What you'll gain
Builds glute and hamstring strength while exposing side-to-side imbalances.
Trains the single-leg hinge pattern that carries over to running and jumping.
Improves balance and ankle stability under load.
Step-by-Step Instructions
- 1
Stand tall on one leg with a slight bend in the standing knee and arms hanging at your sides.
- 2
Brace your core and pull your shoulder blades down to set a tall, stable torso position.
- 3
Hinge at the hip by pushing the standing-leg hip back, letting the back leg float up behind you.
- 4
Keep the back leg, torso, and head in one straight line as you lower toward the floor.
- 5
Stop when you feel a deep stretch in the standing leg's hamstring, with the torso roughly parallel to the floor.
- 6
Drive the standing-leg hip forward to return to the start position, squeezing the glute at the top.
Common Mistakes
Rounding the lower back as the torso lowers, which puts the spine at risk under load.
Twisting the hips open as the back leg lifts, which loses the hinge alignment and balance.
Bending too much at the standing knee so the lift becomes a single-leg squat instead of a hinge.
Bouncing back up at the bottom instead of controlling the descent and the reversal.
About This Exercise
The single-leg Romanian deadlift is the single-leg version of one of the most-used hinges in strength training. Standing on one leg, the lifter hinges at the hip and lowers the torso while the back leg extends behind for balance, loading the glutes and hamstrings of the standing leg through a long, controlled stretch. It also exposes side-to-side balance differences that bilateral lifts hide. For app and content use, this clip is a strong fit for athletic-prep programs, glute-focused hypertrophy tracks, and rehab-adjacent content where unilateral hinge work is part of return-to-training. It's a smart pairing with bilateral RDL and hip-thrust content in any complete rear-chain library.
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Single Legged Romanian Deadlifts
A bodyweight single-leg hinge that loads the glutes and hamstrings while training balance — the single-leg answer to the RDL.
Specifications
Built for
- Athletic-prep single-leg blocks in performance tracks
- Glute-focused hypertrophy programming in fitness apps
- Rehab-adjacent unilateral hinge content for return-to-training
- Balance and stability education in coaching platforms
Muscles Worked
Details
License Includes
Good Mornings
$4.99A standing hip-hinge bow that trains the hamstrings, glutes, and lower back — a clean teaching piece for the hinge pattern.
Band Romanian Deadlift
$4.99A hip-hinge Romanian deadlift using band resistance — trains the hamstrings and glutes without a barbell or dumbbells.
Barbell Stiff Leg Deadlifts
$4.99A near-straight-legged hinge from the floor that loads the hamstrings and glutes through a deep stretch — a clean back-of-body builder.
Dumbbell Cross Body Romanian Deadlift
$4.99A single-leg Romanian deadlift where the dumbbell tracks across the body — biasing the working glute and hamstring through a long hinge.
Kettlebell Romanian Deadlift
$4.99A kettlebell hinge that loads the hamstrings, glutes, and lower back through a slow, controlled stretch.
Kettlebell Swing
$4.99The defining kettlebell exercise — an explosive hip hinge that swings the bell to chest height for power and conditioning.