Romanian deadlift - execution techniques; what is the difference from deadlift

The deadlift is a super-effective compound exercise for developing the hamstrings and glutes. Unfortunately, this exercise is increasingly confused with the Romanian deadlift, although there are significant differences between them. Surprisingly, if you open ten different descriptions of the deadlift technique, at least six of them will incorrectly describe the Romanian deadlift technique. The deadlift should not be confused with the classic deadlift. All three techniques are self-sufficient and have a number of differences.

When to use the Romanian deadlift?

If you need to pump up the biceps of your buttocks and thighs, it is better to perform Romanian deadlifts. Basic deadlifts help build leg muscle strength, but can damage your lower back.

Although an effective exercise, the deadlift is not recommended for beginners, because... high risk of lower back injury. If you decide to perform this exercise, you should use a power rack.

The barbell should be set just below the knees. As a result, the range of movements will be small, but this will not greatly affect the result. When it is easy to lift a weight of 60 kg, you can lower the bar slightly. After this weight has been mastered, you can lower the bar lower and lower. And then lower the barbell to the floor. Then you can move on to a weight of 70 kg and start all over from the very beginning (level just below the knees).

How the muscles work in this exercise

Both deadlifts and deadlifts use several muscle groups at once. The heaviest load is placed on the back muscles and the back of the thighs. When performing a deadlift, the quadriceps is not pumped, which distinguishes it from a deadlift. The fact is that the legs should remain straight, so there should be no work of these muscles.

The following muscles will be involved:

• back extensor group;
• gluteus maximus muscle;
• semitendinosus muscle;
• semimembranosus muscle;
• biceps femoris muscle.

Exactly which muscles work when performing a deadlift explains why the exercise is especially loved by women. Pumping up your back helps you maintain ideal posture, and working your hip muscles promises to give aesthetics to your buttocks and thighs. An additional part of the load goes to the upper back muscles, inner thighs, forearms, and abdominal muscles.

How is the Romanian deadlift performed?

Due to the ease of movement control and the ease of holding the arms, the Romanian barbell deadlift has gained more popularity than the dumbbell deadlift or barbell deadlift.

When performing a straight-legged deadlift, the muscles primarily involved are the hamstrings, hip adductors, upper back and forearm, latissimus dorsi, gluteal muscles, and erector spinae.

When performing a deadlift, the legs are slightly bent at the knees, the arms are not bent at the elbows, and in this position the barbell is lifted from the floor.

The deadlift is one of the main exercises in bodybuilding. The number of muscles that take an active part in performing a deadlift can only be compared to squats. By using heavy weights, deadlifts help expend large amounts of energy and help build muscle mass.

This strength exercise strengthens the body and prepares it for new loads. But if you use deadlifts too often, you can stop muscle growth. Therefore, the key to success in performing this exercise is the correct choice of training frequency.

Types of deadlift:

• classical;
• deadlift on straight legs;
• sumo style deadlift.

Each option affects the muscles differently. That’s why every exercise is useful.

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Differences between types of traction

What is the difference in technique between types of traction? It’s strange, but all three types of deadlifts are fundamentally different in starting position and execution technique.

How is Romanian deadlift different from deadlift?

The Romanian deadlift is popularly called a lower back exercise. This is not entirely correct from the point of view of the technique, but it conveys the sensations very accurately. When the weight of the barbell is lifted on bent legs, part of the effort is given to the lower back.

Technical features:

• The barbell is removed from the racks, and after moving away, slight flexion is performed in both knee joints. The stance is symmetrical, the heels can be placed under the pelvic bones, or a little narrower, the toes can be slightly spread or left parallel, as is convenient;
• The tilt is performed by bending the hip joint while exhaling. The task of the abdomen is to keep the spine stable, so you cannot push the anterior abdominal wall forward;
• The bar slides over the body, touches it throughout the entire amplitude, there is no point in “throwing” the barbell away from the body;
• The reverse movement “starts” with contraction of the gluteal muscles, exhalation occurs with effort;
• The Romanian deadlift resembles pushing the pelvis back and bringing it toward the midline as the athlete straightens.

