Sumo Deadlift

Hamstrings
Glutes
Adductors
Forearms
Glutes
Lower Back
Upper Back
Quads
Traps

Equipment: Barbell

New to this

Your first sumo deadlift

What weight should I start with on the sumo deadlift?

Load 95 lb, the 45 lb bar plus a 25 lb plate per side. Use plates that stand 17 to 18 inches tall so the bar starts at the right height. If 95 lb is too much, use bumper plates or blocks rather than smaller plates on the floor.

What usually goes wrong on the sumo deadlift?

Set your feet wide, toes turned out about 40 degrees, shins close to the bar.

Grip inside your knees, arms straight and vertical.

Drop your hips, lift your chest, and pull the slack out of the bar before you move it.

Push the floor away with both feet and stand up, keeping the bar against your legs.

You should feel this in the glutes, quads, and inner thighs.

Most common mistake: yanking the bar off the floor with a soft back. Take the slack out first. The bar should make a quiet click before it moves.

If the platform is taken

The Barbell Hip Thrust trains the same glute drive with no spinal load.

The Leg Press covers the leg work while you wait for the bar.

How to do it

Begin with a bar loaded on the ground. Approach the bar so that the bar intersects the middle of the feet. The feet should be set very wide, near the collars. Bend at the hips to grip the bar. The arms should be directly below the shoulders, inside the legs, and you can use a pronated grip, a mixed grip, or hook grip. Relax the shoulders, which in effect lengthens your arms.
Take a breath, and then lower your hips, looking forward with your head with your chest up. Drive through the floor, spreading your feet apart, with your weight on the back half of your feet. Extend through the hips and knees.
As the bar passes through the knees, lean back and drive the hips into the bar, pulling your shoulder blades together.
Return the weight to the ground by bending at the hips and controlling the weight on the way down.