Thread: Deadlifts of a platform

I do them off a platform sometimes, but only in an effort to break a plateau if my weak point in the deadlift is on the floor.

I never have yet, but I plan to.

Originally Posted by blueboy75

I have always done all deadlifts using a platform. I like the extra ROM and constant tension it creates.

I rarely see anyone else doing them on a platform and was curious as to whether anyone here uses a platform.

Gustavo Badell credits his tremendous back, glute and hamstrings development to doing deadlifts on a platform. In his own view, he does not care that the load he uses is 150-200 lbs lighter than regular dead-lifts. Rather, he strongly feels that the added range is what has contributed to his enormous posterior chain development.

Gustavo Badell should credit his posterior chain development to the certainly exuberant amount of steroids he prolly never cycles off of.

I fucking hate it when bodybuilders give advice. Especially in fucking shitty magazines.

And your quote is a perfect example..."My back is big because of xyz exercise I do this way on tuesdays and thursdays"

i've done it a few times in the past but lately i've been doing them the original way

I have a platform made up of 2 rows of 4x4's and plywood that I use. Partially because I lift in a rack and on the lowest pin setting, the weights are a few inches off the floor. With the platform the bar is about ankle high at the lowest point. I like the idea I am working a greater ROM. I do not use the platform for rack pulls for obvious reasons. But for regular deads, I always pull off the plantform.

I do it sometimes, helps out the bottom portion of the lift. I do it as more of an assistance lift for ME deadlifts rather than hypertrophy though.

Originally Posted by PWGriffin

Gustavo Badell should credit his posterior chain development to the certainly exuberant amount of steroids he prolly never cycles off of.

I fucking hate it when bodybuilders give advice. Especially in fucking shitty magazines.

And your quote is a perfect example..."My back is big because of xyz exercise I do this way on tuesdays and thursdays"

Well at least his advice encourages people to adopt one of the most neglected exercises in the gym. If newbies read that and start doing DL's I dont think it is necessarily bad advice. I obviously dont expect to develop a back like his doing DL on a platform, but I agree with his point on ROM.

Originally Posted by blueboy75

Well at least his advice encourages people to adopt one of the most neglected exercises in the gym. If newbies read that and start doing DL's I dont think it is necessarily bad advice. I obviously dont expect to develop a back like his doing DL on a platform, but I agree with his point on ROM.

Well I for one don't like the exercise...I do stiff legged deadlifts on my first lower body day on a platform, but with very light weights..maybe 135-155lbs. But when I deadlift on friday, I go heavy and for reps....I don't think it's bad to use a platform, I just don't like the constant tension on my lower back, as I've strained it a few times in the past...I get paranoid every time my lower back burns.

Originally Posted by PWGriffin

Well I for one don't like the exercise...I do stiff legged deadlifts on my first lower body day on a platform, but with very light weights..maybe 135-155lbs. But when I deadlift on friday, I go heavy and for reps....I don't think it's bad to use a platform, I just don't like the constant tension on my lower back, as I've strained it a few times in the past...I get paranoid every time my lower back burns.

As you are doing, I would focus on lighter weight and strict technique with slightly higher volume. I would also throw in some hyperextensions at the end of your back workout doing ultra slow and controlled movement to really strengthen your lower back.

Originally Posted by CowPimp

I do them off a platform sometimes, but only in an effort to break a plateau if my weak point in the deadlift is on the floor.

Originally Posted by blueboy75

As you are doing, I would focus on lighter weight and strict technique with slightly higher volume. I would also throw in some hyperextensions at the end of your back workout doing ultra slow and controlled movement to really strengthen your lower back.

My lower back is probably stronger than yours there blue boy....I deadlift 400+ for reps...the problem is my hamstrings are too tight. If anythings going to strengthen someones lower back it's not going to be BodyWeight Hypers with a slow eccentric phase. If you want to "strengthen" your lower back, then deads, squats, and good mornings are where it's at.

At 400+ deadlift your back is definitely stronger than mine. Im lucky to reach 300 for reps. In your previous post you mentioned you have strained your lower back in the past and given that I would do body weight hyperextensions only.