Romanian deadlift from the classic

The Romanian deadlift does not involve completely lowering the weight to the floor. Therefore, in strength sports it is defined as “bending with a barbell in straight arms”, and not as a “pull”. In the classics, the athlete starts from the floor, he rests his feet, tears the barbell off the platform, and lifts it, moving the bar along the body. Fixation of weight - at the top point, with shoulders pulled back. Double movement of the bar along the body, that is, movement up and down during lifting, is not allowed.

The difference between classic and deadlifts

Here the differences are obvious. A deadlift is a bend over with a barbell with straight legs. You don't have to touch the floor with the pancakes. The classic deadlift is always performed from the floor, and there is flexion in the knee joint. Some athletes find it more convenient to perform classic deadlifts from the floor from a high start. They bend their legs minimally, but this is the only way their body takes the optimal position for removing weight from the floor, and the most stable support.

Main mistakes:

• Bending the legs at the knee joint in a deadlift is a technical error. Moreover, it is not recommended to change the angle of your knees during the exercise;
• Lowering the weight due to inertia, that is, throwing the barbell down, can lead to injury;
• Rounding the spine in both the thoracic and lumbar regions is a mistake. If in a classic deadlift rounding in the thoracic region is not a technical error, and only a “hump” in the lumbar region is not allowed, then in this auxiliary exercise the back should remain straight;
• Too small a movement is not allowed when the bar does not fall below the knees;
• It is necessary to activate your back so that there is no need to throw your head when lifting the weight up;
• Most technical errors occur due to the selection of inappropriately heavy weights. It is also not allowed to “twitch” the weight with the shoulders, that is, a shrug together with a deadlift.

Classic deadlift

During this exercise, the muscles of the back and legs (quadriceps and hamstrings) are trained. As a result, the load is distributed in this way: 1/3 is the load on the legs, about 2/3 is the load on the back.

Execution technique

Starting position: straight back, hands tightly gripping the bar, legs slightly bent and close to the bar, head and gaze forward.

The bar rises, the body takes a vertical position, the body and legs extend. All movements are performed smoothly, no sharp bends or turns.

Important: in the top position you cannot lean back. The body should be level or slightly tilted forward.

After returning to the starting position, you need to bend your body, bend your legs slightly, and leave your back straight. After placing the barbell on the floor, you need to pause for a few seconds and continue lifting.

The grip of the bar can be: straight or different grip (in the latter case, the palm clasps the barbell from above, the other from below). Important: it is better for beginners to use a straight grip, and after gaining experience, you can perform classic deadlifts with a different grip.

Before performing the exercise, you should remember that improperly performing deadlifts can cause diseases of the back and spine.

As a result, you will have to give up sports for a while and undergo a recovery course. To avoid this, special attention should be paid to the technique of performing classic deadlifts.

Deadlift and deadlift. Features of the technology

Many bodybuilders are interested in the question: “What is the difference between a deadlift and a deadlift?” In fact, this is a rather subtle question. The exercises themselves are very similar in structure, the differences are only in seemingly insignificant details.

Key differences:

1. Deadlifts are performed exclusively with straight legs. Constantly. As you move down, the legs remain straight, although the knees may be soft. There is no need to squat. Thanks to this, the load goes mostly to the buttocks and biceps of the thigh, rather than to the back and lower back. This makes the exercise very beneficial not only for the fair half of the world, but also for people who have problems with the strength of the lumbar muscles and it is advisable to transfer the load to nearby muscle groups.
2. When performing an incline, the barbell or bar moves directly to the middle of the foot, not the middle of the shin.
3. The back remains straight all the time.
4. The amplitude of the exercise performed may vary depending on individual characteristics. This is quite acceptable, which means that if there is a lack of flexibility, when the back of the thigh does not allow you to bend low, you can lower the barbell only to the knee. If you have the opposite problem, you can stand on a bench to increase the inclination. Various implementation options can be seen in these photos.

