The 8 Best Hip Thrust Variations, According to a Trainer

When it involves sculpting a stronger, rounder bottom, the hip thrust is the gold normal of glute workouts. This train uniquely targets your gluteus maximus muscle, which makes up the majority of the form of your butt and hips.

Your gluteus maximus is the most important and strongest muscle in your whole physique, and strengthening it helps keep good posture, improves your explosive athletic efficiency, and helps with joint stability, per a 2019 Worldwide Journal of Sports activities Bodily Remedy report.

Including hip thrusts to your health routine is assured to work your muscle tissue to present you a agency, shapely behind and enhance your total energy. However if you wish to combine issues up, there are variations of the traditional hip thrust you are able to do to nonetheless work the identical muscle tissue.

“Glutes are also known as the powerhouse of the core,” says Ash Wilking, CPT, an authorized private coach and Tonal energy coach. “Strengthening our glutes by way of these hip thrust variations can improve decrease physique energy, improve hip mobility and stability, improve core energy, and assist scale back decrease again ache.”

Right here, Wilking shares eight completely different variations so as to add to your leg day routine for a critical booty burn, no matter your health stage. (PSA: These hip thrust alternate options additionally are available in clutch if you wish to boost your lower-body exercises.)

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First, let’s go over the fundamentals of do a hip thrust

Earlier than working your manner as much as completely different variations, you will wish to nail down do a hip thrust with correct kind. You are able to do a hip thrust with simply your body weight or up the depth by utilizing weight (seize a dumbbell or barbell).

1. Seize a bench, field, or any secure elevated floor that is about knee peak.
2. Sit on the ground along with your higher again in opposition to the sting of the bench. Think about that your shoulder blades act as hooks on the fringe of the bench. Your knees ought to be bent along with your toes flat on the ground, hip-width aside.
3. Along with your shoulder blades resting on the sting of the bench, your physique ought to kind a 45-degree angle with the ground when your hips are down.
4. Place your fingers on the again of your head.
5. Have interaction your core to stabilize your backbone.
6. Push by way of your heels and carry your hips towards the ceiling. Your physique ought to kind a straight line out of your knees to your shoulders, and your legs ought to be at a 90-degree angle on the high of the motion.
7. Decrease with management.
8. Repeat for 3 to 4 units of 8 to 12 reps.

“Glutes are also known as the powerhouse of the core. Strengthening our glutes by way of these hip thrust variations can improve decrease physique energy, improve hip mobility and stability, improve core energy, and assist scale back decrease again ache.” —Ash Wilking, CPT

Newbie hip thrust variations

Our newbie variations have you ever mendacity in your again on the ground in a motion known as a glute bridge. A glute bridge follows the identical motion sample as a hip thrust, besides the hip thrust has you in an elevated place along with your again up on a floor.

“These newbie variations are a implausible strategy to practice the physique within the hinge sample, specializing in extension by way of the hips with out the necessity for extra gear, apart from a resistance band,” Wilking says.

Should you’re not new to this train, you’ll be able to nonetheless give these strikes a go—attempt incorporating them into your leg day warm-up to activate your glutes.

1. Mendacity glute bridge

1. Lie in your again along with your knees bent and your toes flat on the ground, hip-width aside. Your arms ought to be comfortably at your sides with palms going through down.
2. Place the heels of your toes beneath your knees, in order that they’re shut sufficient to your hips which you can simply contact your heels along with your fingertips.
3. Have interaction your core by tightening your belly muscle tissue to stabilize your backbone. This can assist stop any arching in your decrease again.
4. By driving by way of your heels, carry your hips towards the ceiling. Your physique ought to kind a straight line out of your shoulders to your knees.
5. Squeeze your glutes on the high of the motion. Your shoulders and toes ought to stay in touch with the ground.
6. Pause for a second on the high of the carry, persevering with to squeeze your glutes and maintaining your core engaged.
7. Slowly decrease your hips again to the beginning place, maintaining management of the motion and sustaining the engagement of your core and glutes.
8. Repeat for 3 to 4 units of 8 to 12 reps.

