DLing from the knees in a rack

[Bonkme2]

I've been experimenting with doing some heavy lockout work for my squat and bench. Both are climbing faster than I thought was possible, so I decided to try some deadlifts for the first time in a few months.

Shattered my old record.
405x3 (previous best was 365x2)

So I decided to try some lockout work on the deadlift too. Kept the weight at 405 and set the pins in the rack right at my knees. Grabbed the bar and...

It wouldn't budge. Not an inch.

So my question is, what's the difference? Why can I do it from the floor and not from my knees? Where is my weakness? (It wasn't fatigue. Honestly, I think I could have done more. I just was a little unsure about handling so much more weight than I did a few months ago)

 

[Fajitas]

^^

 

[Hugesquat]

I would say its your technic in the deadlift. Iam guessing when you deadlift you arent using your legs long enough throughout the lift,so when you are rack pulling your legs are almost straight. When you deadlift of the ground you must not let your hips rise before the bar,they must rise together.Hope this helps.

 

[H_T_]

make sure your legs are not locked, keep `em bent for rack pulls.

 

[WalkingBeast]

I had a similiar problem if I tried rack deads at knee level. My knees were too close to the bar and it was awkward. Instead I used the lowest setting in the power rack which had the bar at upper shin level. Right below the knee caps. I was able to lift much more that way. Above the knee caps however, I can lift MUCH more. Its when the bar is right at knee cap level that fucks me up. Just my experience. Doing them above the knee caps is a very small range of motion and basically just the lockout portion. Id reccomend you try upper shin level if you havent already. I did these more then full deadlifts. They translated greatly to my full deadlift strength also. What helped me to go from 405 to 505 in 14 months was alternating between rack deads at upper shin level and full deads from the floor. I also did a variation of deads I called Beast Lifts. These were done with the bar behind the legs and I could lift much more weight this way. Probabally contributed to fucking up my back though. My deadlift and back sessions were extremely long. I would basically deadlift from the rack for weeks until I hit a plateau. If I couldnt break that plateau after a few sessions, Id move back to the floor and build that up. When I plateaud with that is was back to the rack. Id keep alternating like that. Worked real well for me. Flat shoes also made a big difference. I used converse. Hope that helps! KILL THAT SHIT!!

 

[H_T_]

I had a similiar problem if I tried rack deads at knee level. My knees were too close to the bar and it was awkward. Instead I used the lowest setting in the power rack which had the bar at upper shin level. Right below the knee caps. I was able to lift much more that way. Above the knee caps however, I can lift MUCH more. Its when the bar is right at knee cap level that fucks me up. Just my experience.

exactly the same way i do `em, over or under.

 

[DieselGunz]

How does flat shoes help with deadz?

 

[Slyder190]

I set the pins at the lowest setting myself. Your problem may be you're starting right at knee level, this is just a guess however. You should easily be able to lift more weigth with rack deads than regular deads. I don't like regular deads. they're a good over-all body movement, but if it's back I'm targeting, then racks are where it's at as regular deads involve the hams and glutes a bit too much for me.

 

[Bonkme2]

Thanx guys.
I was trying it right from the knees, and it was kinda awkward, but didn't think much of it since I had never tried it from a rack before. I'll try lowering or raising the pins and see how it goes.

Thanx again

 

[curgeo]

A couple things could be the reason:

When you are pulling from the rack, you are probably pulling from a different position than when you pull from the floor. Usually people take a stronger position in the rack, but it could be different in your case.

You probably get good leg drive and speed from the floor to overcome the top weakness(if you have one). It is a blessing.....not everyone can be fast in fact I train specifically for that so consider yourself ahead of the game already in terms of speed.

My racks used to be a weak point for me because my upper back was weaker than it should be. I am not saying that is your problem or problems.....I'm just giving you a couple of theories that may or may not be the case.

 

[WalkingBeast]

How does flat shoes help with deadz?

Leverage. Most running shoes not only have a thick sole, that elevates you off the ground (increasing range of motion for the lift), but are also slightly more elevated in that back. With a pair of regular sneakers youre tilted forward more, and dont want to be angled forward while trying to pull the bar up and back. With a flat shoe, the sole is usually thinner (decreasing pulling distance slightly) and the shoe is level. The flat shoe allows you to pull straight up and back, without falling forward. Deadlifting in socks even proved better for me, then using sneakers. When I switched to the converse from sneakers I noticed a big difference.

 

[curgeo]

Chuck Taylor's baby! You can't beat 'em.