Dumbbell · intermediate · upper legs
Dumbbell single leg & arm deadlift to upright row
Also called Contralateral single-leg deadlift to upright row, Opposite-arm single-leg RDL to upright row, Cross-body single-leg deadlift to upright row, Opposite-arm single-leg deadlift to upright row.
Here the dumbbell goes in the hand opposite the leg you stand on, so the weight hangs on the side with no foot under it. Coming back up is glute work with the hamstring assisting, and the standing hip has to stop your whole pelvis tipping toward the load the entire time. When 12 trained men were measured with a dumbbell, moving the weight to the opposite hand raised gluteus maximus activity on the way up, and gluteus maximus, gluteus medius and the lower back on the way down.
How to do it
- Step oneStand on one leg holding a dumbbell in the opposite hand.
- Step twoHinge at the hips and lower the dumbbell toward the floor, extending the free leg behind you.
- Step threeReturn to upright, then pull the dumbbell up along your body toward your chin.
- Step fourLower the dumbbell back to the starting position with control.
- Step fiveComplete all repetitions on one side before switching legs.
What usually goes wrong
Each starts with what you would notice.
Your shoulder on the dumbbell side drops and you finish the descent tilted.
WhyThe load is hanging off the side you are not standing on. If the standing hip stops holding, your pelvis follows the weight down and everything above it tilts with it.
FixSet your shoulders level before you start and end the set when they stop staying level. Filming one set from the front shows the tilt in seconds. Feel does not.
You twist on the way down and the dumbbell ends up outside your standing leg.
WhyThe weight starts on the far side of your body, so the shortest path to the floor runs across you. Rotating to follow it turns the hinge into a reach.
FixSend the dumbbell down the inside of your standing shin, close to the leg, with both hipbones pointing at the floor. The path across your body is short and it should stay short.
The row pulls the dumbbell across your chest rather than up it.
WhyComing out of a cross-body hinge the arm is already on a diagonal, and the elbow carries on around instead of going up.
FixSquare up at the top before you pull, then lift the elbow vertically and let the dumbbell ride close to your ribs. Stop with the elbow short of shoulder height.
Your free leg swings out to the side as it goes back.
WhyThe lifted leg is your counterweight. Once it drifts sideways it stops balancing the dumbbell and starts pulling in the same direction the dumbbell is.
FixDrive the free heel straight back behind you, as if pressing it into a wall. Straight back is what keeps the two loads opposite each other.
What it is for
The dumbbell single leg and arm deadlift to upright row is a unilateral compound exercise combining a single-leg hinge with a contralateral upright row. It targets the hamstrings and posterior chain while also building trap and shoulder strength, requiring balance and core stability throughout.
Questions people ask
- Why hold the dumbbell in the opposite hand?
- Because it changes what the standing hip has to do. In a study of 12 trained men, moving a dumbbell from the same side to the opposite side during a single-leg Romanian deadlift produced a moderate rise in gluteus maximus as they stood up, and in gluteus maximus, gluteus medius and the lower back on the way down. The authors suggested the opposite-side position for coaches who want the hip extensors and the trunk working together.
- What muscles does it work?
- Standing up is led by the glute of the standing leg, with the hamstring lengthening and shortening alongside it. The gluteus medius and the lower back on that side hold you square against a weight hanging off the far side. The row at the end is shoulder and trap work.
- Should this be heavier than the same-side version?
- Usually lighter. The measured difference is in muscle activity, not in what you can hold, and most people find the cross-body load harder to keep level. Pick the weight that lets your shoulders stay level for every rep.
- Should you do the same-side version as well?
- You can, and nothing measured says you must. They are the same hinge with the load in a different place, and the gap between them is far smaller than the gap between doing this exercise and skipping it. If you only want one, this is the one with the evidence attached.
- Where should the dumbbell finish at the bottom?
- Near the inside of your standing ankle and still close to the leg. Not on the floor, and not out past your foot. How far down that reaches depends on your own hip, and it is not the same on every day.