Favorite glute exercise

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BeccaLoves2lift
BeccaLoves2lift Posts: 375 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I know hip thrusts are where it's at but I feel my glutes worked the most with the back extension, so it's my favorite. What is your favorite exercise to work the glutes?

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  • sardelsa
    sardelsa Posts: 9,812 Member
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    Well... you know mine is the hip thrust :) ... my absolute fave and the one I feel the most in the glutes is the American Hip Thrusts (so higher up on the bench so the load is constant tension) with a band around the legs. Also banded hip thrusts, especially single leg banded. Also glute bridge supersets with frog pumps.

    Other ones I love... deadlifts, especially Romanian or "American" (so an RDL with a posterior pelvic tilt at the top), , single leg RDLs (in particular paired with a reverse lunge), banded kettlebell swings (secure a long band to a stable pole and put the band around your hips), abductions, cable kickbacks, cable pull throughs, goblet and cable pause squats, reverse hypers, back extension (with glute focus) ..all kinds of band work... clamshells, fire hydrants, anti-rotations, lateral and front monster walks, etc.
  • BeccaLoves2lift
    BeccaLoves2lift Posts: 375 Member
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    sardelsa wrote: »
    Well... you know mine is the hip thrust :) ... my absolute fave and the one I feel the most in the glutes is the American Hip Thrusts (so higher up on the bench so the load is constant tension) with a band around the legs. Also banded hip thrusts, especially single leg banded. Also glute bridge supersets with frog pumps.

    Other ones I love... deadlifts, especially Romanian or "American" (so an RDL with a posterior pelvic tilt at the top), , single leg RDLs (in particular paired with a reverse lunge), banded kettlebell swings (secure a long band to a stable pole and put the band around your hips), abductions, cable kickbacks, cable pull throughs, goblet and cable pause squats, reverse hypers, back extension (with glute focus) ..all kinds of band work... clamshells, fire hydrants, anti-rotations, lateral and front monster walks, etc.

    I do love American deadlifts and glute kickbacks as well : )
  • sardelsa
    sardelsa Posts: 9,812 Member
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    What is really interesting, is some of the exercises I did when I started I never really felt in my glutes and I used to think they weren't a good fit for me. As I got stronger, better at the exercise, as my glutes got stronger and activated more, in some cases I played around with form and food placement and all that... many of them got better and better over time.
  • CaffeinatedConfectionist
    CaffeinatedConfectionist Posts: 1,045 Member
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    For me, it's Bulgarian squats. I love em, and I feel like I get really good glute activation.

    Hip thrusts always give me bruises :/ I do hip raises with a TRX, though.

    SL deads are another I really like, and swings (I don't have a kettlebell but sometimes I do swings with a dumbbell and worry about accidentally launching it across the room - another reason to be grateful for a home gym!!)
  • BeccaLoves2lift
    BeccaLoves2lift Posts: 375 Member
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    CaffeinatedConfectionist wrote: »
    For me, it's Bulgarian squats. I love em, and I feel like I get really good glute activation.

    Hip thrusts always give me bruises :/ I do hip raises with a TRX, though.

    SL deads are another I really like, and swings (I don't have a kettlebell but sometimes I do swings with a dumbbell and worry about accidentally launching it across the room - another reason to be grateful for a home gym!!)

    I like swings and split squats too.
  • Keto_Vampire
    Keto_Vampire Posts: 1,670 Member
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    I'm a big fan of GHR & good mornings. Lately, I've taken a liking to glute pull throughs using cables (very similar to the end range of motion of a deadlift). All good for hamstrings as well based on your stance. 1 legged squats (Bulgarian) are a killer finishing move. Based on feeling/activating the glutes most, my money would be on the glute pull through using cables (note: does not include thrusts/bridges because I do not do them -> most EMG activating glute exercise though)
  • jjpptt2
    jjpptt2 Posts: 5,650 Member
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    Do you have access to a glute/ham raise machine (GHR)?
  • Keto_Vampire
    Keto_Vampire Posts: 1,670 Member
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    jjpptt2 wrote: »
    Do you have access to a glute/ham raise machine (GHR)?
    Nah, I just do them on Lat pull down stations using the knee supports
  • MikePfirrman
    MikePfirrman Posts: 3,307 Member
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    I started doing heavy KB swings back in early February. Not a ton, I'm not as strong as some, but I've been gradually building and building up. I'm up to 150 heavy (heavier for me, not as heavy as some would use) 3 X a week. I already see a tremendous difference. I was doing it for strength but it's like someone took an air valve and blew up my rear!
  • Davidsdottir
    Davidsdottir Posts: 1,285 Member
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    Hip thrusts; conventional, sumo, and Romanian deadlifts; curtsey and walking lunges; and kickbacks.
  • BeccaLoves2lift
    BeccaLoves2lift Posts: 375 Member
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    jjpptt2 wrote: »
    Do you have access to a glute/ham raise machine (GHR)?

    I do not.
  • mutantspicy
    mutantspicy Posts: 624 Member
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    Thrusts for sure. 1 leg squat to stiff 1 leg deadlift combo is killer. Also, get into a warrior 3 yoga pose, lower yourself into a 1 leg squat as low as you can while keeping your warrior pose and push back up with a superman squeeze at the top. Booty burner holy cow.
  • CaffeinatedConfectionist
    CaffeinatedConfectionist Posts: 1,045 Member
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    mutantspicy wrote: »
    1 leg squat to stiff 1 leg deadlift combo is killer.

    Huh... I never thought to do this. Good thing it's leg day again today!

  • mutantspicy
    mutantspicy Posts: 624 Member
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    CaffeinatedConfectionist wrote: »
    mutantspicy wrote: »
    1 leg squat to stiff 1 leg deadlift combo is killer.

    Huh... I never thought to do this. Good thing it's leg day again today!

    yeah if you can manage keep the opposite foot off the ground without tapping during the hip hinge thru the transition between the two moves. fire!!
  • Chieflrg
    Chieflrg Posts: 9,097 Member
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    My best results from a programming standpoint with efficiency a focal point is by far the deadlift(sumo & con) along with low bar squats and variations of pins.

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