09/10/2026
Deadlift or RDL?
My answer….it depends.
They’re both hinge movements. They both train a lot of the same muscles. And neither one is automatically “better” than the other.
For me, the decision usually comes down to who is standing in front of me & what do they need right now?
For someone with a lower “fitness age” meaning they haven’t spent much of their life strength training, I use RDLs A LOT.
The entry point can be really low.
A light dumbbell or kettlebell RDL gives us a way to learn the hinge, control the weight & start building strength without needing a huge amount of strength or experience to get started.
Then we build from there.
For someone further along in their rehab OR someone with a higher fitness age who needs a higher threshold of strength training, you’ll see me program deadlifts more often.
Now we can challenge their capacity with heavier loads & ask them to produce more force.
But even then, I’m usually pretty intentional about HOW we deadlift.
A lot of my clients already get plenty of high intensity, go go go training from CrossFit classes.
They don’t necessarily need me adding more of that.
So you might see dead-stop reps. Pauses. Tempos. Controlled eccentrics.
Same movement. Different stimulus.
That’s why exercise selection shouldn’t just be about finding the “best” exercise.
RDL vs. Deadlift?
It depends.
What’s your training history? What’s your current capacity? What are we trying to improve? What are you already getting from the rest of your training?
The exercise is just a tool.
Knowing when & why to use it is the important part.