Thus, the difference between deadlift and deadlift lies in the main load on different muscle groups, different inclination and support points.

Current advice

Wear shoes with no heels. The sole should be dense and wide, perfectly following the contours of the foot. It is advisable to wear such shoes only for training so that they do not wear out. This will ensure proper stability. It is recommended to lower the bar so that it is closer to the legs, lightly touching the thighs and shins. In this case, it reduces the load on the lumbar region and increases it on the legs. The head is on the same axis with the entire spinal column. The back should not be rounded. If this cannot be accomplished, you should place discs under your feet and perform the exercise from a higher position. You can also tilt as long as you can keep your back straight, without reaching the final point. If you cannot perform this exercise without rounding your back at all, it is better to stop the exercise so as not to injure the spine. If after a certain number of repetitions your back starts to hurt or get very tired, you need to include hyperextension in your training. This will further stimulate endurance and strength of the back muscles. It is necessary to perform the exercise using the whole body in a comprehensive manner. Do not rely on your arms or lower back when making a dangerous jerk

The exercise must be performed slowly and accurately. It is important to feel which muscles are working. If the load is felt in the wrong parts, you should change something in the deadlift.

It's also important to remember that recording your training results is a great way to continually track your progress. You can create a special notebook or notepad specifically for reporting on the number of approaches, repetitions and working weights

Taking photos periodically will also help you track your success.

In fact, the deadlift is an excellent exercise not only for developing muscles, but also tendons. Doing this exercise regularly will help increase the flexibility of your hamstrings. They will be able to withstand much more weight, therefore, the risk of all kinds of injuries is reduced to a minimum. Even if you give up training, the resulting flexibility will have a beneficial effect on your future life. The risk of musculoskeletal diseases is greatly reduced.

In conclusion, it is recommended to watch a video that clearly illustrates the correct execution of this exercise.

Sumo deadlift

During this exercise, the leg muscles receive more load than the back. The key load is received by the quadriceps of the thighs. The lower back in this case acts as an assistant. During the exercise, the load is distributed in this way: legs - 2/3 of the total load, back - about 1/3.

Execution technique

Starting position: legs wide apart, legs turned to the sides. Legs are bent until they are parallel to the floor.

The barbell is grasped with a different grip with a grip width slightly wider than the shoulders. As a result of the different grip, you can hold heavy weight without much difficulty, and the bar will not turn over in your hands.

Having straightened your body, you need to stand with the barbell, taking a vertical position. You must hold your breath while climbing. At the end of the movement, the shoulders are slightly pulled back as you exhale. While inhaling, the starting position is assumed. After a short second break, the exercise is repeated.

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Recommendations: how to perform deadlifts for girls and men

Both men and women are not recommended to perform deadlifts with maximum weights, since the biceps and ligaments already experience severe stretching; they should not be injured by working weights as in the classic deadlift. Think of the dead lift as an auxiliary exercise to tone your biceps and glutes. Perform it extremely carefully within 15-25 repetitions of 3 sets.

More trained representatives of the stronger sex can perform the exercise for 12-14 repetitions of 3-4 approaches. The exercise should only be performed after compound compound exercises that involve more muscles, such as barbell squats and leg presses.

If the exercise causes severe pain in the hamstrings, replace it with the Romanian deadlift, which will relieve the stretch.

Deadlift

The straight-legged deadlift is the most difficult form of this exercise. During the deadlift, the legs barely bend, so the quadriceps do not work here. The biceps of the thigh, buttocks and muscles of the lower back (lower back) take an active part.

By increasing the range of motion, the weight for lifting is reduced. But the quality of the exercise does not suffer from this: the deadlift helps to actively work the muscles of the lower back. This increases the range of motion of the lower body. As a result, the exercise can be performed on a platform or other “elevation”.

Deadlift technique

Starting position: knees almost straight, lower back slightly arched. Toes point to the sides. Bend your torso forward.

