Alternatives · Lower Back
8 Trap Bar Deadlift Alternatives for Gyms Without a Hex Bar, or Home
The trap bar puts a heavy load at your sides and lets you pull with a tall torso, and plenty of gyms do not own one. These eight swaps rebuild that pull with a straight bar, dumbbells, a kettlebell or a machine.
The short answer
The best trap bar deadlift alternative is the conventional Deadlift: the same heavy pull from the floor with a straight bar, and more work for the lower back. The Sumo Deadlift is closer in feel if you want to keep an upright torso, the Rack Pull overloads the top half, and at home the Dumbbell Sumo Deadlift is the nearest match.
The best Trap Bar Deadlift alternative for your situation
| At home | Dumbbell Sumo Deadlift |
|---|---|
| With dumbbells | Farmer Carry |
| With a kettlebell | Kettlebell Swing |
| With a barbell | Deadlift or Sumo Deadlift |
| On a machine | Smith Machine Romanian Deadlift |
| For beginners | Back Extension |
| For heavier loading | Rack Pull |
What a Trap Bar Deadlift alternative has to replace
The trap bar deadlift lifts a hexagonal frame off the floor while you stand inside it, hands on neutral handles beside the hips. Because the weight sits in line with your body rather than in front of the shins, the hips can start lower and the torso stays more upright, so the knees and quads share the work with the hips more than in a straight-bar pull. Under that weight the erectors keep the back rigid from floor to lockout, while the upper traps stop the handles from dragging the shoulders down, which is why the lift counts toward both the lower-back and trap zones. It is quick to learn and usually takes as much weight as a straight-bar pull, often more.
A substitute should keep a heavy pull with the erectors working isometrically, and ideally the weight close to your center with the hands at your sides. What you can trade is the frame itself. Straight bars, dumbbells and machines all work, provided the load stays heavy enough to challenge that hold.
8 Trap Bar Deadlift alternatives, best first
1. Deadlift
The conventional Deadlift is the straight-bar pull the trap bar is usually measured against, and any gym with a platform can run it. With the bar in front of the shins, the hips sit higher and the torso leans further forward, so the erectors and lats work harder and the quads less. Expect to lift somewhat less at first. It suits anyone whose goal for the lift is the lower back specifically.
Swapping it in: Start around 10–15 percent lighter than your trap bar weight and build back up over a few weeks. Keep 3–4 sets of 3–6, bar dragging up the shins.
2. Sumo Deadlift
Of the straight-bar pulls, the Sumo Deadlift feels most like the trap bar. The wide stance lets the hips drop and the shins stay vertical, so the torso stays tall and the bar path stays short, much as it does inside the frame. The grip moves to the inside of the knees rather than beside the hips, and the stance asks more of your adductors. Pick it if the upright position is what you liked about the trap bar.
Swapping it in: Take a stance about twice shoulder width, toes turned out, and grip just inside the knees. Begin a little lighter than your trap bar sets while the stance feels new, working 3–4 sets of 4–6.
3. Rack Pull
Setting the bar on pins just below the knee removes the bottom half of the pull, so you can hold heavier weight than your trap bar lockout ever sees. The erectors and upper traps, the two muscles the trap bar leans on most, take that load at the top where their job is hardest. The legs do far less, so it replaces the back side of the lift rather than the whole thing.
Swapping it in: Use 3 sets of 3–5 at 10–20 percent more than your trap bar top set, holding each lockout for two seconds. Keep a squat or lunge in the week for the legs.
4. Dumbbell Sumo Deadlift
At home, the Dumbbell Sumo Deadlift comes closest to the trap bar’s load position. One heavy dumbbell hangs straight down between your legs, so the weight sits under your center of mass rather than in front of you, and the torso stays tall as you stand. A single dumbbell caps the load early, so treat it as a higher-rep version of the lift rather than a like-for-like.
Swapping it in: Raise your feet on two sturdy steps so the bell can sink lower than floor level. Do 3–4 sets of 10–15 and slow the lowering to three seconds when reps get easy.
5. Farmer Carry
Pick up two heavy dumbbells from the floor beside your feet and you have performed a trap bar deadlift in miniature: neutral grip, weight at your sides, tall torso. The Farmer Carry then adds a walk, which keeps the upper traps and erectors working for 30 seconds or more. It gives up the heavy single effort of the pull, but it keeps the trap bar’s hand position better than any other pick.
Swapping it in: Deadlift the dumbbells from the floor with the trap-bar setup, walk 30–40 meters, and set them down the same way. Do 4 trips with 90 seconds of rest.
6. Smith Machine Romanian Deadlift
Gyms built around machines, Planet Fitness among them, often have a Smith machine but no trap bar or deadlift platform. The Smith Machine Romanian Deadlift gives you a heavy hinge there: the bar runs on rails, so you can focus on pushing the hips back and holding the back flat. It is a hinge from the top rather than a pull from the floor, which shifts more work to the hamstrings.
