220kg Deadlift…
Today, I intended to take things easy.
Today, I wanted to do a light workout, to make sure I’m full on energy for Tough Guy at the weekend.
Today, I did not want to deadlift…
…but that was before somebody told me I couldn’t.
“You’ll never lift that” was the exact expression used. “Not even in a year.”
That was enough of a challenge for me.
“You’re just not strong enough.” That was taking it took far.
Before I go any further, I must clarify something. What I was attempting was not a straight-from-the-ground, balls to the wall deadlift. Instead, I was doing a partial deadlift – without the Smith Machine (see below).
[youtube height=”640″ width=”360″]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X7z21GdJ-Mw[/youtube]In an attempt to see if he would be able to lift 220kg (484 lbs) in a year’s time, somebody at the gym had raised the bar off the ground – to mid-shin height. By doing this, he had made the lift that bit easier – if he could lift it from there, he was hoping to be able to lift it clean from the ground some time in the not-too-distance future.
Before either of us had a chance to try it, however, we were lucky enough to get some advice and coaching from a super-strong powerlift/boxing trainer, by the name of Taz. Thanks to Daz, our little experiment turned into a gruelling deadlifting session, the likes of which I did not need 90 hours before an endurance event.
Seven sets of five deadlifts later (at 60, 80, 100, 120, 140, 160 and 180kg)…I was exhausted. Ready, as it turned out, to attempt the single biggest lift of my life thus far.
With Taz spotting me (which, in deadlift terms, involves placing a fist under the other guy’s chin and screaming like a madman), I hauled the bar up and, to my surprise, completed the lift! Then I did it again…and again!
By the time the bar crashed down for the third time, I was pretty sure my head was about to explode. But that didn’t matter. All that mattered was that I’d grabbed something 2.93x the weight of my entire body…and lifted the fucker. What’s more, I did it raw; no straps, no belts – just a bit of chalk and a lot of fire.
No doubt there’s a long way to go until I can do that straight off the ground. But three raised reps after seven sets…that’s a pretty good start 🙂
Tomorrow I’ll do a light workout (I hope), then rest until Sunday. Then all Hell breaks loose!!