The sumo deadlift uses a wide stance with your hands inside your knees: the torso stays more upright, your legs and glutes do more, and the bar travels a shorter path.
1Starting position2End position
Setup
Take a wide stance, toes turned out, bar over mid-foot. Drop down with a flat back and grab the bar shoulder-width, inside your legs. Push your knees out over your toes, chest up, pull the slack out of the bar.
Execution
Stand over the bar with a wide stance, take it with a grip inside your legs — starting position.
Inhale, drop your hips, chest up, and drive through the floor, extending your hips and knees.
Once the bar clears your knees, drive your hips forward and stand tall, squeezing your shoulder blades together.
Common mistakes
Knees caving in — push them out over your toes the whole set.
Hips shooting up first — chest and hips rise together.
A stance so wide you can't get your hips down — find the width where your shins are nearly vertical.
Jerking the bar off the floor — take the slack out first, then push the floor away.
Not sure about your form? Send me a video of a set — I'll take a look and tell you what to fix first.
