Deadlift with a barbell! Cool exercise for developing hamstrings

The deadlift, also called the stiff leg row, is a basic exercise for strengthening the back and targeting the hamstrings and glutes. This type of deadlift is absent in the competitive powerlifting program, since the peculiarities of its technique do not allow working with large weights. However, most training enthusiasts are not interested in the competitive process, but in improving their physical fitness. Performing straight-legged deadlifts allows you to contract and stretch the target muscles in one exercise, which is great for achieving this goal.

• Deadlift: what works and what muscles the deadlift pumps
• Benefits of deadlifts for men and girls
• Deadlift technique, how to do Romanian deadlifts correctly
• Important nuances: what you should pay special attention to
• Video: straight-legged deadlift technique
• Possible technical errors
• What is the difference between a deadlift and a classic deadlift, what is the difference?
• Table: differences between deadlift and classic deadlift
• How to achieve maximum effect: recommendations for performing the exercise for men and women

Features of deadlift

Deadlifts with a barbell for girls are no different from similar sports movements for men. In both cases, identical muscle groups are involved, and the technique of performing the exercise does not change at all.

However, the deadlift has a number of significant differences in relation to other types of barbell deadlifts:

• When performing a deadlift, the muscles of the upper and lower parts of the body are evenly involved in the work. Lowering the sports equipment to knee level occurs due to flexion at the hip joint. In this case, the pelvis moves slightly relative to its original position. The second phase of the movement (the barbell touches the floor surface) occurs due to bending of the legs at the knee joint. In this case, the pelvis evenly lowers down and moves back. By combining these two movements, the load on the hamstring muscles is reduced. Performing deadlifts eliminates the second phase of the movement.
• Dead lift is performed with a narrow position of the hands on the sports equipment. The wide placement of the hands on the barbell when performing the classic deadlift is due to a decrease in the trajectory of movement, and therefore a large working weight. Girls do not need to use heavy weights to train their buttocks. It is much more important to create conditions for maximum stretching of the target muscles. As in the classic competitive movement, the grip can be either direct (the hands are facing the practitioner) or combined (direct and reverse). In the second case, hands should be alternated.

• Due to the peculiarities of the execution technique and the absence of the need to use large workloads, straight-legged deadlifts can be performed with various types of equipment: barbell, dumbbells, kettlebells and elastic bands.

Benefits of deadlifts for men and girls

This version of the deadlift cannot be considered a technically simple exercise, but it is more accessible to beginners than the classic deadlift.

Regularly performing deadlifts on straight legs allows you to solve several problems at once:

• improved posture, which visually makes the figure slimmer;
• the formation of a strong muscular corset of the back, which helps keep the spine in an anatomically correct position;
• improvement of blood circulation in the spine;
• the ability to achieve better results in other exercises by increasing back endurance and reducing the risk of injury;
• increasing muscle mass in the back of the thigh and buttocks, improving the legs and body as a whole;
• development of flexibility.

What kind of girls is it suitable for?

Even a beginner can master the technique of performing it. However, you should include stiff-legged deadlifts in your training split no earlier than 2-3 months after the start of training. Such restrictions are associated with the need to comply with security measures.

Girls and men who have recently started sports activities do not have the necessary elasticity of muscles and ligaments, which is necessary to perform deadlifts.

Also, during the movement, a large load falls on the stabilizer muscles. In particular, the long extensors of the back are involved in the work. For many people who lead a sedentary lifestyle, these muscles become weak. To strengthen them and give them tone, at least 2 months of regular training are required.

Women over 45-50 years old should also give up straight-legged deadlifts. This is due to age-related changes in the human body. Heavy barbell training should be replaced with exercises performed using machines. An alternative to deadlifts is hyperextension torso extensions.

Confusion in concepts

Please note that there are a lot of exercises for the lower back and back of the legs. See for yourself:

• Deadlift (and all its variations).
• Romanian deadlift (with slightly bent legs).
• Deadlift or straight-legged deadlift.

It would be more correct to say straight-legged deadlift, just like the Romanian deadlift.

