Category Archives: Mechanics/Technique

Ladies First

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That is a video of my friend Antoinette deadlifting 250 for a single. A couple of weeks ago she e-mailed me telling me that her deadlift PR was 230 for a double, so 250 ain’t too shabby (she did it after being sick for two weeks too). I think Antoinette’s video has good timing for two reasons; it dispels some myths about girls who lift and let’s us have a talk about lifting mechanics.

Girls and Lifting
I’ve written about this before, but it’s still difficult to convince girls that lifting is not going to make them “bulky” or “big”. On one hand, it sounds ridiculous to the informed, but on the other hand, the strongest women are also the biggest women. As with men, the strongest lifters get the most publicity, so it’s natural for the average gal to see the bigger gals lifting. What they don’t see are all of the other weight classes lifting either, and these girls are usually in great aesthetic shape (like the gals here).

Girls always want to be “toned”. I don’t know what the hell the definition for “toned” is, but it can be deciphered as “I want less body fat and although I don’t know it yet, I’ll need some muscle underneath it to look how I want to.” Even girls who participated in sports in high school grow soft after not doing anything athletic for a while, and thus they don’t have much decent muscle mass. That’s just how the body works

Enter barbell training. Squatting, pressing, and deadlifting helps girls get stronger (which is never a bad thing) as well as developing a nice, shapely body (i.e. the appropriately curvy body they are wanting anyway). Nobody wants to have a flat butt, right?

Olympian weightlifter Melanie Roach (center) is a good lookin' 53kg lifter



Aside from the aesthetic results of lifting, girls are usually thrilled with the improvement that they can make with their strength, enjoy the challenge, and a few will go onto compete. Competing isn’t just a man’s realm; anybody can benefit from preparing for a contest and performing in a structured and high adrenaline environment.

In this instance, Antoinette picked up lifting and has a Paleo-type diet, and she has leaned out, dropped bodyfat, and gained muscle. She told that me that her friends think that she has lost weight, and then she tells them, “No, I’ve gained about 15 pounds, but lost fat and inches and my pants are falling off.” Sounds like crazy talk, but hopefully we can make it sane. Nice job, Antoinette.

Pulling Mechanics
Ah, now that we got that out of the way, we can scrutinize her lift. It’s important to note that this is a max or near maximal attempt for Antoinette. Form is not only expected to break down, but it should if you’re doing a maximal rep. As Rippetoe always says, if you are able to do it with perfect form, then the weight isn’t heavy enough and it isn’t your max. With that being said, I’m not sure how Antoinette lifts on her training sets because I don’t coach her (so I don’t know if this form fault is habitual or appearing on the max).

You can see that she has a good starting position (chest squeezed up correctly, bar underneath the scapula, bar over midfoot, etc.), but the first thing that happens as she pulls the bar off the ground is she loses tightness by raising her butt a little bit. This angles her chest down which helps round her lower and upper back round as a result. If your butt raises as you pull off the floor, then your knees extend just a little bit. This is a problem for two reasons:

1.Your quadriceps are the muscles that extend the knees, and if the knees extend and the bar doesn’t move up, then the quads haven’t done any work on the bar. This means that you are removing them from helping, and lifting with less muscles isn’t as fun..
2. The hamstrings are the muscles that flex the knee and extend the hip. They attach up under the butt cheek, and when your knees do their job correctly (in this case, correct would mean not extending early like they are here to help lift the bar) then the hamstrings would stay tight, and that tightness helps hold the back angle in place. Antoinette’s butt raises because her hamstrings do not maintain tension, and then the quadriceps don’t help the bar off the floor. This means that the low back will carry the brunt of the load if the bar is going to be lifted in this mechanically disadvantageous angle. It’s important to note that if you’re in a meet situation, bad form is not a sign that you should just stop the lift, and she does a good job of continuing to pull the bar.

Now here’s how we can improve in the short-term.

A good concept to think in Antoinette’s situation is “push the bar away from the floor with your feet”. She’ll set her back angle by squeezing her chest up like normal, and then she’ll think about pushing the floor away with her legs to eliminate the butt raising first. The simple, short cue is “push the floor away” (which is what she could think about or told right before the lift). This cue does a good job of not getting into the minutia of mechanics (which confuses the majority of lifters — or at least confuses their body), and gives the lifter a vague concept to think about and their body will usually get it right. I don’t take credit for it, I learned it from observing Rip (who is good at creating conceptual based cues to not confuse the lifter with little details – a necessary skill for a good coach).

