Exercise Breakdown: Romanian Deadlift
- Elizabeth Karr PT, DPT
- Jun 23
- 3 min read
I frequently remind myself, and my patients that no one is watching you or judging you at the gym. Unless, of course, I am at the gym. Then I might be watching and mentally critiquing your form. But that’s because my job is to analyze movement and educate people on how to optimize form to reduce harm and improve outcomes! The exercise that I see performed incorrectly most often is the Romanian Deadlift. The Romanian Deadlift (RDL) is a great posterior chain strengthening exercise that can be altered to include Single Leg and Modified Single Leg variations which are amazing for runners working on single stability. So, performing these properly has a ton of benefit! When performed incorrectly however, they can strain the back muscles, which makes proper form even more imperative! That’s why today, I am breaking down the RDL and dissecting the movement so that you can perform them correctly.
Set up your hip hinge
At its core, the RDL is a hip hinge, which means to perform this properly, you need to understand how to perform a hip hinge. A great trick for learning a hip hinge is to use a dowel or similar object (ie broomstick). Start with feet slightly wider than hip width, and hold the dowel behind your back – the upper hand on the dowel should be in contact with the back of your head, the middle of the dowel rests on your mid back between the shoulder blades, and the lower hand on the dowel rests on the lowest part of your back. The dowel will act as a cue throughout the movement. Maintain all three points of contact the whole time – if you lose one or more points of contact, you’ll know that you lost the form and have likely rounded or arched your back, and may have gone too far.
The Movement
Unlike with a squat or traditional deadlift where a lot of the movement comes from your knees bending, the RDL is primarily driven by the hips (thus the need to perfect your hip hinge). How straight or bent your knees are will bias more hamstring or glute activation but that is level two and a different blog post. We’re sticking with the basics today!! For a basic RDL, start with your knees unlocked in an athletic stance. From there, your knees don’t move! You can stand with a bench or similar behind your knees to feel if your knees are pulling away, indicating that you are starting to move from the knees too much. The actual movement of the hip hinge is that of the hips moving backwards, as if you were shutting a car door with your bottom. As you do this, your chest will lower. As you move through the range, you should feel your glutes and hamstrings load. The range of motion will be limited by your hamstring flexibility; once you have used all availability hamstring length, you need to stop, and return to standing. If you go further, you’ll likely be getting the range from your back. Try this hip hinge, and make sure you are keeping all three points of contact on your back.
Remove the Training Wheels
Repeat the set up and the hip hinge movement but without the dowel. You can try it with your hands at your hips, or arms hanging down to the ground. Remember to just go until your hamstrings tighten up, then push down through the heels and squeeze your glutes to return to standing. You can check your form by performing this movement with a mirror to your side, and look to the side and make sure that your hips and shoulders stay stacked in the same plane.
Add Weight
Once you feel comfortable performing this movement with no resistance, you can add weight. I would recommend starting with one weight (can be a dumbbell, kettlebell, plate, or other object!) held in both hands. The weight will start held in front of your thighs, and as you hinge, should lower down between your feet. Do not reach forward with the weight as this can place excess strain on your back, and keep your shoulders relaxed away from your ears.
Congratulations, you have mastered the Romanian Deadlift! Now you are ready for all of the fun variations, and don't have to worry about a PT secretly worrying about your form from across the gym.
If you are concerned about your form with exercises, or aren’t sure where to start with strength training, our team of physical therapists at Precision Performance and Physical Therapy in Atlanta can help you. With individualized assessment to determine which exercises are most appropriate for you and dedicated education on form and activity progression, we can help you feel confident as you incorporate strength training into your routine.
Thanks for reading!
Dr. Elizabeth Karr PT, DPT, OCS
