Perfect Your Deadlift Form With This Pivotal Mobility Move
Of all the compound lifts, the deadlift stands out as one of the best for building full-body strength and power. It not only helps to build muscle but has been shown to boost bone density and may even improve posture.
While the movement may seem straightforward—you pick it up, you put it down—there’s definitely a right and wrong way to deadlift. And if tight hips or limited mobility are holding you back from hitting a new PR, the missing piece might not be more reps—it might be better prep.
Enter the banded happy baby stretch: a simple mobility drill that could unlock a stronger, safer pull.
Related: This German Strength Training Method Is 2X More Effective for Muscle Growth
How It Works
Jack Santora, an exercise physiologist, sports performance coach, and owner of Stronghold Strength & Conditioning Co., says the muscle groups that tend to tighten up during deadlifts include the hip flexors, TFL, anterior fibers of the glute medius and minimus, adductors (longus, brevis, and pectineus), and the erector spinae. To counteract that tightness, he recommends the banded happy baby—a move that’s essentially an inverted deadlift—to help open up those muscles and get you into proper lifting position.
Reinforces External Hip Rotation
By using a band during happy baby, you're "providing constant tension that cues you to actively press your knees out and feet down to engage the glutes and deep hip rotators while promoting a more neutral spine and better core engagement," Santora says. "It's the combination of muscles that are being stretched and activated as a whole in this setup that promotes more stability around the pelvis, feeding a stronger core brace above and more efficient torsion from the legs below."
Reduces Hip and Lumbar Tension
According to Santora, releasing tension in the hips and lumbar spine through banded happy babies can lead to a better lockout or positioning at the bottom of a deadlift.
Releasing tension "creates space for the pelvis to reposition neutrally and the femurs to move more freely in the hip sockets, improving hip flexion and external rotation in the bottom position, allowing for a stronger, more stacked setup without compensating through the lumbar spine. By reducing tone in the overactive tissues, you can better engage the glutes and hamstrings through the full range, which will improve your power off the floor and feed more efficient glute-driven lockouts."
How to Do Banded Happy Babies
View the original article to see embedded media.
- Start with a loop band wrapped around your lower back. This placement will actually help you brace your core naturally to resist the band pulling you into lumbar extension.
- Sitting with your feet together in a butterfly position, anchor each loop of the band on a foot.
- Lie back and grab the outsides of each foot with your hands, pulling your ankles over the knees, making a vertical shin.
- Keep your shoulder blades rolled down and back, packed tight to the floor, hugging your spine. Think of pulling your tailbone flat to the floor as well.
- Extend both legs straight into the band, flexing against the resistance for 5 seconds, and then relax once again into happy baby, allowing the band to take you deeper.
- Spend 2 minutes working between the flex and release.