Grasp the barbell with a regular (straight) grip. As you inhale, hold your breath, straighten your torso, while keeping your lower back arched. At the highest point of performing a deadlift, you need to exhale, and then return to the starting position. Important: after returning to the starting position, you do not need to lower the barbell to the floor. To avoid injury, you should not round your back while performing movements.

To maintain your health and ensure safe exercise, keep your back straight.

Techniques for performing “Romanian”

The correct technique for performing any exercise is the key to a good result for athletes, so let's look at this issue below, taking into account various nuances. It should be remembered that any inaccuracies and carelessness in execution are fraught with various unpleasant consequences. At best, the exercise simply will not give the expected result, and at worst, you can be seriously injured.

Before performing this activity, as well as any other, be sure to do at least a short five-minute warm-up. You should first choose the right sports shoes in which you will exercise. It should be loose, light, comfortable and without heels. The sole should be wide and flat.

Romanian deadlifts are usually performed with a barbell or dumbbells. The Romanian deadlift with dumbbells is not a separate exercise and has practically no fundamental differences. If you don’t count its complicated version, on one leg, then this is just one of the varieties of the technique.

If this is your first time doing this workout, start with light weights. Select the most suitable weight for you individually, consulting with your trainer or more experienced athletes at the gym.

Barbell technique

1. Having come almost close to the bar, straighten up, then straighten your shoulders and move them back a little, bringing your shoulder blades together. Place your feet approximately shoulder width apart.
2. Bend your legs slightly at the knees. Straighten your back and push your pelvis back, then lean towards the bar with a straight back, squatting slightly. Under no circumstances should your back be arched or twisted throughout the entire approach, otherwise you will almost certainly suffer a spinal injury!
3. Take the bar with a straight medium grip or slightly wider. Very smoothly and carefully straighten up with the barbell in your hands.
4. While inhaling deeply, bend forward gently and slowly. We don’t bend or bend our back in any way (another reminder for those who didn’t get it the first time), and when bending over, we lower the bar almost flush with our legs.
5. Lower the bar to the knees, or a little lower, to the middle of the shins. Then, without stopping for a long time in the lower part of the amplitude, we slowly straighten up.
6. Do 3-5 repetitions (assuming you are a beginner) and rest. You can then repeat it several times again, but if you no longer have the strength to keep your back straight, then this training should be stopped for today to avoid injury.

3-5 repetitions should not be with maximum weight, there should be no failure repetitions here. Therefore, if you are not an experienced athlete, then do not weigh too much weight. Get used to proper technique and do everything slowly. When you have fully mastered this type of training, increase the weight and number of repetitions to 10-12.

Technique with dumbbells

A similar exercise with dumbbells is a lighter version of the “Romanian” exercise, which is perfect for women and girls, but is also not contraindicated for men. As already written above, there are practically no fundamental differences here from training with a barbell, except for the sports equipment you use. So, in this case, you can completely follow all the above instructions.

One has only to add that when performing the technique with dumbbells, it will be more difficult to keep the arms at the desired width than when gripping the bar, so there will still be a slight additional load on the arm muscles, and in particular on the biceps and triceps, but nothing bad in this, of course, is not the case.

On one leg

Romanian deadlifts on one leg, affectionately nicknamed “crane” by athletes (due to the similarity in action to the well crane), have much more fundamental differences from similar exercises with a barbell or dumbbells on two legs, which is evident even from the very name of the training.

Let’s say right away that this is a rather complex and traumatic variety of “Romanian exercise,” so you need to be as careful as possible, and if you have back problems, it is better to completely abandon such extreme training.

This exercise is most common among female sports audiences, since it is designed to develop the thigh muscles and gluteal muscles, and a beautiful butt is still more relevant for girls, although there are all sorts of men too...

Also, the “crane” helps to train the vestibular apparatus, since when performing it it can be extremely difficult to maintain balance, because it requires certain skills and dexterity.

Dumbbells or weights, or less often a bar, are used as sports equipment.

