RDL's.....am I doing something wrong?

[mytreefiddy]

Been hitting the legs hard and its been paying dividends.... However, I seem to be having an issue with RDL's.....I'll warm up with about 140lbs.... i've seen countless videos to make sure I have the form down which I believe I do. I have a slight bend in the knees, stick my ass out and slowly lower the bar keeping it very close to my body.... once I feel a nice deep stretch in the hammies (just below the knee) I'll bring the weight back up. At my initial warm up weight it feels fantastic....once I get the weight up to lets say 225lb+ I tend to only feel it in my back.....don't feel that stretch in the hammies anymore... what am I doing wrong???

 

[mikennrg]

Been hitting the legs hard and its been paying dividends.... However, I seem to be having an issue with RDL's.....I'll warm up with about 140lbs.... i've seen countless videos to make sure I have the form down which I believe I do. I have a slight bend in the knees, stick my ass out and slowly lower the bar keeping it very close to my body.... once I feel a nice deep stretch in the hammies (just below the knee) I'll bring the weight back up. At my initial warm up weight it feels fantastic....once I get the weight up to lets say 225lb+ I tend to only feel it in my back.....don't feel that stretch in the hammies anymore... what am I doing wrong???

I always had the same issue until I started doing single leg romanian dead lifts. I prefer them now. They are one of my favorite exercise actually.

 

[mytreefiddy]

I wonder if height could be part of the issue?? I'm not crazy tall but i'm just under 6'1"

 

[GetYucked]

Usually when my hams gas out or I get too heavy my hams do half the movement and my glutes do the other.

 

[blacktoppete]

With the heavier weight you might be bending your knees too much. Try to watch that and if that's the case lower the weight a bit. Stiff leg off the floor kills the hams or set the bar 2" below the knees in the power rack and set up for each rep keeping proper form.

 

[BigJB]

they are a high repetition exercise. It's better to stick to sets of 15 or more because it becomes to difficult to isolate the hammies when the weight gets up there and you have to start worrying about grip, forearm pump, back strain, etc.

 

[Simpllyhuge]

Watch this

http://startingstrength.com/index.php/site/video/platform_the_rdl

But if your form is fine, maybe try getting some weightlifting shoes. I like nike romaleos.

 

[heavyhitter]

I find that I have to kind of sit my hips back while maintaining a slight knee bend in order o get a good stretch. I am 6 ft also

 

[Mike Hunt]

Why not just go light where u feel it...I feel this is not an exercise tht u need to go heavy on...ur just after the stretch anyways.. 135 slow and controlled for high reps works way better than 315 lbs tht I used to do

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[heavyhitter]

Also, toes up on a board I find really help shift the emphasis to the hams

 

[PaxNovi 5.0]

Why not just go light where u feel it...I feel this is not an exercise tht u need to go heavy on...ur just after the stretch anyways.. 135 slow and controlled for high reps works way better than 315 lbs tht I used to do

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x2. I used to move more weight on movements when I was younger, but now I use the most weight where I can still feel maximal contraction and stretch.

To the OP, is your back staying straight? You're not rounding as you descend? On RDL's I only go down as far as I can keep my back straight. I feel it keeps maximal tension in the hams.

 

[anab0lic]

The whole idea of doing them from knee height is to minimize leg involvement and overload the back more..

 

[Incognito1]

The whole idea of doing them from knee height is to minimize leg involvement and overload the back more..

:yeahthat:
I've always done these type of DLs to focus on my lower back. I didn't use these for hams.
BTW I'm about 6' too

 

[psychor]

As others have said try going lighter because as you go heavier your glutes tend to try and take over(and lower back to some extent) because they are stronger muscles and your body is just trying to do what comes natural.

 

[GuyJ]

I get the exact same thing, can only feel the stretch in my hams with a lighter weight. I tried to figure out what I did differently with heavier weights and the only logical explanation I could come up with was as the weight gets heavier, as a defense reflex my knees bend slightly more to protect the hamstrings, since it is a lot of resistance in the very bottom of ROM of the hamstrings.

Still though my hams are always in pieces the next day despite not getting the same feel once the weight gets heavier. Even if you dont get the actual stretch, you are flexing and extending at the hip, meaning the hamstrings will still be firing.