Many people train their glute muscles solely for aesthetic benefit. Despite I agree that a butt like JLo is desirable, there are actually many health benefits that goes with strengthening your glutes.
They are the largest muscle group in the body, consisting of the Gluteus Minimus, Gluteus Medius, and of course the Gluteus Maximus. These muscles play a vital role in our posture, in basic movements – like walking -and in athletic performance. Having strong glutes can help maintaining good health in other areas of your body, the most important being its neighbour the lumbar spine. Also, you probably wouldn’t associate your glutes with knee pain, but the human body is a highly interconnected machine, and being particularly weak or strong in one area of the body can have surprisingly powerful effects on other, seemingly unrelated one. Working out your glutes can help stabilise your pelvis. This has a direct effect on how your knees behave. From walking to exercising it may or may not cause your knees to sway from side to side to compensate, which can cause damage to the tissues and lead to pain/injuries.
More in general, people with strong, healthy glutes can run faster, jump higher, and enhance their performance so focusing on this area is a great way to take your skill to the next level in almost any sport.
You don’t need fancy equipment to train your glutes. So I round up the best 8 glutes exercises you can do in the comfort of your home.
Hip Thrusts
A. Sit on the floor with your shoulder blades against a chair/sofa ( which should be in line with the lower part of your sport bra), knees bent and feet flat on the floor hips wide apart. Keep your arms crossed at your chest, opposite palm to opposite shoulder.
B. Engaging your glutes and hamstrings, push your hips up into a bridge position, forming a table top position. Make sure your knees are at a 90 degrees angle and keep your core engaged. Squeeze your glutes at the top of the rep. Pause for few seconds then slowly lower your hips down to hover just off the floor.
Squat Jump
A. Stand with your feet shoulder wide apart and your arms at your chest. Keeping your chest upright, knees over toes lower into a squat.
B. Push through your heels and jump up straightening your legs. Point your toes in the air and simultaneously swing your arms back. Land in the squat position.
All 4s Leg Raises
A. Start in all 4s position, with your hands under your shoulders and knees under your hips. Extend your right leg behind you as straight as possible with your toes pointed. Brace your core and lift your leg up to hip level keeping your hips squared to the floor and without arching the spine.
B. Then lower the leg back down to hover the floor.
Clamshells
A. Lie on your side resting on your forearm with your knees bent, make sure you rest on the bony part of your hip. Heels hips and shoulder on one line. Lift the top leg knee towards the ceiling, keeping your toes touching and without rolling on the fleshy part of the glutes. Keep your core engaged.
B. Close back to the starting position.
Single-Legged Bridge
A. Start from a bridge position laying on your back with your feet flat on the floor and knee bent pointing up towards the ceiling. Float one leg to table top position. Engaging your glutes lift your seat bones off the floor and hold for few seconds at the top of the repetition feeling the engagement in the supporting leg’s butt chick.
B. Lower your sit bones towards the floor slightly keeping the movement small
Sumo Squat
A. Stand with your legs wider than your shoulder apart, toes slightly towards the diagonal, clasp your fingertips together and keep your arms in front of your chest. Send your bum back and bend at the knees keeping your chest upright, lowering down as far as you can.
B. Push through your heels to straighten your legs. Press your hips forward and squeeze your glutes at the top on the repetition.
Bridge Walkout
A. Lie your back on the mat with your feet hips width apart and flat on the floor. Press your hips to the ceiling, engaging your glutes and making sure you keep the ribcage down, abs engaged.
B. Step one foot at the time towards the front digging your heel into the mat, until your legs are both straight (it should take you 4 to 6 steps in total). Then return to starting position one step at the time. Keep your glute muscles engaged at all time and off the floor.
Frogger
A. Start in a high plank position. Palms directly under your shoulders, pelvis in line, legs straight towards the back of the room.
B. Jump both feet on the outer side of your palms. Push on your palms and jump your feet back into high plank. Repeat.
