Legs
Deadlift
Picking the dumbbells up off the floor by pushing through your legs and driving your hips forward. It builds your glutes, hamstrings and back, and it trains the way you lift things in everyday life.
- Works
- Glutes, hamstrings, quads, lower back, forearms
- Equipment
- A pair of dumbbells
- Load
- Heavy
How to do it
- 1Stand with your feet hip width apart and a dumbbell on the floor just outside each foot.
- 2Push your hips back and bend your knees to grab the handles. Flatten your back and pull your shoulders down.
- 3Push the floor away and stand tall, keeping the dumbbells close to your legs. Squeeze your glutes at the top.
- 4Push your hips back and lower the dumbbells to the floor the same way, back flat the whole time.
Cues
- Take a breath and brace your core before each rep.
- Push the floor away with your feet.
- Finish tall; don't lean back.
Common mistakes
- Rounding your back. Set your back flat before you lift. If it rounds on the way up, go lighter.
- Jerking the weight off the floor. Squeeze the handles and get tight first, then lift smoothly.
- Leaning back at the top. Standing tall with your glutes squeezed is the finish. Keep your ribs down.
Easier
Go lighter, or set the dumbbells on a low step so you don't have to reach as far.
Harder
Take 3 seconds to lower each rep, or pause for 1 second just before the dumbbells touch down.
Try it: 3 sets of 6 to 10 reps, or 30 seconds on and 30 off.
What's the difference between a deadlift and an RDL?
A deadlift starts from the floor and you bend your knees more, so your quads help. An RDL starts standing, keeps your knees softly bent and lowers only until your hamstrings stretch, so it's more about your hamstrings and glutes.
