Sumo Deadlift Form Guide: Build Stronger Hips and Glutes
Learn how to master the sumo deadlift with our step-by-step guide. Improve hip strength and reduce back strain with proper technique and stance.
How to Perform
- Approach the barbell with a wide stance, positioning your feet near the collars with your toes pointed out at a 45-degree angle.
- Hinge at your hips and bend your knees to grip the bar with your hands placed directly under your shoulders, inside your legs.
- Flatten your back, pull your shoulder blades down, and drive your knees outward to tension your hips against the weight.
- Take a deep breath to brace your core and drive through your heels to extend your hips and knees simultaneously.
- Stand tall at the top of the movement by squeezing your glutes, avoiding an excessive lean back.
- Lower the barbell under control by hinging your hips back and following the same path to the floor.
Common Mistakes
- Allowing the knees to cave inward during the initial pull.
- Setting the hips too high, which shifts the load entirely to the lower back.
- Letting the bar drift away from the shins instead of keeping it close to the body.
- Rounding the spine rather than maintaining a neutral, braced core.
Muscles Worked
Primary movers
- Adductors
Stabilizers
- Glutes
- Hamstrings
- Lower Back
- Traps
Related Guides
- Conventional Deadlift — Back/Legs
- Deficit Deadlift — Back/Legs
- 1 Leg Box Squat — Legs
Adductors · Back/Legs