Can someone explain how exactly the hamstrings contribute in stiff leg deadlifts?

[Kaladryn]

The hamstrings work more at the hip than at the knee. I don't think the stretch actually matters though, but you should use a full range of motion. BTW if your hamstrings are tight, it's because your glutes are weak, improve glute (especially medius) strength and they will lengthen.

Normally the glutes would assist the hamstrings, however when the legs are relatively straight (less than 20-degree bend in the knee) the glutes can't really assist and the hamstrings are forced to do the entire motion.

 

[n3mo0101]

If you focus on contracting the hamstring before you began the negative part of the exercise, and lower the weight with your hamstrings while keeping your glutes tight, you will feel it in your hamstrings. I prefer RDL's as opposed to pure stiff legged deadlifts. I 100% fell it in my hamstrings

 

[Goody]

I do single leg off a land mine base.
Fantastic exercise for Hams and glutes
Always had trouble keeping my lower back out of it with barbells or db’s

 

[Pericles]

I never understood this exercise, so many people do it, but I don't feel the hams working as I would like, bette option IMO: Nordic falls is king.

No its not. Hamstrings are biarticular. If you don't feel them you're definitely doing them waay wrong

 

[maldorf]

Pelvis tilts forward a few degrees and inferior pubic ramis tilts back and up. Common hamstring tendon origin is there. Pulls on hamstring when leaning forward. Distal insertion below knee. When pulling up the weight up the hamstring contracts and works to upright your pelvis and pull the inferior ramis "down".

Yeah, they are one of the muscle groups that works in hip extension.

 

[Dugbet]

No its not. Hamstrings are biarticular. If you don't feel them you're definitely doing them waay wrong

As I said, there are more options to work the hams, if you do not feel an exercise because you cannot do the correct technique, you can do another. Also, I feel better the good morning, which according to what people are talking about, it seems like a similar exercise.

 

[Kaladryn]

Kia Green once said he never felt RMD/SLDL very well but kept doing them anyway and they ended up working well at developing his hamstrings.

 

[KillerStack]

Kia Green once said he never felt RMD/SLDL very well but kept doing them anyway and they ended up working well at developing his hamstrings.

I feel like a thread on the so-called mind-muscle connection might be interesting.
I think we might be tricked by feeling, we think something is doing this or that but biomechanically it might not be as effective as we might feel. Biomechanically correct might trump an intense mind-muscle connection.

Coach Kassem on IG has gone into this I think.

 

[Kaladryn]

I feel like a thread on the so-called mind-muscle connection might be interesting.
I think we might be tricked by feeling, we think something is doing this or that but biomechanically it might not be as effective as we might feel. Biomechanically correct might trump an intense mind-muscle connection.

Coach Kassem on IG has gone into this I think.

Good point, some exercises don't lend themselves to mind-muscle connections. RDLs are one of them, however, you can still get a very good connection with enough practice. The trick is turning off the glutes, especially on the negative phase, by not bending the knees too much, and by not assisting with the back on the positive.

 

[Goody]

Try doing them single leg off the land mine... solves all those issues with not being able to “connect” with this movement.

 

[Fa Seeshus]

Another way to feel RDL movements better is to super or stagger set them with a hamstring curl. If you want to stay in the same place just bring a DB over and do lying dumbbell ham curls between the deadlifts.

 

[Kaladryn]

I really prefer RDLs with dumbbells, I get it all right in the hamstrings, I don't go as heavy as barbell, however, so I do both.

 

[andishehhank]

The hamstrings originate from the ischial tuberosity; so they pull on this bone which straightens the back.

Here's the picture:

**broken link removed**

 

[taz]

Most do the RDL wrong. You have to keep the back neutral, and the hips have to go back, then come back forward. Most turn it into a low back exercise.

A good training technique is to stand a few feet in front of a wall. With no weight, practice keeping a neutral spine, and touch the wall with your ass, then bring your hips back in line with your body. Most don’t realize the active ROM is drastically shorter than most think ifnyou keep your knees from flexing and properly hip hinge

Yup, what he said. That is how I used to teach my clients to do this exercise. once they could get comfortable doing butt-to-wall taps then we started working on adding weight and fixing the dynamics.

another hard to teach exercise is the sissy squat. But that is another thread..

 

[taz]

Look up anatomy chart. If the hamstring shortens it extends the hip joint as well as flex the knee. And I never heard of "stiff leg" deadlift. I have heard of straight leg and Romanian deadlifts. With straight leg deadlift your knee should be close to straight and Romanian the knee will be bent a little. However in each you focus on hip movement and not the knee.

You can understand the most common hamstring stretch is to touch your toes. You are lengthening the hamstring group. Therefore if your trunk goes the opposite way the hamstring has to shorten.

Stiff legged deadlift is what they used to call it when i first started training 30 yrs ago. Now it is called straight leg deadlift. Same thing. Different name. Totally different from RDL. Stiff legged just meant that you kept your legs straight, stiff, and tried to flex the quad on the way down. At least that's how I was taught

 

[rcorchid]

Stiff legged deadlift is what they used to call it when i first started training 30 yrs ago. Now it is called straight leg deadlift. Same thing. Different name. Totally different from RDL. Stiff legged just meant that you kept your legs straight, stiff, and tried to flex the quad on the way down. At least that's how I was taught

My understanding of the difference between SLDL and RDL is that for the SLD you pull the bar from the floor for each rep whereas for RDL you keep constant tension on the hams by bringing the bar to just above the shins then pull back up. I don't think that the knees should be locked stiff for either movement due to risk of injury.

 

[Kaladryn]

A SLDL is done to strengthen both spinal erectors and hamstrings and involves rounding the back at the bottom, a RDL is done with the back in a neutral position (arched lower back) and is only done to strengthen the hamstrings. Knees must not be bent more than 20 degrees or glutes can greatly assist, if you want more glute, you can bend the knees more when doing RDLs. The RDL is essentially a "correction" to the older SLDL that probably isn't safe for long term back health for many people.