Besides, after performing 400+ deadlifts is there really any need to do weighted hyperextensions. My preference is to do these at bodyweight no matter how strong you are. By doing them properly bodyweight hypers can really work your spinal erectors sufficiently as the end of a back workout.

^ so you're really just suggesting on throwing them in at the end once you've pre-exhausted as an accessory movement?

Originally Posted by blueboy75

At 400+ deadlift your back is definitely stronger than mine. Im lucky to reach 300 for reps. In your previous post you mentioned you have strained your lower back in the past and given that I would do body weight hyperextensions only.

Besides, after performing 400+ deadlifts is there really any need to do weighted hyperextensions. My preference is to do these at bodyweight no matter how strong you are. By doing them properly bodyweight hypers can really work your spinal erectors sufficiently as the end of a back workout.

I'm just saying, pulling or straining a muscle doesn't necessarily mean it's weak....even in a relative since. In fact I think in more cases than not, it's not the reason....Otherwise I think injuries would be more common than they already are....perhaps with every 1RM attempt a person could or probably would hurt something. And building "strength" in a muscle can largely be due to neural adaptations taking place....and i don't see how that could prevent future injury.

Originally Posted by PWGriffin

I'm just saying, pulling or straining a muscle doesn't necessarily mean it's weak....even in a relative since. In fact I think in more cases than not, it's not the reason....Otherwise I think injuries would be more common than they already are....perhaps with every 1RM attempt a person could or probably would hurt something. And building "strength" in a muscle can largely be due to neural adaptations taking place....and i don't see how that could prevent future injury.

You're right. Pulling a muscle is rarely because it's weak. More often it is the result of other muscles that are used in a movement pattern with that muscle being weak, and the muscle that was pulled attempted to compensate.

Hence why hamstring pulls, and in some cases, lower back problems, occur: weak/inactive glutes. In the former case, the hamstrings try to extend the hip, or eccentrically brake during hip flexion, even when it is in a less advantageous position than the glutes would be if they were working properly. This is referred to as synergistic dominance: one muscle tries to pick up the slack for another muscle that should be working with it.

Originally Posted by blueboy75

As you are doing, I would focus on lighter weight and strict technique with slightly higher volume. I would also throw in some hyperextensions at the end of your back workout doing ultra slow and controlled movement to really strengthen your lower back.

My point was not to imply that he strained his back because it was weak.

Regardless of how his lower back/hamstrings were strained, the fact that the muscle(s) are strained surely means that there is a loss of strength in this area due to the strain.

I personally have never been at my strongest when a muscle is strained and/or recorvering. Given that, I would do bodyweight hypers to help the area recover.

Originally Posted by blueboy75

My point was not to imply that he strained his back because it was weak.

Regardless of how his lower back/hamstrings were strained, the fact that the muscle(s) are strained surely means that there is a loss of strength in this area due to the strain.

I personally have never been at my strongest when a muscle is strained and/or recorvering. Given that, I would do bodyweight hypers to help the area recover.

Have you ever pulled a muscle?? The only thing you do in this case is rest it and ice/heat the area. A muscle strain and the micro trauma caused from weight lifting are two COMPLETELY different things. The first time I ever strained my back I couldn't stand upright, so you are telling me at this juncture I should've started doing hypers to bring it back up to par??

Pulling a muscle has nothing to do with how "strong" it is dude...a DOCTOR told me my problem was hamstring tension. And my posterior chain is by FAR the strongest part of my body.

Originally Posted by PWGriffin

Have you ever pulled a muscle?? The only thing you do in this case is rest it and ice/heat the area. A muscle strain and the micro trauma caused from weight lifting are two COMPLETELY different things. The first time I ever strained my back I couldn't stand upright, so you are telling me at this juncture I should've started doing hypers to bring it back up to par??

Pulling a muscle has nothing to do with how "strong" it is dude...a DOCTOR told me my problem was hamstring tension. And my posterior chain is by FAR the strongest part of my body.