Alas! Not all cues will work with all lifters. People think differently, learn differently, conceptualize differently, and know how to move their body differently. I take all of these variables (and tons more) into account when I coach to figure out what I say next to a lifter. In Antoinette’s case, if we stick with cuing her knees, we could try another cue. The next cue could be “make your knees go back as the bar comes off the floor”. This would make the knees extend off the floor appropriately, and the short, simple version is “knees go back”. I like the first cue better for a few reasons, namely because it simplifies and doesn’t direct the lifter’s attention to one little detail.

If those cues didn’t work, there are plenty of other things to try. I was cuing her knees here, but I could also cue her butt or shoulders since they are different points in the system. As with all things, I use the method that works the highest percentage of the time, and then if it doesn’t work, I figure something else out. It’s like a little puzzle waiting to be solved, but it’s a puzzle that the lifter cannot solve on their own (only a few can). If you’re shitting your pants worrying about what you may be doing when you deadlift (or squat, or press, or snatch, or clean), then you should find a good coach to help you out. There is no substitute for a good coach.

Guest Post: Charles Staley

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I recently hung out with Charles when he came to the WFAC for an interview for the Starting Strength website. I was very amused by his demeanor, his wit, and his almost kid-like playfulness. He’s a successful coach and has an emphasis on training like an athlete instead of a stereotypical fitness “exerciser”. You can get a feel for his style on his website, Staley Training Systems, but this anti-exerciser approach is prevalent in the following article that he wrote.
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Cheating To Win: Why You Should Take The Path Of Least Resistance

by Charles Staley

Cheating is perhaps the most maligned and least appreciated tactic in the weight room. It’s so important in fact, that I consider cheating to be the calling card of skilled lifters.


When we examine the three primary strength sports (weightlifting, powerlifting, and strongman), it’s clear that cheating is an absolute prerequisite for success. Of the three disciplines, I’d argue that weightlifters have elevated the art of cheating to a sweet science. In fact, during the performance of the two competitive events (the snatch and clean & jerk), lifters violate almost every dearly-held notion in the personal training industry:

• During the “catch” phase of both the snatch and clean, lifters allow their knees to drift significantly in front of the toes.

• During the support phase of the snatch and the jerk, lifters aggressively lock their elbow joints against heavy loads.

• Both the snatch and clean start with what amounts to an accelerative deadlift with a heavy weight.

• In training, weightlifters rarely if ever use spotters— if they get into trouble with a lift, they simply drop the barbell on the floor.

• Both weightlifting events, as well as most of the assistance exercises they use, employ the use of maximum speed against the bar.

• Rather than use common set/rep brackets such as 3×10, 5×8, etc., weightlifters typically use many sets of 1-3 reps per set. Additionally, weightlifters avoid “failure” like Brittney avoids panties.

• Your weightlifting coach will never ask “How did that feeeel?” If your lift looked great, there’s no need to ask how it felt. If it sucked, there’s still no reason to ask.

• Weightlifters don’t do “cardio.” Try a clean & jerking a heavy triple and you’ll find out why.

• Weightlifters don’t lift in front of a mirror.

• Weightlifters, by definition, compete. Few weightlifting clubs will tolerate a lifter who won’t lift in meets. At least, not for long

• Weightlifters squat deep. So deep in fact, that there is a competition rule that forbids the lifter from touching his/her butt to the floor at the bottom of a snatch or clean.

• (Along the lines of the last point) weightlifters often round their low backs at the bottom of their squats. What’s that? You can keep your arch when your butt’s an inch from the floor? Send me the video.

• Weightlifters hold their breath during long portions of most lifts. They never “inhale on the lowering phase” or “exhale on the lifting phase.”

• Both the snatch and the jerk, as well as several assistance exercises for these two lifts) involve putting a barbell over your head.

And finally…

• As a global point, weightlifters seek the easiest way to lift a weight, not the hardest way.

It’s possible that I missed a few points, but I think my central point has been made. Now here’s what’s kinda interesting about all of this…

Most people who lift for the sake of improving their appearance typically try to avoid every one of these maneuvers. Yet, not only do weightlifters violate all of these sacred cows, they actually get better aesthetic results than their “exerciser” counterparts do, despite the fact that they don’t really lift for aesthetic purposes!

