Exercise guide · Legs & Glutes

Barbell Romanian Deadlift

The barbell Romanian deadlift builds hamstring and glute strength with a hip hinge while the bar stays close to your legs. Unlike a conventional deadlift, you start standing and lower by pushing hips back, feeling a stretch in the hamstrings before driving hips forward to stand.

Targets: Hamstrings
Equipment: Barbell
Type: Compound

Step by step

How to do the Barbell Romanian Deadlift

Stand with feet hip-width apart, bar over mid-foot. Hinge down to grip the bar just outside your legs with palms facing you or a mixed grip.
Stand tall with soft knees, shoulders over the bar, and core braced. The bar should hang at arm's length against your thighs.
Initiate by pushing your hips straight back while keeping the bar sliding down the front of your legs. Knees bend slightly but stay mostly fixed.
Lower until you feel a strong hamstring stretch—usually mid-shin—without rounding your lower back. Chest stays up and bar stays close.
Drive hips forward to stand tall, squeezing glutes at the top without leaning back past neutral.
Reset your brace between reps or touch down lightly after each rep depending on your program.

Form cues

Bar stays close to legs the entire rep
Hinge at hips, not by rounding your back
Soft knees throughout—this is not a squat
Feel the stretch in hamstrings at the bottom

Common mistakes

Bending knees too much, turning it into a squat
Bar drifting away from legs, loading the lower back
Rounding the lower back at the bottom
Locking knees completely stiff at the start

Muscles worked

Primary

Hamstrings

Secondary

Glutes, Lower back and Forearms

Safety: Start with an empty bar or light weight to learn the hip hinge. Stop if you feel sharp lower back pain. Use collars on the plates.

Alternatives

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