What you'll gain

• Loads hip extension with no equipment and almost no skill requirement.

• Teaches the pelvic control that transfers to hinges, squats and hip thrusts.

• Scales easily to single-leg, banded and externally loaded versions.

Step-by-Step Instructions

1. 1

   Lie on your back with your knees bent and feet flat, hip-width apart.

2. 2

   Set your arms out at roughly 45 degrees with the palms down.

3. 3

   Draw your ribs down and flatten your lower back into the floor.

4. 4

   Press through your heels and lift the hips by squeezing the glutes.

5. 5

   Stop when knees, hips and shoulders line up, then hold briefly.

6. 6

   Lower the hips back to the floor under control and repeat.

Common Mistakes

• Pushing the hips past a straight line, which arches the lower back instead of loading the glutes.

• Driving through the toes, which pulls the hamstrings in and makes them cramp.

• Setting the feet too far from the hips, so the hamstrings take over from the glutes.

• Rushing the lowering phase, which removes most of the time the glutes spend under tension.

About This Exercise

The glute bridge starts lying on your back with the knees bent and the feet flat. You brace the trunk, press the heels down and lift the hips until knees, hips and shoulders form a straight line, then lower under control. The gluteus maximus produces the hip extension, the hamstrings assist and the abdominals stop the movement turning into a lumbar arch. The hips should stop at that straight line rather than traveling higher, because the extra range comes from the lower back and not from the glutes. As an asset the glute bridge is one of the highest volume clips in any library. It appears in warm-ups, glute activation circuits and beginner bodyweight plans, so it earns a place in bodyweight equipment filters and onboarding flows that need a floor exercise requiring no equipment.

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