Deadlift to knees, with pause today with 455 lbs. Did 5x2x75% after warm-up sets before doing heavier deadlifts off plates.
The deadlift to knee with pause is a staple exercise in the Sheiko programming. It helps you get in the correct starting position from the floor and develops low back strength by having to stay tight with an isometric hold right below or at knee level.
When I do these I'm focusing on a few different things: Staying real tight, taking the tension out of the bar before pulling, keeping my shins just about vertical, sitting back and pushing through my heels, not letting my butt rise too quickly (could do a little better on this) and keeping my rib cage up during the pause. If I choose to lockout as I did here on the 2nd rep I'm aiming to have a forceful extension of the hips at the top; without leaning my upper body backwards.
Give them a try. Sets of 2-5 between 60-80% seem to work best on this exercise. You can do another deadlift variation on the same day as these with a heavier weight. This exercise is to help you grease the groove and build you technique. You can then go heavier (80-90% on regular deadlifts or (85-105%) for low reps on deadlift off plates or rack pulls. This is how Sheiko often programs the deadlift and it’s variations.