Is the Deadlift a Back or Leg Exercise? Programming Tips

Deadlifts build muscle and strength like no other exercise—but they also leave plenty of gymgoers scratching their heads.

Are they a back exercise? A leg exercise? Or a “full-body movement?”

Should they go on back day? Leg day? Or somewhere else entirely in your split?

These aren’t just trivial questions, either—they’re crucial to getting the most out of your training. 

Nail your programming, and you’ll see better performance, faster recovery, and more gains.

Get it wrong, though, and you risk wearing yourself to a frazzle with little to show for it.

This article will clear up the confusion. In it, you’ll learn how deadlifts fit into a training routine and where you should program them for maximum results.

Key Takeaways

The deadlift is both a back and leg exercise, but it doesn’t train all muscles equally. Your spinal erectors and traps are the most involved back muscles, while your glutes and hamstrings are the most involved lower body muscles.
Deadlifts are incredibly effective for gaining muscle and strength but they’re also very taxing. If you don’t program them correctly, fatigue can negatively impact your recovery and performance in other workouts.
Deciding when to do deadlifts depends on your training split. They can go on a back, leg, lower body, or pull day.
Doing squats and deadlifts in the same workout is possible but most people find it too demanding. 
Splitting them across two leg days—one focused on squats, the other on deadlifts—is often more effective.

Is the Deadlift a Back Exercise?

Yes, the deadlift is a back exercise—but to what extent?

The back consists of multiple muscles: the latissimus dorsi (lats), trapezius (traps), rhomboids, teres major and minor, and erector spinea (or spinal erectors). Here’s how these muscles look:

Deadlifts train all these muscles, but not equally.

During a conventional deadlift, your spinal erectors handle most of the load. They work “isometrically” (contract without moving) to prevent your back from rounding.

Your traps do a similar job. They stabilize your shoulders and prevent the bar from dragging your upper back out of position.

The lats and teres muscles play a slightly different role. They pull the bar closer to your body, and while this doesn’t stimulate them enough to cause significant growth, it enhances upper back stability and helps you lift heavier weights more efficiently and safely.  

Because deadlifts don’t involve scapular retraction (bringing the shoulder blade together), the rhomboids aren’t heavily involved.

In other words, deadlifts train the spinal erectors and traps more than any other back muscles, which is why these muscles typically gain the most size and strength. Other back muscles receive less stimulation and, thus, don’t grow as much from deadlifting.

Even then, how much your spinal erectors work depends on the type of deadlift you do.

For instance, deadlifts that position your torso upright, like the trap-bar or sumo deadlift, reduce spinal erector demands. On the other hand, variations where you’re more bent over, like the conventional or Romanian deadlift, increase them.

RELATED: The Best Back Workout Routine for Mass & Hypertrophy

Does the Deadlift Work Your Legs?

Yes, the deadlift also works the legs. 

It’s a “hip-dominant” exercise, meaning it involves more bending at the hips than the knees, so your glutes and hamstrings bear the brunt of the load. That said, the quads help to straighten your knees as you lift the bar off the floor.

During a deadlift, the farther your hips are behind the bar, the harder your glutes and hamstring must work.

That’s because the more your hips bend, the longer the “moment arm” between your hips and the bar becomes. And that means your muscles must produce more force to lift the weight.

When are the hips furthest from the bar?

During Romanian and stiff-leg deadlifts, which is why both are fantastic for training your hamstrings and glutes.

Quad involvement is minimal in any type of deadlift. However, sumo and trap-bar deadlifts train the quads more than the conventional deadlift because they involve slightly greater knee flexion (bending). 

Research shows deadlifts activate your calves, but since your ankles stay mostly fixed, they likely don’t get enough stimulation to grow significantly.

RELATED: The Ultimate Killer Leg Workout for Muscle Growth

Should You Do Deadlifts on Leg Day or Back Day?

So, deadlifts on leg day or back day?

It’s a good question—and a tricky one.

Many people’s first instinct is to think, “If deadlifts train both the back and legs, does it really matter?” And they’re not wrong—dealifts can fit in nicely on either day.

However, it’s a little more complicated than just throwing them in wherever you feel like it.

Every workout creates both fitness and fatigue—you can’t have one without the other.

The exercises that build the most muscle and strength also take the biggest toll on your body, and deadlifts are no exception. They’re incredibly effective but also tremendously taxing.  

Additionally, the fact that deadlifts are both a back and leg exercise presents a unique challenge. 

Deadlifts don’t just impact the workout they’re in—they affect the ones that come before and after. It’s tough to perform any exercise well when your lower back is sore, your grip is weak, and you feel completely drained.