1. Place weights or dumbbells on some low stand, for example, a step platform, or just a small bench or bench.
2. Raise one leg back (this will be your working leg) and lift it up, while simultaneously lowering and pushing forward your body, straightened in your back. It is advisable to do all this simultaneously. Ideally, your working leg and body should form a horizontal line.
3. Now that your body is positioned so that you can take the sports equipment, take the dumbbells with your hands, slightly bending your supporting leg at the knee. There is also a nuance here: shells can be taken in both hands or only in one. In the second case, the non-working hand should be rested on the waist. The working arm with the projectile should be extended perpendicular to the floor.
4. Now, with the equipment in your hands, carefully, without sudden movements, straighten your body, simultaneously straining your gluteal and thigh muscles.
5. Move your hips back slightly to better balance your body and maintain balance.
6. Return the projectiles to their original position on the platform. Only now can you repeat it.

Tips for performing deadlifts

First, you need to determine the point of movement when the lower back rounds. If you lower your torso below parallel with the floor, straight-legged deadlifts can be dangerous. For your own safety, it is better to perform deadlifts from stands. To accurately determine the correct execution of the exercise, it is better to ask someone to watch you do the deadlift.

To lift the barbell, place it on the stops that are set to the height of the power frame. Then place the barbell on a block or board.

Even if you do not perform the exercise with full amplitude, the spinal erectors, hip muscles and legs will still be involved. In addition, the shortened amplitude significantly reduces the risk of injury.

Main mistakes

• We are not doing a Romanian lift, so our legs are straight. Stretch to perform the exercise correctly and deeply. You can pre-train on a hyperextension machine. Try to make the deepest possible movements in it with a straight back. We find this to be a very effective preparation for stiff-legged deadlifts combined with stretching.
• Don't put your head down. Let's look ahead. It is advisable to stand in front of a mirror.
• When you take on a lot of weight, you begin to round your back. Because the weight is pulled not by the lower back, which lacks strength, but by the entire back. This is where all the injuries begin. It is enough to round your lower back and your entire back will follow suit.
• Shrugs should not be done together with deadlifts. Initially, fix your shoulders so that they are in a normal straightened position, and not raised up. We are pumping not the trapezius, but the lower back.

If the exercises are so similar, what should we do?

First of all, the bent leg deadlift is designed to increase mass and strength, and this is the basis

The Romanian get-up (aka Romanian deadlift) and straight-legged deadlift are designed to work isolatedly on the buttocks and hamstrings, which is extremely important for girls. They do not put as much stress on the spine, but can lead to injury if you forget how to do the exercises correctly

Before doing a classic deadlift, you need to work with simpler exercises to strengthen your back. And before them is a month of hyperextension and stretching.

So, when your stretching for some reason does not want to progress, you can stop at the Romanian deadlift. And if you can stretch enough, then do deadlifts with straight legs.

What to replace it with?

If it hurts to do deadlifts, then for the back of the thighs and lower back, try the following:

• Pulling your legs back with weights.
• Reverse hyperextension.
• Leg extension in the simulator.
• Leg press on the back of the thigh.
• Regular hyperextension.

Strengthen your lower back and leg muscles with these exercises, then try deadlifts. You can use an orthopedic belt if you have one. Or your doctor will prescribe it for you. A rigid athletic belt is not effective in this case.

More articles on topics: Hips :: Hamstrings :: Gluteus maximus :: Legs :: Back extensors :: Back :: Buttocks

Effective exercises:

• Deadlift technique
• Doing deadlifts with dumbbells - who benefits from this exercise?
• Kettlebell swings - training strength and endurance

Trainer's tip: Try to attend training at least 2-3 times a week. Combine aerobic and strength training, and then the result will be maximum!

Muscles worked by deadlifts

Romanian deadlift involves distributing the main load on the following muscles:

• gluteal;
• hamstring biceps;
• back extensors.

Considering in detail each of these muscle groups, it is necessary to note the following. When performing the exercise, the small and middle muscles, the adductor group, as well as the outward rotation of the hip are worked out. The back stabilizers - the quadratus lumborum muscle and the erector spinae muscle - take on the bulk of the load. In addition, when performing a deadlift, the abdominal muscles are involved; arms - biceps, triceps and deltoids; trapezoidal; as well as the muscles of the lower legs - calf, tibialis, ankle stabilizers .

