Recently the split squat in one form or another has come sort of the forefront due to a rather popular strength coach’s belief that the split squat (more specifically a rear foot elevated split squat) can and should replace back squatting for athletes.  While I won’t go that far, the split squat can certainly be a useful movement in many situations.

One is when a bilateral leg imbalance, that is a strength differential between the right and left legs, develops for some reason.  The split squat is one of many ways to go about correcting this.   A second place where the split squat can be useful (and this seems to be the main thrust of the strength coach mentioned above’s argument) is when the low back is limiting squat poundages.  Since there is far less low back involvement (as a function of both lighter loads and a more upright torso) compared to back squatting, split squats and their variants can be used to either limit low back stress or as a secondary movement for legs after the low back has been fatigued (e.g. after deadlifts when something like squatting would go poorly because the low back will give out).

Additionally, in situations where a lifter either must use lower weights (e.g. they only have access to a limited amount of weight as dumbbells for example), a split squat can still provide some overload to the legs while requiring less absolute load.  There is also some interest in ‘unloading the spine’ for athletes and, again due to the lower absolute loads used combined with less forwards lean, split squats would be a way of achieving that.

I would note that some lifters can use loads in the split squat that actually approach their back squat numbers, this is especially true if they actually squat to parallel or below; so the premise that a split squat automatically lightens the loads used or needed is not necessarily correct.  There are two major reasons for this apparent contradiction: how can someone possibly use more weight in a single-leg movement than a double leg movement.

The primary reason is that the range of motion on the split squat is lower than a parallel or full squat.  So using a split squat so that you can use less weight may actually not have the desired effect.  A secondary reason especially applies to tall lifters for whom low back fatigue/weakness or a massive sticking point in the middle tends to limit their back squat weights.  By avoiding the weakest portion of the movement and taking the low back out of the movement, often heavier weights can be used in the split squat compared to a below parallel or full back squat.

Of course, many if not all sports are done unilaterally (e.g. single leg alternating which is involved maximally) and an argument is sometimes made that one-legged work is more specific to sports for that reason.  As I discussed in the article Squats vs. Leg Press for Big Legs – Q&A, the Aussie track team uses the one-legged leg press for this reason; it’s worth noting that it’s used in addition to heavy bilateral loading and I’m not really going to get into the specificity of training argument here.

Sufficed to say that the split squat can be and is a useful movement and, as always, that means doing it correctly.  So lets’ look at how to do it (and some of the common variants) correctly.

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Muscles Targeted

As would be expected of any compound lower body movement, the split squats hits a variety of movement with the glutes, hamstrings and quads being primarily involved (with the degree of involvement depending on the variant performed).  The upper back is involved in holding the bar of course and while there isn’t as much involvement of the low back compared to a back squat (due to less forwards lean), the core musculature is still clearly going to be involved.

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Basic Technique

First I want to show the basic start and end position for the split squat. The start position is on the left, bottom position is in the center. Note that the back knee should not be touching the floor at the bottom position.  It will be close but should not touch or slam into the ground. I’ve also shown the proper upper body position (without weight) with the chest high and elbows under the bar (mostly)  in the far rightmost picture.

Split Squat Start

Split Squat Bottom

Chest Up

Key things to note here are that, in the top position both knees are slightly bent with the feet split fairly far apart. In the bottom, both knees make roughly a 90 degree angle in the bottom position. From the bottom position, the lifter simply stands back up, of course.

Moving to the back view, it’s important for the feet to be the proper width from side to side. The picture below shows the proper width, note that the legs are both straight relative to the torso with the feet at roughly hip width.  I’ve shown both the start (left) and finish (right picture) below to show the proper leg positioning.  Please note: it does look like the lifter’s left leg is angled out a bit below but that’s because of the camera being in the wrong place.

Start: Back View

Finish: Back View

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Variants

In terms of exercise variants, the split squat can be done in one of three different ways depending on what muscles the lifter wants to emphasize.   The ultimate determinant of this is where the front foot and weight ends up in the bottom position.

In the left photo, I’ve shown a quad dominant split squat, notice that the knee is pushed very far in front of the front toe, the weight is on the ball of the lifter’s foot. In the middle, I’ve shown a split squat that will hit quads/glutes/hams fairly evenly, the front knee has moved forwards slightly but the lifters weight is at mid-foot in the bottom position. Finally, on the right, I’ve shown a glute dominant split squat, the shin stays basically vertical and the lifter sits back with the weight on their heel.

Quad Dominant SS

Even Split Squat

Glute Dominant SS

Of course, if you take these same types of variations to lunging, you end up with even more potential variants depending on if the lifter steps forwards, steps backwards, walks continuously, etc.  All of the same basic concepts apply.  As well, the back foot or front foot can be elevated on a step. A Bulgarian split squat is typically done with the back foot up on a high bench; often the hardest part of the movement is setting up with weight.

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Common Errors

Moving on to common errors, it’s not uncommon for lifters to drop their chest/round their upper back in this movement (just as they do front or back squatting).  A proper chest raised/upright torso position is shown on the left, a dropped chest on the right.  The latter tends to be common with lifters with poor flexibility.

Collapsed Chest

In addition, there are a couple of very common technique errors that show up with split squats (and lunging).  One of the most common mistake that people make in terms of foot position and that’s to have the back foot far too close to the front. A proper back foot bottom position is shown on the left, the foot too close position is shown on the right.

Feet correct

Feet too close

As noted under basic technique, in the bottom both knees should be at a roughly 90 degree angle.  As you can see in the right picture, the back knee is bent far more because the back foot is too close to the front foot.

A second common error has to do with leg position front and back.  As noted in basic technique, the feet should be hip width with both legs forming a straight line with the torso.  Perhaps the most common error is for people to try to place their feet too close together as if they were walking on a tightrope; this makes balance nearly impossible.  A second error is to have the back leg too far out to the side which puts a lot of stress on the back knee due to the angle involved.  I’ve shown proper foot position on the very left, feet too narrow in the middle and left leg too far out on the right.

Proper Foot Width

Walking the Tightrope

Feet Too Wide

A properly performed barbell split squat, with weight at mid-foot is shown in the video below.

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Programming

While I’ve shown the split squat being done with a barbell, obviously the movement can be weighted with dumbbells or other means (e.g. weight vest) as needed.  Grip can become an issue with dumbbells as people get stronger but the set up can be easier as the bells can be left on the floor and simply picked up rather than having to set up out of a rack.

Some have also advocated split squats done with the bar held on the chest, as in a front squat.  This apparently used to be a very popular accessory movement for Olympic lifters who split cleaned.  Like the front squat, this tends to throw more stress  onto the quads and forces the lifter to work harder to stay upright which may or may not be beneficial.

In terms of actual programming, as noted in the introduction, split squats can be used as a movement in their own right in situations where avoiding low back stress is required, or when a lifter is limited in how much absolute load they either can or want to shoulder.

More commonly, the split squat is used as a secondary leg movement (generally following a 2-leg compound movement).  Generally speaking, very low reps tend to work poorly in the movement and sets of 5 or higher would be more common.

One big drawback to split squats (and this is true of all one-limb movements) is time as accomplishing the same amount of total sets can take twice as long since each leg is being worked separately.  In this vein, my preferred approach is to do all repetitions for one leg, take a rest (usually a minute) and then work the other leg, alternating in this fashion until all sets have been performed.

While many like to go straight from one leg to the other, I find that lifters tend to get into systemic/cardiovascular fatigue and the second leg worked always suffers for this reason (e.g. if you do 10 reps on the right leg and go straight into a set of 10 on the left, the left leg set will be impaired due to generalized fatigue).  Taking a short break between legs avoids this.

Finally, for lifters with a strength imbalance (these are not uncommon side to side), you should always start with the weaker leg and let it set how much work you do with the stronger leg.  So if you can only do 100X5 on the weaker side, even if you could get 8 or 10 reps with the stronger side, you should stop at 5 reps.  Otherwise the strength imbalance will never go away.

Doing one or two additional sets with the weak side only is another option to help fix a strength imbalance. So a lifter might do 1 work set with the strong leg (to maintain strength on that side) and then 2-3 sets with the weaker leg.  It would be even more important here to rest sufficiently between sets.  Let’s say a lifter was going to do 1 set for the left leg and 3 sets for the right.  They might do their first set for the right, rest 1′, first set for the left, rest 1′, second set for the right, rest 1-2′, third and final set for the right.

I consider the back extension to be a basic ‘core’ exercise. While low back certainly gets hit during big movements like squats and especially deadlifts (and RDL’s and good mornings), the spinal erectors tend to get hit primary isometrically (meaning that they contract without movement).

From a safety standpoint, I think there is benefit to working the spinal erectors through full flexion and extension since there are times when the back simply can’t be kept flat. Low back strengthening can also benefit squats and deads simply by ensuring that they aren’t a weak point in the movement.  That’s in addition to any safety benefits.