I injured my rhomboid almost a year ago which had complications on my rotator also. My left shoulder is still not 100% and I consider to be weaker due to this injury. I totally agree that adquate rest is needed to recover however you cant expect to do nothing for the whole period of recovery. It is not uncommon to see people train through injury, especia;;y if they competing etc

After an adequate rest period appropriate to the type/severity of an injury, would you recommend going staight back into full scale training or otherwise?

Id like to learn what you did after your back strain if you care to share.

Im interested to learn what you did for your back once you returned to the gym.

Originally Posted by blueboy75

I injured my rhomboid almost a year ago which had complications on my rotator also. My left shoulder is still not 100% and I consider to be weaker due to this injury. I totally agree that adquate rest is needed to recover however you cant expect to do nothing for the whole period of recovery. It is not uncommon to see people train through injury, especia;;y if they competing etc

After an adequate rest period appropriate to the type/severity of an injury, would you recommend going staight back into full scale training or otherwise?

Id like to learn what you did after your back strain if you care to share.

Im interested to learn what you did for your back once you returned to the gym.

Well, first I avoided the particular exercise I was doing when I hurt it (scared lol) I didn't go to the doctor right away(no insurance), so I had NO IDEA that it was hamstring tension, I thought it was disc related...I took a week off from the gym altogether....when I came back, I made an effort to warm up better.....(we are also talking about a time when I didn't know SHIT about resistance training, I just worked out recreationally heh) And I didn't go as heavy and did more reps. This was in no attempt to strengthen the weakened area, in fact I did nothing to isolate the erectors.

So in light of the fact that I did nothing to stretch my hammies out and started lifting heavy again not too long after, you can imagine I've strained it since then. Last time I strained it I went STRAIGHT to the doctor...he relieved me when he said it was just a good muscle strain and ice it/heat it and don't go to the gym for a week. When he checked my hams he was like SHIT, this is your problem!!....When I first went back after the last strain I just avoided hack squats and leg presses and no deadlifts until I was fully recovered, and now I stretch regularly....sometimes if my back begins to burn, or maybe even ache a little...I stretch and it almost INSTANTLY feels better. Haven't missed a deadlifting session since!!! And I do so LOVE deads...fav exercise by far.

I wouldn't consider your injury a weakness...just an obstacle to overcome or even completely work around. Do a lot of rotator warm ups and avoid barbell work until it is 100%. I was helping a guy in the gym with a shoulder problem not too long ago when he asked me to spot him on a flat BB Press...I later had him doing exercises that IMO put less stress on the shoulders and he later thanked me tremendously for helping him with the first workout he's had where his shoulder didn't bother him. What's funny...this guy was HUGE!! LOL....if I was that big I wouldn't take advice from ANYBODY, I would be A COMPLETE ASSHOLE lol.

Originally Posted by PWGriffin

Well, first I avoided the particular exercise I was doing when I hurt it (scared lol) I didn't go to the doctor right away(no insurance), so I had NO IDEA that it was hamstring tension, I thought it was disc related...I took a week off from the gym altogether....when I came back, I made an effort to warm up better.....(we are also talking about a time when I didn't know SHIT about resistance training, I just worked out recreationally heh) And I didn't go as heavy and did more reps. This was in no attempt to strengthen the weakened area, in fact I did nothing to isolate the erectors.

So in light of the fact that I did nothing to stretch my hammies out and started lifting heavy again not too long after, you can imagine I've strained it since then. Last time I strained it I went STRAIGHT to the doctor...he relieved me when he said it was just a good muscle strain and ice it/heat it and don't go to the gym for a week. When he checked my hams he was like SHIT, this is your problem!!....When I first went back after the last strain I just avoided hack squats and leg presses and no deadlifts until I was fully recovered, and now I stretch regularly....sometimes if my back begins to burn, or maybe even ache a little...I stretch and it almost INSTANTLY feels better. Haven't missed a deadlifting session since!!! And I do so LOVE deads...fav exercise by far.