In practice, working out the above muscles means toned buttocks, sculpted hips and beautiful posture. For women, this exercise can replace other, less effective ones. It should be taken into account that a girl with an initial level of training may not be able to perform deadlifts, which can lead to injuries. Therefore, at the initial stages of training, it is recommended to thoroughly study the classic version of the exercise, with bent knees. When working on your own, without a coach, it is advisable to watch videos of professional athletes performing Romanian deadlifts. This will allow you to perform the exercise correctly.

Single leg deadlift with dumbbells

One cannot ignore another type of deadlift, like the single-leg deadlift with dumbbells. Looking ahead, it should be noted that its benefits are obvious.

This exercise is unusual, rather original, and many have not even heard anything about it, let alone performed it. Its advantages:

• More precise, accentuated work on both the thigh biceps and buttocks and their excellent correction.
• The muscles in these areas become “drier”.
• Improving coordination of movements, vestibular apparatus and plasticity of the athlete.
• Stabilization of the knee joints.
• A significant “blow” to the asymmetry of the gluteal muscles.
• An excellent training opportunity for those people who have back problems. In addition, the exercise partly replaces squats with weights and various leg presses - this is very important for those for whom these exercises are contraindicated.

How to perform and technical details:

1. Dumbbells in furry hands near the hips. The starting position is a straight stance with the right leg slightly moved back.
2. You need to inhale, and as you exhale, slightly bending your left leg at the knee, at the same time moving your body forward, take your right leg back, thus achieving parallelism of the body with the floor surface.
3. Next, you should fixate in the final phase for a couple of seconds, and then exhale and return to the starting position. Do the required number of repetitions, changing the position of your legs.

Clarifications to the above:

• The back is straight all the time, the gaze is only in front of you.

When there is a two-second delay in the final phase, you need to squeeze your gluteal muscles with force.

• The lowering is carried out, if possible, even below the parallelism of the body with the floor surface.
• As you move your free leg back, you need to pull your heel up.

At first, the weight of the burden should be minimal - it is important to master the technique and practice coordination.

We should not forget about correct breathing - effort comes out of it.

The number of approaches is about five, and the repetitions are more than 15.

Dead deadlift for girls and women with dumbbells

As you already know, with the help of a deadlift you can pump up your thigh muscles and buttocks. And this is especially true among the fair half of humanity. What girl doesn’t want a beautiful butt with firm buttocks?!

Deadlifts are certainly no less suitable for women than for men. In addition, this activity is very conducive to weight loss, which is also important for women.

So, let's look at this type of exercise, such as deadlifts with dumbbells for girls. Of course, young ladies can also use a barbell, but we will still describe here a more gentle regime for this activity.

There are no very fundamental differences between men's and women's, except for dumbbells instead of barbells. But there are a few additional minor nuances that are worth mentioning.

1. We place our feet shoulder-width apart, plus or minus a little, after holding dumbbells in both hands.
2. The back should be arched in the lower back, as in the case of a barbell.
3. We bend our knees slightly to avoid unnecessary stress on the joints.

4. We make a slow tilt almost to the floor. Hands with dumbbells can be kept as close to your legs as possible, but you don’t need to cling to them (as in Romanian), but can be lowered vertically down. When bending over, move the pelvis and buttocks back as far as possible.
5. We return to the starting position. We do the required number of approaches according to this scheme (10-15).
6. For greater efficiency, you can repeat the “ritual”, but only with dumbbells of lighter weight.

This exercise also contains a little bit of the Romanian deadlift. If you want to make the exercise more difficult, you can do it while standing on some kind of stand to increase the distance to the floor. Bend all the way down, following the above instructions. Determine the height of the stand yourself, depending on your physical capabilities, just don’t overdo it. Thus, during training you can put even more stress on the thigh muscles and buttocks, and pump them up to the maximum.