Because there are different types of rows, maybe, for example, bent over rows of barbells or dumbbells. And to be even more precise, this is, for example, a deadlift on straight legs with dumbbells. Simply saying deadlift with a barbell is not enough.

So, you understand that these are slightly different exercises. Next, we will list the main differences between them.

Now let's look at what the correct deadlift technique should be.

Benefits of Strength Exercise

Deadlifts with a barbell for girls have a number of advantages over aerobic training or training on simulators. Strength exercises with a barbell promote rapid fat burning. The straight-legged deadlift from a standing position engages a large number of muscle fibers.

The muscles of the female body are forced to generate significant force. This helps burn a lot of energy and, as a result, leads to rapid weight loss. In this case, excess weight reduction is carried out by increasing the tone of target muscle groups, and not by reducing the volume of fluid in the body.

The benefits of deadlifts and other free weight exercises come from more than just an increase in the amount of energy burned during the workout.

Strength exercises speed up your metabolism. Girls working out in the gym speed up their metabolism. This means that weight loss processes occur during periods of rest and during work. Performing deadlifts helps reduce waist size.

Weight training in girls does not lead to an increase in muscle volume. Due to the hormonal characteristics of the female body, strength training only helps to give the gluteal and leg muscles natural shapes and the skin elasticity.

Exercises with additional weight strengthen joints, ligaments and bones. Heavy exercise increases the body's calcium intake. Which also has a positive effect on the condition of hair, nails and teeth. When performing deadlifts on straight legs, the knee joints are strengthened. During the exercise, they are filled with a special liquid and are lubricated.

Contraindications

Exercises with free weights are contraindicated if the girl exercising has the following characteristics:

Muscles involved

The deadlift with a barbell for girls is a basic multifaceted exercise. During its implementation, a large number of small and large muscle groups are involved. The core muscles take an active part in the movement process.

The abdominal press and oblique muscles of the abdomen perform a stabilizing function, supporting the body in a level position. The biceps experience a stretching force when holding a barbell with straight arms. The deltas and forearms are included in the work.

The adductor muscles of the inner thigh are also intensively involved. The trapezius muscles experience static loads, allowing you to maintain correct posture in everyday life. The entire postural chain of the girl’s back body is trained.

However, the main load is distributed between the 3 largest muscle groups:

• Back extensors. These are paired muscles located along the spine in the lower back. They are responsible for maintaining the anatomically correct shape of the lumbar spine. When performing deadlifts on straight legs, these muscles have the heaviest load among all the muscle fibers of the upper body of the exercising girl.
• Gluteal muscles. The gluteus maximus muscle is the main target group for girls performing straight-legged deadlifts. Pulling the pelvis back, during the negative phase of the movement, promotes maximum stretching of this muscle. And the simultaneous use of additional weights contributes to its deep development. When lifting a sports equipment from the bottom point to the starting position, a peak contraction of the buttocks occurs. A similar effect cannot be achieved by any other athletic movement.

• Biceps femoris . This is the biceps muscle, which is responsible for bending the leg and bringing the heel towards the buttocks. Developed hamstrings form a clear boundary between the gluteal muscles and the muscles of the legs.

What can be replaced

There are several options for performing power traction. They have certain differences. For example, Romanian differs from dead in the following nuances:

1. The knees bend.
2. The movement begins with moving the pelvis back. In the dead position, the body is tilted.
3. The projectile only goes down to the knees.
4. When returning to the starting position, the pelvis moves forward.

There are also differences between deadlifts and classic deadlifts. In the first case, the legs remain straight, and in the second they bend. This is the only fundamentally important difference.

When training at home, this exercise can be replaced with a number of others:

• abduction of the lower limbs back with the use of weights;
• reverse hyperextension;
• leg extension with an elastic band or on a machine;
• Leg presses for the back of the thighs.

Sumo for girls would also be an excellent solution. Such training will also benefit men. To avoid injury, it is recommended to use an orthopedic belt. It is also worth considering that the hard athletic version will not help in this case.

Hyperextension

Leg extension with an elastic band or on a machine

Leg presses for the back of the thighs

Sports equipment and deadlift devices for girls

Deadlifts can be performed by girls not only with a barbell.