The simple fact is that heavy squats and deadlifts can often go awry during maximal or near maximal sets, folks lose form no matter how hard they try not to; this often involves rounding of the upper or lower back or both.  And if the low back hasn’t been trained in such a way to handle those stresses in a rounded position, injury often results.

As well, some recent research, primarily from Stuart McGill’s lab, has tied low back pain to endurance in the spinal erectors.  While there are certainly other ways to do it, dynamic back extensions are one way to train this capacity.

Muscles Targeted

As the name suggests and the introduction states, the primary focus of back extensions is, of course, the lower back musculature, specifically the spinal erectors.  As well, depending on the specifics of how the exercise is done, many other muscles are often hit.

When weight is used, the upper back receives a training effect (in the midback/scapular retractors).  As well, the hamstrings and glutes will be hit (either dynamically or isometrically) depending on the specifics of the type of back extension chosen.

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Technique

Fundamentally, there are a few different ways to do back extensions, depending on what the goal is.  In many ways, this is not unlike the situation with Romanian vs. Stiff Legged Deadlifts.

For now I’m going to ignore what’s happening in the upper back (I’ll come back to that below) and focus only on the spinal erectors, hamstrings and glutes.  Now, pretty much any back extension is going to work those muscles to some degree although how the movement is done will affect whether the muscles are hit dynamically or isometrically.  The determinant of whether the glutes/hamstrings are worked dynamically or isometrically is primarily determined by where the hip is positioned relative to the edge of the pad.

And there are two options, shown in the pictures below.  On the left, you can see that the top of the pelvis is above the top of the pad, this allows the pelvis to rotate during the movement which means that the glutes/hams will be hit dynamically.  On the right, the pelvis is set below the top of the pad; this locks the pelvis into place and the glutes/hams will be hit isometrically instead.

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Pad Below Top of Pelvis

Pad Above Top of Pelvis

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Now, with the pad below the level of the hips, the pelvis is free to rotate.  Due to this, there are two options as to what the low back can do: it can round or stay flat.  I’ve shown the bottom position of the low pad back extension below.  On the left, the low back is rounded at the bottom, on the right, the low back is kept flat.

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Low Back Rounded

Low Back Flat

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The difference between these two is that rounding the back (along with the pelvis rotating) will hit the spinal erectors, glutes and hamstrings all dynamically.  In contrast, with a flat back, the low back will be worked isometrically with the glutes and hamstrings performing hip extension (this is basically like a machine Romanian deadlift).

Now, with the pad high enough to lock the hips, there is only one option and that’s to round the low back. The start and finish position of this is shown below. This will work the spinal erectors dynamically and the glutes/hamstrings isometrically.

Hips Locked Top Position

Hips Locked Bottom Position

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I’d note that since I generally use the back extension specifically to train the spinal erectors dynamically, I can’t say that I use the low-pad, flat backed version very often (if at all).  So the issue really becomes one of what I want the glutes or hamstrings to do (which usually depends on what was done earlier in the workout).

If the glutes/hams have already been worked hard (with the Romanian Deadlift or Leg Curl with Hip Extension , I’ll usually lock the hips and localize the stress to working the spinal erectors dynamically.  If, for whatever reason, I want some dynamic work for the hamstrings/glutes, I’ll set the pad low and let the hip rotate.

Since the above can get a bit confusing, let me sum up before moving on to other aspects of the exercise.   Basically, we have two pad positions (above and below the top of the pelvis) and two possibilities with what the low back does (round at the bottom or stay flat) although there are only actually 3 combinations. Those combinations, along with what they do is shown below.

1. Low pad position +rounded back = spinal erectors, glutes, hams all worked dynamically
2. Low pad + flat back = spinal erectors worked isometrically, hams/glutes worked dynamically
3. High pad + rounded back = spinal erectors worked dynamically, glutes/hams isometrically
4. High pad + flat back = can’t be done through any meaningful range of motion

Before moving on, I want to show a proper versus improper top position. Despite the exercise often being called a ‘hyperextension’, it’s incorrect and dangerous to actually take the spine into hyperextension. You should only extend up until the spine is in a neutral position.  Going higher than this provides no further training effect for the muscles but puts rather enormous strain on the spine itself.  Normal spinal extension and spinal hyperextension are shown below (normal on the left, hyperextension on the right). Don’t do what’s on the right.

Proper Finish Position for Back Extension

Hyperextension of the Low Back

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The next topic I want to discuss is how to load the movement to increase resistance.  Now,  without using weight, there are 4 progressively more difficult ways to do back extensions, shown below. In order from easiest to most difficult these are: hands by sides, hands at chest, hands at temples, and hands in the Y position (this has the added advantage of working Traps III/IV).  These are shown below.

Arms at Side

Arms Across Chest

Hands at Temples

Arms in Y Position

.For the most part, I don’t typically use hands at head or hands overhead unless, for some reason, additional weight can’t be used. After someone can do hands at chest easily, I’d rather just start having them add weight to the movement.  There are several ways to do this although I’m only going to show two below.

The next way to load the movement is to hold either a plate or dumbbell at chest level (some will also load the movement with a bar held behind the head, this isn’t shown). Both are shown below. One problem with plates is making intermediate jumps. So, for example, once a 25 lb plate becomes too easy, moving to 30 is a pain because you have to try to hold a 25 and 5 lb plate.

I generally prefer dumbbells for this reason. Another benefit to holding weight is that the upper back can be trained as well by ensuring that your shoulder blades are pulled back hard while you hold the weight.

Plate Held to Chest

Dumbbell Held to Chest

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Of course, there are other ways that this movement can be loaded . A weighted vest can be worn and this avoids problems with fatigue from holding heavy dumbbells or plates (it also saves hassle of getting them into position).  A recent trend is to attach a rubber stretch band to the bottom of the back extension bench and then attach it around the neck or upper back; this gives a very different loading curve than using a plate or dumbbell due to the stretching of the band.  Of course, methods can be mixed as needed or desired.

As a final variant on this movement, a single leg extension can be done by simply taking one leg out from underneath the pads. This makes the movement considerably harder and adds a stabilization component around the pelvis.

Single Leg Back Extension

Of course, the 45 degree back extension is not the only machine available.  Many gyms have a horizontal bench (the gym we shot the above pictures at did not) which I’ve shown below.   Many gyms have a true glute-ham raise which can also be used to do straight back extensions.

Horizontal Back Extension Bench

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Every issue discussed above for the 45 degree bench is identical here.  You can set up so that the pelvis is in front or behind the pad and the same issues with regards to rounding the low back or not all apply.  The same goes for the issue of not hyperextending at the top of the movement.   The horizontal back extension is generally much more difficult with the position of maximum loading occurring at the top, compared to the 45 degree version which has peak loading when the torso is parallel with the floor.

I’d note that even the 45 degree extension bench can often be too difficult for beginners.  I have sometime started complete beginners on a leg curl machine where they can perform a short range back extension using the angle of the pad.  Simply pin the weight stack above anything they could possibly leg curl and they can do back extensions until they develop sufficient strength and/or endurance to move to the 45 degree bench.

I’d finish by noting that I no longer do back extensions with trainees lying flat on the floor.  Back researcher Stuart McGill has shown that hyperextensions on the floor generate a tremendous amount of disk pressure as they force the body into spinal hyperextension.

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Programming Thoughts

In terms of programming the back extension, there are, as always, many options.  Both strength, low back power and muscular endurance can be targeted depending on the specifics of what’s done.  As I mentioned in the introduction, low back endurance seems to be related to low-back pain and high rep sets with an isometric hold at the top (ranging from 2-6 seconds) can be beneficial for this.  Athletes who need more strength or power than endurance per se may want to keep the reps lower and weights heavier.  A combination of methods (e.g. heavy sets of 5 with a 2 second hold at the top) can achieve some of the best of both worlds.

In general, I tend to put back extensions at the end of a workout, often/usually in conjunction with ab work; the movements can be alternate supersetted to save time.  I’d only note that, in my experience, fatigue from low back work can often make abdominal work painful, especially in beginner trainees.  If trainees report low back discomfort during abdominal work, it may be better to save low-back work until the very end of the workout. I also know some trainees who use light low back extensions to warm-up the low back before heavier work but this is something that should be saved for more advanced trainees.

Reps and sets, as noted, can vary massively.  A beginner may only perform a single set of low reps in their first few workouts; the low-back is often notoriously weak in the general public and having them do too much initially tends to cause a lot of problems.  With beginning clients, they might only do 1 set of 5-8 at their first workout, even if they felt like they could do more.  If there was back pain the following day, I know even that was too much.  If not, I’d have them add a couple of repetitions at the next workout.  Wehn they got to 12 easily, they’d move to a slightly harder variant (changing hand position, etc) or add a second set.

Finally, I’d note that it’s always better to err on the side of too little than too much with low back work.  Taking direct low-back work even close to failure can be a recipe for disaster, it only takes a minor mistake to really ruin someone’s day.  Better, in my experience, to keep several reps in the tank and make it up with more sets or whatever.  There are exceptions, high level athletes who may need to push closer to failure to prepare themselves for the specific demands of their sport.   But save that for folks with more training experience.

