Treenerid selgitavad jõutõmbe tehnikat jõusaalis

Coaches answer: the deadlift and your back

Coaches Answer IV tackles two very familiar gym debates: is it okay to bounce the barbell off the floor in the deadlift, and is the bent-over barbell row the best choice for your back? The short answer: technique should serve the muscle, not the ego. When the movement turns into momentum, bounce and a rescue operation for the lower back, it’s worth revisiting the weight and the choice of exercise.

Why do coaches talk about pausing in the deadlift?

The deadlift and the clean start from the same honest place: the barbell is on the floor and you have to get it moving. Some lifters stop for a moment after every repetition, take a breath, brace and start the next pull as if it were the first. Others let the barbell hit the floor hard, use the bounce and go straight into the next repetition.

Personally, I prefer and recommend the first option. The barbell shouldn’t bounce up off the floor. Before the next concentric phase it should be still for a moment, because then momentum isn’t helping you. All the work has to come from your own strength. That is exactly the point of the exercise.

When bouncing becomes a habit, the reason is often simple: the lower back can’t control the movement. The weight may look bigger on paper, but a bounce off the floor won’t make you stronger. A controlled start, proper bracing and a repetition you really do yourself will.

Honestly, injuries come into it too. A pause after the repetition is gentler on the spine and gives you a better chance to reset your position. That doesn’t mean every repetition has to be a slow ritual. It means every repetition has to be under your control.

How do coaches judge back rows?

The bent-over barbell row is an old, well-known back exercise. The question isn’t whether the exercise is completely bad. The question is whether you feel your lats working during it, or whether you’re yanking the weight up with everything else.

In practice it often goes like this: the movement starts with the quads and glutes, then the lower back and biceps take over. The lats, the whole reason for doing the exercise, are left in a supporting role. If you don’t feel the work where you should feel it, the name of the exercise doesn’t matter much.

The second issue is range of motion. Whether you row the barbell to below your chest or to your stomach, the barbell’s path often ends before the muscle gets to go through its full range. That limits feel and can turn the exercise into moving weight rather than training the back.

Instead, try the one-arm bent-over dumbbell row. It gives the elbow joint more freedom. In one workout you can pull more vertically upward, in the next more diagonally backward. That way you can bring different parts of the lats into play more effectively.

What should you actually do in the gym?

In the deadlift, use the full range of motion and let the barbell come to rest on the floor for a moment after the repetition. That small pause makes the repetition more honest. Yes, the weight may be slightly lower, but the goal isn’t to go around bouncing the barbell. The goal is a stronger body and a healthier back.

In back rows, choose the exercise by what you feel. If the bent-over barbell row goes mainly into the lower back and biceps, there’s no need to cling to it stubbornly. Add the one-arm dumbbell row for a few weeks and see whether your back starts working better.

Ronnie Coleman is a good example that the exercise itself isn’t to blame. He has been seen doing barbell rows very cleanly, with 5 20 kg plates on each side. The same goes for T-bar rows: 16 plates on and technique still disciplined. That is a rare skill, not a license for every lifter to fling the weight around.

T-bar rows usually have a shorter range of motion, but thanks to the heavy loads they can be a good exercise for building back mass. A simple truth: an exercise works when you work correctly. When your form falls apart, it’s often the lower back that ends up doing the work.

Coaches aren’t looking for a magic formula

Many people want to hear one definite answer. One exercise, one method, one path. But strength training doesn’t work that way. Bent-over barbell rows may suit your back routine very well for a while. In a few weeks it may be smart to try something else.

Good training doesn’t mean every exercise has to stay in your program forever. It means you keep an eye on feel, technique and recovery. If the paused deadlift gives you a better quality of strength, use the pause. If the dumbbell row helps you feel your back better, use the dumbbell.

So what actually happens? You stop chasing weight at any cost and start judging the quality of the repetition. It’s duller than a magic formula, but it works far better.

FAQ

Do you have to pause between every repetition in the deadlift?

If the goal is strength, technique and a safe position, a pause is a very good option. It helps you avoid the bounce and forces you to brace your body again at the start of every repetition.

Is the bent-over barbell row a bad exercise?

It isn’t bad, but many people do it in a way that doesn’t give the lats enough work. If you mainly feel your lower back and arms, try the one-arm dumbbell row for a change.

Does heavier weight mean better back training?

Not always. Heavy weight is useful only if your technique holds together and the target muscle does the work. Otherwise you’re training momentum more than your back.

The questions are answered by Charles Poliquin. The article comes from www.T-Nation.com, from the section “Q & A with one of the world’s premier strength coaches!!!