The exercise has several basic variations:

• Deadlift using a barbell. Any equipment is suitable for implementation. However, preference should be given to sports equipment with variable weights. Progression of the load when performing deadlifts on straight legs is an integral part of obtaining results.
• Dumbbell rows. When performing deadlifts with dumbbells, the load shifts closer to the center of gravity of the girl doing the exercise. Maintaining balance in this case becomes easier. At the same time, when performing deadlifts on straight legs, the load on the lumbar spine is reduced. Therefore, this type of exercise is preferable for beginners. Dead lift on straight legs with dumbbells has one significant drawback - high costs when exercising at home. To ensure the proper level of load progression, you need to have a wide range of dumbbells or spend a lot of time adding additional weights to the bars of sports equipment (about 2.5 times more than adding weights to a barbell).
• Deadlift with kettlebell. The most inconvenient, but possible way to perform the exercise. Due to the shape of the sports equipment, performing straight-legged deadlifts with a kettlebell or kettlebells is awkward. The spherical shape forces you to move the equipment far forward, unnecessarily straining your hands. The kettlebell touches your hips and knees, which can cause discomfort. In addition, when performing deadlifts with this equipment, the girl practicing is forced to place her hands on the handle of the weight close to each other. At the same time, the shoulders move forward and round slightly. In this case, it becomes more difficult to bring the shoulder blades together and strain the muscles of the upper back. This affects the safety of the exercise.

Deadlift Recommendations and Tips

• Firstly, when performing the Deadlift exercise, you must always pay very close attention to your own back. She should be in a tense state and in no case hunched over.
• The barbell should move strictly along the legs during the exercise.
• You can additionally use special belts to secure the lower back or straps for the bar.

During the first two months, it is recommended to perform the exercise with light weight. On the contrary, those who want to increase the load can do “Deadlifts” on one leg.

Choice of weight

Selection of weights when performing at the rate of 12-15 repetitions in one approach. In this case, only the last 3-4 repetitions should be performed with significant muscle tension, and the first 10-12 repetitions serve as a deep and intense warm-up. They prepare the girl's muscles for really hard work.

The weight can be selected in the following way:

• You need to warm up without weights. To do this, it is enough to perform a set of simple joint gymnastics exercises.
• Warm up with an empty barbell or light dumbbells. It is necessary to perform 2-3 sets of 15-20 repetitions. Warm up until light sweat appears.

• Next you should add 2.5 kg to the bar. Perform 6-8 repetitions with this weight. If the exercise is easy to perform and you do not feel tired from repetitions, then you should add another 2.5 kg. In this case, the rest period between attempts should not be less than 90 seconds, but not exceed 3 minutes.
• It is worth performing the specified sequence of actions until 7-8 repetitions begin to be given with noticeable difficulty. The weight installed on the barbell is the working weight for the girl.

Weight lifting when working with dumbbells is carried out in a similar way. The process takes from 5 to 15 minutes. Therefore, the results obtained should be recorded in a training journal. Increasing the weight is carried out if the last repetitions in each approach are easy.

Warm-up

Before starting your workout, you need to warm up. Classical exercises and joint gymnastics are the best choice for girls training with weights. Rotational movements of the head and swings of the arms at the shoulder and elbow joints should be performed smoothly.

Jerks are not allowed. Tilts of the body forward, backward and to the sides must be performed with a shortened amplitude. The main purpose of warming up is to warm up the body and speed up blood flow. It is also necessary to perform 5-10 deep squats.

Deadlifts with a barbell for girls should be performed strictly after hyperextension of the body.

High-quality training of the back extensors and gluteal muscles will reduce the risk of injury. Before starting your workout, you should perform several warm-up sets with an empty barbell or light dumbbells. This is necessary so that the nervous system of the girl practicing adapts to the hard work ahead.

Technique for performing deadlifts at home

The technique of performing deadlifts on straight legs or legs bent at an angle of 160-170 degrees does not have any significant differences.

On straight legs

Deadlifts on straight legs are performed in accordance with the described technique. However, when performing this type of movement, the amplitude of movement should be shortened. Also, this type of exercise emphasizes the load on the hamstrings.

