Deadlift Form

Prop up your phone and RepSensei counts your deadlift reps and flags some visible issues, right on your device. Video never leaves your phone.

How to do it

1. Stand with the bar over the middle of your feet, feet about hip width apart, toes pointing forward or slightly out.
2. Hinge at the hips and bend your knees until your shins touch the bar. Grip just outside your legs with straight arms.
3. Pull your chest up and your shoulders slightly back so your back is flat, and pull the slack out of the bar until you hear the plates click.
4. Breathe in, brace your midsection, and push the floor away with your legs while the bar stays in contact with your shins and thighs.
5. Once the bar passes your knees, drive your hips forward to stand tall. Finish with glutes squeezed, not by leaning back.
6. Lower by pushing your hips back first, then bend the knees once the bar is past them.

Coaching cues

Bar over mid-foot

Starting with the bar too far forward makes it swing away from you and loads the lower back.

Take the slack out

Pulling the bar tight before it leaves the floor stops the jerk that yanks you out of position.

Push the floor away

Thinking legs first, not back first, keeps the hips from rising before the bar moves.

Lats tight, bar close

Imagine bending the bar around your shins. It keeps the bar on your body all the way up.

Common mistakes and how to fix them

Rounding the lower back

Starting with the back loose or the weight too heavy lets the spine bend under the load. Fix: Lower the weight, set your chest up and brace before each rep, and reset on the floor rather than bouncing.

Hips rising first

The legs straighten before the bar moves, so the back does the lift as a stiff-legged pull. Fix: Start with the hips a touch lower and think of pushing the floor down while the chest and hips rise together.

Bar drifting away from the legs

Every centimetre the bar moves forward adds leverage against your back. Fix: Keep the bar dragging up your shins and thighs. Wear long socks or trousers if your shins scrape.

Jerking the bar off the floor

Yanking a slack bar throws you out of the position you set. Fix: Pull the slack out first, then squeeze the bar off the floor smoothly.

Leaning back at the top

Over-extending to show lockout compresses the lower back for no benefit. Fix: Stand tall with glutes squeezed and ribs down. Hips under shoulders is the finish.

Squatting the deadlift

Hips too low push the knees forward so the bar has to travel around them. Fix: Set the hips higher than the knees with shoulders just in front of the bar.

Muscles worked

Main: Glutes, Hamstrings. Also: Lower back, Traps, Forearms, Quads, Lats.

Who should take care

If you have a history of back problems, start with a trap bar, a raised bar or a light kettlebell, and build up slowly. Any sharp or lasting pain means stop and see a doctor or physiotherapist.

Variations

• Trap Bar Deadlift: Easier: handles at your sides keep the load centred and the back more upright.
• Rack Pulls: Easier: pulling from a raised height shortens the range while you learn the lockout.
• Romanian Deadlift: Accessory: builds the hip hinge and hamstrings from the top down.
• Sumo Deadlift: Alternative: a wide stance and a more upright back suit some builds.
• Deficit Deadlift: Harder: standing on a plate lengthens the pull off the floor.

Filming your deadlift

Film from the side at about knee to hip height, two to three metres away, so you can see the bar path and your back angle. You can track it with the RepSensei camera, which counts reps and can flag some visible issues from one angle; it cannot see everything. See how to film your form.

Questions

Should my back be perfectly flat?

Aim for a neutral, braced back that does not change shape during the lift. A small amount of upper back rounding is common in experienced lifters, but the lower back should not round.

Mixed grip or double overhand?

Use double overhand until your grip limits you. Then a mixed grip, hook grip or straps can help on heavy sets.

Should I touch and go or reset each rep?

Beginners do better resetting on the floor each rep, so every pull starts from a good position.

How often should I deadlift?

Once or twice a week is plenty for most people, as heavy deadlifts are tiring to recover from.

See the Barbell Deadlift exercise guide with a 3D figure.

More form guides

• Squat form
• Lunge form
• Romanian Deadlift form
• Hip Thrust form
• Bulgarian Split Squat form

General guidance, not medical advice. Stop if anything hurts. The camera can miss things, so no issue seen doesn't mean perfect form.