I want to get this out the way right from the start. This article isn’t just for women.
Building bigger glutes will always be popular with women, that’s not going to change. What needs to change is most male’s opinions on training glutes. I’m not sure if it’s because all you seem to see now on social media is girls training glutes (therefore this somehow makes it less masculine) or if it’s never been a priority of the male lifting population. What I do know is, women do like men with good glutes and, if you want to improve your aesthetics and nearly every major lower body movement (squats and deadlifts anyone?) then you better be training your glutes.
The glutes are made up of three main muscles. The gluteus maximus, gluteus medius and the gluteus minimus. The gluteus maximus is the largest of the group and actually the largest muscle in the human body and its main function is thigh extension (moving the thigh backwards). The gluteus medius and minimus perform similar functions but are dependent on the position of the hip and knee joints. If the hips are active, they will rotate the thigh internally and when the knee is extended, abduct the thigh away from the body.
With all this in mind, let’s look at the best exercises you should be doing if you want to grow your glutes.
Barbell Glute Bridge
Possibly the most popular glute exercise but for good reason, it works. Let’s look at the set up.
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For this movement, you want to be sat on the ground and have a loaded barbell placed over your hips. To avoid discomfort, I highly recommend using some sort of pad place over the middle of the bar.
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With the bar over your hips, lay down flat and place both feet flat on the ground and pull them towards your bum, this is your starting position.
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Drive through your heels, with your hips extending through the bar vertically. Squeeze your glutes at the top of the movement. Your upper back and heels of your feet should be supporting you.
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Return to the bar to its original starting position and complete your set in this fashion.
Barbell Hip Thrust
Not to be confused with glute bridges, these are also a highly effective glute exercise.
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Much like the glute bridge, begin laid on the floor with a loaded barbell over your hips. Once again, I recommend a pad for the bar to avoid any discomfort whilst performing reps.
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You will need a bench behind you, as this will act as a pad for your back
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To get into starting position, place your upper back against the bench and make sure your feet are placed shoulder width apart with your heels firmly planted.
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Drive through your heels and extend through the hips, making sure they are driven vertically through the bar.
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You should aim to thrust your hips towards the ceiling as high as possible whilst keeping your heels planted. Once you are at peak contraction, return your hips to the starting position.
I recommend adding in both of these exercises once a week and aiming to progress either in weight or reps each workout, for the best benefits.
So now you know the best two exercises to grow your glutes, what can you expect?
Well given enough time, if you consistently perform these two movements and eat in a calorie surplus, don’t be surprised if you increase your squat, deadlift, jean size (due to bigger buns) and get extra attention from the opposite sex.
