Weight Lifting techniques and tips

Nice strength numbers, kudos!

However, I genrally disagree with the strechting part; especially when starting a training with it.
Think of if like hitting the throttle on your cold Ferrari engine; it needs to warm up first. All the fluids need to be distributed and warm before it's primed and ready to be taxed. Strechting is also puting stress on your muscles.
Unless we're talking about dynamic stretching or light warm up excersies, that's a different ball game.
But in general 20-30min is really too much time to get warm.
Your set up for the deadlift is spot on, so I would do a bit dynamic work and get to it. Why waste time and energy!?

 

Initially I was going to comment on the bar movement, but then I realized you are very, very tall and did another few viewings. Form is nice and spot on.
Well done sir!

 

Ok, just so I understand correctly, your deadlift is the main 'attraction'of the day, correct?
Your warm up consists of just the 2 sets of squats at bodyweight?
Your first 'real' set is right after the squats is leg extensions to failure with no warm up sets?
After the legg work you follow up with a more posterior chain/hamstring exercise the deadlift?
Painfull right knee you mention....
You said in a previous post that you do work with a personal trainer?
Did he set up this programming for you or is this your idea?
Do you do other leg work during the week or is this it?

Sorry for the many questions, but when you are at your height and have a bad knee and you follow the above program, I do question the program (a lot) as it doesn't make sense with all due respect....! Don't want to sound like a ****, but this is setting you up for injury....

For one, you never, ever, ever, ever (EVER) have someone with a bad knee start with leg extensions! It places the wrong stress on the wrong place at the wrong time in a program.
Doing leg extensions to "pre-fatigue" quadriceps was a nice old school method bodybuilders used to do in the 80's and 90's (Tom Platz). We're (should be) much smarter these days.

 

Thanks.

Unfortunately I have super tight hamstrings and poor ankle mobility. I’ve found I really need that time to get things warmed up and loose. It especially helps with back squats. It’s all really light and very easy but it seems to make a difference.

Next time I’ll try less and see how it goes. Could just be I think it works out of habit.

 

Instead of doing stretches, try doing active work like body weight squats.
Each warm up set you can try to do them a biot more explosive. Anotehr great way to activate more motor units for that additional explosiveness with deadlift/squats.

Another option is to do a hamstring machine before doing deadlifts.squats.
Especially doing 1 exercise before doing quads (squats/legg press) will improve your lifts actually.
By doing 1 exercise (3-4 sets with 10-15 reps) of hamstrings first you will not fatigue them (even when going to failure) but you will activate them.
Doing deadlifts and squats after will feel actually realy great. You will have more stability and 'feel' in your legs.
Everyone is afraid of doing this first as "it may cost strength; and Lord forbid that's impossible", but the opposite is true for most lifters. They get a much much better connection and thus are stronger.
Give it a try and let us know!

 

OK, thanks for clearing that up.
So you do Leg extensions at the end more or less of your session?
I hope so as doing an isolation exercise first with a heavy stress on the knee joint is not smart programming....

Why not shift the deadlifts more towards the front of your training. It's propabbaly the most demanding CNS exercise you can do. So you'll need as much motor units you can recruit for it.
The other lifts will take a logical back seat; which is actually fine with your training.

IMHO the deadlift is a grossly overrated exercise for muscle growth. Strength wise and CNS stimulation it's awesome. But it always comes with a heavy, heavy toll. The CNS and overall stress is higher then what most lifters feel. Meaning the risk vs reward is completely out of wack with the deadlift.
If you love it, keep doing it.
But if you are using it for a specific goal, there are better exercises; especially with your height.

 

Very nice. Form always over weight indeed!

 

Start lifting in the gym again after a 1 week vacation, followed by 1 week back and another 2 weeks of vacation. So realy 1 month of hardly any lifting (yeah, I know..!) and copious amounts of food and alcohol!
Been tough and I'm aching everywhere.
On top of that an injury I occured well over a month ago (technician slammed the door close whilst leaning on the rollcage of my Challenge on my elbow) has started to realy flare up.
Feeling like an old man right now and "I should have never taken a break" -thoughts are running through my mind again.
I understand we sometimes need a break from lifting, get some rest, etc etc, but dammit this also sucks!

Back to active recovery right now... with no Ibuprofen (as that stuff in straight up poison)

 

Hope you bounce back quick!

I hate missing weeks. It’s especially tough for cardio and running. It only takes one week to lose a good percentage of your capacity. I was also sick two weeks ago. Still don’t feel 100% but I push thru best I can.

We can rest when we’re dead.

 

Yeah, thanks it’s just one of those things. Have to work around injuries. I’m part to blame myself as well. Decades of lifting with stupid form has left it’s mark…
I started my BPC 157 protocol again which has yielded great results in the past.

