Exercises You Should Be Doing – Sumo Deadlift

I’ll admit it. I have a man crush on the sumo deadlift. When our personal training clients started performing it last week during their phase II training program, I couldn’t wait to look at their charts to see how well they did. Many may consider the squat to be the king of all of the exercises, but I humbly disagree.  The deadlift is the ultimate total body exercise.

Why do I love it for women?

Women may not admit they enjoy lifting heavy things, but I know they do. I’ve seen it over and over and over again. Even the most girly girls love lifting heavy things. It’s empowering, exhilarating, transforming, and addicting. Plus, it’s the quickest way to burn the most amount of calories in the least amount of time. The sumo deadlift is the perfect exercise choice because it is so easy to load. Women are usually amazed at how much they can sumo deadlift once they learn the technique.

1. Attacks the problem areas most women are concerned with – the butt and the back of the legs (hamstrings)
2. Burns a “whole lotta” calories – works almost every muscle in the body. The more muscles stimulated = the more calories burned = the more weight you lose.
3. Builds the hourglass figure so many women want – Because it focuses on the glutes and upper back, it helps build muscles that make the waist appear thinner.
4. Saves the lower back and knees – The hip hinge pattern is the most important movement pattern in functional training. Moving from the hips spares the knees and lumbar spine.

Why do I love it for athletes?

1. Power and Strength – It attacks most athletes’ key weakness – the posterior chain, aka the power chain (glutes hamstrings, and upper back)
2. Injury prevention – By loading the hips, it spares the knees and lower back.
3. Range of Motion – Unlike the squat, you cannot cheat on the range of motion. In the squat, as the weight gets heavier, the depth usually gets shallower. Thus, the key muscles (the glutes and hamstrings) aren’t fully stimulated. The deadlift always stimulates the posterior chain when done correctly.
4. Multiple variations – Athletes can use it during strength, hypertrophy, or power phases. It can be performed from blocks, the rack, or the ground. Chains and bands can be added to supply accommodating resistance. The options are really unlimited.
5. Reinforces good posture – To perform the exercise correctly, you must form that power line (think shortstop or linebacker pose) that is essential in all sports.  We consider the power line a straight line that can be drawn from the back of the head to the upper back to the butt.  It puts the body in a position to create the most power possible.

How to perform

Here’s strength coach Eric Cressey performing the sumo deadlift. If you’d like to start adding this exercise to your training and need a little help with your technique, ask one of our trainers. We’ll be more than glad to help you add this lift to your program.