Powerlifter? Well, you have to do it. Even if you pull conventional, sumo will benefit your pull. You can go heavy or medium-heavy with bigger volume.
Bodybuilders? You can hardly find a better mass builder for hams, upper quads, glutes, hips, lower and middle back. Go medium-heavy for 6 sets of 5 or medium-light for 4 sets of 12. Don't be afraid to load up some plates.
Athlete? Speed deadlifts sumo style will greatly improve your accelleration and strengthen all muscles around your hips. Go 6 sets of 3 with light-medium weight. Or 8 sets of 2. Or 12 sets of 1. Or whatever.
Office desk jockey? Sumo deadlift twice a week, once medium heavy 3 sets of 5 (leave good 4-5 reps in the tank) and once 2 sets of 15 with light weight. After a few weeks watch your hip pain, lower back pain and mid back pain disappear altogether.
A woman trying to get in shape?: Hardly you will find a better exercise for toning your butt and legs. Plus, women learn sumo quite easily because they usually have better hip mobility than men. Go light weight 4 sets of 12. Or whatever you like.
Now, how to sumo deadlift step by step powerlifting style:
The Setup
Approach the bar with your feet the same distance from plates on each side. Double check. Small issues kill big pulls. I like my feet 5cm or so (about 2") from the plates. That is pretty close to the plates; it is quite wide stance but it shortens the pull and allows me to pull bigger weights. Play with it. Don't forget to do a lot of hip mobility drills before your sumo pulling and some groin, hams, lower back and quads stretches. Your hips should be loose like a hooker's.
I like my feet about 45 degrees toes out. Play with it and find your most powerful stance. Bar should be against shins. Yes, heavy pulls will scratch your shins, don't be a pussy. Grip inside the legs, one finger on the smooth. Your grip should be the same as your shoulder width and your arms ashould be straight down. Grip tight, knees are forced out and your lower back is straight and DOES NOT BEND through the whole pull. You mid/upper back is a bit rounded WHICH IS OK. Do not believe the crap that your whole back should be flat. You won't pull a damn with a flat back. Your head is in line with your upper back or slightly lower and your whole body is tense like hell.
The Pull
With a belt, or beltless, pull a lot of air into your belly. Not your chest, because it legthens your torso and thus the pull; into your belly. With a belly full of air rock your butt down and to the bar (but not too low) and begin pulling the bar off the floor towards your body, not up. At the same time, push your knees out. Be patient, heavy sumos take time to get them off the floor. If your starting pull is correct, you should feel now a tremendous strain in your glutes, hams, hips and mid back. lower back is stiff but does not flex!!!. Be patient and let the correct muscles initiate the pull. If you are impatient, your butt shoots up and you will miss the lift or, worse, lift with your lower back. You are holding your breath the whole time. Pull back, not up. All the time, the bar greases the shins and knees. After a heavy sumo session, your lats should be sore as fuck because all the time they are responsible for keeping the bar very close to the body. Any drifting from the body means missing the pull and worsening the leverage.
The Lockout
The lockout is not the final 2 inches but it starts as soon as the bar clears your knees. Once the bar is slightly above knee caps you extend your knees FIRST. Yes, that's correct. Heavy sumo is NOT a knee extension and hip extension at the same time. You extend your knees first, THEN, you powerfully thrust your hips forward and extend the hips. Bam. Your are finished. Knees locked, hips locked, you just pulled the damn bar.
That's it. Easy, heh? Remember the key pulling muscles. After a heavy sumo session, your glutes, hams, hips and lats should be sore. Never the lower back. It can be tender (from the stabilizing work) but never sore because IT DID NOT FLEX AND EXTEND. All the rotation is in the hips, not lumbar spine.
If you still feel the above is too complicated, watch Pozdeev pull, his form is textbook-prefect.
Good luck!
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