 

I have to tip my cap sir. You must get an incredible workout just dragging your enormous balls around all day. I simply don’t have the nutsack for singles. I use to love maxing out 20 years ago, but now that I am in my 50’s, singles come with too much risk and not near enough reward. I seldom go below 5 reps and I always leave one in the pocket.

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Again, kudos for pushing hard (for your age), but with all due respect, you can do better.
It's tough for me to explain as I lack the photoshop skills.... but here goes.

Your style is very tough on your joints, but also very limited on tricep involvement.
Yes you can move a ton on weight in this way. Agreed. But I doubt you are doing it this way to set a new skull crusher record.

Before you start the movement you have set up the bar in a 90degree angle of your body.
Simply due to mechanics it's a very strong position. In fact you can probably set up a bar in this way with 2x the weight you are handling.
Key here actually is when you hold this position and when you initiate the position ther eis very little tricep involvement. You lock down on your entire upper body and joint, but do little to 'isolate' your triceps. As a results you train your triceps with a very limited range AND you increase risk of injury almost 4x when making a small adjustment.
Another key factor is also that you limited the range of motion due to how your elbow breaks. We train tricepos by extending our elbows and trying to get an angle that is much bigger than 90degrees. In fact, we want to aim to go past 180degrees.
I will admit that's tough with skull crushers, but we can do better.

Here's how:

And the initial part is extremely difficult and only applies to serious and advanced lifters. Very FEW lifters will get this. I have 30+ years of experience and I have a tough time understanding it as well. No joke.
Ok, her egoes....:

You take 50% off the weight you are doing right now.

Crap! Yup, you see that's the challenge here. Going lighter and keeping our ego in check.
Again, no offense, I'm guilty as well!

OK, once you've overcome that resentment/hate/doubt, we set things up correctly.

First, you take the weight and roll back just like you did. However, before you start the actuall movement you move your arms about 30-45degrees back. So whne you start the movement your triceps already have 70-90% of the load already.
This will set up your neurological parthways to fully focus on the triceps.
You continue dropping the weight until the bar is below your head.
Initial thinking is that this could become a back exercise but the opposite is true, you continue to bvend the elbow and thus get an even bigger stretch on your triceps. Your triceps will continue to be taxed, quite simply because that's how you initiated the movement.
When you fire back up you go back to the starting position; but NEVER like your starting position. We want to load to remain on the triceps.

Think of it like doing a HARD lock out with legg presses. No one does those as they will fok up your knees. You keep tension on your quads. So why do it on triceps!?

When you try this simply just once, just once, you will feel a difference in mind muscle connection and pump that is night and day.
I kid you not.

We can debate sets and reps, volume, each and every day.
But not proper form.

Don't believe me, do a Youtube search on skull crushers with true excersie specialist and not Tiktok stars. They will all preach this form.

Again, don't want to sound like an @ss here or try to win a Forum war.
I nearly tore my tricep by doing this exact exercise incorrect becasue no one (at that time) showed me how to properly move and I simply did it just you are doing it right now.
If you don't want to take my word for it, that's fine.
Just doing 1 proper set will be enough to convince you.
Or do a youtube/google search.

I would genuingly be sorry if you got hurt and I didn't warn you.
Elbow injuries are the absolute worst; together with shoulder injuriues and they will haunt you for a lifetime (like me!)

 

Understood.
I know exactly where you are coming from. Form over weight. But my point was not about going lighter.
It was about using proper technique to load the correct muscle.

Another gerat example if “ kipping” vs chin ups.
In the end both aim to get your chin up over the bar, yet it’s easy to see what is the proper way to target you back (and biceps) and thus get a beter stimulus.

Again, I just wish I could show you in real life.
It’s not magic; just applied science and training mechanics.
very, very, very few trainers understand how it actually works.
We/they tend to focus too much on various sets and reps and wok loads, deloads, drop set, variation, etc, etc.
When at the end of the day virtually no one actually says “ well hold on a bit. Everything starts with how to properly do an exercise in the first place!”

It’s rare that few people master that art.
We all are guilty of it. Myself included. I taught myself the improper way to do certain exercises… and had to pay the price for it later in life.
Now after 30 years of going to the gym unlearning how to improper form is hard.
Not only for mechanics, but also ego wise.
It’s soo much more fun to do a 400pounds bench press than a 200 pound.
Until something snaps…..

Again, mind you everything I’m mentioning here applies on musclebuilding. This is not powerlifting advice!
(Although the worlds best powerlifters will all claim you must master proper form to be able to add weight).
Do me a favor, give my form a proper run the next workout. (Even to just shut me up) If possible film it.
I have yet to meet someone that did the (proper) execution that didn’t say “ aha, this feels different (and better)!”

 

That weight loss is mighty impressive.
50lbs in 4-5 months. Over 10lbs per month is more or less the swwet spot of where you want to be with weight (fat) loss.
I think most would be happy with your before pic....!
Slow and steady wins the race that is called life.