Dings, Dents and Work Arounds!

Hail to the Dinosaurs!

Here's a question from a reader. I
thought I'd share it because I get
this question or similar questions
all the time. It's about dings and
dents -- and work arounds.

"Brooks,

I tweaked my back again today doing
deadlifts.

My main lifts for lower body are back
squat, front squat, deadlift, and power
cleans.

I'm thinking of dropping deadlift and
replacing it with barbell snatch
followed by the occasional dumbbell
or Trapbar deadlift.

I used to love the deadlift, stopped
hitting them for a while and its never
quite been the same. I seem to rack up
injuries faster then I can add 5 lbs
to the bar.

What do you think of scrapping
deadlifts?

Thanks in advance,
Keith Jacobson"

Keith -- The deadlift is a terrific
exercise, and everyone who can do them
should do them. BUT -- and this is a big
point --- if it does nothing but hurt
you, you need to replace it.

In your case, doing squats, front squats,
power cleans and power snatches will give
you all the lower body work you need.

I call this a "work around,"

You have a ding or a dent, and it makes
a particular exercise hurt. So you work
around  the problem by replacing it with
something that doesn't hurt. No big deal.
It's an intelligent thing to do.

The important point is to keep on training,
and to keep on doing heavy leg and back
exercises. As long as you do that, you'll
do fine.

As always, thanks for reading and have a
great day. If you train today, make it a
good one!

Yours in strength,

Brooks Kubik

P.S. I cover work arounds, dings and dents,
and how to maximize recovery and recuperation
in Gray Hair and Black Iron. If you're an
older trainee (age 35 and up) you NEED this
book:

http://www.brookskubik.com/grayhair_blackiron.html

P.S. 2. My other books and courses are right
here:

http://www.brookskubik.com/products.html

P.S. 3. Thought for the Day: "Where there's a
will, there's a way -- to add weight to the bar."
-- Brooks Kubik