The deadlift is an excellent compound exercise for posture improvement.
But which variation is optimal for that specific goal?
In this post, we explain to you which muscles are used during the deadlift, how this effects your posture, and which deadlift variation is optimal for posture improvement.
Finally, we teach you how to perform the ideal deadlift to strengthen your posture.
Table of Contents
Which Muscles are Targeted by the Deadlift?
The deadlift is a compound exercise. That means that it affects a variety of different muscle groups throughout your whole body, each to a different extent.
Erector Spinae
The erector spinae muscles run along your spine. They are responsible for extending your back.
During the deadlift they work to stabilize your back and keep your spine neutral.
Glutes
The gluteus maximus (the main muscle in your buttocks) is heavily involved in extending your hip when you lift the bar up during the deadlift.
Strong glutes are essential to achieve and maintain a healthy posture because they bring your hip into a stable position. A strong hip position is the foundation for the posture of your upper body.
Hamstrings
Your hamstrings are also firing during the deadlift. They assist the glutes in hip extension. As you drive your hips forward and rise to a standing position, the hamstrings are contracting.
In the lowering phase of the deadlift, the hamstrings play a role in controlling the descent.
The hamstrings are often overlooked but very important when it comes to posture. An imbalance caused by weak hamstrings, in comparison to a stronger quadriceps on the front of your leg, can cause an anterior pelvic tilt that results in an excessively arched lower back.
Moreover, they are essential to stabilize your knees. Unstable knees cause a disruption in your postural chain because they often result in a compromised pelvic position.
Core Muscles
The deadlift is also a great core exercise. Your core is one of the most important drivers in stabilizing your pelvis and your spine.
Without a strong core, maintaining a healthy posture and a neutral spine under load is impossible.
Other Muscle Groups
The deadlift also trains a variety of other muscles. For example, the trapezius and rhomboids in your upper back stabilize the shoulder blades and maintain the shoulder position.
Many people lack the ability to keep their shoulders in slight external rotation. Instead, their shoulders are chronically rounded forwards.
Depending on the deadlift variation of choice, you will also have a different emphasis on your quads.
Learning to Hip Hinge
Hinging at the hip is a super important skill that everyone should master. Whenever you lift something heavy or put load on your spine, hinging at the hip allows your spine to remain neutral.
The movement sounds relatively simple. Instead of bending your back when picking something up off the ground, drive your hips backwards and bend at the waist. Every toddler who just learned how to walk will always perform a perfect hip hinge when picking something up.
Unfortunately, we tend to forget how to perform this movement when we grow older and get in the habit of always bending the back instead of the hip. Over time, this could cause problems.
The deadlift is the perfect exercise to practice and relearn the hip hinge. Deadlifting regularly with good form can establish the good habit of being conscious of your spinal position when lifting something heavy in everyday situations.
Conventional vs Sumo Vs Romanian Deadlift for Posture
Whether performing the conventional, sumo, or Romanian deadlift (RDL), you are always using the same muscle groups. However, depending on the variant you choose, some muscles will be targeted more than others. Let’s explore the differences.
Conventional Deadlift for Posture
Stance: Feet are approximately hip-width apart.
Grip: Hands grip the bar outside the knees.
Direction: Movement is initiated from the floor. Emphasis is on the concentric movement.
Muscles Targeted: Major emphasis on the posterior chain (erector spinae, glutes, hamstrings) and also engages the quads, traps, lats, and core.
Mechanics: Hinging at the hips and flexing the knees while keeping a neutral spine. Requires a combination of hip and knee extension.
Implications for Posture: Solid exercise to improve posture. Some involvement of the quads. Eccentric phase is often overlooked.
Sumo Deadlift for Posture
Stance: A wide stance, with feet significantly wider than shoulder-width and toes pointing slightly outward.
Grip: Hands grip the bar inside the knees.
Direction: Movement is initiated from the floor. Emphasis is on the concentric movement.
Muscles Targeted: More emphasis on the quads, glutes, adductors (inner thigh muscles), and traps compared to the conventional style. Still works the erector spinae, but to a somewhat lesser degree due to the more upright starting torso position.
