Adding chains to your deadlifts is a good way to work
on your lockout. Rack lockouts cause some people to
pull with a form dissimilar to their competition form.
Chains allow you to focus on your lockout without
this problem.
100 lbs. of chain is added to the bar
pictured. As the lifter raises the bar, the chain is
also raised, link by link, with each link adding
weight to the bar.
In the picture, the lifter has 515
lbs. of bar weight and when the bar is approx. a ¼ of
the way off the floor, the resistance is now 540, half
way 565, ¾ of the way 590 and at lockout, 615 lbs.
Having the weight increase as the bar rises also
teaches the lifter to accelerate the bar. You have to
pull harder and harder as the weight gets heavier inch
by inch. This can be a big benefit for someone with a
weak lockout.
Chains can be added to the bar in a number of ways.
Some people simply lay the chains over the top of the
bar. This can be time consuming if the weight on the
bar is changed often for a number of workout partners.
We prefer to use a heavyweight dog collar (rated for
over 200 lbs.) and snake it through the chains. The
dog collar is then simply hung over the bar and can be
added or removed quickly for plate changes. The
chains are always at the same length this way as well,
so the resistance will remain the same. A second
collar is added to the end of the bar for safety, to
prevent the chains from sliding off. With any chain
set-up, leave enough length so that at lockout, a link
or two remains on the floor to prevent any swing in
the chain.