2. Banded mendacity glute bridge

1. Place a resistance band round your legs and place the band an inch or two above your knees.
2. Lie in your again along with your knees bent and your toes flat on the ground, hip-width aside. Your arms ought to be comfortably at your sides with palms going through down.
3. Place the heels of your toes beneath your knees, in order that they’re shut sufficient to your hips which you can simply contact your heels along with your fingertips.
4. Have interaction your core by tightening your belly muscle tissue to stabilize your backbone. This can assist stop any arching in your decrease again.
5. By driving by way of your heels, carry your hips towards the ceiling. Your physique ought to kind a straight line out of your shoulders to your knees.
6. Squeeze your glutes on the high of the motion. Your shoulders and toes ought to stay in touch with the ground.
7. Pause for a second on the high of the carry, persevering with to squeeze your glutes and maintaining your core engaged.
8. Slowly decrease your hips again to the beginning place, maintaining management of the motion and sustaining the engagement of your core and glutes.
9. Repeat for 3 to 4 units of 8 to 12 reps.

3. Single-leg glute bridge

1. Lie in your again along with your knees bent and your toes flat on the ground, hip-width aside. Your arms ought to be comfortably at your sides with palms going through down.
2. Place the heels of your toes beneath your knees, in order that they’re shut sufficient to your hips which you can simply contact your heels along with your fingertips.
3. Carry your left leg off the ground, bringing your left knee straight over your left hip.
4. Have interaction your core by tightening your belly muscle tissue to stabilize your backbone (it will assist stop any arching in your decrease again).
5. Drive by way of your proper heel and carry your hips towards the ceiling, maintaining your left leg in a hover place. Your physique ought to kind a straight line out of your shoulders to your knees.
6. Squeeze your glutes on the high of the motion.
7. Pause for a second on the high of the carry, persevering with to squeeze your glutes whereas maintaining your core engaged.
8. Slowly decrease your hips again to the beginning place, maintaining management of the motion and sustaining the engagement.
9. Repeat for 3 to 4 units of 8 to 12 reps, then swap legs.

Intermediate hip thrust variations

To take issues up a notch, you will wish to elevate your shoulders on a bench to deepen your vary of movement all through your hip. Extra vary equals extra muscle engagement, in line with Wilking.

“These elevated hip thrust variations are extremely efficient at strengthening the glutes,” she says.

4. Banded elevated glute bridge

1. Seize a bench, field, or any secure elevated floor that is about knee peak.
2. Place a resistance band round your legs.
3. Sit on the ground along with your higher again in opposition to the sting of the bench (think about that your shoulder blades act as hooks on the fringe of the bench). Your knees ought to be bent along with your toes flat on the ground, hip-width aside.
4. Along with your shoulder blades resting on the sting of the bench, your physique ought to kind a 45-degree angle with the ground when your hips are down.
5. Place your fingers on the again of your head.
6. Have interaction your core to stabilize your backbone.
7. Push by way of your heels and carry your hips towards the ceiling. Your physique ought to kind a straight line out of your knees to your shoulders, and your legs ought to be at a 90-degree angle on the high of the motion.
8. Squeeze your glutes on the high of the motion.
9. Decrease again down with management.
10. Repeat for 3 to 4 units of 8 to 12 reps.

