Stiff-Leg Deadlift

Stand with feet hip-width apart, holding the bar at hip height. With nearly straight legs (minimal knee bend), hinge at the hips and lower the bar along your legs. Go as low as your hamstring flexibility allows without rounding your back, then return to standing.

Pro Tips

• Keep legs straighter than an RDL for more hamstring emphasis
• Lower the bar to mid-shin or as flexibility allows
• Avoid rounding your lower back — stop the descent when it starts to round

Muscles worked

Primary: Hamstrings — the straighter leg position (minimal knee bend compared to an RDL) increases the hamstring stretch and loading through a longer range of motion. This is the defining difference between the stiff-leg deadlift and the Romanian deadlift — more knee extension = more hamstring emphasis, less glute.

Supporting: Gluteus maximus (hip extension on the return, though less involved than in the RDL due to the straighter leg), erector spinae (maintaining neutral lumbar extension throughout the range), forearms and grip (supporting the bar through the full descent and ascent).

Common mistakes

Confusing it with the RDL: The RDL maintains a soft, fixed knee bend throughout. The stiff-leg deadlift keeps the legs as straight as possible without locking the knees. The difference produces notably different hamstring loading — stiff-leg creates a more extreme hamstring stretch that is appropriate only for lifters with adequate hamstring flexibility.

Rounding the lower back to reach depth: The stiff-leg deadlift’s range of motion is naturally limited by hamstring flexibility. Going deeper than flexibility allows is always compensated by lumbar rounding, which is the most injury-relevant error in any hip hinge variation. Stop before the lower back rounds.

Locking the knees completely: Fully hyperextending the knees under load places disproportionate stress on the knee joint and posterior cruciate ligament. Maintain a microbend — just enough to avoid hyperextension.

Starting from the floor on every set: Some lifters perform stiff-leg deadlifts from the floor every rep. This is fine, but the range of motion and loading pattern makes it most commonly performed as a top-down movement — starting from standing (bar racked at hip height) and lowering as far as flexibility allows.

Programming notes

The stiff-leg deadlift provides greater hamstring stretch and loading than the Romanian deadlift but requires better hamstring flexibility to perform safely. It appears in hypertrophy programmes targeting the hamstrings where maximum hamstring range of motion is the goal, and in powerlifting accessory work to develop the hamstrings specifically in a long, stretched position.

Typical programming: 3–4 sets of 8–12 repetitions. Because of the extreme hamstring stretch involved, it is not appropriate for lifters with tight hamstrings or limited hip mobility — the RDL is a safer starting point.

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between the stiff-leg deadlift and the Romanian deadlift?

The key distinction is knee position. The Romanian deadlift maintains a fixed, soft knee bend (roughly 15–20 degrees) throughout the movement, which shifts more loading to the glutes and keeps the hamstrings under tension without maximum stretch. The stiff-leg deadlift keeps the legs as straight as possible — knees nearly locked — which drives the hips further back and creates a greater hamstring stretch at the bottom. The result is more isolated hamstring loading, but the exercise demands considerably more hamstring flexibility to perform safely.

How low should you go on the stiff-leg deadlift?

Lower only as far as your hamstring flexibility allows while keeping your lower back in a neutral position. For most lifters, this lands somewhere between mid-shin and the floor. Once you feel your lower back begin to round or your pelvis tuck under (posterior pelvic tilt), you have reached your flexibility limit — stop there. Forcing greater depth by rounding the lumbar spine under load is the primary injury mechanism in this exercise and offers no additional hamstring benefit.

Can beginners do the stiff-leg deadlift?

Not typically — not as an early exercise. Beginners generally lack the hamstring flexibility and hip-hinge motor pattern required to perform the stiff-leg deadlift safely. Start with the Romanian deadlift to build the hinge pattern and hamstring length, then progress to the stiff-leg variation once you can reach mid-shin depth with a neutral spine on the RDL. Rushing to the stiff-leg version with tight hamstrings leads directly to lumbar rounding and puts the lower back at unnecessary risk.