Essomio™

← All exercise guides

back

Dumbbell Deadlift

A deadlift holding a dumbbell in each hand at your sides. A good way to learn the movement before using a barbell.

beginnerdumbbells

Dumbbell Deadlift, start position
START
Dumbbell Deadlift, end position
END
BEFORE YOU START1
  1. Pick a pair of dumbbells you can lift from the floor with a flat back.
HOW TO DO IT

Set up at the bar

  1. Stand with your feet hip-width apart and a dumbbell on the floor beside each foot.
  2. Push your hips back and bend your knees to reach the dumbbells.
  3. Grab the dumbbells with your palms facing your legs.
  4. Lift your chest and flatten your back.

Check: Your back is flat, your arms are straight, your shoulders are slightly in front of the weight, and your chest is up.

Stand up

  1. Push the floor away with your legs and stand up, keeping the weight close to your body.
  2. Keep your hips and shoulders rising at the same speed.
  3. Finish standing tall with your hips forward and shoulders back. Do not lean back at the top.

Check: You are standing tall, arms straight, weight against your thighs, with your back flat and your shoulders back.

Lower under control

  1. Push your hips back first and let the weight slide down your thighs.
  2. Bend your knees once the weight passes them and set it on the floor.

Check: The weight is back on the floor and your back stayed flat the whole way down.

That is one rep. Let the weight settle on the floor and reset your back before the next one.

Breathe in and brace before you lift; breathe out as you stand up; lower under control for 2 to 3 seconds.

MUSCLES WORKED
Dumbbell Deadlift: muscles worked, front view
Dumbbell Deadlift: muscles worked, back view

lower backgluteshamstringsquadstrapsforearmscore

Red marks the muscles doing the work; amber the assisting ones. Same body for every exercise, so guides compare at a glance.

COMMON MISTAKES4
  • Rounding the lower back. The most common way to hurt your back. Fix: Lift your chest and push your hips back until your back is flat before you pull; lower the weight.
  • Hips shooting up first so the lift becomes a back lift. Fix: Drive with your legs and keep your chest up; hips and shoulders rise together.
  • Weight drifting away from the body. Fix: Keep it brushing your shins and thighs the whole way.
  • Leaning back at the top. Fix: Stand tall and stop; squeeze your buttocks instead of arching.
SAFETY3
  • Tighten your stomach before every rep.
  • If your back rounds, the weight is too heavy for today.
  • Ask a trainer to watch your first sets of any deadlift.
RELATED EXERCISES

harder: trap bar deadlift, barbell deadlift

variants: dumbbell stiff leg deadlift

© 2026 Essomio LLC. The illustrations, muscle charts and guide text on this page are works of Essomio LLC, all rights reserved. They are for your personal use and may not be copied, redistributed or used to train models without written permission — see Licensing.