10 Best Seated Good Mornings Alternatives for Back Strength

Seated Good Mornings are done seated with a barbell. Ranked closest by our scoring: the Stiff Leg Barbell Good Morning, the Deadlift With Bands and the Deadlift With Chains.

Seated Good Mornings

Each substitute is scored on movement pattern, muscles worked, equipment and body position. Read how we rank alternatives

How to Do Seated Good Mornings

The steps for Seated Good Mornings themselves, so you can judge how close each substitute below really is.

Erector Spinae, with glutes · Barbell · Advanced · Compound

  1. Set up a box in a power rack. The pins should be set at an appropriate height. Begin by stepping under the bar and placing it across the back of the shoulders, not on top of your traps. Squeeze your shoulder blades together and rotate your elbows forward, attempting to bend the bar across your shoulders.
  2. Remove the bar from the rack, creating a tight arch in your lower back. Keep your head facing forward. With your back, shoulders, and core tight, push your knees and butt out and you begin your descent. Sit back with your hips until you are seated on the box. This will be your starting position.
  3. Keeping the bar tight, bend forward at the hips as much as possible. If you set the pins to what would be parallel, you not only have a safety if you fail, but know when to stop.
  4. Pause just above the pins and reverse the motion until your torso it upright.

The 10 Best Seated Good Mornings Alternatives

10 substitutes, ranked by how closely each one matches Seated Good Mornings on movement pattern, muscles worked, equipment and body position. The higher the score, the less you change. Cards with a "How to perform it" link open to show the steps; every card title links to that exercise's own alternatives page.

Each link re-ranks the list below for the kit it names. Pick one to hide the substitutes you cannot set up.

  1. Stiff Leg Barbell Good Morning

    1. Stiff Leg Barbell Good Morning

    87% match

    Erector Spinae · Advanced · Compound

    The same equipment, done standing instead.

    • Barbell
    How to perform it
    1. This exercise is best performed inside a squat rack for safety purposes. To begin, first set the bar on a rack that best matches your height. Once the correct height is chosen and the bar is loaded, step under the bar and place the back of your shoulders (slightly below the neck) across it.
    2. Hold on to the bar using both arms at each side and lift it off the rack by first pushing with your legs and at the same time straightening your torso.
    3. Step away from the rack and position your legs using a shoulder width medium stance. Keep your head up at all times as looking down will get you off balance and also maintain a straight back. This will be your starting position.
    4. Keeping your legs stationary, move your torso forward by bending at the hips while inhaling. Lower your torso until it is parallel with the floor.
    5. Begin to raise the bar as you exhale by elevating your torso back to the starting position.
    6. Repeat for the recommended amount of repetitions.

    Sets and reps: 3 to 5 sets of 5 to 8 reps.

    Why this matches
    • Movement: good-morning hinge, the same as Seated Good Mornings
    • Primary muscle: erector spinae, the same as Seated Good Mornings
    • Equipment: free weights, the same as Seated Good Mornings
    • Body position: standing, not seated
  2. Barbell Seated Good MorningPlay demonstration

    2. Barbell Seated Good Morning

    79% match

    Glutes · Advanced · Compound

    A looser match: it uses the same equipment, but it works the glutes rather than the erector spinae.

    • Barbell
    How to perform it
    1. Sit on a bench with your feet flat on the ground and a barbell resting on your upper back.
    2. Keep your back straight and your chest up.
    3. Slowly hinge forward at the hips, lowering your torso towards the ground.
    4. Pause for a moment at the bottom, then push through your heels to return to the starting position.
    5. Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.

    Sets and reps: 3 to 5 sets of 5 to 8 reps.

    Why this matches
    • Movement: good-morning hinge, the same as Seated Good Mornings
    • Primary muscle: glutes, not erector spinae
    • Equipment: free weights, the same as Seated Good Mornings
    • Body position: seated, the same as Seated Good Mornings
  6. Hanging Bar Good Morning

    6. Hanging Bar Good Morning

    75% match

    Hamstrings · Advanced · Compound

    A looser match: it uses the same equipment, but it works the hamstrings rather than the erector spinae.

    • Barbell
    How to perform it
    1. Begin with a bar on a rack at about the same height as your stomach. Suspend the bar using chains or suspension straps.
    2. Bend over underneath the bar and rack the bar across the rear of your shoulders as you would a power squat, not on top of your traps. At the proper height, you should be near parallel to the floor when bent over. Keep your back tight, shoulder blades pinched together, and your knees slightly bent. Keep your back arched and your cervical spine in proper alignment.
    3. Begin the motion by extending through the hips with your glutes and hamstrings, and you are standing with the weight.
    4. Slowly lower the weight back to the starting position, where it is supported by the chains.

    Sets and reps: 3 to 5 sets of 5 to 8 reps.

    Why this matches
    • Movement: good-morning hinge, the same as Seated Good Mornings
    • Primary muscle: hamstrings, not erector spinae
    • Equipment: free weights, the same as Seated Good Mornings
    • Body position: hanging, not seated
    • Balance: harder to stay steady on than Seated Good Mornings

Seated Good Mornings FAQ

What muscles does Seated Good Mornings work?

Seated Good Mornings primarily target the erector spinae through spinal extension under load. They also recruit the hamstrings and glutes as secondary hip-hinge muscles, with core and oblique activation for trunk stability during the movement.

What is the best bodyweight alternative to Seated Good Mornings?

A strict back extension (superman) is the best bodyweight option to target the erectors: lie prone and lift chest and thighs while squeezing the glutes and retracting the scapulae. For progressive challenge, use slow eccentrics and pause at peak contraction to increase time under tension for the spinal extensors.

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