Intermediate

Stiff-Leg Deadlift

The stiff-leg deadlift pulls from the floor while keeping the knees only slightly bent, placing the hamstrings and erectors under a long, demanding stretch. It differs from the RDL by starting from the bottom and using a fuller range. Use moderate loads and prioritize a flat back over lifting heavy.

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

How to do it

  1. 1

    Set the bar on the floor and stand with feet hip-width.

  2. 2

    Hinge down with almost-straight knees to grip the bar.

  3. 3

    Flatten your back, brace, and pull the slack out of the bar.

  4. 4

    Stand up by extending the hips while the knees stay nearly locked.

  5. 5

    Squeeze the glutes at the top without overextending the spine.

  6. 6

    Lower the bar to the floor with the same rigid-knee hinge.

Tips

  • Keep the knees fixed; if they bend much you have turned it into a deadlift.
  • Feel the load in the hamstring belly, not the lower back.
  • Reduce the range if your spine rounds before the bar reaches the floor.

Variations

Common mistakes

  • The bar starts too far out from the shins, so the first pull drags it back toward you and the lower back takes the load at the worst possible angle.
  • Loading the bar the way you would for a conventional deadlift turns the set into a stiff-legged good morning, since that weight now sits on hamstrings and erectors with the knees nearly locked.
  • The bar drifts away from the shins on the way down and each rep finishes with it a hand's width in front of your legs, which multiplies what the lower back has to hold.
  • Shoulders round forward at the bottom to reach the bar, so the next pull starts with the upper back already folded and the bar hanging out in front of them.
  • The top of every rep gets a big lean back to feel finished, which stacks compression onto a lower back that has already done the entire lift.

Frequently asked

How many sets and reps of the stiff-leg deadlift should you do when you are new to the exercise?
Three sets of 6 to 8 at roughly half of your conventional deadlift weight, once a week. Range comes before load: if your back rounds before the bar reaches the floor, pull from blocks or from pins in a rack and lower the height over weeks as the hinge improves. Add weight only when all three sets finish with the same flat back on the last rep as on the first.
What can I do instead of the stiff-leg deadlift if I have no barbell?
Dumbbells or kettlebells let you keep the same near-locked knees with far less spinal load, and standing on a low step restores the range you lose to the shorter implement. A Romanian deadlift keeps the weight off the floor and is the gentler cousin of this lift. For hamstrings without a hinge at all, a Nordic curl or a slider curl covers the knee-bending job no deadlift trains.
What is the stiff-leg deadlift good for, and when should you avoid it?
It loads the hamstrings and the spinal erectors through a long range from the floor, which builds posterior-chain strength and helps the bottom of a conventional deadlift. Avoid it while your hinge is still new, since near-locked knees leave the lower back holding everything, and avoid stacking it in the same week as heavy deadlifts unless your recovery is good. If the lower back rather than the hamstrings is what feels the work, shorten the range and lighten the bar.

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