5. Single-leg elevated glute bridge

1. Seize a bench, field, or any secure elevated floor that is about knee peak.
2. Along with your shoulder blades resting on the sting of the bench, your physique ought to kind a 45-degree angle with the ground when your hips are down.
3. Carry your left leg off the ground and hover it comfortably above your left hip. Keep this place all the train.
4. Your shoulder blades ought to be resting on the sting of the bench and your physique ought to kind a 45-degree angle with the ground when your hips are down.
5. Place your fingers on the again of your head.
6. Have interaction your core to stabilize your backbone.
7. Push by way of the heel of your proper foot and carry your hips towards the ceiling. Your physique ought to kind a straight line out of your knees to your shoulders, and your legs ought to be at a 90-degree angle on the high of the motion.
8. Decrease again down with management.
9. Repeat for 3 to 4 units of 8 to 12 reps, then swap legs.

Superior hip thrust variations

As soon as you are feeling snug sufficient performing the newbie and intermediate hip thrust variations, it is time to add a barbell to up the load and depth. Wilking calls the barbell hip thrust the holy grail of glute workouts.

“Including the barbell to the elevated hip thrust place lets you improve load, selling muscle hypertrophy and energy improvement,” Wilking says.

6. Barbell hip thrust

1. Place a barbell on the ground and cargo it along with your desired quantity of weight (or none in any respect!).
2. Sit on the ground along with your higher again in opposition to the sting of the bench. Roll the barbell over your legs and place it straight over your hips. You possibly can place a barbell pad or folded map beneath the barbell to cushion your hips.
3. Place your toes flat on the ground, hip-width aside, and knees bent at a few 90-degree angle.
4. Maintain the barbell with each fingers to maintain it regular. Your fingers ought to be barely wider than shoulder-width aside.
5. Have interaction your core to stabilize your backbone and shield the decrease again.
6. Push by way of your heels and carry your hips towards the ceiling. Your physique ought to kind a straight line out of your shoulders to your knees on the high of the motion, and also you need your shins to be vertical on the high of the motion (checking a mirror may help with correct placement).
7. Pause for a second on the high, sustaining the squeeze in your glutes and the engagement of your core.
8. Slowly decrease your hips again to the beginning place. R
9. epeat for 3 to 4 units of 8 to 12 reps.

7. Single-leg dumbbell hip thrust

1. Sit on the ground along with your higher again in opposition to the sting of the bench.
2. Place a dumbbell over your proper hip, holding it with one or each fingers. The dumbbell may be positioned vertically on the high of your thigh or horizontally with the deal with throughout the crease of your hip.
3. Place your toes flat on the ground, hip-width aside, and knees bent at a few 90-degree angle.
4. Carry your left leg to hover it simply off the ground.
5. Have interaction your core to stabilize your backbone and shield the decrease again.
6. Push by way of your proper heel and carry your hips towards the ceiling. Your physique ought to kind a straight line out of your shoulders to your knees on the high of the motion.
7. Pause for a second on the high, sustaining the squeeze in your glutes and the engagement of your core.
8. Slowly decrease your hips again to the beginning place.
9. Repeat for 3 to 4 units of 8 to 12 reps, then swap legs.

8. Single-leg barbell hip thrust

1. Place the barbell on the ground and cargo it along with your desired quantity of weight (or none in any respect!).
2. Sit on the ground along with your higher again in opposition to the sting of the bench. Roll the barbell over your legs and place it straight over your hips. Use a barbell pad or folded map beneath the bar to cushion your hips.
3. Place your toes flat on the ground, hip-width aside, and knees bent at a few 90-degree angle.
4. Have interaction your core to stabilize your backbone and shield the decrease again.
5. Maintain the barbell with each fingers to maintain it regular. Your fingers ought to be barely wider than shoulder-width aside.
6. Carry your left leg off the ground.
7. Push by way of your heel and carry your hips towards the ceiling. Your physique ought to kind a straight line out of your shoulders to your knees on the high of the motion.
8. Pause for a second on the high, sustaining the squeeze in your glutes and the engagement of your core. Hold your ribs down and keep a impartial backbone, specializing in driving the hips up with out overarching the decrease again.
9. Slowly decrease your hips again to the beginning place.
10. Repeat for 3 to 4 units of 8 to 12 reps, then swap legs.