.0 -
Do they have a squat rack? You may be able to use that at quieter times Set the bars on the rack at knee level and lift from there. It is a smaller range of motion so you should be able to lift the slightly heavier weight. (I am old and petite so completely get the 110lbs thing and small weight progressions)
You could also do the deadlift ( sorry I can't remember the descriptor) where you lift from the floor once at the begining then only lower to mid shin for the actual set of lifts then return it to the floor. SLDL?
Have a look at the sumo too.
I am sure if you googled deadlifts with back problems you would get alternates.
I got lucky, I asked for lighter bars and they brought in a woman's 35 and a 17 for me.
Cheers, h.1 -
I'm kinda confused, you say at home you can use two 45lb plates and a lighter bar (so a normal 45lb bar?), but you're saying at the gym the bars at 10lbs heavier and you can't lift it? It's just 145 vs 135, just drop a rep from your sets if it's a big deal. I'm sure they have 45lb bars there too, the only 55lb bars I've ever seen are specialty squat bars and such. Weigh a few of them, I guarantee they aren't all 55lb bars in the place.
Worst case scenario, stack some boards, weights, platforms, whatever under the 25lb plates to get the right height. You could even put the bar in a power rack and set the safety bars low to simulate the height you need. Basically just rack pulls. Personally I'd just suck it up and steal a pair of 25lb bumper plates even if they're left on a bar somewhere. It'd take 30 seconds to pull even a bunch of plates off of a bar onto the ground. Lots of options.
The bar I was using at my home gym to do deadlifts wasn't a heavy duty bar. I bought it at Wal-Mart and it was maybe 25lbs, but probably less. I don't know I never weighed it. I should have though. It wasn't a solid bar, it was hollow. So it really wasn't that heavy. There is definitely a HUGE weight difference from a smaller hollow bar and the one at the gym. I'm not that strong, so it's not a case of dropping a rep. With the bar at the gym and two 45 plates, I'm maxed out at one very painful rep with really bad form. It's not going to happen. I'm not trying to injure myself. I'm trying to get stronger. I just don't have the right equipment.
The gym I go to has Olympic bars. I can't even chest press it empty. I don't know the weight of it, but I chest press 45lbs, and it is heavier than that.
I know most people are much stronger than me, so this isn't even an issue. Sometimes I feel like I shouldn't even lift if I can't handle the stupid bar being a proper size.
I squat about 150, and right now I'm using their bar and two 45 plates. That's why I assumed it was about 55lbs. But I could be wrong...like I said, I've never weighed any of the bars.
I can use the bumper plates if no one is using them. But since it is a power lifting type of gym, they re always in use when I'm there.
I'm going to try to use the power rack. Hopefully none of the power lifters laugh at me for using it wrong. Thanks for the advice.0 -
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Have you tried asking for the plates you need?
Power lifters are one of the most supportive and helpful group of lifters I have ever run into. I'll bet they would be willing to let you use the plates you need.3 -
I heard in another thread everyone just leaves stuff everywhere in that gym. I say stack some plates up to make a platform you can deadlift from.
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LiveLoveFitFab wrote: »I've asked. They suggested I do less reps and just use the heavier plates.
that's pretty indicative that they don't really get what the issue is here. it only takes one bad rep to jack someone up, so 'less reps' is academic if that bad one comes first in the set. and any rep with a form that is not going to be your actual form seems pretty pointless to me.
i do lift occasionally at a place that doesnt' have bumpers, and i take the stack-other-plates-underneath option when that's the case. it's a pain in the neck but i guess that beats a pain in the back.
also, imo there's nothing to judge about lifting 'light'. 'right' is more important than that.
