Shouldn’t those dumbbells be pink??
How many times have you seen this picture? Some girl “deadlifting” with a couple of dinky dumbbells. Whether it’s stiff leg or your standard deadlift….almost anyone can get past the dumbbell stage. Just look at that girls legs! Do you really think she got that way by slinging 15 pounders? Yeah, probably not. She also loses points for having her hair down, but that’s another post in itself. I also disapprove of the whole working out in just your underwear thing, but I realize that some sports bras are made to be worn on the outside…..fine.
Unfortunately, I am here to tell you that I actually have more in common with this woman than I’d care to admit. I have a terrible deadlift workout last night. It’s like the grim reaper came in and stole the soul of my deadlift. That or it just packed up and left in search of a better and more deserving lifter. I should really be planning a funeral right now instead of writing this post. Am I being dramatic enough yet? Good. It’s true though! I had trouble lifting 225 yesterday…..ugh. I’ve been warming up with 225 for almost a year now. How in the world could I have trouble lifting that much weight? (Please remember that weight is relative….225 may seem like a lot to some, but a pittance to others.) I was so bummed. After several frantic calls to the coach (who has now abandoned me for bigger and better things in the Twin Cities), I managed to drop the weight for my sets and just try to get through something so that the day wasn’t a total wash. Of course, once I dropped the weight….it felt too light. I just couldn’t get it right. Finally, on the very last set….I realized my error.
Apparently, I have this tendency to start with the bar about an inch away from my shins. When I do this, it changes my balance and my butt shoots up right away. Then my deadlift turns into a really awkward RDL which equals a nearly impossible lift. I almost wonder if this was part of my problem at my last meet. If I do the same weight with the bar glued to my shins….no problem. I’d even say it was easy. So you see…..technique is such a huge factor in this whole game.
Another key factor in my deadlift is chalk. I’m a chalk slut….love the stuff, can’t get enough. Unfortunately, the gym owner is a chalk Nazi. Hates it. Kids in the gym are always making a mess with it and spreading it all over the place so he hides it and lets it run out all the time. Knowing that I had to deadlift yesterday, I made a specific request for him to be sure to leave some chalk out for me. I got to the gym after he had left and of course, he forgot. I sent him a text to ask where the chalk was so I could get it out myself. He told me it was in a box in the top drawer of the filing cabinet in his office. Okay, so I go to his office, find the box and pull it out. What’s in it? Not chalk, nope. Fat burners. Two full bottles of fat burners. Combine this with the fact that he’s been teasing me about blowing m y weight loss for the last few weeks…….bastard!! I was convinced he set me up. He claims it was just a random coincidence, but the jury is still out on that one!
I have a big internal laugh when I’m using 40 pound dumbbells by a guy who is bigger than me but is using 25 pound dumbbells. Geez! Don’t some of these guys have any pride? Those kinds of guys should get pink dumbbells too.
🙂 Marion