Deadlift
Deadlift Form: How to Set Up and Stop Rounding Your Lower Back
June 2, 2026 · 6 min read
The deadlift is one of the best lifts you can do — and one of the easiest to do badly. Most issues trace back to the setup and the brace. Get those two right and a neutral-spine pull becomes your default.
Dial in the setup
Stand with the bar over your mid-foot, about hip-width apart. The bar should almost touch your shins before you pull.
Hinge down, grip the bar, then drop your hips and lift your chest until your back is flat — not rounded, not hyperextended.
Brace before you pull
Take a big breath into your belly and brace like you're about to take a punch. Pull the slack out of the bar so there's tension before it leaves the floor.
Squeeze your lats — imagine protecting your armpits — to keep the bar close and your upper back tight.
Why the lower back rounds
Usually it's a rushed setup, limited hip mobility, or simply too much weight too soon.
A little upper-back rounding is tolerable for advanced lifters; lower-back (lumbar) rounding under load is the one to eliminate.
Cues and drills
Cues: "chest up," "push the floor away," and keep a neutral neck instead of craning up.
Drills: Romanian deadlifts to groove the hinge, tempo pulls (3-second lower), and dropping the load to rebuild a clean pattern.
Check it on video
Film from the side at about hip height and watch your lower back from setup through lockout.
FormLens tracks your spine and hip angles and flags left/right asymmetry, so you can see whether your back stayed neutral on every rep.
Check your own form
Film a set and FormLens scores your form, measures depth and asymmetry, and shows you exactly what to fix.