I’m generally not a big fan of very wide grip pulldowns, I think that a medium overhand grip works just as well and wide grips tend to limit the range of motion.

Note: the form issues I’m going to address go for chins or pullups as well.  The only difference is that instead of pulling the bar down to your body, you pull your body up to the bar.  As well, I’m going to use the term pulldown generally throughout this article, just keep in mind that it refers to all of the different variants as well as chins/pullups.

Muscles Targeted

As the name itself suggests, the lat pulldown has as its primary target the latissimus dorsi.  This is the large fan shaped muscle that takes up an exceedingly large portion of the back.  While the midback is involved somewhat in the pulldown movement (depending heavily on how it’s done), the vertical line of pull tends to take the midback muscles out of the movement.

Since the arms are involved and there is bending at the elbow, of course the various elbow flexors, the biceps and brachialis, are also involved.  Much of which is involved and to what degree depends on the grip used; I’ll cover this more below.

Technique: Introductory Comments

With most pulling movements, including the Cable Row, many lifters tend to complain of not being able to ‘feel’ the back. They may get a tremendous arm pump but the lat seems to go unused.  As usual, this generally has to do with improper form (which is often secondary to using far too much weight).

One of the key aspects of getting the lats involved has to do with what happens at the shoulder. In a properly done pulldown The shoulders should elevate (move up) at the top of the movement and active shrug down at the end (in the Cable Row the shoulders move forwards and backwards).

If the shoulders aren’t moving down during the pulldown, it’s an arm movement. One good cue that has been around for years is to think about pushing the elbows down, as opposed to pulling with the arms. This tends to put more focus on the lats rather than the biceps.

A third and important issue (illustrated below) is that the torso needs to remain upright or, ideally, with a slight arch in the low back. If you think about lifting your chest to the bar as you bring the bar down (or pull yourself up in a chin), you’ll get it right. If you’re hunched over at the bottom, you’re getting a wonderful workout for your abs but not effectively training your lats.  I’ll cover each of these issues below.

Basic Technique

First I want to look at basic pulldown technique.  The two pictures below show the basic start and finish position for an undergrip pulldown.  Note that the lifter is slightly behind the bar so that the bar can come straight down to the top of the chest.

In the finish position, the shoulders are down and back and the chest is up, the elbows are slightly behind the torso (indicating full lat contraction).  I’ll cover this more fully in the section on variants but, of all the types of pulldowns I’m going to cover, this tends to put the biceps in the best line of pull.  Most lifters will be able to use the most weight with this grip and performing this movement often decreases the need for direct biceps work.

Undergrip Pulldown Start

Undergrip Pulldown Finish

One important issue with all pulldowns is proper grip width and the picture below shows the proper grip width for the undergrip pulldown.  Note that the forearms are exactly perpendicular with the bar.  This is important and folks who start with grips that are either too wide or narrow (not shown but I think you can guess what this looks like) often complain of wrist or elbow problems.

Undergrip Pulldown Back View

There are several common errors that occur with pulldowns and while I’m going to demonstrate them with the undergrip pulldown, you can usually find people doing them with all of the variants I’m going to discuss later in the article.

In the left picture below, the bar is being pulled far too low.  Somehow, folks find a way to turn pulldowns into a triceps pushdown at the end.  In the right hand picture, the lifter is leaning too far back and turning the movement into a mid-back exercise.  This usually happens when the weight is far too heavy and the lifter ends up using mostly body English and cheating to make the rep.  But it isn’t a lat pulldown.

Bar Pulled Too Low

Leaning Too Far Back

As I mentioned up above, one of the far more common errors with pulldowns is lifters ending up hunched over, this usually happens when the weight is too heavy.  While it make the movement a great ab exercise, it’s not ideal for training the lats.  Below I’ve shown a lifter hunched over (left picture) compared to the proper ending position with chest high and lower back slightly arched (right picture).

Hunching Over

Undergrip Pulldown Finish

Correcting the above is usually a function of both reducing the weight and cueing the lifter to think about lifting their chest to the bar as they pull the bar down.  If the lifter can’t do this, they have to keep the weight lower until they can.  Again, on chin/pulldown variants, the same cue holds and the lifter should think about lifting their chest to the bar as they pull themselves up.

Exercise Variants

Like the Cable Row, there are numerous variations on the lat pulldown primarily involving changes in grip position (underhand vs. overhand) and width.  Since the lats do have different functions at the shoulder and lines of pull, varying the type of pulldown done can certainly be beneficial from both a strength and hypertrophy standpoint.

The first variation I want to look at is the medium overgrip pulldown.  Unlike the undergrip pulldown which works the shoulder extension function of the lats, the medium overgrip pulldown works humeral adduction.  As well, the biceps have a poorer line of pull and most lifters will not be able to use as much weight in this variant as with the undergrip pulldown

Proper grip width for the medium grip overhand pulldown is shown in the left picture below, while bars vary, generally speaking the hands will go at the ‘bends’ in the bar.  of more importance is that the forearms, again, should be perpendicular to the bar with the elbows flared as this ensures that adduction is being trained.  The right picture below shows the finishing position.  As with the undergrip pulldown, the bar is pulled to the top of the chest, the lifter’s torso is upright (or slightly arched back) with the chest high; the shoulders are down and the elbows are down and back.

Medium Grip Pulldown Start

Medium Grip Pulldown Bottom

The same basic form errors, pulling the bar too low leaning too far back or ending up in a hunched over position can happen with this variant of the pulldown as well (the triceps extension variant where the lifter takes the bar all the way to the legs is more common because of the grip) and I’m not going to show those.

I’d note that the overgrip pulldown is often done with a very wide grip, hands out to the ends of the bar.  The original idea was that ‘a wide grip equalled wide lats’ but this is basically nonsense.  The very wide grip tends to limit the range of motion of the pulldown severely and it’s not a variant I ever see much need to use.  I’d rather someone use the slightly narrower grip shown above and get a full range of motion.

Next up I want to show a variant of the pulldown using a parallel grip on a V-handle.  This variant works the shoudler extension function of the lats (like the undergrip pulldown) but I have found that some find it a bit easier on the wrists and elbows.  The parallel grip tends to hit the brachialis a bit more and biceps don’t have a fantastic line of pull but most will find that their poundages on this are a little bit less (but close) to the undergrip pulldown but higher than a medium overgrip.  The proper starting and finishing position for the parallel grip pulldwn are shown below.

Parallel Grip Pulldown Start

Parallel Grip Pulldown Finish

Finally I want to look at the behind the neck pulldown.  In recent years, similar to the behind the neck press, there has been a bit of controversy surrounding the movement with many arguing that it is harmful to the shoulder (and does nothing that other, safer variants, can’t do).  And certainly there is some truth to this.

However, I tend to think that the bigger issue with the behind the neck pulldown is as much to do with the flexibility of the average trainee as anything else.  Lifters with poor shoulder flexibility (i.e. most of them) tend to have problems because they can’t do the movement in anything approximating proper form.  This will make sense in a second.

Generally, a behind the neck pulldown would start with a grip more or less identical to the medium grip overhand pulldown.  A major change is that the lifter should now move so that they are slightly in front of the bar in the starting position; this is so that they can pull the bar straight down and not have to lean forwards or do goofy stuff with their head.

I’ve shown the proper finish position for a behind the neck pulldown in the left picture below.  As you can see, the elbows are directly in line with the torso and the head and chest are both up.  In the right picture, I’ve shown what usually happens when lifters try to do this movement.  A complete lack of shoulder flexibility, usually going hand in hand with poor posture (shoulders pulled forwards) leads to the right picture and this is bad.  That causes the elbows to rotate back and the chest and head to drop forwards.

BTN Pulldown Bottom

BTN Pulldown Improper Finish

Of course, the right hand picture can happen even when lifters have good shoulder flexibility but are using too much weight.

Of course, there are more variants than this that I can’t cover.  One handed pulldowns are not unheard of and there are actaully some decent pulldown machines.  The Hammer Strength Behind the Neck Pulldown is actually excellent in that the handles go outside the head while keeping the elbows right in line with the torso.  It is one of my favorite machines for training the lats.

Another movement that can often be useful is the lat shrugdown.  This is simply a pulldown without the arm bend, the focus is on letting the shoulders elevate slightly and then shrugging down hard by using only the lat.  I have often used this to teach lat involvement in the movement, or as a way to finish a set (after the biceps have fatigue).  It can be used as an exercise in its own right.

Just keep in mind that for basically all pulldown (again, or chin/pullup) variants, the same basic cues and technique tips hold.   The shoulders must elevate slightly and depress at the end of the movement, the chest should be kept high with the torso either vertical or slightly arched in the low back.  If you’re having to use funky form, you’re using too much weight and, odds are, you’re not training the lats in the first place.