Recently I noticed a question on an internet forum from a 24-year old man who wanted to look like a mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter, in less than one year, starting from scratch as it were. He got plenty of advice, most of it relating to exercise choices, meal timing, set/rep brackets, and goal setting. My suggestion: if you want to look like an MMA athlete, why not become an (MMA) athlete?

Which of course, is the take-home point of this article. Any takers?

Quick Points On Grip Strength

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I’ll be the first to admit that I don’t know something, and something that I don’t know a whole lot about is grip strength. However, I have a few pointers that may help you include it in your training.

Brent mentioned Chris’ impressive hook grip, but Chris is not the only person to implement a double overhand hook grip (DOHG).Brad Gillingham pulling 881 DOHGY style.



The ease of being able to hold onto a deadlift is dependent on your grip strength, but, as with all of lifting, it is dependent on your anthropometry as well. The anthropometry in question is the total hand size, palm size, and finger length. Larger hands will make deadlifting easier because the circumference of the bar is relatively smaller. On the other hand, smaller hands will make holding onto a bar more difficult because it is analogous to a larger handed man deadlifting with a fat bar (or at least a “fatter bar”). This is the same reason why women’s weightlifting bars are of a smaller circumference of men; they have smaller hands.

This is another reason why not everyone can implement the hook grip; they may not have the hand size to successfully do so. Chris is one of those guys who has some large hands (he calls them “his grips”), and for some reason his thumbs aren’t damaged by the hook grip (we’ll get to this later). Brent, on the other hand, is a 5’5” Korean who has hands like a child. If he is capable of DOHGing his max deadlift, which I don’t think he is, then he will have to work very hard towards that goal.
Total hand size is then broken down into two characteristics: palm size and finger size. Someone can have decently sized hands, but then have shorter fingers with large palms (this describes my hands). In contrast, someone can have very long fingers with a smaller palm area. I’m not sure if this poses a problem for holding onto a barbell – it would seem like it would be the ideal situation.

Now let’s say you have some decently sized hands and you still can’t make DOHG work. In this case, your thumbs probably hurt like a mofo when you try it. Well, as with most things, you’ll have to get adapted to it. Chris was an Olympic weightlifter before he got into powerlifting, so he was comfortable early on with the hook grip. When he trained his deadlift, he naturally used the DOHG. I would even surmise that he used it when he was weaker, and as he got stronger he continued using the DOHG. I know that in the time that I have coached him and trained with him his deadlift has gone from the mid 400’s for reps to the low to mid 600’s – all with a DOHG. This means that A) his hand size permitted him to use the DOHG and B) his DOHG strength adapted with his pulling strength.

But is the DOHG any more impressive than an alternated grip? I guess since the hands are both pronated it makes the rep look more awesome. But remember, the hook grip is used so that A) grip strength isn’t a factor in the lift and B) it allows the grip muscles (that cross the wrist while some also attach at the elbow) to relax and allow the wrist and elbow to pass through their ranges of motion more easily when doing the snatch or the clean. Since these muscles are not all contracting, it makes holding onto the bar easier. Regarding the deadlift, it also prevents any of the imbalances that can occur from having one forearm supinated (whether it be mechanical or anatomical problems). In other words, it makes the deadlift more efficient and safe, and this is why you should use it if you can. But does that mean it’s more impressive? I don’t know. It may be that Chris will need to switch to an alternated grip when his deadlift gets heavier (we have talked about this), but I don’t think he’ll need to. Time will tell as his career progresses.

Regarding grip strength in general, it usually isn’t something a novice should be worrying about. Pull your deadlift warm-ups with an overhand grip and it will improve over time. If you’re able to DOHG it, go ahead, but otherwise alternate your grip when necessary. Both of these methods will still improve your grip strength, although I don’t know by how much. The alternated grip will require the finger flexors to work much harder than in the hook, but this may not be more of a detriment. Remember that an alternated grip makes the bar easier to hold onto because your hands apply torque to the bar in two different directions. This prevents the bar from rolling in any one direction as your hands weaken and probably improves the coefficient of friction as a result.

