Intermediate

Barbell Romanian Deadlift

The Romanian deadlift is the go-to hamstring and glute builder, emphasizing the eccentric stretch as you push the hips back with only a slight knee bend. Unlike the conventional pull it starts from the top and rarely touches the floor, keeping constant tension on the posterior chain. Ideal for hypertrophy and for grooving a clean hinge.

Equipment
Barbell
Body part
Glutes, Hamstring
Type
Strength
Browse by movement
Hinge
Muscles worked
Target
Biceps Femoris, Semitendinosus, Gluteus Maximus
Secondary
Erector Spinae
Tertiary
Trapezius Upper, Latissimus Dorsi, Adductor Magnus

How to do it

  1. 1

    Stand tall holding the bar at your thighs with a shoulder-width grip.

  2. 2

    Unlock your knees slightly and keep them fixed there.

  3. 3

    Push your hips back and let the bar slide down the front of your legs.

  4. 4

    Lower until you feel a strong hamstring stretch, back staying flat.

  5. 5

    Drive your hips forward to stand tall and squeeze the glutes.

  6. 6

    Control the tempo on the way down rather than dropping the bar.

Tips

  • Lead with the hips traveling backward, not with the chest dropping down.
  • Keep the bar hugging your legs; letting it drift forward strains the back.
  • Only lower as far as your hamstring flexibility allows a flat spine.

Variations

Common mistakes

  • Bending the knees further as the bar travels down turns the lift into a shallow squat and takes the stretch off the hamstrings; set the knee angle at the top and hold it.
  • Lowering the bar to the floor because that is where a deadlift ends usually means the last few inches came from a rounding back; stop where the hamstring stretch runs out.
  • Finishing each rep by leaning back and pushing the hips past the bar hands the load to the lower back; stand tall with the ribs down and the glutes squeezed.
  • Letting the bar fall on the way down throws away the eccentric, which is where most of the hamstring growth comes from; take two to three seconds to reach the bottom.
  • Ending sets because your hands are opening rather than because your hamstrings are done leaves the target muscle undertrained; use straps or chalk on the heavier sets.

Frequently asked

How many sets and reps of Romanian deadlifts should you do when you are new to the exercise?
Eight to ten reps for three sets, one or two times a week, at a weight far lighter than your conventional deadlift, often around half of it at the start. Progress by earning range of motion and reps before you add plates: when all three sets hit 10 reps with a flat back and a real stretch, add about 5 kg (10 lb). Two to three seconds down on every rep matters more here than the number on the bar.
What can I do instead of a Romanian deadlift with no barbell?
A dumbbell or kettlebell Romanian deadlift is the same movement and often easier to keep close to the legs. Single-leg Romanian deadlifts hit each hamstring hard with very little weight and add a balance demand. With a band, stand on it and hinge against the tension. For hamstrings without a hinge at all, a Nordic curl or a sliding leg curl covers the knee-bending job the RDL does not.
What is the Romanian deadlift good for and when should I avoid it?
It is one of the best builders of hamstring and glute size, it grooves a clean hip hinge, and it keeps tension on the posterior chain the whole set because the bar never rests on the floor. Avoid it while you cannot hold a flat spine through even a short range; start with dumbbells from a higher position and work down over weeks. If your lower back tightens up before your hamstrings do, you are lowering past your current range.

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