What’s in a Name?

Before looking at them in any detail, however, I should make one rather pedantic note.  The RDL is often referred to more generally as a flat-backed, semi-stiff legged deadlift, a description that will make more sense after I demonstrate how it should be done.  So you might be wondering where the name RDL came from.

As the story goes, the Romanian Olympic Lifter Nicu Vlad (who is credited with doing ~300kg, yes that’s 660 lbs., in the exercise) was seen doing them in the Olympic training hall at some point prior to either winning a medal, setting a world record, or possibly both.

Since he was Romanian, the movement got dubbed the Romanian deadlift. Whether that name is ‘right’ or not is ultimately not of much importance in my opinion, RDL is the name most people know the movement by and that’s what I’ll call it.

Muscles Targeted

Both the RDL and SLDL target the same primary muscles which are the glutes, hamstrings and low back (additional work is done by the upper back and gripping muscles). In this context, one of the primary difference between the RDL and SLDL is that the RDL only works the spinal erector muscles statically, as there is no movement in the spine itself.

In contrast, due to the rounding and un-rounding (flexion and extension) that occurs in the SDL, the spinal erectors are trained more dynamically in the SLDL.  However, the consequence of this is also a great deal more stress on the low back and spine (including the spinal ligaments and disks); I’ll address this below.

Technique

Both the RDL and SLDL start in basically identical positions: both movements start from the top with the bar held with straight arms and the torso upright.  A double overhand, mixed, or hook grip can be used, straps can and should be used if grip becomes limiting.  I’d note that body movements can be done with dumbbells as well although I’ll only demonstrate the barbell version here.

From that point on, the similarities basically end.  In the SLDL, the bar moves out in front of the body (the legs generally stay locked and the hips don’t move) and the bar is generally brought quite low, usually to the instep of the shoes; this usually necessitates standing on a high platform so that the plates don’t hit the ground (in the picture below, the lifter isn’t on a block since there were no weights on the bar).  The back will be very rounded at the bottom of the movement due to the protracted range of motion.  Lifting the bar is simply a reversal of the lowering, the low back unrounds as the lifter’s torso comes back to the upright position.

I’d note that another variant of the SLDL (not shown in this article) does not take the bar as low, and the back stays flat.  In my experience, most take an SLDL to the instep which requires rounding the low back which is why I’ve focused on that variation in this article.

In contrast, with the RDL the back remains flat or slightly arched, the knees are typically bent slightly (about 10-20 degrees) and the hips move backwards with the shins staying more or less vertical, the weight should be back on the heels.  As you can see below, the bar doesn’t go nearly as low in the RDL as in the SDL as a consequence of the low back not rounding.

A side by side comparison of the bottom position of a typical SLDL (left) and RDL (right) appears below.  Note that, if there were plates on the bar, the SLDL would require standing on some type of high platform (a flat bench is typically used) so that the plates don’t hit the floor.  Again, there is a variation of the SLDL where the back remains flat, but the bar is still swung out front without the hips moving.

SLDL Bottom

RDL Bottom

In the RDL bar is only lowered as low as the lifter can go without rounding the low-back, for most people this usually puts the bar just below the kneecap.  However, I have seen the very occasional person with freak hamstring flexibility or exceedingly long arms go lower than this and keep their back flat but for most just below the kneecap is about the limits.

In my experience, even with 45 pound plates or bumpers on the bar, the plates will rarely touch the floor in a properly done RDL unless the lifter is unusually flexible or has very long arms.  In that case, the lift will have to be done standing on some sort of raised surface (e.g. an aerobics step) so that a full range of motion can be achieved.

Extremely inflexible lifters will stop higher and the RDL can actually be used as an excellent hamstring stretch (with just the bar or a small amount of weight).  The bar should simply be lowered to the limits of the lifter’s hamstring flexibility (with the back kept flat/slightly ached) and that position held.  The weight of the bar will gradually pull the lifter into a deeper position, stretching the hamstrings in a very functional pattern. Over time, the range of motion of the RDL should increase until the proper bottom position (again, bar slightly below the kneecap) is reached.

The upper back should be set and locked during the entire movement with the lats flexed (this will improve low back stability) and the shoulder blades pulled back, the bar should basically slide down the legs and over the knee. As the bar is lifted, it slides back up over the knee and then back up the thighs.  That bar is essentially dragged up and down the thighs and should never ’swing out’ from the body.

The below two pictures show a proper depth RDL (left) with the lifter having gone a little bit too low (right). Note how there is flexion in the lower back area in the right picture with no change in hip position.  That is to say, the extra depth is accomplished by rounding the back, there is no additional movement at the hip.

RDL Correct Bottom Position

RDL Too Low at Bottom

One easy way to avoid rounding the low back is to keep the head up (and neutral to your torso, don’t hyper-extend your neck) with the movement done in front of a mirror. If you can still see yourself in the mirror, your head is up and your back won’t be rounded.

In contrast, if you can’t see yourself anymore, you’ve dropped your head and have rounded either your upper back, lower back or both. If you feel the tension come off of your hamstrings and into your low back, you’ve probably rounded your back as well.  It’s also possible that you’ve bent your knees which will also take tension off of the hamstrings.

For the most part, I’m not a big fan of the SLDL except as a light stretching or warm-up exercise. The problem is this: as the low back rounds beyond a certain point, the low back muscles (spinal extensors) become inactive due to an inhibitory reflex; this throws all of the stress onto the ligaments of the spine. As well, spinal flexion under load can be damaging to spinal disks in the long-run, increasing the risk of disk herniation.

While I know many have done heavy SLDL’s over the years, I can’t recommend this based on what we know about spinal health.  In a future article, I’ll detail what I think is a better way to train the spinal muscles dynamically, which is various types of back extensions.

Basically, I think that the RDL is the superior movement here. Olympic lifters use it as an assistance exercise (to mimic the second pull) and it can be done with either a clean or snatch grip, athletes and powerlifters use it to strengthen the posterior chain to improve squats and their deadlift lockout, and bodybuilders can use it to hammer their hamstrings and glutes. Basically, I think it’s safer (from the standpoint of spinal health) and a more effective movement in the long-term.

Programming Thoughts

As far as programming, both the RDL and SLDL are generally better used for moderate reps, unless a lifter is very technically skilled. Reps lower than three tend to be problematic, invariably lifters get a little bit freaked by the heavy weights and do funky things technique wise, I don’t think I’ve ever had a lifter test a maximum single in the RDL, nor would I.

Sets of 5-8 are generally the best way to go for most lifters and the RDL/SLDL is usually used as a secondary leg exercise following squats or deadlifts.  Higher reps can be done but lifters have to be aware of signs of upper back fatigue and form breakdown.  With the RDL this causes rounding and a loss of proper technique.

I’d note that RDL’s do involve a lot of low back even though the spinal erectors aren’t being used dynamically.  If a lifter has exhausted their low back with heavy deadlifts or power style squats, RDL’s may be a real problem technically as the low back will give out.  Keeping the weights lighter or picking a me that doesn’t involve so much low back may be a better option here.

Finally, it’s worth mentioning that RDL’s are notorious for causing some pretty crippling hamstring soreness.  The hamstrings are often prone to soreness in the first place and the high stretch component of the RDL tends to exacerbate this.  Just something to keep in mind when you introduce the movement (or re-introduce it after a long-lay off); start light or you may not be able to walk for 5 days.

Today I want to look at some common cable row variants noting that most of the comments I’m going to make can be equally applied to barbell or dumbbell rowing or even various rowing machines. So don’t get hung up on the fact that I took pictures of a cable using specific attachments, it’s the mechanics of the different movements that is the key.

Muscles Targeted

Cable rows can hit a variety of different muscles depending on the specific variant performed.  Lats, mid-back (teres/rhomboids), traps, biceps, rear delts, and spinal erectors can all be hit in one fashion or another depending on the type of row done.  Even the triceps long-head (which is involved in shoulder extension) gets some work from certain types of rows.  Basically, as one of the ‘big’ compound movements, rows can work a lot of stuff in a very small amount of time.

Basic Technique

First I want to show the basic starting and ending position for a parallel grip row. In the start picture (left) note that the torso is leaned only slightly forwards with the knees bent and the back held straight. I want to comment that some rowing variants include flexion (bending at either the upper or lower spine) so that, with extension, there is more dynamic work thrown onto the spinal erectors.

I didn’t take photos of that since I’m focusing here on the midback and lat muscles specifically. In the end position, note that the elbows are slightly behind the body, the shoulders are pulled back and the chest is lifted (with a slight arch in the upper back). This is key to getting a good contraction in the back. You’ll also note that, because of the elbow position, the handle hits the body in approximately the middle of the torso with the forearms perpendicular to the line of pull.

Cable Row Start

Cable Row Finish

In the next series of photos, I want to contrast a proper end position (above right) to what is typically seen in the gym. In the leftmost photo, I’ve reproduced a proper ending position. In the middle picture, I’ve shown what typically happens when either too much weight is being used and/or the trainees pecs and shoulders are too tight to allow for proper mechanics to be used.

