The Deadlift (and lower back pain)


On Saturday morning, I did some deadlifts at a high intensity at 185#.  This is well below my max, but 72 hours later, my back is still killing me.  I suspect it’s just DOMS as the pain didn’t start until about 24 hours later, but I don’t doubt that I need to work on my form quite a bit as lower back pain is somewhat debilitating.

A really nice interview with powerlifter Eric Cressey is over on  Precision Nutrition.  Eric provides some good advice on technique and how the wrong technique can cause injury.  For me, I think I lift too much with my lower back instead of my hips.  Actually, I know that’s the problem.  For my next deadlifting session, I’m going to go lighter and work on form.





2 Comments, Comment or Ping

  1. Don’t lift…stay back on your heels and push the floor away from you and make sure you are tight. Having done deads today, my 0.02 worth.

    February 9th, 2008

  2. Jamie

    Thanks for the tip Mark. Definitely an issue with technique and bad form. At first, I think I was doing well. Once I got into 30, plus reps at the weight I was doing them at, my form started really falling apart and began lifting with my back more and less with my hips and legs.

    My lesson, after a week of sore backness : high reps = go significantly lighter. For me, I think I would have been far better off at about 50 to 60% of my max.

    February 11th, 2008

Reply to “The Deadlift (and lower back pain)”

Blog Traffic Exchange Related Websites
  • blog traffic exchangeDiva Cup Review: Going Green On A Personal Level. The following is a guest post from my friend Mrs Micah, who writes about "Finance for a Freelance Life". If you are squirmish about female anatomy, or have the maturity of a 7 year old, you should consider skipping over this post. According to the Women's Environmental Network (PDF), as......
  • blog traffic exchangeDiscover 3 Creative Visualization Techniques That Really Work I know these techniques work because I, or the people I know, have had direct experiences of results coming out of putting these creative visualization techniques into practice. "Treasure Map" The treasure map technique simply involves you creating a tangible picture of what you want. You can either......
  • blog traffic exchangeTop 7 Truths You Must Know About To Make Any Creative Visualization Technique Work Top 7 Truths You Must Know About To Make Any Creative Visualization Technique Work What do you really want out of a creative visualization (cv) technique that you had just gotten out of a "Guided Imagery" book (maybe by Shakti Gawain) you borrowed from the library or a "Creative Visualization"......
  • blog traffic exchangeHow To Build A Squeeze Page That Works Building a squeeze page that works is one of the key skills that you need to have in internet marketing. In case you do not know, a squeeze page is a webpage where there is only one option for the visitor, usually to fill out an opt-in email form. They......
  • blog traffic exchangeThe Secret to Getting Out of Debt: Forget Snowballs and Interest Rates I was in debt for nearly ten years, and for ten years I tried every debt elimination method known to mankind. I was like the overweight person who has tried every diet, but years later finds themselves more overweight than when they started. The last two years of my personal......

Blog Traffic Exchange Related Posts
  • blog traffic exchangeMore Evidence that Lack of Sleep Kills I've blogged about the importance of sleep numerous times now.  In my last sleep related post, I talked about a Tokyo based study which looked at how the lack of sleep could increase one's risk of cardiovascular disease. Today, an article from Reuters says that findings from a study lead......
  • blog traffic exchangeMens Health Fitness Challenge Men's Health has a great fitness challenge in their latest issue. The challenge is also available on their website, here. Measure how many reps you can perform of single leg squats, chinups, pushups, measure your vertical jump height and how fast you can run a mile. Enter your scores in......
  • blog traffic exchangeTaking the Soreness out of Muscle and Joint Sorenesss Running, lifting, biking...  Three great ways to get in a workout.  Three great ways to give yourself some muscle or joint soreness. Yesterday I did the Oktoberfest 5k race in Waterloo.  It was lots of fun and I posted a new personal best for the 5k.  This personal best turned......
  • blog traffic exchangeHow to Boost Metabolic Rate to Increase Fat Loss It's no secret that metabolism plays a huge role in weight maintenance and muscle building.  But first things first, what is metabolism?  And what does it mean to say metabolic rate? A person's metabolism is the chemical pathways that take molecules in one form and convert them to some......
  • blog traffic exchangeHealth and Fitness Links Roundup - March 1, 2009 Science Daily: Research points to exercise being the most effective prevention of low-back problems. Strong and consistent evidence finds many popular prevention methods fail to be effective at preventing lower back problems, while exercise has been found to have a significant impact, both in terms of preventing symptoms and reducing......