Please help me improve my deadlift! (and maybe squats!)

Hi guys!  I need some advice on lifting heavy stuff.

Deadlifting is my favorite thing to do at the gym, but I really want to be able to lift more.  Granted, I've come a long way, but right now I'm doing 125 lbs (usually shoot for 4 sets of 6 reps, usually can't get 6 every time).  I'm not a tiny girl, and I feel I should be progressing.  How do I know when to increase my weights?  Finishing 6 reps is really hard for me right now.  Is there a better method for building strength by doing more/fewer reps with less/more weight?

As for squatting, my squat is kind of embarrassing.  It used to be better than my deadlift, but then my squat improvement pretty much stagnated.  I think I lack the strength in my hamstrings to lift heavy weights without hurting myself, so do I just lift lighter until they get stronger?  My right knee is a bit "wobbly"--if I lift too heavy, it turns inward while coming up from the squat (or even the deadlift if it's too heavy).  Should I use some sort of knee brace?  Or should I just give up squatting?

Sorry for the slew of questions, but I'm kind of at a loss.  There's a list at the gym of lifting records and the women's list is practically empty.  I need to be on that list! (And when you need something, it's an adult responsibility.)

First off, I think 125 deads are excellent for a woman.

In terms of improving that number, I have a few thoughts.  First, none of us want to hear this, but there may be a limit to how much strength you will gain. Our bodies just max out on us at some point. BUT, I don't think that you are there yet. Since the deadlift is an exercise that incorporates so many muscle groups, you may be able to strengthen assisting muscles and thus improve your deadlift.  I'm thinking arm, forearm, and wrist strength as well as low back muscles. Leg muscles (glutes and hams especially) obviously contribute to your strength.  But I'm thinking that a focus on torso and upper body condtioning might help you pull a few more lbs!

Good luck!

Thanks for the advice, I'll keep working on it!  I just like improving on whatever I do!

Don't give up!!!!  I have some suggestions for you that might help.

Take a break. Don't squat or deadlift for a week at least.  It's possible you may have some minor injuries to your legs that aren't healing if you are squatting and deadlifting 3-4 times a week.  Sometimes a break revitalizes things and a week or two won't set you back.

Vary your routine.  Instead of 4 x 6 try a couple of sessions each of 3x8, 3x10, 5x5 and 3x3.  Vary the weights lower for higher reps and vice versa and aim for correct form above all.  If it's muscle weakness that is limiting your max lift, using a lower weight with more reps will work for that.  When you have finished that, if you feel good. start at maybe -15 lbs or so from your current weight and work back up to that over the space of 6 workouts adding 5 lbs every other workout, and then continue on if you can past your current weight limit.

Make sure your diet is in order.  To build muscle to lift heavier weights, you need protein and a post workout protein shake will help with that too. Lot's of carbs (I like bananas for potassium)and whey powder with milk or water.   Helps speed recovery and began muscle healing right after your workout.  Beyond that, 1 gram of protein every day or more, per pound of bodyweight.  Eat lots of whole, natural foods and avoid the processed stuff.  Fats are important too, including lots of Omega 3's which are known to help with inflammation as well.   I add cold pressed flaxseed oil to my protein shake for a good dose of Omega 3's.

Patience...it's a marathon not a sprint...that helps me a lot...it's my mantra...lol...

How long have you been stuck at 125lbs?

You should try deloading.  Take 10lbs off and work your way back up by adding 2.5lbs each deadlifting session.   

It's a great way of breaking plateus.

Are you breaking parallel when you squat?  It could be something in your technique which is causing you knee pain.

Thanks for the advice guys!!

I've been at 125 lbs for...a month?  Maybe I'm being impatient.

I'm pretty sure I'm breaking parallel, but my knee was messed up before I started squatting.  I try not to put on a ton of weight because I don't want to hurt it, that way I can go down as far as I'm supposed to.

Well, also note that your deadlift should generally be higher than your squat unless you have disproportionally small hands and short arms so that you pull more from the floor than you squat is just about right, actually.

 You can check out the deadlift article on the Starting Strength wiki and watch the instruction videos of Mark teaching the deadlift for some more pointers; in particular one very common mistake is to not reset between each pull so only your first rep is a deadlift, the rest become more akin to stiff-legged deadlifts or some sort of squat/good-morning variation. It's tougher, but I teach people to let go of the bar between each rep and reset for each pull, it's the only way to ensure perfect form on each rep.

 Squats are easier in that you don't actually fall out of alignment for a good start on the exercise at the end of each rep, bout you might want to spend some time on goblet squats or maybe the third-world squat to make sure your joints are limber enough for the full exercise. There are situations where the full squat is inadvisable, but the knee dropping inwards isn't one of them, that's a pretty common form issue that's best corrected by doing the full squat with a weight you can handle with good form ;)

I agree with everything above. What really helped me with my squat was that I switched to a front squat, lightened the weight substantially, and got as low as the squat rack would allow. I tried to touch the barbell to the safety bars with each rep. After about 6 weeks I went back to the standard squat position and increased my squat weight by 20 lbs!

For deadlifts, my weakest part was my grip. I tried to do sets of 8, but the darn thing would start to slip after 6, so I've been working on that with rack pulls. I can pull more than I deadlift, so the challenge is to just hold on to that bar.

I can't say this is the best way of improving lifts, but it seems to work for me.

Also, you might want to consider doing squats and deadlifts on separate days so you can focus on just that one major lift.

Lots of good advice above.  De-loading works very well, but take it to a logical end.  Stop deadlifing and squatting for at least 10 days.  Substitute with lunges and split squats.  Work some shrugs into your routine.  Shrugs (both machine and dumbell) help me with hand grip and keeping me tuned into lifting without flexing the arms.  Search for deadlifting forums on the internet (www.illpumpyouup.com/articles/how-to-deadlift .htm). Try deadlifiting for a maximum weight.  That means one lift.  I bet your your max one rep lift is considerably more that 125.  Experiment to find your 10 rep max (it may be less than 125).  Lift 90% of your 10 rep max for 5 perfect form reps, rest 10 seconds, repeat the five perfect form reps with rest period as many times as possible in 15 minutes.  Don't deadlift again for a week.  You will be surprised how much you can gain by using variation and rest.  Good luck.

I'm around 1.2 x bodyweight for my deadlift and I can forsee grip issues soon.  It's pretty hard to get in 5 reps as it is and another 20 lbs or so I will be struggling to hold on for sure.  I'll have to try some rack pulls to see if that helps.   I don't want to get stalled by my grip!!!

One thing I did to really bump up my deadlift was to start lifting heavier.

One day find your true max. Whatever you can do with 1 rep. Then do weekly bumps at a percentage of that. Take 65% of your true max and do 1 rep for 10 sets.

The next week do 70% and 1 rep for 10 sets/or as many sets as you can do.

Go up 5 more % everyweek until you get back to your true max. I saw a substantial gain. I weigh 258 and I'm back to deadlifting 580 just make sure you have good gloves or chalk when you start getting heavy enough your grip comes into question. Before I started that program I was at 500, so I put 80 pounds on my max in about 8 weeks.