Note that the chest is dropped, the shoulders don’t get pulled back and, frankly, the back isn’t being utilized very effectively. Individuals who use this type of form are usually the ones who complain that all they get out of back work is fatigue in their arms. That’s because they aren’t using their back muscles to any great degree.  Folks who insist on putting way too much weight on the machine are the ones who report this.

Correct Cable Row Finish

Back Rounded at Finish

Another common flaw, again seen in folks using too much weight is to turn the movement into a back extension and lean too far back. Again, I’ve shown a proper finishing position (left) with an extreme improper position on the right.

Correct Cable Row Finish

Leaning Back at Finish

I’d note again that the cable row is sometimes used to do back extensions (and to train the hamstrings), typically by keeping the arms straight and doing almost an RDL type of movement (an exercise I’ll detail in an upcoming article). For the purposes of training the back, the above right picture is an incorrect finishing position.

Moving around to behind the trainee, I want to show what it looks like from the back for the proper finish versus rounded shoulders position (shown two sets of pictures above). On the left, you can clearly see how the trainees shoulders are back and their shoulder blades are pulled together.

On the right, the shoulders don’t get pulled all the way back and the mid-back muscles aren’t getting trained effectively. The trainee on the right needs to drop the weight and make sure that they get their shoulders blades pulled together at the end of every rep.

Correct Finish: Back View

Rounded Back: Back View

The next common error I want to show is a subtlety involving shoulder position. In the left picture below, the trainee (in addition to everything above) has scooped their shoulders down and back with the shoulders kept down at the end of the movement.

In the right picture (and this is a little tough to see; it’s usually more exaggerated than this) the shoulders are hiking up towards the ears.  You can see the tension in the upper traps in the right picture compared to the left if you look closely.

Correct Finish: Back View

Shoulders Hiked: Back View

This tends to happen when the muscles which raise the shoulders (upper trapezius/levator scapulae/scalenes) are tight and the muscle which keep them down (lower traps primarily) are weak. Stretching the traps/levator between sets and actively trying to scoop the shoulders down and back not only helps correct this flaw but also helps to re-balance the muscles that keep the scapulae in place.

Exercise Variations

Having examined the basics of cable row form (which applies to all variants), I want to talk a little bit about how different grips/handles/pulling positions affect the musculature of the back. The main muscles I’m going to focus on are the midback (teres and rhomboids) along with the lats and biceps since those tend to be the muscles most drastically affected by changes in grip position and width.

I’d note that the traps (which is a complex muscle with 4 different segments pulling in different directions) can also be targeted differently depending on which variant is done.  I’ll save trap training for another article so I can get into proper detail with it.

Done properly, all cable row work should hit the mid-back, assuming that the shoulder blades are pulled together properly at the end of the movement. The big differences tend to be how much the lats and biceps contribute.

I’d note that, in some people (with strong lats and a weak mid-back), lat dominant rowing can overpower the mid-back with the lats handling nearly all the work.  In that case, picking a variant that takes the lats out of the movement may be a better option.

With the parallel grip handle (which was used in the basic technique demonstration), the biceps themselves don’t have a great line of pull although the brachialis muscle will be used heavily (like a hammer curl). Because the elbows are down by the side of the body, the lats (which contribute to shoulder extension) will contribute significantly to the movement along with the midback.

A similar pulling position is the narrow under-grip shown below from both the front and back You’ll note that the hands are about shoulder width and the forearms end up perpendicular to the bar (avoiding wrist stress).  The bar also hits the body lower compared to the parallel grip handle, about belly button level.

Underhand Narrow Grip Finish

Underhand Narrow Grip Finish: Back

With the under-grip, the biceps can provide the most contribution compared to either parallel or overhand variants. As well, the mid-back and lats are also involved heavily. Frankly, if I wanted to or had to pick a single pulling movement to hit the most muscles at once, this would probably be it.  You can hammer biceps, lats and mid-back in one movement.

This variant of the row also tends to be the safest movement for the shoulders since it tends to be the easiest to keep the shoulders down and requires the least amount of scapular/rotator cuff control to avoid problems. The key is to focus on scooping the shoulders down and back as you row.

At the other extreme is an overhand fairly wide grip pulled basically in line with the pecs. The gym we were at when we shot these pictures didn’t have a bar as long as I’d like and this grip is actually a bit narrower than I’d normally recommend; I like to see the forearms parallel to the handle (you can see how the wrists and forearms are angled in in the picture below).

This is shown from the front and back below, note that the bar also hits the body higher up (around sternum level). You can also use this pulling position with many parallel grip handles (not shown) instead of the overgrip but everything else is identical.

Overhand Medium Grip Finis

Overhand Medium Grip Finish: Back View

With this grip and pull position, the lats have a poor line of pull and don’t contribute nearly as much compared to parallel or underhand rowing; the majority of the stress is thrown onto the mid-back muscles (the rear delts are also worked very heavily).

This is a good movement when really want to hammer the mid-back without hitting much lat, but tends to require the most shoulder/rotator cuff control to keep the movement safe. It’s crucial to actively keep the shoulders down to avoid any problems with shoulder impingement. If your shoulders hike up as shown in the basic technique section, you can expect shoulder problems to follow.

Somewhere between those two extremes is a medium grip row; this can be done overhand or with a neutral grip (shown), pulled to slightly below the pec line. In this one the bar is a bit longer than I’d like and the forearms are pointed out instead of being parallel. Normally I’d use a standard lat pulldown bar and have the hands in a position such that the forearms were perpendicular to the bar at the end of the movement.

Wide Parallel Grip Finish

Of course, there are still other variants that can be done. Using a single cable crossover handle, any of the movements shown can be done one arm at a time; keep the elbow down and pull low to focus on lats or keep the elbow high and pull high to focus on mid-back.

As well, all of the above concepts apply equally to other forms of rowing such as barbell rows (which can be done undergrip pulling low to the belly or overgrip pulling to either the top of the stomach or the chest) as well as dumbbell rowing.

A 1-arm DB row can be done with the elbow tight to the body (as in the undergrip or narrow grip row) for more lat emphasis or with the elbow flared out (as in the wide grip row) for more mid-back. The same can even be done with body weight inverted rows (done hanging from a bar). A narrow undergrip pulling to the belly is the same as the narrow undergrip described above and hits more lats; wider grip with elbows flared is the same as the wide grip row and hits more mid-back. I think you get the idea.

Various machine rows also exist and usually offer at least two different pulling options.  Generally, a handle pointing down (which keeps the elbow down, for lat emphasis) and a handle that is horizontal (keeping the elbow high for more midback) are offered, some machines have even more options than that.

As a final comment, one way I have long preferred to do rows is with a 1-2″ (or longer in some cases) isometric hold in back. Not only does this tend to force good form, it can also go a long way towards retraining the crucial postural muscles in the mid-back since more and more people are tending to adopt a rounded upper back hunched posture from sitting in front of the computer.

The key to making this effective is that the movement should end with the chest high, upper back slightly arched and shoulders pulled all the way back and held there through the length of the pause. This will generally necessitate a fairly large reduction in weight at least initially.

And just as I was talking about a very specific style of bench press in the previous technique article, I want to make it clear that this piece is only detailing the clean style deadlift.

I mention this in that, in recent years, other deadlift techniques have become somewhat more common. Rounded upper backs and more of a stiff-legged type of DL are being seen. This seems to be especially true in geared powerlifting and among super-heavyweight lifters. But those are very specific styles of deadlift for every specific purposes.

However, some very very big weights have been moved in a style at least similar to what I’m going to present. A clean style deadlift is the style used specifically by Olympic lifters and, while there are slight differences between that and a clean grip power style deadlift, they are fairly minor. The biggest difference is what happens into the second pull as the bar passes the knee, Olympic lifters are using the initial pull to set up for the explosion in the second pull, powerlifters are just trying to lock the bar out.

Like the generic raw power bench press, the clean style deadlift is what I’d teach the average lifter looking for strength or size gains, even more so if at some point they were going to learn power cleans. Clearly, this article doesn’t address sumo technique either.

Muscles Targeted

The clean style deadlift involves a tremendous amount of musculature and movements around the hips and knees (and even ankles a bit) and involves most muscles in the body. The lower body (quads, hams, glutes) are involved heavily but so is the upper body (lower back, upper back, lats) to stabilize the torso for the pull. If, for some weird reason, you had to pick a single exercise to hit the most muscles possible, the deadlift would be right up there on the list. Add an upper body pushing movement of some sort and you’d have a pretty damn good routine.

Technique: Introductory Comments

The DL generally starts from the floor although it’s not unheard of for lifters to start from the top (taking the bar out of a rack) and beginning the movement by lowering; quite in fact this tends to put many lifters in a better position for the next repetition than starting from the floor, it also tends to let people pull bigger weights since you can get an effect of pre-stretch on the initial lowering. Powerlifters, in general, don’t do this (since they have to pull from the floor in competition) although at least one elite deadlifter does a workout where he starts a heavier than normal weight from the top position.

