Form & Technique for Dumbbell Sumo Deadlifts
Stand with your feet wider than your shoulders and dumbbells between your feet. The extra wide stance is key to a sumo deadlift; the wider stance lets you pull more weight with less stress on your back. Once you’re in a comfortable, wide stance, let your toes point out at a natural angle (between 30 and 45 degrees). Use 2 dumbbells if you’re comfortable holding one in each hand, or use just 1 if you need a lighter weight or different grip.
Bend at your hips and knees to lower yourself and grab the dumbbells. Keep your back straight with your spine in a neutral position; it helps to think about driving your hips straight back instead of “lowering” them. Keep your chest up and your core engaged to help. Grab the dumbbells with a neutral or overhand grip with your palms facing each other if you’re using 2 dumbbells. If you’re using 1 dumbbell, stand it upright and grip the upper weight at the end of the shaft with both hands. Form tip: Avoid putting yourself in a squat position on accident by pushing your hips back instead of down down.
Drive through your heels and extend your legs to raise yourself. Straighten your knees and bring your hips forward, keeping the dumbbells close to your body as you rise up. Keep your spine neutral and avoid rounding or curving your lower back. To help with this, keep your shoulders back, look forward (not down), and keep your core firm and engaged. At the top of the movement, stand tall with the weights near your hips.
Pause for a moment, then lower yourself back down slowly. Feel the tension in your glutes and hamstrings for a second, then slowly bend again at your knees and hips to return to the starting position. As always, keep your back straight and neutral and your core engaged as you move. Keep the weight close to your body as you lower, too. This helps keep the strain out of your lower back, preventing injury.
Repeat for the desired number of reps without rushing. Use slow and controlled motions throughout instead of speeding through the moves. Not only does this ensure you’re using the proper form for each rep (which helps you build strength and muscle mass more effectively), but it also helps prevent injury.
Adding Dumbbell Sumo Deadlifts to Your Routine
Try 3–6 sets of 1–5 reps once or twice a week to build strength. If strength is your goal, start with a relatively heavy weight (not so heavy you can barely move it, but heavy enough that you’re 1–3 reps from failure at the end of your sets). Aim to increase the weight gradually, week after week. To give yourself enough recovery time and avoid fatigue, stick to only 1 or 2 heavy deadlift sessions per week. Since deadlifts use lots of muscles and move lots of weight, consider doing them toward the beginning of your session when you have more energy.
Do 2–4 sets of 5–10 reps once or twice a week to grow muscle mass. If you want your glutes and hams to really pop, choose a slightly lower weight and aim to add more reps and sets each week rather than increasing the weight. This stimulates more muscle growth and helps cultivate defined, toned leg and glute muscles. If you’re doing a deadlift session 1 or 2 times a week, you don’t need to focus on accessory movements (moves that target a single muscle or group) like hip hinges or hip thrusts. You don’t have to make dumbbell sumo deadlifts a permanent part of your routine. Try incorporating it for a few weeks at a time to add variety to your leg day routine and work your muscles from a slightly different angle for more well-rounded development.
What muscles do dumbbell sumo deadlifts target?
Dumbbell sumo deadlifts primarily hit the quads, hamstrings, and glutes. It’s a compound exercise, which means it uses several muscle groups together in order to complete a movement. The major muscle groups in this move are the quadriceps (thighs), hamstrings (back of the thighs), and glutes (butt). Secondarily, dumbbell sumo deadlifts also hit the adductors (the muscles that draw your thigh in towards your body) and calves. Since the move also requires a stable core and a grip, it also works your abdominal muscles, lower back, and hands and forearms to some extent.
Benefits of Sumo Deadlifts with Dumbbells
Core development To do this lift properly and keep the right form, you need an engaged and powerful core. Sumo deadlifts with dumbbells can help strengthen your rectus abdominis (abs), obliques, and erector spinae (spine). In general, a solid core reduces your risk of injury and increases your overall athleticism.
Better posture Since dumbbell sumo deadlifts work your lower back, hips, and legs, this move strengthens your “stability” muscles and fixes any strength imbalances between muscle groups. Overall, this better posture makes your day-to-day motion and activities more comfortable and efficient.
Stronger grip Since you’re grabbing and lifting heavy dumbbells (or a barbell, or a resistance band, or whatever weight you use), you’ll naturally strengthen your grip as you do this move long-term. Dumbbells are especially great for grip strength because they allow you to experience a wider range of motion than a traditional barbell.
Big caloric burn Since it’s a compound movement that hits muscles all over your body, sumo deadlifts with dumbbells burn a lot of calories. This makes them a great part of weight management or fat loss workout plans (in addition to helping you build strength and muscle mass).
Adaptability and variety Dumbbell sumo deadlifts can be done with light or heavy weights with the possibility of increasing weight later, making them both beginner-friendly and a challenge to experienced lifters. It’s also a great way to add variety to your leg day routine if traditional deadlifts are becoming boring or not challenging enough.
Variations of the Sumo Deadlift with Dumbbells
Sumo deadlift with a barbell This is the “standard” sumo deadlift. To deadlift with a barbell, start in the same sumo stance you used for dumbbells. As you come down, keep your arms aligned with your shoulders and grab the barbell with an overhand grip. As you pull upward, guide the barbell so it stays near your body (it may bump or rub your shins from time to time, but it shouldn’t scrape against them consistently).
Sumo deadlift with a strength band Get in your sumo stance with the band wrapped around both feet (you may need to slide the band under your feet and sidestep outward until your feet are a comfortable distance apart). Grab both strands of the band with an overhand grip and perform the move as normal. Strength or resistance bands are great for at-home workouts. They also put more tension on the glutes at the top of the motion.
Romanian dumbbell sumo deadlift A Romanian sumo deadlift is similar to a regular sumo deadlift, with the only difference being that your knees don’t bend as much (this puts more tension in your hamstrings and glutes). Get in a sumo stance, but as you push your hips back, only bend your knees slightly. As you go through the movement, the weight will travel up and down your thigh instead of all the way down your shins.
Alternating (single arm) dumbbell sumo deadlift In a sumo stance, grab one dumbbell in one hand with your palm facing your body. Hinge at your hips and keep a straight back, holding the weight close to your body as you get lower. Keep the leg opposite the hand holding the weight extended in the knee and hip. Push through the heel on the side of the weight to return to the starting position. Repeat on the opposite side, alternating sides on each rep.
Goblet sumo squat Instead of holding dumbbells down with your arms extended, hold them (or one dumbbell, or a kettlebell) tightly to your chest with a bend in your elbows. Keep your back straight and core engaged as you go through the deadlift motions, holding the weights close to your chest at all times.
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