A friend's throwaway comment exposed my whole gym routine flaw

So I've been doing the same 5x5 program for like 2 years, always grinding through the big lifts. Last Tuesday my buddy Jake watched me set up for deadlifts and casually said "you know your hips are way too low, that's basically a squat." I laughed it off, but then I filmed myself and holy crap he was right. My form was garbage the entire time, I was just moving the weight because I was strong enough to compensate. I pulled 315 that day but my lower back was screaming after, which never made sense to me before. Turns out I'd been reading cues from a forum post that was more about Olympic pulls, not conventional deads. Now I've reset to 225 and focused on the hinge, and it feels like a completely different exercise. Has anyone else had that moment where one offhand remark made you relearn something you thought you had down?

2 comments

2 Comments

the_linda1mo ago

Same thing happened to me with bench press, a coach at the gym just said "your elbows are flaring out like a chicken." I watched my video and yeah, I looked ridiculous. Took me a month to unlearn all that bad movement, but now the weight actually feels solid on my chest. Good on you for resetting, that takes guts.

paige3311mo ago

Honestly, is a month of unlearning really that big a deal? I mean, it's a bench press, not brain surgery. Congrats on the solid lift, but maybe don't make it sound like you climbed Everest.