How to gain hamstring strength and lower body flexibility with the single-leg Romanian deadlift
One of the best ways to strengthen your hamstrings and gain better balance and flexibility is to master the single-leg Romanian deadlift. Learn the exercise with this step by step guide
The conventional deadlift allows a higher bend on the knee while focussing on strength and power. The Romanian deadlift (RDL) is all about the hip hinge, with certain sections of the fitness community also encouraging that the athlete let the bar drop further away from the toes for a more prominent stretch in the hamstrings.
This way, the exercise turns the hamstring into the primary mover, aiding the body’s flexibility and increasing the amount of load they can take. Because the hamstrings are so important in accelerating and decelerating, this can be a gamechanger even if you’re just playing a sport casually.All of which means that the RDL is a great exercise on its own, switching the conventional deadlift’s focus on the lower back to the hamstrings and glutes.
But the great thing about it is also that you can do a single-leg version of it, something that the conventional deadlift does not allow. And the single leg RDL is, like many other unilateral (working on one side of the body at a time) exercises, a must-learn for posterior chain development. Because of the fact that it is a unilateral move, it offers more innovation in how you can use it. If deadlifts have become boring, then the single-leg RDL is the perfect break away from the usual. That’s why it was part of my October 2024 article in Lounge titled, 5 Best Unilateral Lower Body Workouts.
The single-leg RDL, or SLRDL as it’s also called, can be done in many ways. The first step of course is to learn the RDL properly, which is easier than the conventional deadlift because of the focus on the hip hinge.
Once done, the easiest single-leg variation to do is one with a staggered stance, where you don’t really lift the other foot off the ground, but keep it lightly placed on the floor while the working foot is firmly planted on it. The final goal is to be able to do the SLRDL while just standing on one leg, because balance and stability are a big part of this move.
In the video above, the trainer uses two dumbbells, but feel free to use none to start with, or lighter weights if you’re confident. The next step would be to use support and start taking the non-working foot off the ground to feel the balance. You can use a pillar or the side of a heavy machine or a weights rack to start getting this right.
This is especially important if you have a clearly weaker side due to a former injury or other issues. Luka Hocevar, who is one of the most popular trainers in the US due to his work with top NFL and NBA athletes, suggests doing this to make sure you are getting the most from your SLRDL. “I won’t be able to create as much force output, drive as much force into the ground, and have as much tension on the muscle if I have stability issues. So to create as much force and go heavier on this, just add a support," he says in his video on the exercise.
The next variation is also his, and is done in a way that a lot of people do the single arm dumbbell row, which is with one knee supported on the edge of a bench, with the other side dropping and lifting up the weight for a really good stretch on the hamstrings. The same lesson can be applied in another variation which can be done with a bench or a box. Just get into a Bulgarian split-squat position, but do an RDL instead. This one might also let you use a barbell instead of dumbbells.
And then there are the tougher variations. The next one is my favourite one and also needs a bench. And the reason it has made such an impression is that there is some work for the adductors too in this version.
Rather than place your foot behind you like in a Bulgarian split-squat, this one needs you to come to the side of the bench and place the foot on it, stretched out, so that your inner foot is taking the weight of the non-working leg. Then take a kettlebell or a dumbbell you can pick up with one hand and do the RDL. This variation isolates the glutes and puts some pressure on the inner thighs, making it a multi-muscle exercise that can add a lot to your lower body routine.
The single-leg RDL is an exercise that does not limit your grip type, the equipment, the weight type and is easy to learn. There is every reason to turn it into a leg-day regular.
Pulasta Dhar is a football commentator and writer.
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