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Problem #2: Weak at Mid-ShinSo you've gotten the bar one-third of the way up? Congratulations! Although I'd love to tell you to take some time out to pat yourself on the back, you've still got two-thirds of the way to go before you can relax. Here's what could be standing in your way at the mid-shin level:
1. Your hamstrings are weak…again! There's still a significant amount of anterior pelvic tilt in place when the bar is below the kneecaps, so the hamstrings are still doing the majority of the work. In some individuals, this is just the portion of the movement where they're the weakest, especially if their speed is fantastic and they can get the bar moving just fine, but seem to hit a brick wall when the bar is a few inches off the ground.
Solutions: Same as above. Use plenty of variety in your training for best results in bringing the hams up to par.
2. You're not prepared to grind. Let's face it, not all pulls are going to be lightning-quick. If you're not prepared to exert force over at least a few seconds, you'll likely miss any pull where your speed doesn't carry over to the top portion of the lift.
Solutions: For one, it helps to be super-fast (so that this problem doesn't ever really arise), so you can't ever really write-off speed work. I think that one of the best ways to develop grinding prowess is isometric deadlifts against pins. Set the pins in the power rack at your mid-shin sticking point, and position a bar beneath them on the floor. It should be loaded with a speed weight percentage (40-70%).
Rip it off the floor as quickly as possible, and when you hit the pins, keep pulling like crazy. Use grinding periods of anywhere from five to ten seconds (yes, I've had competition deadlift PRs that have lasted a full ten seconds). Your blood pressure will be sky-high, but so will your new PR after a few sessions.
This technique can actually be used for a variety of sticking points, but it's imperative that you initiate the pull from the floor (and not a lower pin) in order to replicate the body position present in a true deadlift.
3. You lack acceleration strength. All things held equal, the mid-shin sticking point is where one should miss a deadlift, as it's the weakest portion of the strength curve (i.e. where the lever arm of the resistance is longest).
Fortunately, one thing that isn't held constant is bar speed, so if you can increase the speed of the bar (acceleration strength) after you've initially gotten the bar moving, you can blast past this sticking point. As such, one way of getting past the shins is to develop acceleration strength to increase bar speed following the initial phase of the pull.
Solutions: Perhaps the best way to improve your acceleration strength is to pull against mini-bands, chains and weight-releasers with a weight that approximates 40-60% of your 1RM. Speed work with this set-up will teach you to accelerate the bar at the crucial mid-shin portion of the lift, effectively forcing you to "outrun" the accommodating resistance.
It'll also increase the resistance at lockout on your speed work, a challenge that isn't present when using straight weights.
Another option that's actually contrary to something I wrote above is to use rep work with bouncing the plates off the floor. Ideally, you'll have bumper plates to do this. While it might be a fruitless endeavor for those who struggle off the floor, a controlled bounce can actually help those who struggle at mid-shin to learn to accelerate the bar following the initial rebound.
4. Your upper back needs to get with the program. The entire trapezius muscle — including the upper, middle and lower fibers — and rhomboids are active in the first portion of the movement, but they don't take on a huge role until the mid-shin phase begins. The same can be said of the lats and teres major, too.
Recall that this is the natural sticking point in the movement, and therefore the point at which the bar has a tendency to track away from the body even further… that is, unless you fight to keep it close by using your upper back musculature. The trapezius complex and rhomboids (collectively known as the scapular retractors) hold the scapula back and somewhat down, therefore keeping your chest up and out and the torso in the right alignment.
Meanwhile, the lats and teres major (the humeral extensors) work to keep the elbows tucked (to the sides instead of up, as in a front raise) in the sagittal plane relative to the torso. Essentially, you've got a ton of isometric upper back work taking place in the presence of some serious loading. It's no wonder that deadlifts are king when it comes to putting slabs of muscle on your back!
Solution: Hit the scapular retractors and lats with a wide variety of horizontal pulling movements. Some vertical pulling in moderation won't hurt, but it won't have as much functional carryover to your deadlift (or bench, for that matter) as variations of seated and bent-over rows and face pulls.
If you find that your torso is fine position-wise, but your arms are tracking away, opt for more rowing with a supinated grip to emphasize the lats and teres major. Conversely, if your torso is rounding over, stick to neutral and pronated grip rows and pull closer to the waist than the neck.