You Do NOT Need Barbell Hip Thrusts To Build Strong Glutes!

While many people love barbell hip thrusts and they can be a great option, you do not have to do heavy barbell hip thrusts to strengthen and grow your glutes! In fact, you do not have to do barbell hip thrusts to build strong glutes if you do not enjoy doing them.

There is no reason why you must perform any particular exercise. If performing a specific exercise doesn’t feel good, hurts your body, or if you don’t enjoy performing the exercise, there are many other options that will help you achieve the same goal.

Here are 5 of my go-to exercises for building strong glutes. These exercises will help you strengthen and build your glutes. You can do most of these glute exercises at home or the gym.

If you missed part one of this feature, you can check it out here.

#1) Single Leg Deficit Hip Thrusts

This exercise strengthens the glutes. Elevating the front foot allows you to use a greater range of motion.

Coaching Tips:

Set yourself up so your shoulder blade/upper back area, and upper arms are positioned on a bench, chair, or other stable surface. Your head, torso, and hips should be in a stacked position. You should feel very stable on the surface.

Elevate your front foot on a stable surface. This surface should be at least 6-12 inches tall.

If you are using weight, hold the weight on your hips. You may also use band resistance.

Bend your knee to roughly a 90 degree angle. On the other side, bring your knee and thigh in towards your body. For the duration of the exercise, keep your knee and thigh relatively close to your body.

Before each rep, take a deep breath in (360 degrees of air around your spine), and brace your core (360 degree brace around your spine).

Now lower your hips to a range where you can maintain proper form.

Once you reach the bottom position, extend your hips by pressing through the back of your foot and squeezing your glutes, NOT by arching your lower back and flaring your ribcage.

When you get to the top position, hold for a count or more and really squeeze your glutes.

For the duration of the exercise, do not allow your knee to fall inside or outside of your foot.

For the duration of the exercise, your head, torso, and hips should remain in a stacked position. Do not allow your lower back to hyperextend, round, or flex laterally, ribcage to flare, or torso, spine, or hips to rotate.

For the duration of the exercise, keep your core muscles braced (360 degree brace around your spine).

In terms of breathing, do what works and feels best for you.

#2) Curtsy Slider/Towel Lunges + Wall Press

This curtsy lunge variation lights up the glutes!

Coaching Tips:

Stand so your body is close to a wall. Have a slight diagonal lean, and press your hand into the wall. Maintain this press.

Get into a square stance, and adopt your preferred foot width and positioning. Your head, torso, and hips should be in a stacked position.

On the outer/planted foot, form a tripod base by placing your weight on the back portion of your foot, and the base of your big and baby toes. These parts of your foot should remain in contact with the floor for the duration of the exercise. Pretend you are suctioning or screwing your foot to the floor.

Have your other foot (forefoot) on a towel/slider.

Before each rep, take a deep breath in (360 degrees of air around your spine), and brace your core (360 degree brace around your spine).

Now perform a reverse lunge and slide your foot behind and across your body. Use a range where you are able to maintain proper form.

When you are performing the curtsy lunge, pretend you are “pulling” your body down with your legs. Don’t just mindlessly drop down.

Do not relax or lose tension when you are in the bottom position.

For the duration of the exercise, do not allow your knees to fall inside or outside of your feet.

For the duration of the exercise, your head, torso, and hips should remain in a stacked position. Do not allow your lower back to hyperextend, round, or flex laterally, ribcage to flare, or torso, spine, or hips to rotate.

For the duration of the exercise, keep your core muscles braced (360 degree brace around your spine).

In terms of breathing, do what works and feels best for you.

#3) Single Leg Slider RDL’s

This exercise strengthens the glutes and hamstrings. This exercise is also fantastic if doing single leg deadlifts is a goal of yours.

Coaching Tips:

Adopt your preferred stance. Your head, torso and hips should be in a stacked position.

On the planted side, form a tripod base by placing your weight on the back portion of your foot, and the base of your big and baby toes. These parts of your foot should remain in contact with the floor for the duration of the exercise. Pretend you are suctioning or screwing your foot to the floor.

On the supporting leg, rest your forefoot on a towel or slider. Keep your knee fully extended, and close to the midline of your body. Maintain this position for the duration of the exercise. Contract your glutes and quadriceps on this side.

Keep your arms rigid, lats engaged, and pretend you are crushing something in your armpits. For the duration of the exercise, your arms/weights should not travel ahead of your body. Your arm should slide down the side of your front/working leg, and the other arm should remain in line with this front leg. Pretend you are painting the side of your front leg with the weight, and that you are crushing oranges in your armpits. If you are using a single weight, the weight should slide down the front of your leg/shin.

Before each rep, take a deep breath in (360 degrees of air around your spine), and brace your core (360 degree brace around your spine).

Now hinge/push your hips backwards. Pretend a rope is pulling your hips backwards or that you are trying to press your hips back against a wall.

As you are performing the hinge, simultaneously slide the foot of the supporting side backwards. Aim to use as little assistance from this leg as possible. Keep this leg close to the midline of your body.

When you are hinging, pretend you are “pulling” your body back/down with your posterior chain muscles. Don’t just mindlessly drop down.

Do not relax or lose tension when you are in the bottom position.

