Fire up your butt muscles with the best Glute Activation Exercises! These home glute exercises use a mini loop to boost engagement of the muscles and really tone your butt.
What are the glute muscles?
The glutes are a series of three muscles that make up the buttocks, and the glute exercise benefits are numerous.
Broken down, these muscles are the gluteus maximus (the largest part of your bum), the gluteus minimus (on your outer hip), and the gluteus medius (just above the hip and is over top of the minimus).
You can read more on how to activate glutes (and why you want to!) as well as the best way to develop glute strength in my post: glute training at home.
What Is Glute Activation & Why Is It Important
Glute activation is simply the process of learning how to engage the muscles of your butt and around your hip.
Learning to contract them properly is the first step in being able to strengthen them (this also requires some glute mobility drills so you can take them through a full range of motion) and once you master it you can rock things like 10-minute glute workout and actually get something out of it.
Glute activation exercises are important because more often than not we have our glutes permanently “tight” from tucking our bum under.
This means that other muscles (like hip flexors) end up doing more jobs than they should be and it results in poor movement mechanics and back pain.
The Glute Activation Exercises and PDF
Download the glute activation exercises PDF to have these movements on hand for your workouts, perfect for saving time and staying consistent.
The below glute exercises target the muscles in a variety of planes (so that they work the glutes as a whole and not just the gluteus Maximus). Click the image to grab a PDF short-form version of the exercises or scroll down to read more details and how-to tips.
Glute Exercise #1: Banded Clams
Lay on your side with your knees in a bent position and one leg stacked upon the other. Have the mini loop placed above your knees.
Keeping the hips facing forward and the ankles together, open up the top leg against the band. Pause briefly and return the knees together.
#2 Extended Range Abductions
Laying on your side on a bench (or table etc), bend your bottom leg so it’s out of the way. Have the band wrapped above the knees and let the top leg stay straight and dangle off the bench while having your thighs together.
Lift the top leg from the “deficit” position against the band. Pause at the top and return to the start potion.
#3 Sumo Walks
Standing upright you can place the band around the top of the knees, below the knees or over the shoelaces for different tensions.
Hinge forward slightly keeping your weight pushed backward and a flat back. Stand on one foot as you move the other foot sideways using your glutes to push against the band.
Step down and continue this process one way before completing the same motion on the other side.
#4 Quadruped Hip Extension
Coming into a tabletop position, place the band below the knees.
Keep a flat back and engaged core. Keep the knee flexed and try not to twist the hips as you raise the heel towards the ceiling using your glute.
Pause with a bum squeeze and lower the knee towards the floor.
#5 Fire Hydrants
In a tabletop position, place the band below the knees.
Maintain core engagement and try not to twist the hips as you cock your leg (keeping the knee bent at ninety degrees) out to the side against the band.
Pause and return the knee to the starting position. Perform all reps on one side before moving to the next.
#6 Banded Squats
Place the mini band right below the knees and set u for your squat.
Sink the weight backward and drive the knees out against the mini loop as you descend, trying to keep the knees in line with the pinky toes.
Briefly pause at the bottom before reversing the movement.
#7 Seated Band Abductions
This is actually one of my favorite glute isolation exercises. Place the band right below the knees and sit up tall on the couch (or chair or bench) with feet on the floor. Take the feet slightly wider than hip-width and let the knees cave in slightly.
Keeping the feet on the floor, squeeze the glutes and drive the knees out against the band. Pause and release the movement.
#8 Banded Glute Bridge
Laying on the floor, bend your knees, and bring your heels close to your bum. Have the mini band right above the knees.
Keeping the ribcage tucked, push through the feet, squeeze the bum and lift the hips. How high you lift will largely depend on the flexibility of the front of your hips and legs.
Pause briefly at the top of the movement (without arching the low back) and then release the glute squeeze while lowering your hips to the floor.
Grab more glute bridge variations to switch up your training.
#9 Standing Bent Knee Abduction
Place the mini band above the knees. Stand tall and raise one leg while keeping the other one bent.
Keeping the torso facing forward, externally rotate the leg by bringing the knee out to the side against the band.
Return the knee to the center and repeat.
Use the other glute muscle to stabilize the hip in the one-leg stand.
#10 Banded Reverse Hypers
Lying face down on a bench with the edge at the hips, place the band above the knees.
Take the legs wide in a straddle, pike the hips letting the feet go towards the floor. Pressing out against the band squeeze the glutes and lift the hips towards the ceiling while coming into a pelvic tilt.
Pause and lower the legs to the starting position. Here is how to do reverse hyperextension with no equipment.
#11 Banded Hip Thrust
Some people refer to this as a bench glute bridge, but regardless, it's the kinf og all glute exercises. Place the resistance loop above the knees. Set up so that your back is on the bench at roughly the bra-strap line.
Feet are hip-distance apart and knees bent so that heels are mostly under the knees.
Drop the hips to the floor.
Then, driving against the band and pushing through the feet, squeeze the glutes and lift the hips while keeping the upper back partially flexed (don’t look up towards the ceiling). Pause and return the hips towards the floor.
#12 Banded Frog Pumps
Laying down, being the soles of your feet close together and towards your bum. Place the mini loop around your heels and over the knees at your hips.
Squeeze the glutes and with your knees driven out (knees wider than hip-width apart) raise the hips against the band.
Pause and return the hip towards the floor.
How To Use Glute Activation Exercises (and Your PDF)
Use your glute activation exercises PDF as a quick, go-to routine to help your glutes “turn on” before training.
- Perform 2–3 exercises for 5–10 minutes
- Focus on control and muscle engagement, not speed
- Use it 2–3x per week or as needed
These kinds of activation exercises are best done before running, before strength workouts, or on active recovery days for some mobility.
Choosing a Mini Band
All of the glute activation exercises below use a band to train glutes.
While you can easily perform glute activation exercises without a band, mini loops are an amazing way to push your glute training further at home. Check out this 10 minute banded glute workout.
There are, two kinds of loops:
Fabric loops: these loops normally have a bit more resistance to them and are great if you’re already familiar with glute training
Latex Loops: these are ideal for beginners and come in a variety of tensions. The reason they’re good for beginners is that they’re a bit lighter which allows the user to still get a full range of motion during the exercise which is important. You can also use them for other muscle groups as proven in these mini band exercises.
Target those crucial muscles like your glutes with a mini band that can easily be taken anywhere you go!
More Glute Training Tips
Want a plan that actually walks you through this step-by-step? My Glute Guide For Moms gives you simple, effective workouts you can follow at home, without you having to map it all out yourself.
Glute Activation Exercises FAQs
Though many exercises will stimulate the glutes, the best one for glute activation is the hip thrust. This exercise uses a larger range of motion for the glutes and can be done with a variety of stances and variations.
1. Laying on the floor, bend your knees and bring your heels close to your bum.
2. Keeping the ribcage tucked, push through the feet, squeeze the bum and lift the hips. How high you lift will largely depend on the flexibility of the hip flexors and legs.
3. Pause briefly at the top of the movement (without arching the low back) and then release the glute squeeze while lowering your hips to the floor.
When you activate the glutes not only will you feel them but you’ll also notice they change shape which is a way to have instant feedback on the exercise.
Hips thrusts, sumo walks, and deficit lunges are great exercises to strengthen the glutes.
The glute muscles respond well to high volume work so long as the load is not high every single day. Using a low load and a variety of exercises and repetitions, you can do glute activation exercises every day.
Glute activation should only take 5-10 minutes. So a few exercises for 2-3 sets. It works the best as a warm up to bigger lifts or on an active recovery day.
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