6 Hip Dominant Exercises To Grow Glutes

Beginner-friendly and low-impact, these hip dominant exercises place extra tension on the glutes and hamstrings. Given that the glutes are one of the largest muscles in the body, getting strong in these six exercises can help improve posture, boost athletic performance, and reduce back pain.

As a Certified Strength & Conditioning Specialist, I rotate through these six hip dominant exercises within each training program I create.

Smash your training with these hip dominant exercises!

Hip dominant exercises primarily focus on breaking at the hips first where as knee dominant exercises (like squats) will place the emphasis there.

As a Certified Strength & Conditioning Specialist, I can tell you that the glutes respond best to variety (learn more about glute training) in both exercise and repetitions.

And though these hip dominant exercises primarily hit the glutes, they target all three areas of the glutes, not just hip extension and not just the gluteus maximus (which is important when learning how to grow your glutes). This is because the three muscles of the glutes work together and not individually.

These hip dominant exercises are amazing for beginners just starting out with training glutes as well as anyone who can't make it to the gym consistently.

The glute exercises you need:

• Glute bridges
• Hip Thrusts
• Deadlifts
• Pull through
• Kneeling squat
• Quadruped hip extension
• Bulgarian split squat

Scroll down to learn more about these hip dominant exercises and you can use them best to grow your glutes!

Benefits Of Strong Glutes?

For many people, our glutes are under-activated. Placing the focus on them with hip dominant exercises can have big effects on daily activities.

The benefits of strong glutes include:

• easier time with day to day tasks (carrying, holding)
• reduced knee pain
• less back pain
• They help keep our pelvis stable during and post-pregnancy
• Better performance (running, jumping, lifting, climbing)
• improving posture (as they're part of the posterior chain)
• they're also a key component in our pelvic floor (check out why you should see a pelvic floor physio)

Strong glute muscles help in all of these scenarios. Not prioritizing hip dominant exercises is where most moms fail.

Learn more about what exactly the glutes can do for your lifestyle in this blog post: The Benefits Of Strong Glutes & Why You Need Them. Or jump right into a progressive plan with this 25-page Glute Ebook containing the exact glute workouts I use with clients.

The Best Hip Dominant Exercises

These hip dominant exercises below are all easy to learn making them great for beginners. Though some of the variations seem intimidating, they can be broken down easily.

Likewise, these hip dominant exercises are all low-impact. No jumping or swinging required. This allows you time to truly master the exercise and not just go through the motions.

Pro tip: the glutes give instant feedback when activated. This means that if you don't feel them working within the first 2-3 reps, your form needs to be tweaked a bit. Strive for engagement, not just going through the motions.

You can use these hip dominant exercises to make mini glute circuits, glute finishers or to just throw them into your warm-ups and your workouts!

Likewise, you can even put glute training into or at the end of a total body workout like this for extra emphasis.

Or, rock something like this underbutt workout to get you started.

There's no right or wrong way- just train glutes!

Equipment For Training Glutes

The best hip dominant exercises can be done using just your own bodyweight (and should be until they're mastered!).

Once you're ready to progress though, use a variety of resistance bands (a mini green band works best for glute training!) or dumbbells.

Strengthening your glutes with external resistance will progress your glute training faster.

You can learn about the best home gym equipment for small spaces.

Exercise #1 Glute Bridge

Bridging is the basics of training and once mastered you can move on up the chain (loaded hip thrusts etc). Remember that your hips can extend more than you think so you're aiming for that top range and really squeezing your bum cheeks together.

To hit this range, and really target glute muscles though, make sure you're not cheating by arching the low back. Also, keep the weight more in your heels and your feet slightly wider.

To really feel a burn, place a mini band around your knees and drive out against the band.

Pro tip:: you can progress your glute bridges by implementing a ton of glute bridge variations.

How to perform glute bridges:

1. Lying on your back, bend your knees and bring your heels close to your bum. Feet shoulder-width apart roughly.
2. Push through your heels and lift your hips by squeezing the glutes. Do not excessively arch the lower back.
3. Pause at the top for one second with a maximum glute squeeze before releasing the tension and bringing the hips back to the starting position.

Perform anywhere from 8-25 repetitions.

Exercise #2 Quadruped Hip Extensions

Another of my favorite butt exercises at home to target those hip extensions.

With this exercise, you'll have to work slightly harder to keep a neutral spine and contract while moving the leg.

Ensure your foot remains flexed and your knee stays at ninety degrees. If you're not feeling glutes chances are you're putting the leg too high without actually squeezing your bum.

How to perform quadruped hip extensions:

1. Come into a tabletop position on all fours.
2. Keeping the knee of the working leg flexed the core strong and engaged (you need to have mastered bird dogs for this), move through the hip as your raise the foot towards the floor.
3. Do not let the low back drop and make sure to keep the knee bent. Return the knee towards the floor by releasing the tension in the glute.

