Out of curiosity, anyone here use smelling salts when they're maxing out or on heavy sets?

I do not.

Negative. My drug of choice is trap music or something heavy metal AF

No, but if I need to, I can take of my workout hat I'm wearing and that will give me an unpleasant smelling stimulus.

What's your longest non-injury related break from lifting? And how did you jump back in?

After 18 mo of consistent work, I just took 2 weeks off. Joints feel awesome. Ha.

Any suggestions for getting back to the weights?

Coming Back After A Long Lay-Off

By andybakerJune 28, 2024

Thanks. I feel better about 2 weeks now. Plus some ideas for getting back into it

195 today. No help but it was a fight.

Back squat or dead lift?

You will get it - lock in your technique and leg drive and that will get you over the hump.

You're likely strong enough, or close to it, just need to iron out some of that stuff.

Thanks for the encouragement!

I'm about to work myself toward being calorie neutral (at minimum) and start a new cycle on my pyramid. I'm going to run through the pyramid at least 2x before going back into a calorie deficit to shed the rest of the fat I'm holding onto. I'm hoping to see some major gains over the next 18 weeks.

My form is starting to click at the right time!

100% agree. He's got this!

Also agree with form. Just remember ABC…

Always
Be
Correcting that form

Thanks for posting. As someone who hasn't lifted consistently in 8 years, that's a great setup to get back into it.

Ultimate goal is 2/3/4 plates for bench/squat/deads

I flared out my left elbow on almost every set today and my performance suffered.

Back on the bench Friday.

I would like to hit 1k in the next 12 weeks. I've got 9 weeks off so if I really hit it hard I think I can do it. I'm about 55 lbs away.

El_duderino said:

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Ultimate goal is 2/3/4 plates for bench/squat/deads

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How many reps we talkin?

5 reps for each

**** my left elbow.

Alrighty. I need a little encouragement, advice, or real talk depending on what's needed.

So, from about April to June 27, I pushed my 1RM deadlift from 405 to 455. I did this doing a heavy deadlift day with the 1RM, then back off to 1x3 at 90 percent, then a 2x3 at 80 percent. I was very consistent. Pulled 455 on June 27 and it did not feel like a limit. Then, on a light deadlift day, I pulled 3x3-345.

Then, I had a scheduled "deload" week where I only pulled 1x3-405 (4th july week). That was it. Came back last week (Thurs), missed 460 (absolutely had bad form here, it got out in front of me.) Then did some paused deadlifts at 1x3-405. Then 1x5-365. I didn't recover from this by my light deadlift day (Saturday) and skipped my 3x3-345.

Last night. Missed 460 again. (435 warm up went easy). I'm fast off the floor and it sometimes catches my lower back by surprise when the weight transfers from my leg extension to the hamstrings/hips. Then missed my back off set got 2 reps at 415.

Should I be switching to rack pulls/ halting deadlifts to drive and drive the top end strength, should I reset to maybe something like 445 and try and get back in my rhythm?

Background:
Im 6'5", 235-239 pounds (this has held consistent for a few months), been training seriously for about a year. My numbers are Squat. 345. DL 455, Bench 280, Press 165. Im trying to hit the starting strength 1000 milestone of Squat, Press, Deadlift all totaling 1000 pounds. Its a modest goal, but one I'd like to hit before I go do some other types of training (and cut weight because...eff...I hate being this heavy). I'm definitely frustrated because I want to cut, but want to hit the strength milestones first...so each failure feels like even more of a set back than it should).

Anyway, thoughts? Criticisms? Reality Checks?

Pause reps. Over and over. It divides it into two halves where you will find and fix your off-the-floor/lower back problems, then strengthens your lockout. Gives you everything rack pulls do without neglecting the rest of the lift, forces your lats and traps to strengthen, and helps your core.

I can post my entire set of deadlift cycles that got me to 675 if you want but YMMV. Also have to remember that it's a very much more technical lift than it looks (or feels, when you're doing it right) like. Anything being off with your energy levels or setup or imbalances etc. can throw it off big time. You have to learn to take the L without getting discouraged and live to fight another week … no one has had to learn it harder than me. Ask some of the guys here.

Today I didn't make it higher than a 545 single, literally 100 lbs below what I can rep when I'm feeling good. Just called it there; I could tell I wasn't locked in and it's very easy to cause nagging damage when you're near your 1RM deadlifting. Happens to me all the time. And yet, I sometimes yo-yo from being unable to get six plates off the ground one day to repping it for 5-6, then back again week to week.

Some weeks I've also failed my target numbers to start but warmed up more/harder and came back 15 minutes later and got it. May be worth experimenting with just setting aside the extra time to not give up on it.

