Barbell Paused Sumo Deadlift
- Target muscle
- —
- Equipment
- Barbell
- Body part
- Hips
- Type
- Strength
The barbell paused sumo deadlift is a strength exercise that builds the hips, working the glutes, hamstrings, and inner-thigh adductors along with the back and grip. Pulled from a wide sumo stance with a deliberate dead-stop pause just below the knees, it removes momentum to expose and strengthen weak points off the floor and through the mid-shin.
How to do the Barbell Paused Sumo Deadlift
- 1Set the loaded barbell on the floor over the middle of your feet. Stand with a wide stance, feet well outside shoulder-width and your toes turned out toward the plates.
- 2Hinge down and grip the bar inside your knees with a shoulder-width grip, hands roughly under your shoulders.
- 3Drop your hips, lift your chest, and brace your core. Spread the floor with your feet and pull the slack out of the bar before it leaves the ground.
- 4Drive through your whole foot and push the floor away, keeping the bar tracking close to your shins as it rises.
- 5Pause for a deliberate one-to-two-second dead stop just below the knees or at mid-shin, holding the bar still without losing your braced, flat-back position.
- 6Continue the pull, driving your hips forward to lockout with your knees and hips fully extended and your shoulders back.
- 7Lower the bar under control along the same path back to the floor, keeping your back flat.
- 8Reset your stance and brace fully before each rep, then re-rack or set down the bar safely when finished.
Form tips
- Keep the bar in contact with your legs throughout the pull so the load stays over your midfoot and your hips do the work.
- Hold the pause as a true dead stop with tension intact, not a slow grind, so you train the position rather than coast through it.
- Open your knees out over your toes as you set up to free your hips and load the adductors and glutes.
- Use the lighter loads the pause forces to drill clean technique, and add a spotter-free safety margin or lifting platform when going heavy.
- Brace your core hard and exhale at lockout rather than at the pause to protect your lower back under heavy load.
Common mistakes
- Letting the bar drift forward away from your shins, which pulls you off balance and overloads the lower back.
- Rounding the back at the pause or off the floor, which removes spinal support and raises injury risk on a heavy lift.
- Turning the pause into a bounce or barely hesitating, which defeats the dead-stop purpose and lets momentum hide weak points.
- Letting the hips shoot up first so the lift becomes a back extension instead of a hip and leg drive.
- Setting the stance too wide to control, which kills leverage and forces you off your heels.
Frequently asked questions
What muscles does the barbell paused sumo deadlift work?
It mainly works the hips — the glutes, hamstrings, and inner-thigh adductors — with the back and grip working hard to hold position and lockout the lift. The wide stance shifts more emphasis onto the glutes and adductors than a conventional pull.
How wide should my sumo stance be?
Set your feet well outside shoulder-width with your toes turned out toward the plates, so your hands grip the bar inside your knees. Find a width where you can keep your shins vertical and still drive hard through your whole foot.
Where should I pause in the sumo deadlift?
Hold a deliberate dead stop for one to two seconds just below the knees or at mid-shin. This is the point where the lift is hardest off the floor, so pausing there removes momentum and builds strength through your weakest range.
What is a good alternative to the paused sumo deadlift?
The standard barbell sumo deadlift is the closest variation once you want to move heavier loads. A conventional deadlift trains the same hip and back pattern from a narrower stance if you want more hamstring and back involvement.
How many sets and reps should I do?
Because the pause limits the load and demands clean technique, 3 to 5 sets of 3 to 5 reps works well for building strength off the floor. Keep the weight light enough to hold a true dead stop on every rep.
