Deadlift Progressions

3-POINT SET-UP:

1. Grab the short grey cables

2. Hop both feet onto the back platform

3. Keep the arms in an extended position and the feet between shoulder and hip width distance apart

Body Part • Direction • Action Verb:

• HINGE from the hips, adding a slight bend in the knees (be sure to feel a stretch/loading of the hamstrings as you hinge down)

Range of Motion:

• Romanian Deadlifts- Hip hinge until chest/shoulders are almost parallel to the floor. Pull the chest tall to a standing position, stopping at a neutral pelvis/spine (do not tuck the tailbone under and “squeeze” the glutes at the top)

• Deadlifts- Hip hinge until achieving a 45 degree angle, then begin to lower the hips/bending the knees into a squat, stopping as hips align with knees at 90 degree angle

 Kinetic Checkpoints:

HEAD:

SAME AS PLANK

SHOULDERS:

❌ Allow the shoulders to protract as you lower down, abducting your shoulder blades and flexing your spine

✅ Keep the shoulders packed and anchored into the lats, avoiding protraction of the shoulder blade

HIPS:

❌ Hips tucking, flexing from the spine as you lower down

✅ Keep the hips in a neutral position throughout range of motion, allow slight bend in knees as your hinge from hips at bottom. Stop at the top in a neutral position, avoiding “squeezing the glutes” and tucking the tailbone under at the top.

KNEES:

❌ Keep the knees fully extended as you hinge from your hips, allowing the hips to tuck and the spine to flex

✅ Add a slight bend at the knees at the bottom to avoid flexion in the spine and keep a soft knee at the top

HANDS/FEET:

✅ Maintain a neutral wrist and engage the forearm throughout the range of motion

✅ Maintain all three points of contact with the foot (tripod)

Talking Points:

• Deadlifts are excellent exercises for the entire posterior chain. The conventional deadlift is more focused on the concentric action (lifting up and growing tall) whereas the Romanian deadlift is more eccentrically focused (lowering down/hinging at hips). Additionally, because the conventional deadlift involves a considerable amount of both hinging at hips AND knees, the conventional deadlift will be a little bit more quad focused whereas the Romanian deadlift will prioritize more hamstrings.

• Outside of the bilateral deadlifts, there are many unilateral (one leg) options. The first progression into a unilateral (one leg) deadlift would be a kickstand position (feet in a staggered position, with ball of back foot on edge of back platform). Both the Romanian and conventional can be applied to a kickstand.

• An additional unilateral progression after a kickstand position would be a true single leg deadlift, where the back is lifted the entire time. This exercise will be primarily hip hinge focused (think Romanian deadlift) and therefore will greatly prioritize the hamstring/glute.