The deadlift is different than many other movements (such as the squat or bench press) in that it starts from a dead stop position at the bottom. This prevents the lifter from relying on elastic energy, generated during the eccentric to start the bar. This is at least part of why many lifters find that their second repetition of a set of deadlifts is generally better than the first.

Some lifters get around this by dive bombing from a standing position or dipping their hips to get an explosive start; both of these are advanced techniques and I’m only mentioning them for completeness. You have to be very skilled to avoid shooting the hips (see below) with this method.

Perhaps more so than any other movement, the starting position of the DL is absolutely key to a safe and effective pull; it’s also where a lot of people screw it up. In the version I’m teaching, the following points are important.

1. Shoulders are directly over or slightly in front of the bar, the grip should be set with the hands slightly outside of the legs so that the arms are as vertical as possible.
2. Torso is rigid with the upper and lower back set tight and the upper back flat. It is possible to get too much arch in the back for very flexible trainees, but this isn’t common. Most have the reverse problem, rounding out in their upper or lower back, usually due to poor flexibility.
3. Bar is over the mid foot.
4. Knees are in front of the bar.
5. Feet are about hip width with toes turned out slightly, the weight should be felt across the whole foot or slightly on the heels. It should not be felt on the toes.

Putting the Bar at an Appropriate Height

Before addressing proper deadlift technique, I want to make a seemingly obvious point. Although I shot these pictures of my lovely model without plates on the bar (to make it easier to see what was going on), I actually made sure that the bar was in the proper position in the start position.

The following picture demonstrates this, showing where the bar would be with 45 pound plates on the bar.

Proper Bar Height

Proper Deadlift Technique

The torso/hip position can vary slightly depending on body length, longer legged lifters will typically have to start with their hips a bit higher than those with short legs to get into a proper position. The starting position shown from the side (left) appears below. Note that the lifter’s upper back is flat or slightly arched, she is also pulling her shoulder blades back to ’set’ her upper back. She is also attempting to lift her chest slightly (to maintain a proper upper back position).

While there is some debate over proper head position, I find that teaching a neutral or slightly upward looking head position facilitates keeping the chest high and upper back flat and this is what I teach/advocate. Some great lifters can and have done a proper clean style deadlift with the head looking downwards slightly but it takes a great deal of practice to keep the chest high and not let the shoulders fall behind the hips when the pull is started.

Clean Grip Deadlift Start

Starting with the hips either too high or too low (not shown) are both common problems. With the hips too high, the movement becomes like a stiff legged deadlift off the floor. With the hips too low, the glutes and hamstrings can’t contribute as well, the quads are forced to take over the work. Ideally an even contribution of quads, glutes and hamstrings should occur.

As the bar leaves the floor, the hips and shoulders should initially rise at the same time, keeping the torso angle the same. This occurs through extension of the knees and the bar should move slightly back and upwards as the knees move backwards (out of the way of the bar).

As the bar comes past the knee, the lifter starts to pull the bar back (leading with the shoulders and driving the hips through) sliding the bar up the thigh to lockout as the knees continue to straighten. The below sequence of pictures shows a conventional deadlift from start to finish.

Start

Below the Kne

Above the Knee

Finish

Ok, so let’s look at a few of the problems that can occur. A very common problem is a rounded back in the bottom position. The low back often tucks (due to hamstring inflexibility) and/or the upper back rounds. I should note that some top powerlifters feel that rounding the upper back is a better way to deadlift. I suspect that a lot of this is a concession to deadlift suits (which tend to force lifters to round) although rounding will tend to put the bar in a more biomechanically advantageous position; it lets lifters sit into the lift more and get more leg drive. I’m not convinced it is the most healthy technique for the shoulder girdle.

However, as noted this is an article about clean style deadlifts and that means keeping the back flat and I’m going to address rounding as a technique flaw for this style of deadlift. A proper starting position (upper back flat or slightly arched) is show on the left with a rounded start shown on the right.

Clean Grip Deadlift Start

Back Rounded

Another problem is letting the bar come out from the body. The bar should stay as close to the shins as possible (with many lifters dragging the bar up the shins and using talcum powder to minimize friction). Not only does allowing the bar to swing out drastically increase the stress on the low-back (in a bad way), it makes it extremely likely that you’ll miss the lift. A proper, keeping the bar in technique, is shown on the left; in the right picture the lifter has let the bar swing far out in front of them.

Above the Knee

Bar Too Far in Front

Two common problems can occur at lockout. The first is when the lifter fails to get the shoulders back at the end of the lift (or fails to keep them back during the lift). The second is when the lifter leans too far back, hyper-extending the low back. The proper finishing position is shown on the far left, rounded shoulders is in the middle, hyper-extension on the far right.

Finish

Shoulders Rounded

Hyperextension

A final, and very common, problem is letting the hips raise more quickly than the shoulders (which I call ’shooting the hips’; note that some lifters use shooting the hips to describe what happens at the end of the lift when the hips are driven through to finish the lockout).

This frequently happens if the lifter jerks at the bar or doesn’t think about driving the shoulders up as the bar comes off the floor. Weak glutes or quads can also contribute to this as the body tries to move the hamstrings into a better position biomechanically to stiff-leg the weight up. Finally, some lifters get so focused on pushing with the legs that they essentially forget to pull their shoulders up and back during the lift. So their butt shoots up into the air and they ‘lose their shoulders’ behind the pull.

As noted above, the hips and shoulders should rise at the same time which means that the torso angle should stay the same until the bar passes the knee. The left-most picture is a correct starting position. In the middle, the lifter has properly started the lift with the hips and shoulder rising at the same speed. Note that the bar is higher on the shins but the angle of the back to the floor has not changed. In the far right picture, that bar is in the same starting position; the hips have raised without moving the bar off the floor. Note how the angle of the back to the floor has decreased, the back is flatter because the hips have risen faster than the shoulders.

Clean Grip Deadlift Start

Below the Knee

Shooting the Hips

The descent of the deadlift is a matter of some debate. Technically it should be performed in reverse of what happens on the way up. The torso leans forwards as the knees bend slightly, sliding the bar down the thighs until it passes the knees at which point the bar is squatted down with knee flexion. As noted above, the second rep of a deadlift often looks much better than the first and part of it is that the hips tend to end up in a more natural position after the first descent.

The big debate is over the speed at which the descent is done. Many deadlifters feel that lowering heavy weights is dangerous and will essentially drop the bar, resetting before every rep. Others prefer to control the bar down fairly quickly, still needing to reset. Others will use a relatively slow eccentric so that they end up in the proper position at the bottom to start the next repetition. The latter is probably better for mass gains due to the importance of eccentric contractions for growth.

Another argument about deadlifts has to do with reps per set and how those reps are performed in terms of breaks between repetitions. Many powerlifters argue that since the deadlift is done for a single without the benefit of the stretch shorten cycle, it should be trained that way: single reps from a dead stop. From a powerlifting performance standpoint, they may not be incorrect.

A similar argument holds that it’s dangerous to do repetitions in the deadlift since technique will degrade with repetitions (low-back fatigue is usually cited). Maybe. Many lifters have done high rep sets (5-8 or even higher) in good form so it can be done.

Another issue is what to do between reps. The three basic options are to

1. Rest completely between reps, reset to a proper lifting position and pull. This treats the set like a series of singles.
2. Lower the bar into a proper deadlift position, pause briefly on the floor (without losing body position) before starting the next pull. This allows you to get some benefit of the stretch-shorten cycle and is generally a little bit easier than method 1.
3. Use a touch and go or even small bounce off the floor. For most people, I don’t recommend this; most lifters won’t maintain a good back position.

Each has their pros and cons depending on what the lifter’s goal is. I’d probably say that option 1 is best for those looking to maximize strength as each rep starts from a dead stop, it’s also valuable for powerlifters who pull clean style as each rep is essentially a perfect single. I think option 2 is probably best for size gains since more tension is kept on the muscles without resting. Option 3 is best left to very advanced lifters since the act of bouncing the plates will throw most people far far out of proper lifting position and they are more likely to get hurt than to get anything of benefit out of the technique.

Finally, a little bit About Grip and Straps

Finally, I want to talk about grip a bit (I’ll cover this in more detail in a future site update). Probably the most common grip used for the deadlift is the mixed grip with one hand going over the bar (pronated) and the other under (supinated). This tends to be stronger than either an overhand grip or the hook grip. However, it also puts a slight torque across the spine and some injuries (including biceps tears) have occasionally occurred. All you have to do is bend the undergrip hand a little bit and you can tear a biceps with any heavy weight.

Another option is to use a double overhand grip which is exactly what it sounds like, both hands grip over the bar; the thumb closes over the fingers in the double overhand grip. This is generally weaker than the mixed grip but avoids torque across the spine of imbalances.

