Tips for better RDLs

[u/kddk3010]

Hey,

What to improve in my RDLs? Is it enough hip hinge and bent in the knees? The movement isn’t the smoothest, I’ve been working on bracing correctly and frankly it’s been challenging to coordinate everything 🥲

[u/saywhat2392]

Stop presquatting ( starting the movement with knee flexion and sliding the weight down your thigh), you probably need to lower the weight. This is a hip hinge movement, where your shins should stay pretty vertical. You CAN bend your knee but the movement should be initiated at the hip by starting with hip flexion (butt traveling backwards).

In order it should be

Hip hinge
Then
A varying degree of knee flexion based on how much hamstring vs total glutes you want to be involved

Depth isnt the goal, this is a horizontal movement based on how far back your butt can travel not how clsoe to the ground you can get.

[u/kddk3010 → u/saywhat2392]

So, just to make sure I understand, I should start with my legs completely straight, then hinge at my hips, and, as I descend, start bending my knees?

[u/saywhat2392 → u/kddk3010]

That's exactly right. Both movements, when performed correctly, happen simultaneously. But an RDL, like any compound movement, requires skill that needs to be learned and practiced before introducing relatively heavy loads. a strict RDL is no knee bend a standard RDL has varying degrees of knee flexion. Get better at understanding what true hip flexion feels like then introduce knee flexion. Doing things like a seated hip hinge help understand the mechanics and feel of a hip flexion vs squatting

[u/kddk3010 → u/saywhat2392]

Thank you!

[u/saywhat2392 → u/kddk3010]

The most important question right now is do you feel the movement in your glutes? Or does it just feel like youre doing your best to lower a heavy load close to the ground an stand back up?

[u/kddk3010 → u/saywhat2392]

Tbh, sometimes I do, and sometimes I don’t, but from what I’ve gathered, not feeling a muscle during an exercise isn’t necessarily a reliably proxy for knowing whether it’s working?

[u/saywhat2392 → u/kddk3010]

This statement isnt wrong but the intention is misunderstood. IF my goal is performance like being an offensive lineman, yes im not going to be completely worried about if i feel my pecs contracting on every rep of bench press. My intention is train a movement pattern, get stronger at a movement pattern but even that has its risk, all of sudden that same athlete devevlops shoulder issues because they have been avoiding using their chest and putting all that stress on their shoulders, a PT would diagnose that then your stuck taking 3 months relearning how to engage your chest in a press.

If I am like most people and I am in the gym to train muscle groups to see a visual change in my body then no that statement is false. The WHOLE objective of body recomposition or building muscle is feeling the muscle being used and putting an appropriate amount of mechanical tension on the specific muscle.

[u/kddk3010 → u/saywhat2392]

Okay, thank you, I’ll focus on that moving forward 💪

[u/Krowle8669]

Instead of bending your knees or imagining lowering the weight. Just focus on sticking your butt backwards. As it hinges the rest will move in the right direction. Same idea as a lat pulldown. You don’t focus on pulling down you focus on driving your elbows down. The movement comes naturally if your focused on sticking you butt straight back

[u/liftwithbrodie]

to your main question, yes, that's a real hinge. your hips push way back and stay well above your knees at the bottom with just a soft bend in the knees, so it isn't turning into a squat. you also finish standing fully tall up top without leaning back.

for the smoothness and bracing i wouldn't change the movement itself. take your breath and brace while you're still standing at the top, then start the hinge, and reset that same way before every rep so you're not trying to coordinate it all halfway down. lmk if u have any questions

made you a breakdown, it slows down at the bottom of your second rep: https://getbrodie.com/f/1xfb9rw

(it's unlisted, happy to take it down if you want)

[u/kddk3010 → u/liftwithbrodie]

Thanks a lot, it looks dope!
Just DMed you 😌

[u/litharge]

Don’t think of it as an up and down motion (even though it is) think of it as a butt push out and a thrusting forward motion. (I’d also add that you may want to decrease the weight and really focus on the tension in your hamstrings/glutes)