# SLDLs



## big (Sep 14, 2004)

SLDLs have always been uncomfortable for me. Even when pulling 60-70% of my regular deadlift weight in stiff-legged fashion, I barely feel it in my hams, and my lower back just ends up in pain. Clearly I must be doing them wrong, but I'm not sure why. Regular deads feel great to me.

Has anyone else had this problem with stiff-leggeds, and if so, how did you overcome it?

Essentially I'm just interested in doing more for hams than just glute-ham raises - but at the moment SLDLs seem out of the question - as I'm just going to end up injuring myself. So any other interesting ham exercises would be of interest too.

Any advice?


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## powerU (Oct 22, 2003)

I used to find that with SLDLs, it's your form mate, get someone to watch you, remember to slightly bend your knees and try to focus on a point in front of you slightly above eye level, and keep focused on it throughout.

There ain't a better exercise for Hams IMO.


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## big pete (Mar 23, 2004)

SLDL's wow, here we go....

stand up straight with the bar in your hands (double OH grip)

feet 6" apart and facing forward. (any wider and it hits the muscle differantly and feet splay apart)

curve your spine (as in poke your bum out)

slight bend in knees

GO!

keep you back locked and pull on the hams


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## powerU (Oct 22, 2003)

bump


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## John (Jun 5, 2004)

first time i tried these i strained my back,lol it was ****ing agony, obviously bad form, but i think your rite its one of the good ones.


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## big pete (Mar 23, 2004)

i dont go heavy on these. only stick to about 80kg for sets of 8-10, but yeah when i went heavy (dave you bastard) it hurt my back


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## Guest (Sep 19, 2004)

this is just my opinion. so i don't want anyone telling me i am wrong. opinions can't be wrong unless presented as fact, which this one isn't.

sldl's are absolute ****.

GM's, RDL's, Pullthroughs, SumoDL's are all 10x better for hamstring recruitment and hypertrophy. they all also have less injury potential due to the lift mechanics.


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## SD (Sep 3, 2004)

Jeez James you are an against the grain kinda guy aren't you! and there is nothing like telling it how you see it  ......not a diplomat though are you?

You have some valid opinions and I do see your point, SLDL's are inherantly more damaging as they are an eccentric exercise. This is why most people like em though as eccentric = muscle damage = muscle repair = hypertrophy. Can't be bothered to cite any articles to back that up so I will just say it is my 'opinion' too 

Would add to big petes breakdown by saying keep the bar close to your shins to put less strain on the back and keep your head up to maintain a neutral spine.

I do SDLD's in rotation with other hamstring exercises and like all exercises, they have there place but as JamesT said there are other alternatives.

For a good breakdown of all the exercises mentioned by James and Big Pete try here http://www.exrx.net/Exercise.html

HTH

SD


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## Guest (Sep 19, 2004)

> You have some valid opinions and I do see your point, SLDL's are inherantly more damaging as they are an eccentric exercise. This is why most people like em though as eccentric = muscle damage = muscle repair = hypertrophy. Can't be bothered to cite any articles to back that up so I will just say it is my 'opinion' too


hello

not sure what you mean by the above. al of the exercises i have mentioned have an eccentric phase. if you were refering to those with an eccentric>concentric turnaround (GM, Squat, RDL etc) being better than those with a concentric>eccentric turnaround (Pullthroughs, SLDL's etc) then i agree entirely. if thats not what you are saying, i am interested, could you explain further.

(oh, and don't worry about studies, i can't be ****d either [  ])


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## winger (Jul 26, 2003)

I want to jump on this........lol

Good mornings are the best hamstring builders there are. But why would you need to work hamstrings when we do squats and deadlifts? I dont get it.

If you do sldl make sure your back is arched or you might not be doing them again.......


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## big (Sep 14, 2004)

winger said:


> But why would you need to work hamstrings when we do squats and deadlifts? I dont get it.


My whole lower body lifting routine is ruled by ham and glute strength. Whenever my ham and glute strength increases, my squat and deadlift increases. If my ham and glute strength stays the same, my squat and dead stay the same. I find that my core lifts go up fast when I hit accessory moves hard.

Therefore I am interested in doing everything I can to increase my ham/glute strength.


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## big pete (Mar 23, 2004)

lol, james your still alive!!!

GM's have to be strict and light, theres big poss of injury if you go to heavy to quick

sumo style, wow blast from the past. saw a guys doin sumo on deads yesterday. fair play to him he cracked out 320kg on his final lift. but its a bit cumbersome for my liking. but then thats just me.


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## winger (Jul 26, 2003)

What is sumo style?


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## big pete (Mar 23, 2004)

feet ultra wide apart. not far from the plates on the bar.


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## Guest (Sep 20, 2004)

sumo is awesome for hamstring recruitment. LOVING gm's ATM too. biker is right, get your form spot on before going heavy. (though there is absolutelynothign to stop you from going heavy with GM's, i do 1RM's from time to time with no issues at all)

check out elitefts.com (articles section) for more infomation than you can take in a 20 lifetimes.


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## Guest (Sep 20, 2004)

big said:


> My whole lower body lifting routine is ruled by ham and glute strength. Whenever my ham and glute strength increases, my squat and deadlift increases. If my ham and glute strength stays the same, my squat and dead stay the same. I find that my core lifts go up fast when I hit accessory moves hard.
> 
> Therefore I am interested in doing everything I can to increase my ham/glute strength.


same here. my squats are Oly, and my DL's narrow, but everythign else assistance wise is wide-mofo stnce. esp Gm's and sumos.

sumo-speed deads are brillioso.