That’s why it’s important to carefully plan where deadlifts fit into your routine.

The Benefits of Deadlifting on Back Day

The best reason to deadlift on back day is to separate it from squats. 

Leg day is challenging enough already. Pull-ups and rows are hard, but they don’t compare to squats, leg presses, or lunges. 

Deadlifting on back day helps spread the hardest exercises across your week, which can make your routine more manageable. 

Another perk of starting your back day with deadlifts is that they double as a full back warm-up. After your working sets of deadlifts, your lats, traps, rhomboids, teres muscle and spinal erectors will be primed and ready for rows and pulldowns.

The Downsides of Deadlifting on Back Day

Of course, deadlifting on back day isn’t without downsides. 

The biggest issue is that deadlifts can leave you too drained to perform your other back exercises effectively.

For example, heavy deadlifts can exhaust your lower back and grip, which can make it harder to push yourself on rows, pull-ups, and pulldowns.

And since deadlifts don’t train your rhomboids and lats particularly well, this could limit growth in those muscles over time.

Another drawback of doing deadlifts on back day is that they can leave your hamstrings and glutes sore for days, which can interfere with your performance and recovery if you train legs too soon after.

To avoid this, schedule at least one rest day between deadlift workouts and leg days.

The Benefits of Deadlifting on Leg Day

Deadlifting on leg day is a natural fit because it heavily involves your hamstrings and glutes. 

A leg workout consisting of the deadlift, leg press, leg curl, and leg extension is well-rounded and effective.

But what about combining squats and deadlifts on the same day? 

While you can perform squats and conventional, sumo, or trap-bar deadlifts in the same workout, it’s too demanding for most gymgoers.

A smarter option is to combine squats with a less demanding deadlift variation, like the Romanian deadlift. These exercises complement each other well, targeting all your lower body muscles without leaving you completely spent.

The Downsides of Deadlifting on Leg Day

As we’ve seen, squatting and deadlifting in the same workout takes a lot of energy—not to mention mental toughness. It’s also not great for performance. 

Deadlifting first on leg day can leave you too beat to squat well. Squat first, and your deadlift numbers will suffer.

Both exercises are highly demanding, and trying to do them in the same workout can cause your form to break down as you fatigue. 

A simple solution?

Do two leg days a week: one focused on squats and the other on deadlifts.

How to Decide What Day you Should do Deadlifts

Deciding whether to deadlift on leg day or back day depends on your training split:

Body Part Split: Do deadlifts on your back day, but ensure there’s at least a day or two between your back and leg workouts. 

Upper Lower Split: Deadlift on one of the lower days. Ideally, dedicate one lower day to squats and the other to deadlifts.

Push Pull Legs Split: Deadlifts can go on either pull or leg days. If you deadlift on pull day, avoid scheduling pull and leg day back-to-back. Scheduling deadlifts on leg days works best if you do two leg days weekly. 
Full-Body Split: Do the conventional, sumo, or trap-bar deadlift one day per week, preferably when you’re not squatting. Since Romanian deadlifts are less fatiguing, you can also include them on a separate day each week.

RELATED: The 12 Best Science-Based Strength Training Programs for Gaining Muscle and Strength

FAQ #1: Is the deadlift a “push” or “pull” exercise?

Although some might think the deadlift is a push exercise because you “push the ground away,” it’s actually a pull exercise because it involves pulling the weight off the floor. That’s why deadlifts fit best on pull days.

RELATED: The Best Pull Day Workout Routine for Size and Strength

FAQ #2: Should you squat and deadlift on the same day?

You can squat and deadlift on the same day, but it’s very taxing on your body. Most people see better results by splitting them up. This allows you to perform better on each exercise, which is important for gaining muscle and strength.

FAQ #3: Can deadlifts hurt your back?

Yes, you can hurt your back deadlifting, but you shouldn’t if you do it correctly. Your spine can tolerate heavy loads, provided you don’t place it in a compromised position. 

In fact, research shows that strengthening your back with the deadlift is one way to help reduce back pain. 

Follow these steps to ensure you use proper deadlift technique:

Position your feet so they’re a bit less than shoulder-width apart with your toes pointed slightly out.
Move a loaded barbell over your midfoot so it’s about an inch from your shins.
Move toward the bar by pushing your hips back and grip the bar just outside your shins.
Take a deep belly breath, flatten your back, and then drive your body upward and slightly until you’re standing up straight.
Reverse the movement and return to the starting position.

READ MORE: How to Deadlift with Proper Technique