Beau Holder said:

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Pause reps. Over and over. It divides it into two halves where you will find and fix your off-the-floor/lower back problems, then strengthens your lockout. Gives you everything rack pulls do without neglecting the rest of the lift, forces your lats and traps to strengthen, and helps your core.

I can post my entire set of deadlift cycles that got me to 675 if you want but YMMV. Also have to remember that it's a very much more technical lift than it looks (or feels, when you're doing it right) like. Anything being off with your energy levels or setup or imbalances etc. can throw it off big time. You have to learn to take the L without getting discouraged and live to fight another week … no one has had to learn it harder than me. Ask some of the guys here.

Today I didn't make it higher than a 545 single, literally 100 lbs below what I can rep when I'm feeling good. Just called it there; I could tell I wasn't locked in and it's very easy to cause nagging damage when you're near your 1RM deadlifting.

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I was hoping you would see the deadlifting signal.

I wasn't too keen on doing rack pulls because I found my issue was the negotiation of the power transfer from my leg-extension into the top/lock out. If I can keep my lower back in good position for maybe another inch longer, that lift goes. It seemed a rack pull would put me over that transfer.

I would be interested in seeing your cycle if you don't mind posting. Im not looking for anything close to what you are doing. If I get to 475, I'd be happy. Thrilled at 500. Thats only 45 more pounds. I don't have much interest going too much higher over 500. Thats enough for me.

Thanks for helping me understand taking the L. The only comfort Im taking from this is that I can trust myself to drop it when I know its falling apart and not do something stupid.

Can't you do rack pulls from any height to work on the specific point you need help with?

Eight weeks:

3x6
4x5
5x4
Deload
4x5 heavier than the previous 4x5 even if by 5 lbs
5x4 ditto
6x3
Deload

Progressively more volume each week - from 18 reps to 20, to a heavier 20, to a heavier 20, to a heavier 20, to 18 ideally heavy enough to be more total lbs than the 20.

I did that for a very long time. That's the one I recommend to anyone for at least one cycle if not two. Then I switched to:

Work up to a heavy single
Back down to sets of 3, 6, 9, 12
-next block-
Heavy single
Back down to sets of 3, 3, 5, 5, 8-10

Also did that for a long time. It's a lot, but keeping sight of a top single is helpful and then it's marginally increasing volume if the weight is going up.

Now I do:

Heavy single (honestly just can't not, it's fun for me; some days it's 650, some days it's 545 like today…)

Pause rep + tempo lower sets of 4, 8, 12 (these usually are much lower weight than I'd rep normally obv, like 515 -> 455 -> 405)

But again, the number one component is just realizing you're not going to pull near your 1RM every week. Just doesn't work like that. I push it on days I'm feeling good and I'm careful or tap out on days I'm not. You don't have to pull heavy every week to keep progressing and in fact sometimes fatigue or form breakdown is telling you a week off or light for form focus is what will help; took me a very long time to figure that out.

I've had some of my best days after a week of failure.

For accessories, I spent a lot of time focusing on hip hinge and posterior chain and lats through arched back good mornings, chin-ups, stiff legs, and hypers. Again… a very good pause rep will make you feel all of these as well as particularly traps.

Obviously everyone's different, but fwiw I have never done rack pulls and only very rarely done deficits. The way to get better at deadlifting is generally just to deadlift more. But the pause reps definitely make my form feel good and my back and hips feel stronger.

Beau Holder said:

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Eight weeks:

3x6
4x5
5x4
Deload
4x5 heavier than the previous 4x5 even if by 5 lbs
5x4 ditto
6x3
Deload

Progressively more volume each week - from 18 reps to 20, to a heavier 20, to a heavier 20, to a heavier 20, to 18 ideally heavy enough to be more total lbs than the 20.

I did that for a very long time. That's the one I recommend to anyone for at least one cycle if not two. Then I switched to:

Work up to a heavy single
Back down to sets of 3, 6, 9, 12
-next block-
Heavy single
Back down to sets of 3, 3, 5, 5, 8-10

Also did that for a long time. It's a lot, but keeping sight of a top single is helpful and then it's marginally increasing volume if the weight is going up.

Now I do:

Heavy single (honestly just can't not, it's fun for me; some days it's 650, some days it's 545 like today…)

Pause rep + tempo lower sets of 4, 8, 12 (these usually are much lower weight than I'd rep normally obv, like 515 -> 455 -> 405)

But again, the number one component is just realizing you're not going to pull near your 1RM every week. Just doesn't work like that. I push it on days I'm feeling good and I'm careful or tap out on days I'm not. You don't have to pull heavy every week to keep progressing and in fact sometimes fatigue or form breakdown is telling you a week off or light for form focus is what will help; took me a very long time to figure that out.

I've had some of my best days after a week of failure.

