Barbell Behind The Back Deadlift
- Músculo objetivo
- —
- Equipamiento
- Barbell
- Parte del cuerpo
- Hips
- Tipo
- Strength
The barbell behind the back deadlift is a hip-dominant pulling variation where the bar travels up the back of your legs instead of in front. By hiding the bar behind you, it shifts the load closer to your hips and forces a tall, upright torso, building strength and drive through the hips and posterior chain. It's a useful change of stimulus for lifters comfortable with the conventional deadlift.
Cómo hacer el Barbell Behind The Back Deadlift
- 1Set the loaded barbell on the floor just behind your heels, then stand in front of it with your feet about hip-width apart.
- 2Hinge at the hips and bend your knees to reach back and grip the bar with both hands behind your legs, palms facing your body, just outside your hips.
- 3Brace your core, pull your shoulder blades down, and set a neutral, flat back with your chest tall.
- 4Drive your feet into the floor and extend your hips and knees together, keeping the bar tracking straight up the back of your legs.
- 5Stand fully upright with your hips locked out and the bar resting behind your thighs, avoiding any backward lean.
- 6Hinge your hips back and bend your knees to lower the bar under control along the same path back to the floor.
- 7Let the bar settle on the floor behind your heels, reset your brace, and repeat for reps.
Consejos de técnica
- Keep the bar in light contact with the back of your legs the whole way up and down so the load stays over your hips.
- Lead the movement with your hips, not your knees — think of pushing your hips forward to stand tall rather than squatting the weight up.
- Keep your chest up and spine neutral throughout; the behind-the-body bar path naturally encourages an upright torso, so don't round forward to chase it.
- Start light to learn the unfamiliar bar path and ankle clearance, and use a power rack or pull from blocks if the floor position is awkward.
Errores comunes
- Leaning back at lockout to 'finish' the rep, which loads the lower back instead of locking out cleanly through the hips.
- Letting the bar drift away from your legs, which lengthens the lever on your lower back and breaks the upright position.
- Turning the lift into a squat by bending the knees too much, which removes the hip-hinge stimulus the variation is meant to train.
- Rounding the back to reach the bar, which puts the spine in a weak position under load and risks injury.
- Going too heavy too soon before the new bar path and balance feel natural, leading to sloppy reps.
Preguntas frecuentes
What does the barbell behind the back deadlift work?
It's a hip-dominant pull that trains the hips and posterior chain. Holding the bar behind your body keeps the load close to your hips and forces a tall, upright torso, so the work concentrates around the hip hinge.
How is it different from a conventional deadlift?
In a conventional deadlift the bar travels up the front of your legs; here it tracks up the back of your legs. That rearward bar path keeps you more upright and shifts the load behind your center of mass, changing the balance and emphasis toward the hips.
Is the behind the back deadlift good for beginners?
It's better suited to lifters already comfortable with the standard deadlift. The behind-the-body bar path is awkward to learn, so beginners should master the conventional hinge first, then add this as a variation with light weight.
How many sets and reps should I do?
As an accessory variation, 3–4 sets of 6–10 reps works well for most lifters. Keep the load moderate and the bar path clean rather than chasing a maximal weight.