Swapping it in: Unrack at hip height, hinge until the bar passes your knees, and stand back up without letting it touch the floor. Run 3 sets of 8–10 with a two-second lowering.
7. Kettlebell Swing
With one kettlebell, the Kettlebell Swing is a better use of it than a slow deadlift the bell is too light for. Swinging it trains the trap bar’s hip drive at speed: a hinge, a snap of the hips, and a bell that floats to chest height while the erectors hold the torso steady. Maximal pulling strength is not what it builds, yet it turns a light bell into genuinely hard work.
Swapping it in: Do 5–8 sets of 15 swings with 45–60 seconds of rest, or 10 swings on the minute for 10 minutes. End each set when the snap at the top slows down.
8. Back Extension
The Back Extension isolates the job the trap bar gives the erectors without asking you to lift anything heavy off the floor. Hips on the pad, you lower the torso and raise it back to a straight line, which builds the lower-back hold that keeps a heavy pull tight. It suits beginners not yet ready to load a floor pull, and anyone whose gym has a hyper bench but no bar.
Swapping it in: Do 3 sets of 12–15, pausing for a second level with your legs. Hug a plate to your chest once 15 reps are easy, and add a squat for the leg work it misses.
Illustrations adapted from Everkinetic via workout-guide, CC BY-SA 4.0. Full credits.
Side by side
| Exercise | Equipment | Where | Level | Muscles shared with the Trap Bar Deadlift |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Trap Bar Deadlift (original) | Barbell | Gym | Intermediate | Erectors, Upper Traps |
| Deadlift | Barbell | Gym | Advanced | 2 of 2: Erectors, Upper Traps |
| Sumo Deadlift | Barbell | Gym | Advanced | 2 of 2: Erectors, Upper Traps |
| Rack Pull | Barbell | Gym | Intermediate | 2 of 2: Erectors, Upper Traps |
| Dumbbell Sumo Deadlift | Dumbbell | Home or gym | Beginner | 1 of 2: Erectors |
| Farmer Carry | Dumbbell | Home or gym | Beginner | 2 of 2: Upper Traps, Erectors |
| Smith Machine Romanian Deadlift | Machine | Gym | Beginner | 1 of 2: Erectors |
| Kettlebell Swing | Kettlebell | Home or gym | Intermediate | 2 of 2: Erectors, Upper Traps |
| Back Extension | Bodyweight | Gym | Beginner | 1 of 2: Erectors |
How to choose
Sort the options by what your gym or garage actually has.
- Barbell and plates, still lifting heavy: conventional Deadlift for the most lower-back work, Sumo Deadlift for the upright position, Rack Pull for top-end overload.
- Smith machine, no platform: Smith Machine Romanian Deadlift, plus Back Extensions.
- Dumbbells: Dumbbell Sumo Deadlift for the pull, Farmer Carry for the grip and traps.
- One kettlebell: Kettlebell Swings.
If your trap bar work was mostly there for the upper traps, the Farmer Carry and Rack Pull replace that part better than any hinge. If it was there for the lower back, the conventional Deadlift is the stronger swap. BackMaxx scores the lower back and traps as separate zones, so a scan can show which of the two the trap bar was actually carrying.
Full Trap Bar Deadlift guide: form, muscles worked and mistakes →
Frequently asked questions
What is the best trap bar deadlift alternative at home?
The Dumbbell Sumo Deadlift is the best home alternative, because a single heavy dumbbell between your feet keeps the load centered under you and your torso upright, just as the trap bar does. Two heavy dumbbells picked up from beside your feet work the same way. Home weights run out quickly, so use sets of 10–15 and slow lowerings instead of heavy fives.
What can replace the trap bar deadlift with dumbbells?
Two dumbbells held at your sides are the closest replacement, lifted from the floor with the same tall torso and neutral grip. The Dumbbell Sumo Deadlift works when you only own one heavy dumbbell, and the Farmer Carry adds a walk that keeps the traps and grip working for longer. Expect higher reps than on a trap bar, since dumbbells top out far sooner.
Is there a trap bar deadlift alternative on a machine or at Planet Fitness?
The Smith Machine Romanian Deadlift is the most common machine alternative, and the one to use at gyms like Planet Fitness that have a Smith machine but no trap bar. The rails fix the bar path so you can hinge heavy with little setup. It starts from the top instead of the floor, so add a squat or lunge if you want the leg work the trap bar gave you.
What is a good kettlebell alternative to the trap bar deadlift?
The Kettlebell Swing is the most useful kettlebell alternative when you have only one or two bells, since it trains the hip hinge hard without needing heavy weight. If you own a very heavy bell, you can also deadlift it from between your feet like the Dumbbell Sumo Deadlift. Both work the erectors, but neither matches the load of a fully plated trap bar.
Which of these does your back actually need?
BackMaxx scores your lower back and the five other back zones from one photo, then builds each session around whichever one is furthest behind.
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