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canadianlbs wrote: »LiveLoveFitFab wrote: »I've asked. They suggested I do less reps and just use the heavier plates.
that's pretty indicative that they don't really get what the issue is here. it only takes one bad rep to jack someone up, so 'less reps' is academic if that bad one comes first in the set. and any rep with a form that is not going to be your actual form seems pretty pointless to me.
i do lift occasionally at a place that doesnt' have bumpers, and i take the stack-other-plates-underneath option when that's the case. it's a pain in the neck but i guess that beats a pain in the back.
also, imo there's nothing to judge about lifting 'light'. 'right' is more important than that.
in your situation i think i would also look at alternatives like one-legged dl's with hand weights. or dimel/romanians where the bar doesn't go to the floor anyway so the plate size is not important. if the place has kettlebells you could also look into seeing whether any of the ones you can handle put your hips at the right height to be safe.
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Jtalaskamom wrote: »Have you tried asking for the plates you need?
Power lifters are one of the most supportive and helpful group of lifters I have ever run into. I'll bet they would be willing to let you use the plates you need.
I honestly couldn't. I'm really really shy. I put earbuds in when I'm working out even if I'm not listening to music. Just so that I don't have to actually talk to anyone. I would prefer a solution that didn't involve anyone looking at me, talking to anyone or doing anything that would cause anyone to wonder what I was doing. Basically, if I could be invisible at the gym, that would be great.
When I was in my twenties I lifted a lot and was in amazing shape. As a result I had a lot of super fit friends. Right now, I'm about 30lbs over weight and I haven't been lifting seriously in years, just occasionally at home, but never with any goals or anything like when I was young.
I remember from when I was younger how much my friends who were heavy into weight lifting would talk smack among themselves about people who lifted light or who came in and weren't exactly fit, or who had to modify things or if they did things that weren't "the right way" - so I have a big of a cognitive dissonance with talking to people at the gym for any reason, at least until I lose some weight. I really just want to go in, set up my weights, lift them, put them away and go home. Preferably without anyone seeing me do anything stupid or different.
I just don't want anyone judging me really for having to modify my way of lifting because I'm not that strong anymore. I know most people don't care, but a lot of people are really judgy, even the powerlifters. And I'd hate to interrupt their workout or look stupid because I need to use their weights because I can't lift the 45's yet with the bars they have. Just thinking about how they probably will think I'm a weakling makes me anxious. So talking to the other weight lifters is not ever going to happen. Ever. Yikes.
I hope if I go in early tomorrow morning, Sunday, it will be really quiet and I can use one of the power racks or stack some weights (If I can find enough lol) and there won't be anyone around to notice me or care. Wish me luck
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TBH, if your gym has bumper plates and that's what you need (I would say that's ideal for you in this situation) there's absolutely no reason why you should not be using them. Even a 5 lb bumper plate would be enough to get you the proper bar height. I can't imagine people are using every single bumper plate in The entire place, even if they have a very limited number. If they are, It's absolutely ridiculous that everyone in the place thinks they can't spare one set. You should not have to alter your workout or the time you go to the gym just because people want to hog the plates.
I'm very shy myself, but my workout is just as important as anyone else's. And so is yours.
It's too bad that people have been uncooperative/rude/inconsiderate, but honestly I would say you just need to stand up for yourself in this situation. They have the exact equipment you need (bumper plates), public gym equipment is meant to be shared. Keep asking people, whether it be lifters or different staff members.
Get your bumper plates and deadlift with your head held high.3 -
Oh man - sorry for the situation you are in but it is EXACTLY the same as the one I faced! I also started StrongLifts and was using .. er... home made stuff (won't even go into what it was because you will laugh) and when I got to the gym, finally, and wanted to try it... firstly, I couldn't even LIFT the bar (EMPTY!) off the rack, much less bench/squat/deadlift!
I'm also at a very busy gym and you are not allowed to move stuff from room to room, and the steps etc are in the "cardio" area...
Mostly, it's so busy I barely got a chance to get an open bench anyway
I ended up using dumbbells and it also messed my back and thighs up (I could barely walk for the next 5 days!)
I am interested to hear what you decide on as a solution...
I'm not strong either - I'm a small woman and I am VERY VERY new to lifting. I tried the isolation methods and I just felt a bit lost trying to remember what I was meant to be doing - plus it was too much time to do that I didn't have spare, which is why I settled on 5X5.
