If you want to build strong glutes, hamstrings, and lower back muscles, improve the posture of your spine and pelvis, and prevent lower back and hip pain than the Romanian Deadlift, RDL for short, is a going to be a great exercise for you.
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The RDL trains the hip hinge movement pattern, which is one of the 7 fundamental human movement patterns and the most fundamental pattern for the lower body, as well as anti-flexion of the core and lumbar spine, which is the lower spine. The other two lower body movement patterns are squatting and lunging.
The hip hinge is the most fundamental lower body movement pattern because having a strong hip hinge lays a great foundation for you to build your strongest squat and lunge patterns for 2 reasons.
- The hip hinge significantly loads and strengthens the primary hip extensor muscles which are the glutes, hamstrings, and adductor magnus, which are among the biggest, strongest muscles in the body along with strengthening the spinal erector muscles which all contribute significantly to the strength of your squat and lunge patterns.
- To perform your strongest squat and lunge, the movement is initiated with a simultaneous hip hinge and knee bend which allows you to load your glutes and hamstrings effectively in combination with your quads.
The RDL also lays a great foundation for your conventional deadlift because the RDL trains the top three quarters or so of the deadlift. The difference between the RDL and the deadlift is the deadlift starts at the floor and requires more knee bend to perform whereas the RDL starts from a standing position and is performed with only a 10 to 20 degree knee bend through the entire movement.
The anti-flexion function of the core is also trained at a high level during the RDL as the spinal erectors, which are the group muscles that primarily extend the spine, work hard to maintain a neutral spine position, and prevent flexion and rounding of the spine. The transverse abdominis, which is the deepest layer of the core also plays a significant role in stabilizing the spine during the RDL. This is why the RDL builds a strong lower back and core along with strong glutes and hamstrings.
In previous articles, I've described how to do a lot of exercises that would allow you to develop the fundamental mobility and stability to more easily perform the RDL correctly. Those exercises were the band assisted hamstring stretch, the leg lowering exercise, the half kneeling hip flexor stretch, the half kneeling pallof press, the glute bridge, and the dowel hip hinge. So, I'd highly recommend mastering those exercises first, especially the dowel hip hinge, before the weighted RDL I’m going to teach you in this article to ensure you can perform it with the best technique possible.
Now, let’s go through how to perform the RDL with perfect technique. To set up, grab your weights, whether you're using dumbbells, kettlebells, or even a barbell or hex bar, set your feet directly under your hips or maybe slightly wider, and set your hips in either a neutral position or externally rotate the hips 5 to 10 degrees depending on what allows you to reach the deepest range of hip flexion. The vast majority of people are going to be able to reach a deeper range of hip flexion by externally rotating the hip joint out about 10 degrees.
Once your foot and hip position are set, press your toes firmly into the ground. Make sure you're in a neutral pelvis and spine position with the pelvis directly under you, abs ready for a punch in the stomach, and chin tucked back. Then set your shoulders down away from your ears to engage your lats which will play a key role in stabilizing the shoulders and spine during the movement.
Initiate the RDL by inhaling through your nose and shifting your weight back into your hips and heels, but keep your toes pressed down, while bending the knees slightly, about 10 to 20 degrees. Hinge back until you can't flex your hips and stretch your hamstrings anymore, then reverse the movement by exhaling through the mouth with pursed lips and driving through the glutes and hamstrings to fully extend the hips contracting your glutes all the way through to the top as you return to the start position.
Of course, you should feel the RDL primarily working the glutes, hamstrings, adductor magnus, and spinal erector muscles. You should also feel a stretch in the glutes and hamstrings in the back position.
Often times when people are doing the RDL, especially for the first few times, and they feel the low back muscles getting tense they get concerned but this is totally normal, it’s just the spinal erector muscles working to prevent the spine from flexing and maintain the neutral spine. If you're using a barbell instead of dumbbells, kettlebells, or even a hex bar then you are going to put more of a demand on the back muscles to maintain the neutral spine since the weight is going to be further from your center of gravity. So, if your intention is to maximize the core and lower back strengthening you get from your RDL than the barbell is the best option for you but if you want to minimize the demand on the lower back than dumbbells, kettlebells, or a hex bar are the best option for you because you can keep the weight closer to your center of gravity.
Grip strength also becomes an important factor during the RDL especially as you develop your strength to the point where your grip gets tired before your legs do. When using the barbell, you can use a reverse grip which will help your grip last longer but ultimately no matter what type of weights you're using you're going to need wrist straps to solve this problem.
Now, let’s go over the 3 most common mistakes to avoid during the RDL.
- Losing the neutral spine by over flexing or overextending the spine at any point throughout the exercise. Over-flexing of the spine usually occurs on the way back as the weight is attempting to pull you into this position. Over extending can happen on the way back or forward if you’re trying too hard to prevent rounding the spine and it can happen at the top position if you’re extending the lower back on the finish instead of the glutes. These mistakes can cause excessive shear forces on the spine which can predispose it to injury.
- Losing the packed shoulder position which will allow the weight to move away from the body which also can contribute to the mistake of over-flexing the spine.
- Bending the knees too much taking tension off the glutes and hamstrings and shifting some load to the quads, which is not the training effect we want in the RDL.
So, make sure to avoid these 3 common mistakes to get the most out of the RDL and prevent injury.
There are two variations of the RDL that provide unique benefits in comparison to the classic RDL. The first is the Single Leg RDL which is the exact same movement pattern only performed on one leg at a time. This changes the exercise from a bilateral (two leg) exercise to a unilateral (one leg) exercise allowing you to develop the strength of each individual leg on its own. This single leg stance adds a significant demand and training effect on the foot and lower leg muscles as they work to balance and stabilize during the exercise. It also creates more of a demand on the core to resist rotation of the spine and pelvis.
The second variation is the Staggered Stance RDL which like the Single Leg RDL allows us to challenge each leg more individually, only in the staggered stance we have about 10 to 20 percent of our weight on the back leg to eliminate the balance and stability demand which allows you to load each individual leg with heavier weights so you can get more of a true strength or even power training stimulus.
The number of sets, repetitions, and frequency you should perform for the RDL will depend on your training experience and your goals. If you're a beginner, it's going to be best to start with 2-3 sets of 12-15 reps 2-3 times per week so you can develop the technical skill to perform the exercise correctly and build strength endurance.
If your training experience is more intermediate to advanced and your goals are general strength and hypertrophy then 3-4 sets of 6-12 reps 1-2 times per week is going to be best for you. If your goals are to develop maximum strength and power then 3-6 sets of 1-5 reps 1-2 times per week is the best approach for you. It's also best to perform a full body exercise like this earlier in your workout so there isn't any excess fatigue that would decrease the quality of technique and intensity.
Now that you know how to perform the RDL with perfect technique, it’s time to go practice and train the exercise so you can actually execute it with perfect technique, build your hip hinge pattern, and strong glutes, hamstrings, and lower back muscles.
If you want to be coached to perform not only the RDL but all of your strength exercises with perfect technique along with a holistic, individualized health and fitness program designed to help you sustainably lose 15 to 40 plus pounds and develop high level strength and conditioning that improves posture and prevents injury then tap on Contact above to request a free success session.
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