beware the deadlift

I did this strength routine yesterday. Most things I did two sets of 10-15 with weights between 3 and 10 lbs, and I traded walking lunges for the assisted lunges. Squats were done without the stability ball, and with 8-lb dumbbells on my shoulders. I did one set of pushups from the wall and one on the floor, and I did 3 sets of 12 on the abs (1 crunches, 1 reverse crunches, 1 with twisting).

Overall, I think it went pretty well. I felt everything where I was supposed to feel it, and I'm pleasantly sore today. Except for one thing--the deadlifts. I've never really done much with deadlifts, and since I was alone in the workout room yesterday I couldn't really ask anyone if it looked like I was doing them right. It certainly didn't feel like I was doing them right. I was expecting it to be a hamstring exercise, and the only place I felt it was in my lower back. I stopped after one set, because I was afraid that I might be doing more harm than good if my form wasn't right (not that you can really do much harm lifting a flippin' stability ball, but you know what I mean).

By the time I finished my recovery walk last night, though, I was beginning to think that maybe I hadn't been doing the deadlifts so badly after all. By the end of Without a Trace, I was sure of it. And this morning, when my hamstrings were screaming at me with every step, I thought that maybe I did work them a little harder than I thought.

Now, I know that the deadlifts weren't the only exercise in there that worked the hamstrings...the squats, the lunges, even the walking worked them, I'm sure. But the deadlifts were the only thing that was really supposed to target them specifically, and I was sure that I wasn't doing them right. But I guess maybe I was, after all.

Also, ow.

According the the kathy smith dvd deadlifts works the lower back. I'm guessing you got the hammies w/those other moves.

hmm...I thought straight-leg deadlifts were a hamstring exercise. And maybe they do both, but I guess I considered them primarily hams, which is why I was so sure I was doing them wrong.

though I guess it would have been clearer what I was doing if I had actually used the words "straight-leg deadlift" in the post at all. :P The pictures in the link show it, but it's not really all that clear here.

Regular deadlifts (bending the knees and picking something up), from what I understand, are mainly lower back exercises...so hey, we're both right! :)

Congrats on a great strength training workout, Joy.

Deadlifts are actually one of those exercises that you don't necessarily "feel" until the next day. Or at least that's pretty much been the case with me, with the exception of the time frame in which I was lifting heavy. (Then I felt it immediately.) They are also one of the top three total body exercises, the other two being the bench press and squat. If you take a look at this,

http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/ErectorSpinae/BBStraightLegDeadlift.html

you'll see that the target muscle group for the deadlift is the lower back. However, it also requires the use of the hamstrings, glutes, and hips in order to pull off the movement. And it uses stabilizers such as the traps (this is where I tend to feel the heavy deadlifts the most), upper and middle back, and even the abdominals.

One tip that helps me with the straight-leg deadlift and making sure I have the proper form (which is really important when you start lifting weight with dumbbells or barbells), when you tip at the hip to go down be sure to really stick your butt out behind you. This will ensure that you get that stretch down the hamstrings and you will definitely feel it the next day.

Ok. My two cents is officially used up. Hope you can use it. :)

ahh...I didn't click the link :p

You're so fair making up both right ;) lol

Yeah, we'll go with that...I like being fair. It sounds better than just saying that I'm talking out of my ass most of the time when it comes to all things fitness. :)

I really need to put up some kind of disclaimer: "What you read here is based solely on anecdotal evidence, magazine articles, websites, skimmed chapters of books, or perhaps scraps of knowledge that the author picked up in an overheard conversation at the gym 3 years ago. She is not afraid to be wrong and insist that she's right. When proven wrong (or even not 100% right), she reserves the right to feel like a complete idiot, admit it, then stop talking about it altogether and hope that everyone forgets she ever said anything. So please, for your own safety and in the name of all that is holy and good, do not take anything written on this page as fact unless reliable outside sources are provided."

I may have to tweak it a little, though. :)