How to do a Deadlift

Reviewed by JP Michelsen, CPT, B.A. Kinesiology

About Deadlift

Sets Logged
4,480,254
Popularity Rank
25th
Difficulty
Intermediate
Hamstrings Strength
99 mSCORE 3rd
Equipment Required

Target muscles worked

Primary Muscles
Secondary Muscles

Instructions for Proper Form

Deadlift is one of the three powerlifting movements. It’s a compound exercise that primarily targets muscles in the rear chain (backside of the body), and is great for developing strength in these muscles. It’s a staple in most programs, and is often used as a metric for tracking strength.

  1. Stand in an upright posture with your feet at shoulder-width apart and angled out slightly positioning a loaded barbell an inch away from the front of your lower legs.
  2. Hinge at the hips and flex your knees to drop down allowing your shins to drop forward to touch the barbell.
  3. With your arms extended, grip the barbell with either double overhand grip or alternate grip next to your lower legs while keeping your chest up.
  4. Maintain this rigid spinal posture throughout the exercise.
  5. Pull the barbell in a vertical path next to your body by extending your hips and knees until you are back to a standing upright posture.
  6. Lower the barbell in a duplicate path it came up with.

Common Form Mistakes

  • Rounded Back

    Rounding your back as you pull the weight off the floor is going to increase your risk of injury, and make this exercise less effective. Prior to beginning the lift, pull your shoulders back, and brace your lower back. Pull up on the weight, without lifting it off the ground. Once you’ve confirmed that you’re in a good position, start your lift.

  • Not Close Enough

    The bar should be right up against your shins or just an inch or so away. Having the bar further away is going to place more tension on your lower back, and make it much easier for your back to round as you lift the weight off the floor.

Weight & 1 Rep Max Calculator

Average Deadlift standards by male, female, weight, age and height

Use this calculator to see Fitbod's possible first recommendations for you. This would be your starting line, based on more than 4.5 billion logged sets from 1.1 million users.

  • beginner
    8
    reps
    60
    lbs
    1 Rep Max
    75
    lbs
  • intermediate
    8
    reps
    75
    lbs
    95
    lbs
  • advanced
    8
    reps
    100
    lbs
    125
    lbs

Enter your stats to calculate your Reps & Weight