If you are unable to keep a hold on your deadlifts regardless of the method, then you are probably underweight. Double check this fact by stepping on the scale, and once you are sure, absolutely positive you are a strapping adult male, then we’ve got some weird problems because most decently sized guys can hang onto decent amounts of weight. Nevertheless, we need you to get stronger ASAFP. If you limit your deadlift because you can’t hang onto the bar, then you are also limiting your squat, your muscle mass increases, your hormones from going all crazy to help you grow, and thus you’re indirectly affecting your other lifts. Obviously you need to use straps. You need to be strong NOW.

But they don’t allow straps in meets, so you’ll have to get this shit figured out soon if you’re wanting to compete. In which case you go to the grip gurus and ask them – that ain’t me (Gant will be writing an article for this soon, so be patient). Sure, it’d be great to have your cake (the big deadlift) and eat it too (no straps), but you may be deficient in one of those areas. Get strong, and then worry about the grip later.
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I wouldn’t say the “no straps subculture” (how the hell did we start calling this a subculture, Brent?) is like the “no belts subculture”. The “no belts” guys are just stupid and/or ignorant and usually not very strong. The “no straps” guys are usually veteran lifters who are pretty damn strong. Don’t confuse the two, and don’t insult the “no straps” guys.

But even “no straps” guys would have to agree that they have their use. If you are pretty damn strong in the rack pull, then you will run into a grip problem. There are guys that can rack pull hundreds of pounds more than they can deadlift. If your grip is the limiting factor on an assistance exercise, then you better use straps to allow the relevant muscles to bear the load (erectors of the back, lats, hamstrings, etc.). Not to mention that it is preferable to use an overhand grip in pulling assistance exercises (like rack pulls, halting deadlifts, stiff legged deadlifts, Romanian deadlifts, etc.) because it works the muscles in symmetry and also prevents any asymmetry related injuries to occur (e.g. straining or tearing a biceps tendon).

Regarding Brent’s inquiries about Kroc Rows and wearing a shirt, I’ll let my friend Mike comment on the rows tomorrow. But for fuck’s sake, keep your shirt on if you’re in a gym you don’t own.

Double overhand hook grip deadlifts?

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Hey man,

After seeing Chris pull, I think a lot of us have come to feel that there is a certain coolness to pulling heavy deadlifts with a double overhand hook grip. This is part of the reason why Chris’s deadlifts are so awesome, other than the fact that he collectively lifts more than a ton with his 5rm deadlift. There is something about possessing the grip strength to pull that kind of weight double overhand hook grip that, to me at least, equates to being a man, you know?

Hands strong enough to crush a moderately sized Asian? 70s big.

This post highlights another double overhand hook grip deadlifter, Mikhail Kokylaev. Kokylaev competes as a strongman, powerlifter, and weightlifter, and possesses a great diversity of athletic skills and types of strength. The video below displays his insanely strong pulling in addition to his equally insane grip.



If you go to his youtube page, you can see his other videos, and he’s pretty much a loose cannon, he’s just out of control. My favorites are his 200k push press triple and the 150k muscle snatch in an exhibition vid that a barbell club in the UK posted of him.

While having a ridiculously strong grip is appealing, it’s probably not wise to let the pursuit of great grip strength overshadow the primary goal of becoming strong, that is, through squats, presses, and pulling. I like to warm up with a double overhand hook grip as much as I can for all my pulling movements, usually up to my last warm up set, but Justin is always encouraging me, in the nicest possible way of course, to be smart about my grip and to not let my quest to be as cool as Chris overshadow my quest to be as strong as Brent Kim can possibly be.

Hopefully in the next article, Justin will weigh in on grip strength and how it relates to 70s big. If you have any questions on the topic, share them in the comments.

I’ve got a couple questions, actually:

– What’s the method of rectification for a guy trying to get 70s big whose grip is the limiting factor in his deadlifts/haltings/rack pulls?

– There’s a subculture in lifting, comparable to the “no belts” subculture, which espouses the ideal of never using straps for any exercise. Thoughts on straps in training?

– A while ago at a cookout at the WFAC, Gant recommended Kroc rows to me for, among other things, grip strength. Since Gant suggested I try them, and because Matt Kroczaleski does them and has a lot of super sweet vids on youtube of him doing them, I have of course been doing Kroc rows semi-religiously, sometimes without a shirt on. Thoughts on accessory exercises such as these? Perhaps thoughts on training without a shirt on?