A third option is the hook grip which is what Olympic lifters and some powerlifters use. It is a double overhand grip but the thumbs are pinned under the first two or three fingers. As an Olympic lifter will tell you, the hook grip is stronger than a regular overhand grip. But it is painful when you first do it.

So which is better? As above, mixed grip is probably stronger of the three although you can build a damn strong hook grip if you start early enough. Regular overgrip is the weakest although it can be used if you use lifting straps. If you use the mixed grip, I recommend switching which hand is over and which is under from set to set (it will feel weird at first) to avoid a chronic imbalance through the spine.

What about lifting straps? Hardhead purists will tell you to never use straps to deadlift. And, for a powerlifter who needs to build their grip strength, they may not be incorrect. However, for general training purposes, straps can be beneficial; a bodybuilder or other non-powerlifting athlete shouldn’t let grip limitations hold back the training stimulus to their other muscles.

What I recommend is to try and avoid straps during a workout as long as possible. When you reach the point that grip becomes limiting, strap up. That way, you build your grip and you get the full workout done. This goes for all back work. I’ll cover the proper use of straps in a future article.

And, while it’s difficult to decide which movement is done more poorly in the average gym (let’s face it, 99% of people have atrocious technique), the bench is right up there. I’ve seen staggering amounts of truly amusing things done on bench press, usually by guys who want to lift more weight to impress their buddies and/or hit the minimum macho poundage (which ranges from 225 to 315 depending on what type of gym you’re in). Never mind that the bench is realistically more or less responsible for more shoulder injuries than any other lift, the reality is that trainees will want to do it. So they might as well do it correctly. And that’s what I’m going to describe here.

Now, let me say right up front that I am going to be detailing a very specific variation on bench pressing, which is the raw generic power bench press. Lemme explain those terms. Raw means no gear as in no bench press shirts. Yeah, a lot of guys belt but, unless you’re using the belt to hold down your bench shirt, it’s pretty pointless. And I guess you could consider wrist wraps gear, I can’t say I’ve seen many non-powerlifters use them. But raw in this context means no bench shirt.

My use of the phrase generic power bench may confuse some people. I’m using the term generic to delineate that this is the generic form I’d teach a beginning/non-competition athlete trainee under most circumstances. Yes, there are exceptions. With a bodybuilder, I might do something a bit different, for a powerlifter, it would depend on their fed and their gear.

Basically, what I’m going to describe is what would be old-school raw powerlifting style bench press.

If you’re wondering why I choose this variation for most applications, it’s because the generic raw power bench will be safer for the shoulders for the average trainee (compared to an elbows high bodybuilder bench press), while allowing them to use the most weight, and while targeting the largest amount of muscle mass (including the pecs) at once.

I’m putting all of this verbiage up-front to avoid comments of the “That’s bad technique advice for a shirted lifter in a Rage double ply denim shirt” (or whatever) or “That’s not the best way to isolate the pecs” (and ruin your shoulders). I’m not talking about a bodybuilder style ‘pectacular’ bench and I’m not talking about geared powerlifting.

If you’re still unclear on the distinction, I’d recommend you read Bench Pressing Variations on this site since it examines the basic differences between the three.

Muscles Targeted

The bench press hits a large amount of upper body musculature with the primary focus being on the pectorals (chest), deltoids (shoulders, especially front and middle), and triceps (back of the arm). Any number of secondary muscles are hit but these are the main ones that are being targeted.

I’d note that some don’t feel that the bench press is a very good chest exercise, usually this is because they never learned to use the pecs while benching. I addressed this in detail in Benching with the Pecs. I’ve also seen it argued that the bench isn’t even a pec exercise and that it’s only triceps. While that might be true for some types of geared power benching, that certainly isn’t true for what I’m going to describe.

With that said, I would note that some types of body mechanics often make the bench press a poor choice of exercises for targeting the pecs (especially without tearing up the shoulders). Usually this is folks with very very long arms for whom full-range bench pressing tends to do awful things to the shoulders.

But, as noted in the introduction, the simple fact is that most people want to bench, most people are going to bench, and that means that they need to do it correctly.

Bench Press: Technique

First let’s talk about basic set up for the generic raw power bench. The picture below to the left shows a proper starting position. There is a slight arch in the back (nothing excessive as you might see in a powerlifting style bench), the feet are flat on the floor, the bar is directly over the lifter and the shoulders are pulled back with the chest lifted high. Contrast that to the picture on the right, there is no arch in the low back, the chest is dropped and the shoulders are rolled forwards

Correct Start Position

Flat Backed Starting Position

Note: lifters with pre-existing back problems (especially disk issues) often cannot bench with even the slight arch shown in the picture on the left. However, even if they bench with a flatter low back (as shown in the right), the chest should still be lifted and the shoulders pulled back.

The above may be a little easier to see from the top of the lifter. The picture on the left shows the shoulders pinned back under the lifter, the picture on the right shows the shoulders rolled out from underneath the lifter and shrugged up towards the ceiling. The left picture is the correct start and finish position, that is the shoulders should stay pinned behind the lifter throughout the rep and set.

Shoulders Pulled Back

Shoulders Rolled Forwards

The next thing I want to look at is the proper starting and finish position for the bench, in terms of where the bar should end up. If you look at the picture entitled “Correct Start Position” above, you can see that the bar is directly vertical to the lifter, that is the arm is perpendicular to the body. This means that the only real effort is going into keeping the arms locked. Contrast that to the following two pictures showing the bar being too far back over the lifter’s eyes (left picture) or too far towards their feet (right picture). Both positions are wrong and require more muscular effort to keep the bar in place compared to having the bar vertical.

Bar Too Far Back

Bar Too Far forwards

Again, the bar should both start and finish in the same position, with the arms vertical and the bar directly above the lifter.

Now one of the long-standing arguments about bench pressing for years has been over the proper bar-path with some advocating what is termed the J-curve path and others advocating a straight line. For various reasons, I teach a slight J-curve. Meaning that from the above starting position, the bar is lowered in a slight curve to the chest, and is pushed back up (towards the eyes) to the proper finish position discussed above.

Unfortunately, this doesn’t show up terribly well in pictures (see the video at the end of this article to make it clearer) but if you look at the next two pictures (showing the proper start and finish position), you can see that the bar hits the lifter further down the body compared to the starting position. This is due to the lifter lowering the bar in a slight gradual curve to the chest prior to pressing it back and up (in the same curve) to the proper ending position.

Also note that, at the bottom, the elbows are tucked slightly in towards the body, anywhere from 30-45 degrees would be common; that is in contrast to a heavily geared bench where the elbows are generally tucked more, or a bodybuilder style bench where the elbows are flared higher up. Again, this is shown in some detail in Bench Pressing Variations.

Correct Start Position

Correct Bottom Position

Again, this isn’t profoundly clear in the pictures but can be seen in the video at the bottom of the page.

Now, a comment about proper bottom position mechanics. In the picture above and to the right, you’ll note that the elbows are directly underneath the bar, that is the forearms are perpendicular to both the bar and floor.

A common technique flaw is to have the elbows either behind (bottom left) or in front of the bar (bottom right) both of which mess up not only bar path but prevent the lifter from actually putting their force into the bar. In the first case, the lifter will end up pushing the bar towards their feet, in the second, the bar has basically collapsed back onto them and they are unlikely to get the bar moving off the chest at all.

Elbows Behind the Bar

Elbows Forwards of the Bar

Finally, I want to look at the issue of grip width; as noted above, the elbows are tucked into the body slightly in the generic power bench and this has implications for proper grip width. At the bottom of the lift, the grip should be such that the forearms are perpendicular to the bar and floor. This is shown below.

Correct Grip Width

Grip Too Wide

Grip Too Narrow

Which brings us to the end and a short video I took showing both a proper J-curve (first three repetitions) and a straight up and down bar path (second three reps). I want to make a couple of other comments about the video. Note that the lifter gets set and tight with the shoulders pinned down prior to having the bar lifted out of the rack. The shoulders stay down during the lift off as well (this requires that the spotter give a proper lift off, a topic that is beyond the scope of this article). During each rep, the shoulder remain pulled back and down, the only thing moving is the bar.

“I’ve seen so many f-ed up ways of people doing Woodchops/Reverse Woodchop movement for trunk/abs/core muscles that I dont even know if Im doing it right. I cant seem to find a single video of someone doing it with a cable x-over or similar cable apparatus, mostly some sort of medicine ball lunge-twist. Can you do a “Exercise of the Newsletter” type thing (like you did w/Split-Squats a few weeks ago) with Woodchops/Reverse Woodchops?” – Paul

Well, I finally got a chance to shoot some video and want to take a day’s break from the steady state versus interval cardio series to address it.

The woodchop and reverse woodchop actually exist in two very distinct forms; perhaps more interestingly they do basically opposite things. This is probably some of the source of the confusion. That’s in addition to the fact that most people seem compelled on this exercise to use wayyyyy too much weight which makes their form awful. They end up making it sort of this weird pseudo-rotational bench press with a lot of upper body and arm to move the weight.