I wouldn't consider your injury a weakness...just an obstacle to overcome or even completely work around. Do a lot of rotator warm ups and avoid barbell work until it is 100%. I was helping a guy in the gym with a shoulder problem not too long ago when he asked me to spot him on a flat BB Press...I later had him doing exercises that IMO put less stress on the shoulders and he later thanked me tremendously for helping him with the first workout he's had where his shoulder didn't bother him. What's funny...this guy was HUGE!! LOL....if I was that big I wouldn't take advice from ANYBODY, I would be A COMPLETE ASSHOLE lol.

I was just reading an article about this last night. It broke down the major joints in the body into joints that should be trained primarily for mobility or stability. Basically, the assertion was the surrounding joints would suffer if a joint is lacking the necessary properties of fitness.

The relationship between the hip joint and lumbar spine is that if your hip joint is lacking proper mobility and/or you are incapable of activating your hip extensors as needed, then your lumber spine will try to compensate by increasing mobility and/or doing work for your inactive hip extensors, which is not desireable and can lead to injury.

Originally Posted by CowPimp

I was just reading an article about this last night. It broke down the major joints in the body into joints that should be trained primarily for mobility or stability. Basically, the assertion was the surrounding joints would suffer if a joint is lacking the necessary properties of fitness.

The relationship between the hip joint and lumbar spine is that if your hip joint is lacking proper mobility and/or you are incapable of activating your hip extensors as needed, then your lumber spine will try to compensate by increasing mobility and/or doing work for your inactive hip extensors, which is not desireable and can lead to injury.

Interesting...I would still like to have x rays done to make sure everything is in order...maybe I'm just a little paranoid...cuz I know a serious back injury would put a halt to a lot of my favorite exercises...perhaps even put an end to my career...that worries me. A little growth hormone probably wouldn't hurt heh...

Originally Posted by CowPimp

I was just reading an article about this last night. It broke down the major joints in the body into joints that should be trained primarily for mobility or stability. Basically, the assertion was the surrounding joints would suffer if a joint is lacking the necessary properties of fitness.

The relationship between the hip joint and lumbar spine is that if your hip joint is lacking proper mobility and/or you are incapable of activating your hip extensors as needed, then your lumber spine will try to compensate by increasing mobility and/or doing work for your inactive hip extensors, which is not desireable and can lead to injury.

I think part of the reason so many people get lower back injuries is due to this lack of mobility/ activation that you mentioned above due to sitting for long periods in a chair. As a person gets tired from sitting, their posture often breaksdown. Sitting in a chair for long periods of time is horrible for your whole body. What usually happens is not pretty. Firstly, as people get tired they de-activating their abdominals and lower back muscles, and sink deaper into their chairs and end up letting gravity take over causing them to develop an arc over time in their backs. Secondly, their necks push forward and out of line and lastly their shoulders cave. Sitting on a stability ball in front of your computer can help, because it trains you to activate your core muscles to stay upright, but the main problem is that the average person doesn't every do any preventative movements/ exercises to stop the problems before they start. We do a lot of bending forward in life, but rarely bend backwards. We all need to do exercises like bridges, hip raises and backbends to help with the flexibility and strength of our hips and lower back, these reverse movements are critical.
CP you should make a sticky on hip flexibility/ stregthening and glute activation. I think you know quite a bit about this subject.

Originally Posted by Bakerboy

I think part of the reason so many people get lower back injuries is due to this lack of mobility/ activation that you mentioned above due to sitting for long periods in a chair. As a person gets tired from sitting, their posture often breaksdown. Sitting in a chair for long periods of time is horrible for your whole body. What usually happens is not pretty. Firstly, as people get tired they de-activating their abdominals and lower back muscles, and sink deaper into their chairs and end up letting gravity take over causing them to develop an arc over time in their backs. Secondly, their necks push forward and out of line and lastly their shoulders cave. Sitting on a stability ball in front of your computer can help, because it trains you to activate your core muscles to stay upright, but the main problem is that the average person doesn't every do any preventative movements/ exercises to stop the problems before they start. We do a lot of bending forward in life, but rarely bend backwards. We all need to do exercises like bridges, hip raises and backbends to help with the flexibility and strength of our hips and lower back, these reverse movements are critical.
CP you should make a sticky on hip flexibility/ stregthening and glute activation. I think you know quite a bit about this subject.