On bent legs

Performed in strict accordance with the technique described above.

When performing deadlifts with dumbbells on bent legs, it is allowed to change the trajectory of the sports equipment to the sides. In this case, the dumbbells practically touch the hips, the load on the lower back is reduced, and the amplitude of movement increases.

On one leg

To perform this version of the exercise, use a bench or fitness platform. The girl places her supporting leg under the center of gravity, and takes the other leg back and places it on the support. Traction is carried out similarly to the recommendation described above.

Deadlift technique, how to do Romanian deadlifts correctly

The straight-legged deadlift is considered a less complex exercise, from a technical point of view, compared to the classic version of the deadlift. However, it involves a significant load on the spine and is very demanding on the level of stretching of the athlete. Therefore, before starting the class, you must warm up, paying special attention to the joints and ligaments of the lower body.

Before you begin performing deadlifts, it is recommended to spend a few minutes on hyperextension - this way the back muscles will prepare for the upcoming load.

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To get into the starting position for the deadlift, place your feet shoulder-width apart. This distance can be varied depending on the goals of the exercise: a narrower position will involve the buttocks more, but if you place your feet a little wider, the emphasis will shift to the hamstrings. Legs stand firmly on the floor, feet parallel. The back is tense, the natural deflection in the lower back is clearly recorded. The head is in line with the back. This body position should be maintained throughout the entire exercise.

The barbell is positioned on the floor so that the bar is above the feet. If there is a need to minimize the load on the lower back, you can take the projectile not from the floor, but from a special rack.

1. While maintaining the above-described back position, you need to take the bar with an overhand grip slightly wider than shoulder width.
2. As you inhale, moving your buttocks back and slightly bending your knees, tilt your body forward. The natural arch in the lower back is preserved. You need to bend over as far as the stretch allows, until maximum tension in the back of the thighs. The beginning of the rounding of the back is a signal to complete the tilt: this will be the lowest point.
3. After a short delay in the lower position, we begin to exhale and lift the body up. The lift continues until maximum tension in the back and buttocks. As your legs straighten, you need to move your shoulders back so that your shoulder blades move towards each other.
4. You should fixate at the top point, maintaining tension in the target muscles. There is no need to fully extend the body. During the pause, the shoulder blades remain retracted, the lower back is slightly arched, and the center of gravity falls on the heels. The pelvis, shoulders, and ankles should be on the same vertical line.

The exercise is performed in 3-4 sets of 10-12 repetitions each.

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There is another version of the breathing technique while performing deadlifts, in addition to the one described above. At the beginning of the tilt, a deep breath is taken, the tilt itself is performed while holding your breath. The upward movement is done while exhaling (as a rule, it accompanies the passage of the most difficult section of the climb).

Important nuances: what you should pay special attention to

The apparent simplicity of performing this type of deadlift is deceptive. To master the correct technique, you need to consider a number of points:

• Experienced athletes recommend doing this exercise in shoes with flat and wide soles, in which there is almost no heel. It should fit snugly on your leg.
• All movements are performed in a shortened amplitude. It is important to catch the moments of maximum tension on the back of the thighs at the lowest point (usually the bar at this moment reaches the middle of the shins) and the lifting of the upper body (without fully straightening the back). Deadlift involves moving up and down between the lowest and highest points with a short fixation in them.
• Despite its name, the straight-legged row involves bending your knees slightly. Lowering the apparatus on straight legs entails a rounding of the back; in addition, slightly bent knees force the leg muscles to additionally engage in work, which protects the joints from excessive load. Therefore, you need to keep your knees slightly relaxed - this position is called “soft knees.”
• An indispensable condition for correct technique is control over the position of the back. Throughout the entire exercise, it should remain unchanged, with a fixed natural deflection. This is easier to do by watching your shoulder blades. When they begin to move apart, the back rounds.
• The barbell must be raised and lowered in a symmetrical manner. Transferring part of the load from one half of the body to the other is unacceptable.
• When performing a deadlift, the bar moves up and down strictly along the shins, the fingers practically slide along the legs.
• The effectiveness of the deadlift directly depends on the presence of the brain-muscle connection. The exercise requires high concentration and focus on the work of the target muscles. It is important to feel the tension at all stages of the movement. Mechanical execution will not give the desired result.

