What Is an RDL and Why Should You Do Them?

An RDL, or Romanian deadlift, is a strength-training exercise that teaches the hip-hinge movement. Instead of squatting down, you push your hips back, keep your spine neutral, and use your hamstrings and glutes to control the weight.

The RDL helps train the posterior chain muscles that support bending, lifting, and running. It’s used for everything from picking up a bag to lifting in a workout.

Hamstring injuries can account for 12% to 26% of sports injuries, according to a Bone & Joint Journal review. RDLs are not a magic injury-prevention exercise, but they can help build strength and control for sports, lifting, and daily life.

Key Takeaways

• An RDL, or Romanian deadlift, is a hip-hinge exercise that targets the hamstrings, glutes, and back muscles.
• The RDL starts from a standing position, while a conventional deadlift usually starts from the floor.
• Good RDL form means keeping the weight close, sending the hips back, and maintaining a neutral spine.
• Dumbbells, kettlebells, or a barbell can all be used, depending on your strength, experience, and goals.
• Physical therapy can help if RDLs cause lower back pain, feel awkward, or need to fit into a rehab plan.

Quick Navigation 

• What Is an RDL?
• RDL vs. Conventional Deadlift
• How to Do an RDL Correctly
• Common RDL Mistakes
• Why RDLs Are Useful in Physical Therapy
• RDL Variations

What Is an RDL?

A Romanian deadlift is a lower-body strength exercise that focuses on the hip hinge. You start standing with the weight in your hands, move your hips back, lower the weight along your thighs and shins, and then return to standing.

Most people feel RDLs in the hamstrings and glutes. The lower back, upper back, lats, and core also work to keep the weight close and protect the spine.

RDLs can build lower body strength, improve hip control, and help you practice a movement pattern used in lifting, sports, and daily activities. For beginners, the goal is to learn the movement first, not to lift heavy weights.

RDL vs. Conventional Deadlift

The RDL and conventional deadlift are related, but they’re not the same exercise. 

Here are the main differences.

Both exercises can build strength, but the RDL puts more focus on the hip hinge, hamstrings, and glutes. That’s why it’s often used to teach safe bending and lifting mechanics.

How to Do an RDL Correctly

Start with a light barbell, dumbbells, or a kettlebell. Keep the weight easy enough that you can control each rep.

To set up:

• Stand with your feet about shoulder-width apart.
• Hold the weight in front of your thighs.
• Keep a soft bend in your knees.
• Pull your shoulders gently back and down to activate your upper back and lats.
• Keep your spine neutral and look slightly ahead of you.

To lower the weight:

• Push your hips back as if you‘re using them to close a car door.
• Keep the weight close to your legs as it moves toward your shins.
• Stop when you feel a stretch in your hamstrings or when your back wants to round.
• Keep the movement slow and controlled. 

To stand back up:

• Press your feet into the floor.
• Squeeze your glutes and bring your hips forward.
• Stand tall without leaning back or arching your low back at the top. 

Start with eight to 10 reps if you’re learning the movement. Good form matters more than the amount of weight.

Common RDL Mistakes

If the movement bothers your lower back, check these common mistakes first:

• Rounding the lower back instead of keeping a neutral spine.
• Squatting down instead of sending the hips back.
• Letting the weight drift away from the shins.
• Locking the knees completely straight.
• Lowering too far just to increase range of motion.
• Using a weight that is too heavy to control. 

You don’t need to touch the floor during an RDL. For many people, stopping around mid-shin or just below the knees is the right range.

Why RDLs Are Useful in Physical Therapy

Physical therapists may use Romanian deadlifts as part of a treatment plan to build lower-body strength, improve hip hinge mechanics, or safely return to lifting, running, or daily movement.

RDLs can help with:

• Low back pain: RDLs strengthen the glutes, hamstrings, and back muscles that help support the lumbar spine during bending and lifting.
• Hamstring injury recovery: The controlled lowering phase helps train the hamstrings to lengthen, which can support strength and help prevent injuries.
• Runner’s knee and chondromalacia: Stronger hips and glutes can help improve lower-body control and reduce extra stress on the knees.
• Hip bursitis: RDLs can strengthen the glutes through a hip-hinge movement pattern without placing direct pressure on the outer hip.

Ivy Rehab Therapy’s physical therapy for back pain, orthopedic therapy services, and athletic therapy services can help you build a training program that fits your body and goals. A physical therapist can also guide safe exercise choices if you have a herniated disc, piriformis syndrome, scoliosis, or another health issue that makes deadlifts feel risky. 

RDL Variations

Common variations include:

• Dumbbell RDL: A beginner-friendly option that is easier to control than a barbell.
• Kettlebell RDL: A simple way to learn the hip hinge with one weight held in both hands.
• Barbell RDL: A stronger loading option once the movement pattern feels consistent.
• Single-leg RDL: A balance and hip-control variation that trains one side at a time.
• Stiff-leg deadlift: A related exercise with less knee bend, which may feel more intense on the hamstrings. 

Start with a lighter variation before adding a heavy load or lifting straps.

Talk to a Physical Therapist About Strength Training

The RDL is useful because it trains a movement you use outside the gym, too. When you learn how to hinge well, you can build muscle, improve lower body strength, and move with more confidence.

Find an Ivy Rehab location near you if RDLs cause back pain, feel uncomfortable, or are part of a return-to-exercise plan. A physical therapist can help you build strength safely and make the movement fit your body.