Perform for 8-12 repetitions per leg.

 

Exercise #3: Hip Thrusts

Hip thrusts provide a greater range of motion than glute bridges but the trick is to keep your upper back slightly rounded even at the top position.

Likewise, shifting to only one leg creates more tension for that individual glute and pausing at the top gives a nice isometric contraction. Focus on really squeezing and nut using momentum to get your hips up.

How to perform a hip thrust:

1. Begin by placing your mid to upper back (right about the bra strap line) on a bench (or table, or couch).
2. Feet flat on the floor and hips dipped towards the floor. The feet will be slightly outside of your hips. At this bottom position, your knees should be slightly behind the bridge of your feet/your heels.
3. Begin to push through the heels, squeeze the glutes and lift the hips towards the ceiling.
4. As you do, the shins should come into a vertical position. Keep the upper back slightly rounded as you look forward and not straight up. Meaning, do not lay your upper back flat on the bench.
5. At the top of the movement, “lockout” with a big glute squeeze. Reverse the movement leading with the hips breaking and moving back toward the floor.

Perform for 8-20 repetitions.

Learn more about how to do a hip thrust, important form tips for hip thrusts, and all the fun hip thrust variations!

Exercise #4 Pull Through

Pull throughs require that a band or cable be anchored behind you. This hip dominant exercise is a great way to teach the hip hinge because it forces the weight backwards which is crucial.

How to perform a pull through:

1. Set up with a cable or a resistance band anchored behind you. Holding the band in your hands walk your body out until there is tension.
2. Take your feet wider than hip distance apart, the band will be right between your legs.
3. Hinge forward letting your hips push back and the band come through and behind your legs. Keep your back flat and only a slight bend in the knees.
4. Using your glutes, push through the heels and drive the hips forward keeping the hands and band between your legs.
5. Perform a posterior pelvic tilt to lockout the top position.
6. Release the tension and return to the starting position.

Exercise #5: Bulgarian Split Squat

Though Bulgarian Split Squats and lunges are often seen as knee dominant exercises, with a few slight adjustments you can shift the focus onto your hips and thus onto the glutes and hamstrings.

And the trick is to hinge forward!

1. Set up in lunge position with the left leg elevated on the bench and the right knee over the heel.
2. Hinge forward slightly (to create more tension on the back of the body: glutes) as you push backward and drop the left knee towards the floor while keeping the right knee facing forwards.
3. Squeeze the glute of the right leg as you push through the heel to reverse the movement and extend the hips to the starting position.
4. Perform all repetitions on the right leg before moving on to the next.

Perform 8-12 repetitions.

Exercise 6: Deadlifts

Any and all deadlifts will work as a hip dominant exercise. And because there are so many deadlift variations, there is always one that is suited to your abilities.

The first step in mastering a deadlift though is learning how to hip hinge.

From there, I like to use a combination of traditional deadlifts from the floor and romanian deadlifts to target the glutes and hamstrings.

To perform a band deadlift:

1. Wrap a resistance band around your feet and grab one end in each hand.
2. Hinge from the hips, bend the knees slightly, and keep the upper back flat as you sink back into the starting position.
3. Drive through the feet and thrust the hips forward as you come into an upright position.
4. Lockout the glutes at the top (but don't lean back) and then break the movement with a hip hinge to get back into the starting position.

Remember there is always a deadlift variation you can fit into your workout program. Find the one best suited and work with it.

How To Activate The Glutes

The number one mistake I see when people are training glutes is that they stop at hip extension and never follow through to hyperextension.

Your hips can actually hyperextend thirty degrees more than you think. It's this small range that gives you a huge advantage when you're training them.

Glutes also give you immediate feedback.

Your glutes (all of them) change shape when you contract them fully and thus, it's easy to tell when you're using them and when you're not.

Simply place your hand on your glutes when working them and ensure they're contracting full.

Learn how to engage your glutes in just 3 steps.

One of the main tricks to training glutes at home is to train their multiple movements. 

 

 

Frequently Asked Questions About Hip Dominant Exercises

Other Fitness Tips To Help You Smash Your Goals

If you need more help or visuals, check out the glute-focused workouts on my YouTube Channel.

Another option to build your glutes with hip dominant exercises is to add glute workout finisher into your current training program.

Learn how to boost the intensity of your workouts without adding weight so that you can make them harder at home.

Nail down how to fit your workouts into your schedule and learn more about getting started with strength training.

Below are some good resources, workouts, and informational tips on why strong glute muscles are awesome.

• Glute training 101: Everything you need to know
• How to reduce back pain
• Benefits of strong glutes
• How to perform reverse hyperextensions at home
• Strong glutes during pregnancy
• Glute workout finishers
• Glute exercises for pregnancy
• Follow along home workouts
• Follow along glute workouts at home