Good luck!
Oh and yes - the bars in gyms are 45lbs usually, sometimes 55 - Olympic bars, generally. I found that out the other day. Way more than I could lift - especially with plates on.
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TresaAswegan wrote: »TBH, if your gym has bumper plates and that's what you need (I would say that's ideal for you in this situation) there's absolutely no reason why you should not be using them. Even a 5 lb bumper plate would be enough to get you the proper bar height. I can't imagine people are using every single bumper plate in The entire place, even if they have a very limited number. If they are, It's absolutely ridiculous that everyone in the place thinks they can't spare one set. You should not have to alter your workout or the time you go to the gym just because people want to hog the plates.
I'm very shy myself, but my workout is just as important as anyone else's. And so is yours.
It's too bad that people have been uncooperative/rude/inconsiderate, but honestly I would say you just need to stand up for yourself in this situation. They have the exact equipment you need (bumper plates), public gym equipment is meant to be shared. Keep asking people, whether it be lifters or different staff members.
Get your bumper plates and deadlift with your head held high.
You have no idea. I could fill ten pages in the forum of the *kitten* stuff I see people do in this gym.
Check the phone for twenty minutes between sets? Sure.
Use three pieces of equipment to do circuits by yourself for an hour, using loads of weight so no one else can get a set in? Why not!
Stand and stare at the bumper weights on the bar for ten minutes before lifting it? That's called proper form, duh!
Fill up a bar with every weight you can find, lift it once, stand by it for half an hour with your friends looking like you are still using it and then wandering towards the door without taking any weights off.- Every damn time.
Load up the leg press with every damn weight available then go for a walk for twenty minutes while you think about doing a leg press? Then get peeved off when someone starts unracking it to use it...Sounds about right.
Leave everything you touch right where you last used it - well of course!
Scatter the mats and anything else you can find all over the stretching area until it looks like a four year olds room after a huge tantrum - Obviously!
Lol, you guys are giving me the strength though to just go in and do it and not give a damn. Now if I can just get over the anxiety of seeing such a mess all the time I'll be rocking it for sure...0 -
LiveLoveFitFab wrote: »Lol, you guys are giving me the strength though to just go in and do it and not give a damn. Now if I can just get over the anxiety of seeing such a mess all the time I'll be rocking it for sure...
i know how intimidating even a neutral, non-judgey weight room felt to me once. but here's a thought. i think in a different thread i just saw you being quite pissed off that everyone watched you struggle to deal with their messy left-behind 45's and they didn't help you.
so in that situation you were mad because you wanted them to notice that you're 'not strong', right? you were so far from being self-conscious about it you were even pissed off. would it not be possible to take that same mental framework and sort of channel or borrow it while you ask about finding some bumper plates?
because i personally can't see the difference between 'hey, help me deal with these 45s' and 'hey, help me to lift with good form without hurting myself'. and i can't help having the impression that some of your own internalized self-judgement is getting in your way here. ask for those plates like you respect yourself no matter how much you lift atm . . . because you should be respecting yourself.
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I honestly just get the feeling that no one at this gym has much respect. For the equipment or the space. So I assume they don't respect chubby middle aged women who just want to do some dead lifts in peace. I could be wrong.
And even if I was the strongest person in the world, I shouldn't have to clean up someone's mess. But especially given the piece of equipment was pretty damn heavy. It's not a lack of self respect. If they had self respect they'd help a lady out instead of ignoring. And it wasn't just some 45's, it was a HUGE barrel like bar that weighed more than I could safely carry. I know I'm out of shape, I let this happen to me, but I could have really hurt myself on that one.
I've been a member of over ten gyms in my life if you include all the YMCA branches I've been to, and the Goodlife membership I was able to use even while I travelled, and I've NEVER actually been in a weight room that was so user unfriendly as this one.