The sticky about warming up includes information on dynamic flexibility training and glute activation exercises. I might dedicate something purely to working on improving posture and link it up somewhere though.

Originally Posted by PWGriffin

Well, first I avoided the particular exercise I was doing when I hurt it (scared lol) I didn't go to the doctor right away(no insurance), so I had NO IDEA that it was hamstring tension, I thought it was disc related...I took a week off from the gym altogether....when I came back, I made an effort to warm up better.....(we are also talking about a time when I didn't know SHIT about resistance training, I just worked out recreationally heh) And I didn't go as heavy and did more reps. This was in no attempt to strengthen the weakened area, in fact I did nothing to isolate the erectors.

So in light of the fact that I did nothing to stretch my hammies out and started lifting heavy again not too long after, you can imagine I've strained it since then. Last time I strained it I went STRAIGHT to the doctor...he relieved me when he said it was just a good muscle strain and ice it/heat it and don't go to the gym for a week. When he checked my hams he was like SHIT, this is your problem!!....When I first went back after the last strain I just avoided hack squats and leg presses and no deadlifts until I was fully recovered, and now I stretch regularly....sometimes if my back begins to burn, or maybe even ache a little...I stretch and it almost INSTANTLY feels better. Haven't missed a deadlifting session since!!! And I do so LOVE deads...fav exercise by far.

I wouldn't consider your injury a weakness...just an obstacle to overcome or even completely work around. Do a lot of rotator warm ups and avoid barbell work until it is 100%. I was helping a guy in the gym with a shoulder problem not too long ago when he asked me to spot him on a flat BB Press...I later had him doing exercises that IMO put less stress on the shoulders and he later thanked me tremendously for helping him with the first workout he's had where his shoulder didn't bother him. What's funny...this guy was HUGE!! LOL....if I was that big I wouldn't take advice from ANYBODY, I would be A COMPLETE ASSHOLE lol.

That makes alot of sense, thanks for providing details. I am guilty of ignoring advice in the past to effectively warm up and stretch as I just wanted to get stuck into lifting. Sometimes you just want a quick fix so you can get back to where you left off and you think simple advice like that just wont cut it.

I understand your point on weakness. I guess when I get to a certain level of strength and can no longer achieve it I get negative can consider myself to be weaker. My shoulder injury was really tough as I had made alot of progress up until then and everything came to an abrupt end. It was tough to train around as obviously I could not do any pressing movements, but even most pulling movements I felt pain and even during squats my rhomboid would feel painful.

One final question, for muscle strains my physio is a huge advocate of applying heat as much as possible. You mentioned you have had advice to apply ice/heat. Would you consider one to be more effective than the other for a muscle strain?

Originally Posted by blueboy75

That makes alot of sense, thanks for providing details. I am guilty of ignoring advice in the past to effectively warm up and stretch as I just wanted to get stuck into lifting. Sometimes you just want a quick fix so you can get back to where you left off and you think simple advice like that just wont cut it.

I understand your point on weakness. I guess when I get to a certain level of strength and can no longer achieve it I get negative can consider myself to be weaker. My shoulder injury was really tough as I had made alot of progress up until then and everything came to an abrupt end. It was tough to train around as obviously I could not do any pressing movements, but even most pulling movements I felt pain and even during squats my rhomboid would feel painful.

One final question, for muscle strains my physio is a huge advocate of applying heat as much as possible. You mentioned you have had advice to apply ice/heat. Would you consider one to be more effective than the other for a muscle strain?

Don't do any hard stretching before you lift..just warm up really good and stretch post workout...

The Ice/Heat thing....sometimes the same person will tell you ice that once told you heat....sometimes they'll say use both. I don't know all the differences but I don't think one is better than the other.

My understanding is that you want to use ice initially for the first few days while there is still swelling. Excessive inflammation can slow down healing. Once the inflammation goes down, which is generally within a few days, it is a good idea to start applying heat. At least, this is what the physical therapist told me when I subluxed my shoulder almost a year ago.