What to do when unable to extend the low back in deadlift starting position?

[deformedcripple]

I have an issue with lumbar rounding at the starting position of the deadlift that doesn't seem to stem from lack of lumbar control. I can hyperextend my spine and cause APT when standing straight up, but no matter how I strain to force this same curvature as I'm bent over, it feels physically impossible to tilt my pelvis anymore. So, when I'm bent, my lumbar spine flattens out and that's as close as I can get to a natural lordotic curve at this angle. I also had issues with flexion during low bar squatting for this same reason, due to the back angle, along with hip pain, both of which are mostly gone now that I'm high bar squatting (slight buttwink only at the very bottom of the squat as opposed to nearly half of the movement).

example pic without having access to a barbell at the moment:

Imgur: The magic of the Internet

My hips are probably a little higher than this with a barbell, which would make the problem even worse. I'm unable to deadlift without back pain due to this issue. For what it's worth, I have scoliosis, but I don't think it matters here. Even when I regularly did mobility work, it didn't fix this issue despite significantly improving my hip and hamstring mobility during that time. I'm starting to wonder if there is something structural preventing me from safely doing the exercise, and if I should try sumo.

[Mark Rippetoe]

“Butt Wink” | Mark Rippetoe

[Soule]

Without the use of the barbell, demonstrating this position is not indicative of how your low back looks while using the tension on the barbell to position it correctly.

The problem is likely lack of kinesthetic awareness in the musculature of your lumbar region. Rips short reply is probably because he has addressed this many times over, it’s in the blue book, and you used one of the most ignorant and annoying terms in the fitness industry, “buttwink.”

Shove the belly down between the knees while keeping your hips high(thanks Delgadillo) while you squeeze your chest up and keep tension on the barbell (imagine the act of squeezing your chest up causing the barbell to almost float off the floor). Your knees should be spread apart and make contact with the inside of your elbows.

Do these things with a loaded barbell in your hands and then show us a picture. Post it in the technique forum.