Coupled with the fact that mess gives me anxiety, I'm fighting just to even be in the damn weight room. A lot of the time I walk in and walk out. I just want to be able to do a proper lifting program without having to beg for some plates or be laughed at.
That is all.0 -
whiskeykittentoo wrote: »Oh man - sorry for the situation you are in but it is EXACTLY the same as the one I faced! I also started StrongLifts and was using .. er... home made stuff (won't even go into what it was because you will laugh) and when I got to the gym, finally, and wanted to try it... firstly, I couldn't even LIFT the bar (EMPTY!) off the rack, much less bench/squat/deadlift!
I'm also at a very busy gym and you are not allowed to move stuff from room to room, and the steps etc are in the "cardio" area...
Mostly, it's so busy I barely got a chance to get an open bench anyway
I ended up using dumbbells and it also messed my back and thighs up (I could barely walk for the next 5 days!)
I am interested to hear what you decide on as a solution...
I'm not strong either - I'm a small woman and I am VERY VERY new to lifting. I tried the isolation methods and I just felt a bit lost trying to remember what I was meant to be doing - plus it was too much time to do that I didn't have spare, which is why I settled on 5X5.
Good luck!
Oh and yes - the bars in gyms are 45lbs usually, sometimes 55 - Olympic bars, generally. I found that out the other day. Way more than I could lift - especially with plates on.
Thank you! People on here are thinking it's just a tiny little bar and I should suck it up. I'm just gonna keep trying. I might actually end up paying for some time with a Trainer, even though I know how to squat and dead lift just so I can see how they think I should solve this problem.
The gym that has so much equipment that it is impossible to actually work out with any of it. This is a new problem to me!0 -
Just use another set of plates to lift it up a bit. If you could lift more you'd be using more plates on the bar so who cares if you're using them under instead? I'll tell you who. Nobody but you. You need to get over this idea that there are all these people hanging out in the gym ready to look down on you.4
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I'm not saying this in a rude way, since tone can't be conveyed through type, but I'm confused. You said earlier in the thread that you squat 150, right? How are you squatting 150 with 45 lb plates on if 45 lb is too heavy to lift? Or was 150 a previous record?2
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amyinthetardis1231 wrote: »I'm not saying this in a rude way, since tone can't be conveyed through type, but I'm confused. You said earlier in the thread that you squat 150, right? How are you squatting 150 with 45 lb plates on if 45 lb is too heavy to lift? Or was 150 a previous record?
I CAN'T dead lift 150lbs. (55lb of bar plus two 45 plates)
I CAN squat 150lbs
I know they are both compound exercises that use a lot of the same muscles, but they are fundamentally different and I don't have to lift 150lbs to squat it. I just put the bar on the rack and load it. Then take the weight off when I'm done and remove the bar.
I'm actually not sure how much I can dead lift. I haven't gotten that far yet in this journey. But I know I can't do 150lbs. I tried. It hurt.0 -
I didn't say you could deadlift 150. My question was that if you could squat 150, you must have been able to initially lift the 45 lb plates you said you used in your squat. Your gym''s bar is only a few lb heavier than what you've already been lifting. So when you're saying the bar by itself is too heavy to move, but you've been lifting the equivalent of that bar to load up when you squat, I am confused about it being significantly different. Regardless, if the 55 lb bar feels too heavy to move, why not just start with dumbbell work until you rebuild your strength and confidence?1
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LiveLoveFitFab wrote: »And it wasn't just some 45's, it was a HUGE barrel like bar that weighed more than I could safely carry.
ah okay. i misunderstood then. i thought you were also complaining about them sitting around watching you unrack 45's so as to get at the lighter plates.
power rack sounds like a solid option. if that's occupied, then there's the stack-of-plates thing. neither one is as nice as having a generous supply of ten-pound bumpers all over the place, but at least it sounds as if it will work to get you started. if you're doing sl then i assume you'll want to do the same thing for rows too.
so if this answer works then you'll be on your way. also, if you can press the 45 bar already then you're not 'weak'.0
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