Setup
Place a barbell across your upper back in a high-bar position, feet hip-width apart with a slight bend in your knees. Stand tall with your chest up and core braced.
How to do it
- Push your hips straight back while keeping your spine neutral and chest proud.
- Lower your torso until you feel a strong stretch in your hamstrings, typically reaching parallel to the floor.
- Keep the bar path vertical over mid-foot throughout the movement.
- Drive your hips forward to return to standing, squeezing your glutes at the top.
- Maintain tension in your hamstrings and avoid relaxing at the bottom position.
Watch out for
- ✗Rounding the lower back instead of hinging at the hips with a neutral spine.
- ✗Bending the knees too much, turning the movement into a squat rather than a hip hinge.
- ✗Looking up excessively, which hyperextends the neck and disrupts spinal alignment.