October 17, 2026
7 Common Deadlift Mistakes and How to Fix Them
A technical guide for coaches: identify, correct and prevent the faults you see most often in the conventional deadlift.
The conventional deadlift is one of the most effective exercises for building strength and muscle. It is also technical, and when execution breaks down under heavy loads, it is a common source of lower-back complaints in the gym.
Your ability to spot and correct technical faults is what separates clients who progress safely from clients who get hurt or stall. Here are the seven mistakes you will see most often, with their usual causes and the tools to fix them.
Mistake 1: losing the lower-back position
The one to watch most closely
Some spinal flexion happens in almost every deadlift, and the spine is built to bend. The problem is the client who visibly loses their starting back position as the bar leaves the floor, especially under near-maximal loads or high fatigue. Teach a braced, neutral position and progress load only while it holds.
Common causes
Load too heavy for current technique, no brace before the pull, limited hip mobility for the setup position, not knowing what a neutral position feels like.
Fixes
Verbal cue: “show the logo on your shirt to the wall in front”. Tactile cue: a hand on the lower back as a reference. Reduce the load until the position holds. Corrective work: hip hinge drills with a dowel, light good mornings and Romanian deadlifts.
Mistake 2: the bar drifting away from the body
It makes every rep harder than it needs to be
When the bar drifts forward, the horizontal distance between the bar and the hips grows, which increases the moment the lower back and hips have to resist and makes the lift less efficient.
Common causes
Bar too far forward at setup, arms not vertical, losing lat tension during the pull, knees straightening before the hips move (squatting the weight up).
Fixes
Setup: bar over mid-foot, shoulders slightly ahead of the bar. Verbal cue: “drag the bar up your legs”. Tactile cue: a hand on the upper back to switch on the lats. Corrective exercise: deadlift with a pause just below the knee.
Mistake 3: hips rising before the shoulders
It turns the deadlift into a stiff-legged good morning
The client straightens the knees too early, so the hips shoot up while the shoulders stay low. The result is a stiff-legged pull that puts more of the load on the lower back.
Common causes
Quadriceps weak relative to the posterior chain, starting with the hips too low, trying to lift with the back, poor coordination of the pattern.
Fixes
Verbal cue: “push the floor away” or “hips and shoulders rise together”. Adjustment: start with the hips slightly higher. Corrective exercise: light deficit deadlifts. Accessory work: leg press and front squats.
Mistake 4: leaning back at lockout
The opposite extreme
Some clients compensate for the fear of rounding by hyperextending the lower back at the top. It adds nothing to the lift, and pressing the lumbar spine into extension under load is not something to practice.
Common causes
Trying to show an exaggerated lockout, using the lower back instead of the glutes to finish, misreading cues like “chest up”, copying competitive lifters.
Fixes
Verbal cue: “squeeze your glutes to finish, don’t lean back”. Reference: lockout means standing tall, not leaning backward. Corrective exercise: hip thrusts with a hard glute squeeze. Visual cue: film the set so the client sees it.
Mistake 5: bending the arms
The arms are hooks, not engines
In the deadlift the arms transmit force; they don’t generate it. A client who bends the elbows during the pull loads the biceps with a weight they could never curl. Distal biceps tears have been reported in heavy deadlifts, typically on the underhand arm of a mixed grip.
Common causes
Mixed grip without experience, trying to “help” start the lift, not engaging the lats, too little tension before the pull.
Fixes
Verbal cue: “long arms” or “your arms are ropes”. Progression: double overhand grip until the pattern is solid. Setup: lock the elbows before the pull. Option: lifting straps if grip is the limit.
Mistake 6: wrong foot position
The setup decides the whole lift
Feet too wide or too close, or the bar not over the mid-foot, create compensations along the chain and limit strength.
Correct conventional position
Feet about hip-width or slightly narrower, toes turned out slightly (roughly 15–30 degrees), bar over mid-foot rather than over the toes, shins about an inch (2–3 cm) from the bar before bending down.
Fixes
Test: have the client jump in place; where they land is a good natural width. Visual cue: tape marks on the floor. Reference: arms hang just outside the legs. Individual adjustment: clients with long femurs may need a slightly wider stance.
Mistake 7: pulling with slack in the bar
Lost tension ruins the start
Slack is the small gap between the bar and the plates (and the looseness in the body) before the pull. If it isn’t taken out, the lift starts with a jerk that throws the position off.
Why it matters
Building tension first sets the back and hips before the plates leave the floor, engages the lats to keep the bar close and avoids the jerky start.
Fixes
Verbal cue: “shoulders in your back pockets” or “protect your armpits”. Auditory cue: pull until you hear the bar click against the plates. Sequence: grip, set the lats, breathe and brace, push the floor. Corrective exercise: Pendlay rows with a pause at the chest.
Summary: correction checklist
| Mistake | Quick cue | Corrective exercise |
|---|---|---|
| Losing the back position | Brace, chest to the wall | Hinge drill, light good morning |
| Bar drifting away | Drag the bar up your legs | Pause deadlift |
| Hips rising first | Push the floor away | Deficit deadlift |
| Leaning back at lockout | Squeeze the glutes | Hip thrust |
| Bent arms | Long arms | Double overhand grip |
| Wrong foot position | Jump and land | Setup drill |
| Slack in the bar | Shoulders in back pockets | Pendlay row |
Document your clients’ technique progress
Videos, notes and loads in one place
In TrainerStudio, once you enable file uploads in your settings, clients can attach videos of their sets to each exercise in the workout log, and you can run pose tracking on those videos to follow a point such as the hip or the wrist frame by frame and see how the bar path changes. Add the cue that works for each client to the exercise instructions, keep private notes on technique and compare logged loads over time, so both of you can see the progress.
Prevention beats correction
1. Teach progressively
Start with an unloaded hip hinge, progress to the Romanian deadlift, then rack pulls or a raised start, and finally the deadlift from the floor. Don’t skip steps.
2. Use video feedback
Film working sets and review them with the client. Proprioception often deceives; video doesn’t. Our guide to correcting exercise form in online coaching explains how to set up a review routine.
3. Scale intelligently
Add load only when technique is consistent. A personal best with poor technique isn’t a win. Our progressive overload guide covers how to progress safely, and the deadlift 1RM calculator helps you estimate working loads without testing a true max.
4. Use variations as tools
Trap bar, sumo, deficit and rack pulls each have a place for working on specific weaknesses or for clients who don’t yet suit the conventional setup.
Conclusion
The deadlift is an outstanding exercise when it is performed well. Your role is to guide clients through the technical learning curve and catch faults before they turn into pain or stalled progress.
Remember
- Technique comes before load.
- Cues should be simple and specific to each client.
- Every fault has a cause: find the root, not just the symptom.
- Video is your best feedback tool.
- A good setup prevents most mistakes.
Track technique and loads for every client
Exercise videos, client set videos, notes and load history in one platform. The free plan includes up to 3 clients.