Single leg deadlifts are one of my favorite lower body exercises. This unilateral hip hinging exercise strengthens the posterior chain muscles, and improves balance. Unfortunately, very few people execute this movement correctly, so they do not reap the many benefits.
When you are performing single leg deadlifts, these key points in form are what you want to look for. I could have included many more points.
1️⃣ The hips are well behind the knee (due to hip hinging movement). Perform the hinge by pushing your hips backwards. Imagine a rope is pulling your hips backwards, or that you are pushing your hips backwards against a wall.
2️⃣ The back is flat. No rounding or hyperextending.
3️⃣ The arms are rigid and lats are engaged. Imagine you are crushing something in your armpits.
4️⃣ The weights are kept close to the leg and are not drifting ahead. Keep both arms in line with your armpits.
5️⃣ Tripod foot base. The heel and base of the big and baby toes are in constant contact with the floor. Imagine you are suctioning or screwing your foot into the floor.
6️⃣ The knee is roughly above the heel and the shin is in a relatively vertical position. The knee is in line with the foot, and is not collapsing inside or outside of the foot. Maintaining the tripod foot base will REALLY help.
7️⃣ The non-working leg is close to the midline of the body. This will really help with balance. You can modify the exercise by shortening the lever and keeping the non-working leg bent at 90 degrees.
8️⃣ The muscles in the non-working leg are engaged. Contract the quads and glutes on this side. This leg should not be loose!
9️⃣ The head, torso and hips are in a stacked position (I often use a canister analogy). In the bottom position the torso and hips are square to the floor and are not rotating.
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