How to target more glutes in your RDLs

When it comes to building lower body strength and shape, the Romanian Deadlift (RDL) is a staple exercise. It is one of the best movements for targeting the posterior chain — the muscles on the back of your body, especially the glutes and hamstrings.

The RDL is not a “one-size-fits-all” movement. By adjusting your setup and execution, you can shift more emphasis to either the glutes or the hamstrings.

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FIRST - I want to make it clear… Both variations will still work both hamstrings AND glutes.

You’re not turning one muscle “off” and the other “on”

But, what you can do is bias the movement, aka shift a little more of the tension onto one muscle group by changing your setup/execution.

You can’t truly isolate one muscle in a compound movement like the RDL, but you can bias the movement by adjusting joint angles, bar path, and your overall positioning.

Glute bias RDL

• Hip hinge + knee bend

• Maintain a soft knee bend throughout the movement and allow a little extra knee bend at the bottom as you hinge back.

• Barbell stays close to let the hips travel back maximally

• Keep your shins more vertical to let your hips travel back further to maximize glute stretch.

  
  

Why it Biases More Glute

That slight knee bend takes some load off the hamstrings by shortening them at the knee, while placing more emphasis on the glutes through a larger hip extension range of motion.

Hamstring bias RDL

• Focus on hip hinge only — the legs remain almost locked in their position as you push the hips back.

• Minimal knee bend, almost stiff-legged. Avoid further bending the knee as you hinge back.

• Shoulders travel more over the bar

Why it Biases More Hamstring

By minimizing knee flexion, the hamstrings remain in a lengthened position at both the hip and knee joints, increasing their mechanical tension.

So, if you want to emphasize glutes in your barbell RDL, here are 3 top cues to focus on:

1️⃣ Hip hinge first with a soft knee bend (around 30°)

2️⃣ Keep the barbell close to yoru shins so the hips can travel back

3️⃣ Let the knees bend slightly more at the bottom to maximize hip flexion and keep tension on the glutes

Our in-depth demo video on a glute biased RDL

Programming Considerations

Both variations are correct - the difference comes down to what you want to shift a little more of the load onto.

❌ The question isn’t “which one is better?

✅ Rather “which one matches my goal?”

That’s the beauty of strength training!! small tweaks in angle, position, or range of motion can change what you get out of a movement.

👉 If you’re looking to build a stronger, leaner lower body, start experimenting with both versions in your training. Pay attention to where you feel the most tension, track your progress, and let your goals dictate your variation of choice.

Strength training isn’t just doing random exercises and spending time in the gym. It’s understanding how to be effective for hypertrophy adaptations and tweak the basics to get the result YOU want!

💡 If you don’t want to figure out all of this on your own, coaching can help. I offer custom 1:1 coaching plans tailored to your goals, or a budget-friendly group coaching program that gives you structure, accountability, and support so you don't have to think about any programming at all.

Both options are designed to take the guesswork out of training and nutrition to help you build a strong, confident body in a way that’s sustainable.

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