Try This ‘Genius’ Romanian Deadlift Hack Like Abel Albonetti – Muscle & Fitness

Romanian Deadlifts are great for making hamstring gains, but a popular hack shared online is pushing gym-goers further than ever. The move, demonstrated by bodybuilder and coach Abel Albonetti, has been praised as ‘genius’ by followers on Instagram. Here’s how to try it yourself.

Although Albonetti doesn’t claim to have invested in this move himself, the men’s physique and classic physique competitor has repeatedly shared this hack for are over 450,000 IG followers.

Generally, the movement is a modified Romanian deadlift with dumbbells, where you hold the dumbbell at your side and lower the upper half of your body so that the weight sinks down, stopping when the back is parallel to the floor. From there, the RDL requires you to stand up straight and use your legs to lift the weight instead of the back, to avoid strain. RDLs are great for building the hamstrings, but making this hack adds a whole new dimension to this move.

How to use the Smith Machine assisted dumbbell RDL

“Place your quads against the blacksmith machine so you’re locked in place,” Albonetti advised, demonstrating his descent while leaning over the blacksmith machine barbell. “Stretch as far as you feel comfortable,” he explained. “You should feel a crazy stretch in your hamstrings!”

In this hack, many of the mechanics are the same as the traditional Romanian deadlift with barbells, but the smith machine provides support, allowing for a greater stretch of the hamstrings without loss of balance and falling forward. “The advantages of this over a regular stiff-leg deadlift with dumbbells are that you don’t have to go as heavy, and trust me, you get a lot more stretch doing it this way,” the coach said.

The stiff-leg deadlift is essentially an RDL, but in this variation the weight starts on the ground instead of in your hands, meaning there’s an even greater stretch there too, so choose whichever move works best for you. As for his followers, those who tried Albonetti’s hack felt the burn severely. “Hamstrings have never been so sore after this!!” wrote one impressed fan. “These are my favorite for hamstrings,” another user wrote. “This is genius!!” added another. Give them a try on your next stage day, making sure you have plenty of recovery time!

To follow Abel Albonetti on Instagram, click here.