Exercise Library
Trap Bar Deadlift
This exercise is performed by standing inside a trap bar, gripping the handles, and lowering the hips while keeping the chest upright and back neutral. Drive through the feet and extend the hips and knees to stand tall, then lower the weight back to the starting position under control.
Primary muscle
Primary: Glutes
Secondary muscles
Quadriceps Secondary: Hamstrings, Erector Spinae, Trapezius, Forearms, Core
Equipment
Others
Category
Quadriceps
How to Do the Trap Bar Deadlift
- Step inside the trap bar and set your feet hip width apart, centered between the handles.
- Hinge your hips back and bend your knees to grip the handles at your sides with straight arms.
- Flatten your back, lift your chest, and pull the slack out of the bar so your lats are tight.
- Take a big breath into your belly and brace your core.
- Drive the floor away with your legs, standing up in one piece with the bar rising in a straight vertical line.
- Finish tall with hips and knees locked out and glutes squeezed; do not lean back.
- Exhale, then push your hips back and bend your knees to lower the bar to the floor under control.
- Reset your breath and position before every rep.
Common Mistakes
- Squatting the weight up: dropping the hips too low turns the pull into a clumsy squat; set the hips where your back is flat and your shins lightly touch forward.
- Rounding the lower back: losing the brace under heavy load is the main injury risk in any deadlift; if the spine rounds, the weight is too heavy.
- Drifting forward or backward: because the load surrounds you, small balance shifts are easy to miss; keep the effort centered over mid foot.
- Hitching at lockout: leaning back and shrugging to finish stresses the lumbar spine; lockout is a tall neutral stand, nothing more.
Track This Exercise in the App
Log your trap bar deadlift sets in 1RM.fit and watch your estimated 1RM update automatically as you get stronger.