Mechanics: Similar hinging motion, but due to the wider stance, there’s typically a more upright torso at the beginning, leading to reduced shear stress on the lumbar spine. Requires more hip mobility.
Implications for Posture: Popular among power lifters. Smaller range of motion. A lot of quad activation, little hamstring activation. Eccentric phase is often overlooked. Probably the least effective variation for posture improvement.
Romanian Deadlift for Posture
Stance: Similar to the conventional stance, feet are about hip-width apart.
Grip: Similar to the conventional grip, hands outside the knees.
Direction: Lifter starts standing upright with the barbell in their hands. Movement is initiated from the top towards the floor.
Muscles Targeted: Highly emphasizes the posterior chain, particularly the hamstrings and glutes. The erector spinae muscles work isometrically to keep the spine neutral. It doesn’t engage the quads as much as the conventional or sumo variations.
Mechanics: The primary difference from the conventional deadlift is that there’s minimal knee flexion in the RDL. It’s mostly a hip hinge movement. The bar doesn’t necessarily touch the ground between reps. Instead, the motion is driven by how much hamstring stretch and hip hinge the lifter can achieve while maintaining a neutral spine.
Implications for Posture: Excellent.
Why RDLs are King for Posture Training
Because Romanian deadlifts are started in the top position and focus on a slow eccentric motion, they are an even better core exercise than the conventional deadlift.
The core muscles’ primary function is to create stability. Therefore they are best trained with isometric exercises rather than crunches or sit-ups.
The same is true for the erector spinae muscles. Because the RDL emphasizes a slow descent, those muscles work isometrically to create stability.
During other forms of deadlifting, the weight is commonly dropped towards the floor with essentially zero eccentric load.
The slow descent is also an excellent tool to create muscle memory to hinge at the hip, since this is done extra consciously and under a lot of load.
Moreover, the strong hamstring activation paired with a very low activation of the quads is excellent for most people. Over time it contributes to regaining a balance between those muscles, resulting in a better hip position.
How to Perform a Romanian Deadlift to Strengthen Your Posture
- Stand with your feet hip-width apart and hold a barbell (palms of your hands facing back) with your hands slightly wider than shoulder-width apart
- Squeeze your glutes and engage your core; Maintain a neutral spine and tension in your core during the exercise
- Slowly lower the barbell down the front of your legs by hinging at your hip (pushing your hips back and bending at the waist), while bending your knees slightly
- The emphasis of this exercise is on the slow descent
- Keep the barbell close to your body as you lower it
- Lower the barbell until you feel a slight stretch in your hamstrings or until the bar is a hand width below your knees; Only go as far as you can without rounding your back
- Pause a second at the bottom
- Return to the starting position by engaging your hamstrings and glutes to drive your hip forward and bring your upper body upright; Straighten your legs
- Keep the barbell close to your body as you lift it
- Again, make sure to maintain a neutral spine during the whole exercise, don’t round your back
Deadlift FAQ
Can the deadlift fix hunchback?
The deadlift can contribute to fixing a chronically rounded back. It strengthens your core, posterior chain, and can improve your default hip position.
However, a single exercise alone will likely not change a lot. Significant improvement comes with regular exercise that follows a structured program.
Do deadlifts help against back pain?
Research has shown that the deadlift can help to treat low back pain. However, it was not found to be more beneficial than low load motor control exercises, which are lower risk for people with back injuries.
If you suffer from back pain, you should always consult a doctor before doing deadlifts or any other exercises.
Is the deadlift good for the spine?
If you use correct form, deadlifts strengthen the erector spinae muscles that run along your spine. They are also a great core exercise. Therefore, they increase stability and support around your spine.
However, using bad form can be harmful and even dangerous. If you have existing spinal injuries or pain, you should definitely consult a doctor before deadlifting.
Does the deadlift help with rounded shoulders?
The deadlift also trains your traps, lats, and rhomboids in your upper back and can therefore improve shoulder stability and position.
That said, there are better exercises for that purpose, targeting your shoulders more specifically.
