Barbell Deadlift

Muscles worked

Setup

1. Stand with your feet hip-width apart, positioning the barbell directly over your mid-foot.
2. Hinge at the hips and bend your knees to grip the bar just outside your shins with an overhand or mixed grip.
3. Lower your hips until your shins touch the bar, ensuring your shoulders are slightly in front of the bar from a side profile.
4. Flatten your back, pull your shoulder blades down toward your back pockets, and 'take the slack' out of the bar.

How to do it

1. Inhale deeply into your abdomen to create intra-abdominal pressure and brace your core.
2. Drive through your heels and push the floor away, keeping the bar in constant contact with your shins and thighs as you rise.
3. Exhale as you reach a full upright position, squeezing your glutes at the top without leaning backward.
4. Lower the bar by hinging at the hips first, then bending your knees once the bar passes them to return to a dead stop on the floor.

Form checklist

• Keep the bar as close to your body as possible throughout the entire movement.
• Maintain a neutral spine from head to tailbone; do not allow your lower back to round.
• Ensure your hips and shoulders rise at the same rate during the initial phase of the lift.
• Keep your neck neutral by looking at a spot on the floor about 5-10 feet in front of you.

Pro tips

• Imagine 'bending the bar' around your shins to fully engage your lats and stabilize your upper back.
• Focus on the 'wedge'—pull your hips into the bar and use your body weight as a counterweight before you start the pull.
• Maintain a 2-1-2 tempo (2 seconds up, 1 second pause, 2 seconds down) to master the mechanics before increasing weight.

Make it harder

• Deficit Deadlifts: Stand on a 1-3 inch platform to increase the range of motion and leg drive requirement.
• Pause Deadlifts: Pause for 2 seconds when the bar is 1-2 inches off the floor to build explosive strength and positional control.

Frequently asked

What muscles does the barbell deadlift work?

The barbell deadlift primarily targets the calves, glutes, hamstrings, quadriceps, and trapezius, and also works the erector spinae and obliques as secondary muscles.

What equipment do you need for the barbell deadlift?

The barbell deadlift uses barbell and weight plate.

Is the barbell deadlift good for beginners?

The barbell deadlift is rated intermediate. Build a base with simpler variations first, then progress to it with light load and strict form.

Related exercises

• Axle DeadliftIntermediate · calves, glutes, hamstrings, quadriceps, and trapezius
• Barbell Clean PullAdvanced · calves, glutes, hamstrings, quadriceps, and trapezius
• Barbell Deadlift 360 DegreesIntermediate · calves, glutes, hamstrings, quadriceps, and trapezius
• Barbell Deadlift Against ChainsAdvanced · calves, glutes, hamstrings, quadriceps, and trapezius