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## winger (Jul 26, 2003)

Correct me if I am wrong but dosn't super wide dead lift go against the hips and against the natural body mechanics? Should I put a smiley face in there? Ok here it is............................ 

You are still may fave. Keep posting mate.


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## hackskii (Jul 27, 2003)

Natural movements here.

Do you actually think doing exercises that are not practical in every day life worth doing?

Come on!

Like wide stance squats to develop the inside quad.

Injury to benifit ratio is tossed out the window.

If you must then light weight would be ok but lets keep with the body's natural movements to save injury and maximise gains.


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## Guest (Sep 22, 2004)

winger said:


> Correct me if I am wrong but dosn't super wide dead lift go against the hips and against the natural body mechanics? Should I put a smiley face in there? Ok here it is............................
> 
> You are still may fave. Keep posting mate.


and



> Do you actually think doing exercises that are not practical in every day life worth doing?
> 
> Come on!
> 
> ...


not in the least. if you are flexable enough they feel fine. and if your not flexable enough, then you shouldn't be training at all imo. stretching is boring and i am the worlds worst for not doing it (1-2 times a week if i am lucky), but thats enough to keep me in check.

the last part confuses me mate. (no need for the simley face dude).

if we only did things that emulate real life all we would ever do is deadlifts and ohp. when do you ever have to lie flat on your back and press an ergonomic object to arms length in real life? (bench press).

the sumo stance (be it squat or deadlift) simply alters the joint angles and therefore leverages of the lift.

it makes you use more of ther posterior chain and less of the quadriceps. it also forces you to sit back, not down.

no-one uses wide stance to "hit the inner quads". maybe misguided BBers do, but then they do all kinds of silly stuff that is almost garunteed to cause injury. (upright rows, BTNpress, arnold press, smith squats, smith anything and the list goes on)

if you are still confused about wide stance squatting and how/if its dangerous, take a look at elitefts.com or google.com/images "brent mikesell" <<brent has the WR squat @ 1100+lbs and his stnace is so wide it nearly fills the cage.


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## winger (Jul 26, 2003)

Brent Mikesell 1074lb squat. Most impressive.


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## Guest (Sep 22, 2004)

i am pretty sure its 1100+ now. still.... WOW


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## John (Jun 5, 2004)

what the fcuk is hamstring recruitment, cant you just say a good exercise for hammy,s dude?  .


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## hackskii (Jul 27, 2003)

I dont see the practical application here.

Still leg deads are good for hams, so are good mornings, so are hamstring curls. This is all you will need to develop good hams.


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## John (Jun 5, 2004)

me when people are stating how they work out, and what exercises they use, and how many reps they do, why dont they just write bench press 4 x 8-10 reps, shoulder press 3x 6-8 reps and so on? why do things need to be complicated more than this?

Hackskii you,ve just given 3 or 4 exercises for hams this was easily understood, i know the knowledge has changed with time but surely the exercises havent changed this much?


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## winger (Jul 26, 2003)

john33 said:


> i know the knowledge has changed with time but surely the exercises havent changed this much?


If you want to sound smart they have.........lol <--------------------Im covered.


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## John (Jun 5, 2004)

that winger , i know i dont have all the knowledge but i know my way round the gym , i was just starting to get a bit bogged down with all the terminology:eek: , i mean rope crunches are rope crunces whether standing or kneeling surely .


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## hackskii (Jul 27, 2003)

Just keep it simple. For Chest I do bench (bar) inclines (bar)

4 sets of bench with 3 warm up and 1 failure set.

Inclines I do 4 sets 8-12 reps none to failure but alot of resistance and controlled.

Back, I do pullups 4 sets to failure (reduction of reps for sure each set), low rows, bent over rows, Each 4 sets 8-12 reps none to failure but nice pull and good resistance.

Shoulders, Military press 4 sets warmup and 1 to failure (no matter how many reps),

Side lateral raises 4 sets nice resistance.

Rear delt 4 sets 3 warmup with resistance and 1 to failure (im trying to get the back of the shoulders stronger and this will help my injured shoulder).

3 sets of shrugs none to failure but nice resistance.

Sometimes I do upright rows.

This is not all I do but just a clue. I do other stuff for arms and legs but this is just a normal workout for me. I work one bodypart a day. Thats IT!

As far as the hamstrings are concerned, I was mearly giving some basic exercises to work the hamstrings. I was trying to reduce the complications of all the other stuff running around.

There is no one perfect routine I dont like to spend anymore time in the gym than I have to (lazy). Most people overtrain and you can tell by no gains.

But I can say that the older you are the less you have to do. The younger you are the faster the recouperation and gains. I am not mad at you young guys as you younger guys tend to overtrain and I did for years when I was young.


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## winger (Jul 26, 2003)

john33 said:


> that winger , i know i dont have all the knowledge but i know my way round the gym , i was just starting to get a bit bogged down with all the terminology:eek: , i mean rope crunches are rope crunces whether standing or kneeling surely .


It's not rocket science. Training hasn't changed, only the people and terminology. If they have made leaps and bounds then why does Arnold and Frank Zane look better than the freaks now days? Hard work and diet is key. At this point it is all drugs and that is sad. I like the tiny waist. I like the real bicept that has not been pumped up with synthol. If Robby Robinson had calves then he would have possible gotten Olympia. In 1977 he took 2nd in the olympia. In 1978 he took 2nd over all in olympia. After Franky!


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## Guest (Sep 24, 2004)

john33 said:


> what the fcuk is hamstring recruitment, cant you just say a good exercise for hammy,s dude?  .


no. beacuse it woud be [a] inaccurate, * less specific and [c] you knew what i meant so why the problem?*


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