# Deadlift

The barbell hip hinge — brace hard, then stand up with the bar by driving
the hips through.

- **Category:** Main circuit
- **Type:** Free-weight compound hinge
- **Targets:** Glutes, hamstrings, spinal erectors, grip
- **Prescription:** 4 × 6–8
- **Defaults:** 4 × 6 weighted

## Setup

Stand with the bar over mid-foot, feet hip-width. Hinge down with a flat
back and grip the bar just outside your legs. Shoulders slightly ahead of
the bar, hips higher than knees, chest up.

## Execution

1. Take the slack out of the bar, brace your trunk, then push the floor
   away — hips and shoulders rise together.
2. Once the bar passes the knees, drive the hips forward to stand tall.
3. Lower under control by hinging at the hips first, then bending the
   knees once the bar clears them.

## Cues

- Flat back from setup to lockout — the spine never rounds or overarches.
- Keep the bar dragging close to the legs the whole way.
- Finish with glutes, not by leaning back.

## Common Mistakes

- Squatting the weight up — hips too low, knees pushed forward.
- Rounding the lower back off the floor.
- Jerking the bar off the ground instead of pushing through the legs.

## Progression

Add weight in small jumps while all reps stay flat-backed; start from
blocks or a rack if floor mobility isn't there yet.