The original forms of the woodchop and reverse woodchop were aimed at training the core muscles (rectus adbominus/obliques for woodchop, low back muscles for the reverse woodchop) dynamically in a rotational pattern. Such movements tend to be important for any athlete who has a lot of rotational motion in their sport. Think a baseball pitcher, a batter, tennis player, that sort of thing.

And yes, while most of the power for these movements comes from the legs, the woodchop/reverse woodchop patterns help to couple the leg drive with what happens in the upper body to finish the movements. It doesn’t matter how much power your legs can produce if you lose it all because of a weak torso.

However, in recent years, there’s been a shift away from a lot of dynamic rotational motions due to the fact that rotation and the lumbar spine is not a good combination. A focus on stability in that area along with the ability to stabilize against rotation has become more important for a lot of coaches and a lot of sports.

In the videos below, I’ve shown both the dynamic and anti-rotation woodchop in one video and the same for reverse woodchop in the second.

Woodchop: Note that the cable stack starts high and off to the side and there is basically a full body rotation going on from start to finish (my feet pivot and hips rotate along with the torso movement).

Let me note that there are actually many more ways to do woodchops than this depending on what muscles or patterns you want to train or eliminate. They can be done seated to take the legs out of the movement and isolate the rotational core muscles, they can be done kneeling for similar reasons, on one knee, on both feet without the lower body/hip movement, or done in the fashion I’ve shown them which is basically a full body ‘integration’ exercise.

Note that the arms stay mostly straight (I cheated a bit in the video) and the movement is coming from my legs, hips and torso. I’m not using a bunch of arm to press or push the weight across. The arms are just hooks and the movement is coming from the torso and lower body.

Now, the second movement is the stability anti-rotation version. Note on this that my torso stays completely still (facing directly forwards) while I use my arms to pull the handle down and across my body. Since the cable stack is trying to pull my torso out of alignment, this is training stability and anti-rotation. Does that make sense?

I’d note that, in the anti-rotation version, often what fatigues is the upper body and shoulder musculature from pulling the weight across.

Now, the reverse woodchop is basically the opposite. Now the cable starts down and to the side and I am going from torso flexion/rotation to full extension. This is also a nice way to get some extension in the thoracic spine (upper back area), make sure and reach tall at the end of the movement to achieve this.

As with the woodchop, this one can also be done seated, kneeling, on one knee, etc. depending on what you are trying to accomplish.

Again, the second movement is the anti-rotation version, the torso stays straight and I pull the handle across my body, fighting against the cable’s trying to pull me towards it.

A few programming comments

1. I think it’s important to include both movements in training to avoid creating any kind of imbalance front to back. Of course, the exception would be an athlete who already has an imbalance that you’re trying to correct. Woodchops/reverse woodchops would generally be done at the end of the workout but they wouldn’t necessarily be the only movements done for abs. Dynamic abdominal/low back work (weighted crunches, back extension), along with other stability work (side and front planks) might also be done depending on the athlete and the sport.

2. Like all movements, these can be done for high reps for muscular endurance, low reps for strength, or explosively for either dynamic rotation or anti-rotational stability. Generally speaking, start from the muscular endurance end and work towards the explosive end of things depending on the goal/needs.

3. I’ve generally found that strength on the reverse woodchop movement is a bit lower than on the normal woodchop. You’ll need to drop the weight slightly under most circumstances.

It’s also incorrect.

And since not everybody has access to a proper GHR machine, and since you can’t always do certain exercises when your low back is already tired, it’s nice to have another movement to either rotate in or use as a secondary exercise to train the glutes and hamstrings. I also like this exercise because it hits the often ignored biceps femoris short-head (which only crosses the knee) while also hitting the glutes.

I should note that I didn’t invent this exercise; the first time I saw it was training with my old training partner back in Austin, Vince Martin. But I’m going to show it to you now.

The exercise itself is actually quite simple. Rather than a normal leg curl, where the only focus is on knee flexion, the leg curl with hip extension transfers from pure knee flexion to hip extension at the end. Essentially you train the hamstrings from the ‘bottom up’ and into hip extension. Unfortunately, my lovely model Sarah had the wrong kind of shorts on so you get to see my hairy-ness instead.

Below I’ve shown the starting point for both a normal leg curl or the leg curl with hip extension.

I

In the next two photos, I’ve shown the end of a normal leg curl (the thighs stay on the pad and only knee flexion is done) and the end of the leg curl with hip extension. Note in the lower picture that the tops of the thighs have left the pads and the hip is taken into extension (this also changes where the pad hits the thighs).

Normally I’d like to see a bit more hip extension but this machine only allowed for the amount shown above. I typically program these as a slightly higher rep (5-8 reps) supplemental movement for general lower body hypertrophy. I use it with an explosive concentric (really focusing on explosive knee flexion into hip extension), a squeeze at the top and then a controlled eccentric. If you’re slamming the leg pad into your hamstring on every rep, you’re doing it right.

Make sure and warm up thoroughly for this one, hamstrings are prone to injuries due to their Type II fiber dominance.

Thankfully, the forums I frequent have some very smart, very strong guys to set me straight and I told them that anyone who wrote up a proper shirted bench would get run in the blog to clarify things. Note again that the instructions below ONLY apply to shirted benching. If you’re involved in powerlifting at that level, get a coach. If you’re interested in hypertrophy or general fitness, stick with the generic power bench I described in Bench Pressing Variations and examined in detail Bench Press Technique along with the cues I presented in Benching with the Pecs.

Towards that end, I give you a description of shirted benching by Dan Montague (he posts as The Deliverator on various training boards). John Henry Brown (aka JHB) was the other lifter nice enough to set me straight, hence the mention of his name.

Dan certainly knows his stuff and I appreciate him taking the time to write this up. Take it away, Dan.

***

As far as the setup is concerned, JHB is right; the shoulders are pinched as tightly as they can be. We all know the support this provides for the shoulders, when dealing with a shirt pinched shoulders also tighten up the chest panel or neckline (depending on which you use to bench with) across the chest to provide more support at the start of the lift, and off of the chest.

We start with the bar over our pecs, and begin the movement by bringing the bar straight down. It will only go an inch or so, but this tightens up the neckline of the shirt and keeps it set (a lot of lifters have problems with the shirt moving during a press, this usually helps combat that). As soon as the shirt binds, we being to tuck the elbows.

Even though we all use a max-legal grip (index fingers covering the power rings), we tuck extremely hard. This is because we all use low necklines to bench with. When the neckline of a shirt is low, the bubble of support is also low. The only way to touch the bar on the stomach while keeping the elbows under it is to tuck, and to tuck violently. I will go as far as to say that a lot of the problems people have while benching in a shirt is that they don’t tuck nearly enough.

Along with tucking, as the bar is lowered towards the stomach, the “weight” in your arms gets closer to your feet and you can feel the bar want to dump. To combat this, we will roll our wrists back (a la Metal Militia). When the bar is an inch or so from touching our stomachs, we stop lowering the bar towards the feet, and just pull the elbows towards the floor and bring the bar straight down. Again, in addition to not tucking enough, another problem shirted benchers have is that they try to keep lowering the bar towards their feet, and they end up dumping. If they would bring the bar to where the shirt really binds up and then just pull the bar straight down, they’d be fine. This goes along the same lines as trying to sit too far back when box squatting, instead of pushing back and finishing those last few inches by just squatting straight down with the knees out.

For those of us that choose to arch, bringing the bar straight down coupled with pushing the heels towards the floor and pushing the belly out makes touching fairly easy. I don’t know if it’s something in the water, but not a single lifter that has trained with us has ever had any issue with touching, or dumping. I think lifters have a tendency to make geared lifting a lot more difficult than it really is, or should be.

So, our hands are at the max width, our elbows are tucked as hard as they can be, the wrists are rolled back and the bar is somewhere around the belly-button (if you’re arching) or middle of the stomach. Here, the shirt is fully loaded around the collar and chest-plate and just needs to be released.

The problem a lot of people make here is that they want the shirt to do the work off of the chest, and when this happens it tends to cause one of two problems; 1) the bar speed is pitiful and they can’t finish the press or 2) they aren’t ready to accept the weight and they end up out of the groove or a bobble of the bar.

You want to think about scooping your elbows underneath the bar and throwing it over your chest (the same way coaches tell linemen to drive through other football players by exploding up with the elbows in). The movement should be done as forcefully as possible, to take advantage of both the shirt and your own starting strength (assuming you have some from training without the shirt). This is also where you shove your heels or feet into the ground. Granted, leg drive is used through the entire lift, but you kind of “shove again” with the legs to get the bar going.

As the bar floats towards the chest, the elbows will flare and the wrists will straighten, and the bar will end up over the pecs, fully-locked out and the lift is completed. The shoulders are pinched the entire time and the traps are driven into the bench.