Adapting to higher deadlift volume by pulling with whippier bar

I have a question for you all. Since I’m having trouble adapting to higher deadlift volume I thought it would be a good idea to pull with the whippier 28.5mm bar so it’s less stress on my erectors which is definitely my weak point in terms of recovery. I usually pull with a stiff 29mm comp bar. Is that a somewhat reasonable programming idea? I get a 5% boost from that bar which translates to around 35lbs extra load but the local stress in my erectors which is my primary issue in terms of MRV will be significantly reduced. I’d obviously go back to the comp lifts closer to comp. Thanks!

I don’t think you could make a convincing argument that a whippier bar inflicts less stress on the erectors in any meaningful way- especially with increased weight (the increase in load is multifactorial including psychological, improved grip on smaller bar, and slightly decreased range of motion under load).

You could help yourself adapt to the volume by using lighter weight or taking a more gradual approach at adding volume both options being way more effective than switching bars in this instance IMO.

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My logic was that using a whipper bar is akin to doing a low block pull and thus less localized stress on lower erectors which is by far my biggest limiting factor in terms of recovery, and I’ll be able get more productive pulling volume on the muscles that recover a bit faster? Say I can handle 6 sets of pulling volume a week (@6,@7,@8 twice with one comp style and one pause variation) with a whippier bar but can only tolerate 4 sets with a stiff bar but only because of my lower back being the limiting factor? I think this goes in parallel with what you talked about in your new BBM talk on sumo pulls vs conventional.

I don’t think that the scenario you describe is likely to be real and I cannot see how this parallels sumo vs conventional.

Basically, there’s no plausible reason that a low block pull puts less stress on the lumbar segment of the erectors when the relative effort is the same. Also, what muscles do you think recover faster than others? The limits on recovery are fairly complex and I don’t think that you’re likely to have a significant difference in recovery rate between muscle groups that differ in a DL using a whippy bar vs stiff bar.

tl;dr- I wouldn’t necessarily choose a .whippy bar for training unless i was going to a meet where a whippy bar was being used or that’s the only bar I had access to.

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