Choosing the right glute exercises and aiming for them is paramount for anyone seeking to build strong and well-developed gluteal muscles while also considering factors like range of motion and practicality. The glutes, comprising the gluteus maximus, medius, and minimus, are not only key to achieving an aesthetically pleasing physique but also play a crucial role in functional movement, posture, and overall lower body strength.

Selecting the appropriate exercises ensures that you target these muscles effectively, allowing you to unlock their full potential, enhance athletic performance, reduce the risk of injury, and optimize everyday activities. Furthermore, understanding the range of motion and practicality of different exercises enables individuals to tailor their workout routines to their specific goals and physical capabilities, making their fitness journey more efficient and sustainable. In this pursuit, informed exercise selection becomes a cornerstone of achieving well-rounded and functional glute development.

Criteria:

Below are the criteria that a glute exercise must satisfy to be considered for inclusion in the list:

1. Allow for Progressive Overload: Is it possible to consistently and gradually increase the resistance or difficulty of the exercise?
2. Facilitate Muscle Growth and Hypertrophy: Does the exercise effectively stimulate muscle growth and hypertrophy in the gluteal muscles?
3. Ensure Safety: Is the exercise performed in a manner that minimizes the risk of injury?

Worst Exercises:

Prone hamstring curl

• Why?
  • Because the position you're facing is face-down
  • As you struggle to get that weight up, we will often times drive our thighs down into the pad. This engages the hip flexors which attach to the lumbar vertebrae which can result in lower back pain
• It DOES fit the criteria for progressive overload and hypertrophy but there are better options available.

• Heel press
  • Why: Because it's incapable of progressive overload that we need to build muscle
  • Very limited in it's range of motion (~10-15 degrees of motion)
  • It is often-time not performed correctly

Step Mill

• Why?
  • The machines are often powered. When you step down it's the machine guiding your leg back down and not so much your muscle
  • The only muscles that are working are your hip flexors just to lift your foot up onto the next step

Leg press (feet high)

• Why?
  • It's not a good exercise for glute development
  • You get a lot of hip flexion when your feet are high up
  • You can get an extreme amount of posterior tilt and lumbar flexion which can compromise the stability of the lower back and the SI joint.
  • Very little hip extension during the exercise

Better Glute Exercises:

• Dumbbell reverse sprinter lunge
  • Why: With one leg behind we neutralise the pelvis which relieves some of that posterior tilt.
  • We are overloading that hip extension
• Standing cuff kickback
  • Why: It contains resistance
  • Being on your feet allows your to move your leg back easier in a straighter line
• Dumbbell single leg romanian deadlifts (RDL):
  • Why: Allows you to focus a bit more on the hamstrings by keeping the leg a little straighter or a little bit more on the glutes by allowing the knee to bend.
  • Balance can become a limiting factor

Better Still:

• Cable single leg RDL
  • Why: Same as the dumbbell single leg RDL but with MORE stability
  • The cable gives us more control in the frontal plane
• Seated hamstring curl:
  • Why: Knees and thighs actually go down towards hip extension rather than into hip flexion as you bring your knees back
  • No negative effective of the prone hamstring curl with the knees driving into hip flexion
• Banded step through:
  • Why: More range of motion which allows for more resistance through hip extension
• Kettle bell swings:
  • Why: Teaches you the proper way to hinge which allows for glute activation
  • Limited by the weight itself. Can be difficult to find kettlebells that actually challenge you

Almost Best:

• Pull through:
  • Why: Improvement on the KB swings
  • It's a ground based exercise
  • Allows us to load it a bit more heavily as we can increase the weight through the pins on the machine
  • Reinforces all the good things about the KB swing such as the ability to hinge correctly
• Dumbbell leaning forward stepup
  • Why: You can easily load it depending upon the weight of the dumbbells
  • Changing the orientation of your body prior to the exercise you can shift the load more from the quads to the hamstrings and glutes.
    • You assume the forward tilt on your torso just before you being the exercise.
    • Allows you to preload the glutes. When you press on your foot and drive yourself up and get as close as you can to full hip extension
  • You can train one leg at a time to overcome muscle imbalances
• Glute ham raise or slick floor bridge curl
  • Why: combines the glutes and hamstrings
  • Initial contraction from the glutes to stabilise the pelvis and assist in the driving of the whole body up into a knee flex position
• Barbell RDLs:
  • Why: Gives you the best opportunity to overload
  • A lot more stability
• Low bar squats:
  • Why: Sets your body up to recruit the posterior chain muscles more effectively
  • Carrying the bar lower on your lower rear delts, you have to pitch your torso forwards which recruits those posterior muscles.

Best Glute Exercise: Barbell Hip Thrust

The Barbell Hip Thrust is often considered one of the best glute exercises for several reasons:

1. Isolation and Targeting: The Barbell Hip Thrust specifically targets the gluteal muscles, allowing for maximum isolation. This exercise focuses primarily on the gluteus maximus, the largest of the three glute muscles, which is responsible for the roundness and overall development of the buttocks.
2. Progressive Overload: It is an exercise that can easily accommodate progressive overload. As you become stronger, you can increase the weight on the barbell, making it an effective choice for building muscle and strength over time.
3. Full Range of Motion: The Barbell Hip Thrust involves a full range of motion, which means it engages the glutes through their entire contraction, maximizing muscle activation and growth potential.

4. Reduced Lower Back Stress: Unlike some other compound exercises like squats or deadlifts, the Barbell Hip Thrust places minimal stress on the lower back. This can be particularly beneficial for individuals with lower back issues or those looking to minimize lower back strain during their workouts.
5. Versatility: The exercise can be modified and adapted to suit different fitness levels and goals. You can perform it with various foot positions and resistance levels, making it suitable for beginners to advanced trainees.

6. Reduced Lower Back Stress: Unlike some other compound exercises like squats or deadlifts, the Barbell Hip Thrust places minimal stress on the lower back. This can be particularly beneficial for individuals with lower back issues or those looking to minimize lower back strain during their workouts.
7. Versatility: The exercise can be modified and adapted to suit different fitness levels and goals. You can perform it with various foot positions and resistance levels, making it suitable for beginners to advanced trainees.
8. Aesthetics and Functional Benefits: Strong glutes not only contribute to a well-defined and aesthetically pleasing physique but also play a crucial role in functional movements like walking, running, jumping, and lifting. The Barbell Hip Thrust helps enhance both the visual appeal and functional strength of the glutes.
9. Safety and Ease of Learning: It's relatively easy to learn and perform with proper form, reducing the risk of injury when executed correctly.

While the Barbell Hip Thrust is considered one of the best glute exercises, it's important to note that the effectiveness of any exercise can vary from person to person. The "best" exercise ultimately depends on individual goals, preferences, and physical capabilities. Therefore, it's advisable to incorporate a variety of glute exercises into your workout routine for a well-rounded approach to glute development.