The same demo you get in the GymAdapt app for this exercise.
How to do it
What it should feel like
Glutes and hamstrings doing most of the work, your upper back tight to hold the bar close, and your grip working hard. A sore lower back the next day, rather than tired glutes and hamstrings, usually means the back rounded or the bar drifted forward.
Common mistakes
- Bar too far from the shins. Start with the bar over your mid-foot and keep it dragging up your legs. A bar out in front pulls your back into rounding.
- Hips shooting up first. If your hips rise before the bar leaves the floor, the lift turns into a stiff-leg pull. Push the floor away with your legs and keep your chest up.
- Rounding the back. Brace before every rep and lighten the weight if you cannot keep a flat back.
- Leaning back at the top. Stand tall and squeeze your glutes. Hyperextending adds nothing but stress on the lower back.
Variations
Starts from standing and stops below the knee: more hamstring, easier to learn.
Handles at your sides make it more upright and easier on the lower back. A good first deadlift.
Trains the glutes hard without loading the back.
Sets, reps and programming
| Goal | Sets × reps | Effort | Rest |
|---|---|---|---|
| Muscle | 3–4 × 8–12 | 1–3 reps in reserve | 90–120 s |
| Strength | 3–5 × 4–8 | 2–3 reps in reserve | 2–3 min |
| Learning it | 2–3 × 10–12, light | Smooth reps, 2–3 s down | 60–90 s |
Deadlift once or twice a week, not to failure. Add 5 to 10 lb (2.5 to 5 kg) when every rep of every set looks like the first one. Use chalk or straps when your grip, not your back, is what limits you. The simplest rule that works: add reps inside the range first, and once every set hits the top of the range, add weight next session. GymAdapt does this for you from the sets you log, and tells you why the target changed.
Questions people ask
What muscles does the deadlift work?
Mainly the glutes, hamstrings and lower back, with the quads, upper back, traps and forearms working hard to hold the position and the bar.
Is the deadlift bad for your back?
Not when it is done with a flat back, the bar close and a sensible weight. Like any loaded lift, it trains the back to be stronger. Build up gradually and stop any set where your back starts to round.
How often should I deadlift?
Once or twice a week is plenty for most people. It is tiring, so many programs do heavy deadlifts once a week and a lighter hinge like the Romanian deadlift on another day.
Mixed grip or double overhand?
Use double overhand for as long as you can hold the bar, then chalk or straps. A mixed grip works for heavy sets, but switch which hand faces up.
GymAdapt is free to start. Want Pro free for a month?
The free version gives you an AI-built plan and unlimited workouts. Code TRYFREE01 adds a full month of Pro on top: weights that adjust from what you log and unlimited coach chats.
Redeem the free month → Opens the App Store with the code filled in. iPhone only. After the month it's $4.99/mo unless you cancel in Settings, and the free version stays yours either way.Every exercise in GymAdapt comes with a demo like this, plus a target that moves.
An AI plan for your goal and equipment, a video for every lift, and next session's weight set from what you logged.
Get GymAdapt on the App Store → Free to start. Pro is $4.99 a month or $24.99 a year (7-day free trial), or $59.99 once for lifetime. iPhone only.