Video: straight-legged deadlift technique

Video of straight-legged deadlift technique for women and men

Possible technical errors

If the correct technique is not followed, the straight leg deadlift turns from an effective exercise into a traumatic one. The most common mistakes are:

• Rounding the back. This movement greatly increases the load on the spine and can cause injury.
• Pulling the barbell forward from the body. This overloads the lower back and increases the risk of back injury.
• Changing the angle of flexion of the legs at the knee joints at the middle and lower point of movement: it should remain unchanged.
• Excessive straightening and hyperextension of the body at the top point, which has a destructive effect on the spine.
• Perform the exercise with absolutely straight legs. Don't forget about "soft knees".
• The weight of the projectile is too high. The priority when performing deadlifts is perfect technique, not weight records.
• Involving hands in work. In this case, their role is limited to holding the projectile, and nothing more.

To avoid technical errors and to control the execution of each movement, the deadlift should be done in front of a mirror (we stand facing it, not sideways, so as not to cause an imbalance by turning the head). Until the correct technique is mastered, you should work with minimal weight. The above errors are shown in the photo below.

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Possible mistakes

When performing deadlifts with a barbell or dumbbells, girls make the following mistakes:

• Rounding of the lumbar spine. Violation of the technique of performing the exercise is associated with incorrect selection of weights and can lead to serious injury.
• Bend your knees . This error occurs more often than others. The straight-legged barbell row turns into a classic deadlift. In this case, the gluteal muscle does not work properly and the girl does not get the desired effect from the training.
• Body tilts. Deadlifts are performed as forward bends with a barbell. During the movement, there is no backward abduction of the pelvis, and the sports equipment is located far from the hip. In this case, the load on the back increases.

How the muscles work in this exercise

Both deadlifts and deadlifts use several muscle groups at once. The heaviest load is placed on the back muscles and the back of the thighs. When performing a deadlift, the quadriceps is not pumped, which distinguishes it from a deadlift. The fact is that the legs should remain straight, so there should be no work of these muscles.

The following muscles will be involved:

• back extensor group;
• gluteus maximus muscle;
• semitendinosus muscle;
• semimembranosus muscle;
• biceps femoris muscle.

Exactly which muscles work when performing a deadlift explains why the exercise is especially loved by women. Pumping up your back helps you maintain ideal posture, and working your hip muscles promises to give aesthetics to your buttocks and thighs. An additional part of the load goes to the upper back muscles, inner thighs, forearms, and abdominal muscles.

When do the results of training appear?

Girls will feel the effect of performing deadlifts with a barbell or dumbbells the next day after training. The muscles in the back of your thighs will ache. It will become difficult to bend your leg at the knee. To avoid such consequences, you should introduce barbell rows into the training process gradually. The visual effect of the exercises will be visible 2-3 months after the start of the exercise.

Deadlifts with a barbell for girls are an accessible and effective exercise.

Deadlifts with a barbell or dumbbells are a powerful tool in building a beautiful figure and giving the gluteal muscles a rounded shape. Also, the exercise will help girls get rid of excess weight and speed up their metabolism. Which has a positive effect on the condition of the skin and hair.

Should it be used in training?

To create a beautiful leg relief, isolated training of the muscles of the back of the thigh and buttocks is necessary. Various squats primarily involve the quadriceps, which takes the lion's share of the load.

And special exercise machines cannot be found in all gyms. Therefore, the Romanian (dead) lift is considered as a basic exercise when working on the leg muscles.

This is one of the main exercises in bodybuilding. It is similar to the deadlift, but differs in that it requires you to keep your legs straight or only slightly bend them as the weight is lowered down.

The exercise works well on the buttocks and back of the thighs. It also works your back, arms and shoulders. Thus, the deadlift is basic, unlike, for example, leg curls in a lying hamstring machine.

What muscles work?

When performing the exercise, the back of the thigh, buttocks and back are involved:

In different versions of the exercise, the main work falls either on the back or on the legs.