When you reach your full range, engage your posterior chain muscles and press your body away from the floor and back to the top/starting position. Use a range where you can maintain proper form.

Perform the lockout by squeezing your glutes and hamstrings and extend your hips, and extend your knee.

For the duration of the exercise, do not allow your knee to fall inside or outside of your foot.

For the duration of the exercise, your head, torso, and hips should remain in a stacked position. Do not allow your lower back to hyperextend, round, or flex laterally, ribcage to flare, or torso, spine, or hips to rotate.

In terms of breathing, do what works and feels best for you.

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#4) Glute Hamstring Raises + Banded Reach

Glute hamstring raises are an awesome exercise for strengthening the hamstrings and glutes. Most people don’t do the exercise correctly as they compensate by hinging via their lumbar spine versus maintaining a canister torso position, and performing the movements with their hamstrings and glutes.

A few years ago, I got this awesome glute hamstring raise variation from coach Eric Cressey. The ‘’hack’’ Eric uses addresses this common compensation/form breakdown people have. He added in a banded reach component. The banded reach component trains scapular upward rotation, which is something that many people lack the ability to do.

As per Cressey’s description, ‘’the serratus works like an anti-lat’’ so during the concentric portion of the movement you can’t cheat by extending through the lumbar spine instead of extending through the hips.

If you don’t have access to a glute hamstring raise machine, you can do something similar using a Bosu as your base.

Coaching Tips:

Set yourself up on a glute hamstring raise machine. You should feel very stable and secure. Finding the perfect setup will take some trial and error.

Get into a tall kneeling stance. Your body should be in a straight line from your head to knees.⁣⁣⁣ ⁣⁣⁣ ⁣⁣

Rest a long band so it is at the bottom of your shoulder blades, and hold the band in each hand. For the duration of the exercise, your arms should remain at a 90 degree angle with your torso.

Keep your shoulder blades protracted for the duration of the exercises (spread apart from your spine, and around your ribcage).

Before each rep, take a deep breath in (360 degrees of air around your spine), brace your core (360 degree brace around your spine), and squeeze your glutes.⁣⁣⁣ ⁣⁣⁣

Now, while keeping your body in a straight line from your head to knees, take 3-5 seconds and use your posterior chain muscles to control the movement as you extend your knees and lower your body down to your full range. ⁣⁣⁣ ⁣⁣⁣ ⁣⁣

Once you’ve hit the bottom position, use your posterior chain muscles and return to the top/starting position.

For the duration of the exercise, your body should remain in a straight line from your head to knees. Do, not allow your lower back to hyperextend, excessively round, or flex laterally, ribcage to flare, torso, spine, or hips to rotate, or weight to shift from knee to knee.⁣⁣⁣

For the duration of the exercise, keep your core muscles braced (360 degree brace around your spine), and squeeze your posterior chain muscles. ⁣⁣

In terms of breathing, do what works and feels best for you.⁣⁣⁣ ⁣⁣⁣

#5) Staggered Stance Barbell RDL’s + Posterior Band Resistance⁣

This exercise strengthens the glutes and hamstrings.

The band resistance, which is coming posteriorly, helps reinforce the hip hinging movement, and really forces you to use the posterior chain muscles during the lockout. If you lose focus for even a second the band will hold you accountable, and you’ll get pulled backwards.⁣

While I’m using a barbell, you can also do this using dumbbells, kettlebells, or a band (loop the band around your foot and hold in both hands).

Coaching Tips:

Fasten a resistance band around a secure surface, and loop the band around your hip crease. There should be a significant amount of resistance in the band for 100% of the exercise, and the resistance should be coming posteriorly.

Adopt your preferred stance. Your head, torso and hips should be in a stacked position.

Keep your arms rigid, lats engaged, and pretend you are crushing something in your armpits. For the duration of the exercise, your arms/weight(s) should not travel ahead of your body. Pretend you are painting your front leg with the weight(s), and that you are crushing oranges in your armpits.

On the planted side, form a tripod base by placing your weight on the back portion of your foot, and the base of your big and baby toes. These parts of your foot should remain in contact with the floor for the duration of the exercise. Pretend you are suctioning or screwing your foot to the floor.

Be on the forefoot of the back foot. Your front leg should be doing most of the work. Use the back leg as a ‘’kickstand’’ of support.

Before each rep, take a deep breath in (360 degrees of air around your spine), and brace your core (360 degree brace around your spine).

Now hinge/push your hips backwards. Pretend a rope is pulling your hips backwards or that you are trying to press your hips back against a wall.

When you are hinging, pretend you are “pulling” your body back/down with your posterior chain muscles. Don’t just mindlessly drop down.

Do not relax or lose tension when you are in the bottom position.

When you reach your full range, engage your posterior chain muscles and press your body away from the floor and back to the top/starting position. Use a range where you can maintain proper form.

Perform the lockout by squeezing your glutes and hamstrings and extend your hips, and extend your knee.

For the duration of the exercise, do not allow your knee to fall inside or outside of your foot.

For the duration of the exercise, your head, torso, and hips should remain in a stacked position. Do not allow your lower back to hyperextend, round, or flex laterally, ribcage to flare, or torso, spine, or hips to rotate.

In terms of breathing, do what works and feels best for you.

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