---

Man, this is awesome. Thank you.

When you were working through your pause squats, were you doing any full deadlifts or just running the pause deadlifts? Then when you say "work up to a heavy single" was this in one day, or was this over the course of a few weeks?

You think there is any value in me trying to reset back to something like 445 and seeing if I can progress that way? For as absolutely as long as I can ride it. Then cycle to a pause dl routine?

Id rather introduce complexity when I just can't go further on something more simple.

Sea Speed said:

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Can't you do rack pulls from any height to work on the specific point you need help with?

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Thats a good point. I suppose if I do rack pulls, I can set it lower than usual (ie, just below the knee, to something lower)).

But really, off the floor just is not a problem for me at this weight. It does not feel heavy. I like the idea of a paused deadlift. It forces me to slow down and not rely on my speed off the floor to get it up.

Yeah, there's nothing wrong with going down to a weight you can consistently hit and going from there. I've done that a lot. I edited in after you quoted the post the fact that honestly just deadlifting more and more is how your deadlift gets better. The rest is academic and matters more at the margins. Imo.

And I mean every single deadlift day I work up to a heavy single lol. I'll go in and warm up 12x135, 10x225, 8x315, 6x405, 2-3x495, and then singles at 545+ until I hit a weight I either fail or am happy with.

Tex117 said:

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Sea Speed said:

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Can't you do rack pulls from any height to work on the specific point you need help with?

---

Thats a good point. I suppose if I do rack pulls, I can set it lower than usual (ie, just below the knee, to something lower)).

But really, off the floor just is not a problem for me at this weight. It does not feel heavy. I like the idea of a paused deadlift. It forces me to slow down and not rely on my speed off the floor to get it up.

---

Trust me, four to six very good reps at like 65% of your 1RM where you come off the floor, pause for a legitimate 3 count at your shins, and then drive it up to lockout and lower controlled back to the floor will force you to get better every which way.

But start with the first eight-week cycle with that 445 as a reference point for all your rep ranges. See where that gets you first. Agree on worrying about the pauses later.

Beau Holder said:

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Yeah, there's nothing wrong with going down to a weight you can consistently hit and going from there. I've done that a lot. I edited in after you quoted the post the fact that honestly just deadlifting more and more is how your deadlift gets better. The rest is academic and matters more at the margins. Imo.

And I mean every single deadlift day I work up to a heavy single lol. I'll go in and warm up 12x135, 10x225, 8x315, 6x405, 2-3x495, and then singles at 545+ until I hit a weight I either fail or am happy with.

---

Oh gotcha!

Yeah, I think its going to be my plan to reset to 440/445, and give it one more honest to goodness run. If I keep failing, then I will switch. I really like the paused deadlift routine. For my issues, I wasn't seeing the benefit of the rack pull. I like the full range of motion better.

Beau Holder said:

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Tex117 said:

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Sea Speed said:

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Can't you do rack pulls from any height to work on the specific point you need help with?

---

Thats a good point. I suppose if I do rack pulls, I can set it lower than usual (ie, just below the knee, to something lower)).

But really, off the floor just is not a problem for me at this weight. It does not feel heavy. I like the idea of a paused deadlift. It forces me to slow down and not rely on my speed off the floor to get it up.

---

Trust me, four to six very good reps at like 65% of your 1RM where you come off the floor, pause for a legitimate 3 count at your shins, and then drive it up to lockout and lower controlled back to the floor will force you to get better every which way.

---

Dear gawd...LOL. Okay. So, what I would do is do pause DLS at 295 (65% of 455) and start there?

Beau Holder said:

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But start with the first eight-week cycle with that 445 as a reference point for all your rep ranges. See where that gets you first. Agree on worrying about the pauses later.

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So I understand. You think I should reset to 445 for 1RM. Then down to 1x3 at 90%, then maybe 2 or 3x at 80 percent (this is what I was doing). And ride that for as long as I can...then finally accept defeat and introduce the pauses?

And thank you Beau. I really appreciate talking through this. I effing woke up in the middle of last night frustrated with all of this.

Been there. It's a long battle, but most things worth doing are.

Yes I'm saying (and it's just my POV, ultimately it's your call) I'd take 445 as your 1RM and try to run the eight weeks of increasing volume that is the first one I posted with appropriate percentages of it. Test your 1RM again at the end of the second deload. And see whether you've made progress you like and want to do those cycles again, or whether you think it's time to incorporate pauses if you're having the same problems.

So that would be like 3x6 at 335 or whatever feels right, followed by 4x5 at 345 or 350 or again whatever is the appropriate jump from what felt right the week before, then 5x4 at 360, then deload, then 4x5 at 365, etc up to like 6x3 at 405 or something. I'm just bull****ting the numbers but you get it.