TAKE ACTION
a
M
TAKE ACTION
The Most Overrated Glute Exercise

The Most Overrated Glute Exercise

by | Nov 7, 2021 | Blog, Bodyweight, Butt, Core, Exercises, Pain Relief

The clamshell exercise is a staple of any rehab program that calls for glute activation moves.

But honestly, it’s slightly overrated.

And so often done INCORRECTLY.

We end up rotating to get a bigger range of motion. We engage other muscles to try and rush to progress the move and add a band.

We aren’t intentional with the move while focusing on what we feel working.

But part of that is actually because it is so easy to cheat.

For such a seemingly simple move, it is so easy for us to cheat and compensate and ultimately perpetuate the existing issues by overusing the same muscles we are trying to avoid overusing.

All too often this basic move perpetuates the problem instead of activating the muscles we want it to.

We end up engaging our TFL or overworking our piriformis over actually getting our glute medius to pull it’s weight.

That’s why I wanted to share with you one of my favorite Glute Medius Activation Moves to do instead – The Wall Side Lying Lateral Raise.

But before I go into the glute medius move I prefer to use, I did just want to touch on 3 key cues if you decide to use that oh so basic clam exercise.

#1: Turn your top toe down toward the ground.

This cue can actually be useful in many glute medius moves to help inhibit the TFL if it tends to take over.

The internal tibial rotation, or rotation of your lower leg down toward the ground, can help you prevent the TFL from compensating for your glute medius.

When doing the clam, just turn that top foot toward the ground in front of your bottom foot instead of keeping your feet stacked or letting that top foot open up as you raise your top leg.

#2: Don’t focus on a bigger range of motion.

Yes we always want to strengthen through a full range of motion, but we want to make sure it is actually a range of motion we can control with the muscles we want to target.

Too often we end up rotating our entire body or start to overuse muscles like our piriformis to perform a bigger range of motion.

Instead of focusing on making the move bigger, focus on stopping the movement with the glute medius, really feeling it on the side of your butt.

It can even be helpful to put a wall or pole behind you and think about squeezing your butt slightly forward even as you open.

#3: Change your degree of hip flexion.

Struggling to establish that mind-body connection?

Try changing how much you flex or extend your hips.

While this can not only help us target the anterior or posterior fibers of the glute medius more, and make sure we are able to engage the muscle through a variety of postures, it can also help us find a position where we can most easily establish that mind-body connection, especially if we are struggling.

Once you are able to really feel the muscle working, you can even move to a more or less hip flexed position to use that engagement to help you create the mind-body connection while in a position you may not have felt it before!

But because each of us does have a different build and mind-body connection, whether even due to previous injuries, it can be useful to feel free to adjust our exact degree of hip flexion as we learn to master the move and use the correct muscles.

Now let’s talk about how to do the Wall Side Lying Lateral Raise and why I prefer this move over the basic clam.

The Wall Side Lying Lateral Raise:

If you’re struggle to engage your glute medius, it can be helpful to make sure you’re engaging your glute max as well. That’s why this move with the slight kick back can really help.

And because your TFL is a hip flexor and your piriformis assists with horizontal abduction when your hip is flexed to 90 degrees, it can be key to work on activating your glute medius while your hip is extended.

If you think about the clam, you aren’t kicking back and as easily able to use the glute max to help prevent your TFL from compensating.

You also are in that hip flexed position which lends itself to both your Piriformis and TFL engaging, two muscles that often compensate for our glute medius leading to lower back, hip and even knee aches and pains.

And that’s why this Wall Side Lying Lateral Raise is a great go-to glute medius activation move!

This move works on hip extension to engage your glute max while also working to improve your hips stability and glute medius activation.

To do this move, you may start with bodyweight and progress to a mini band variation with the band around your legs just above your knees.

Set up by bending that bottom leg to help you stabilize and set up lying on your side with your back to the wall. You want to set up a few inches out from the wall so you can kick back slightly into the wall. You can fully lie on your side with your bottom arm straight out on the ground or you can prop yourself up to rest your head in your hand.

Then lift your top leg up a few inches off your bottom leg and make sure you do NOT rotate that toe open. You can even turn that top toe slightly down toward the ground.

After lifting up a few inches, drive your heel back into the wall behind you.

From this position, slide your heel up the wall lifting your leg.

Perform this lateral raise but do not rotate your hip open to raise up higher.

Lift up and then slowly slide the leg down. Do not lower completely down and relax out. If you’re using a band, you want to make sure the band doesn’t pull you back down and that you keep tension on it even at the bottom.

You want your glute working the entire time.

Focus on feeling your glute 90
lifting your leg up, and if you have a band pushing against the band, as you feel your glute max working to drive your heel back into the wall extending your hip.

SUMMARY:

We have to remember that no one move is right for everyone. And even knowing when we DON’T feel a move working the correct muscles can be key so that we can prevent ourselves from perpetuating the problem and even select a move that does better help us establish that mind-body connection.

Use these cues to help yourself make sure you’re adjusting moves to fit your needs and goals and if you’ve been struggling to use the clam, try this lateral raise variation instead!

Working to activate your glutes? Check out my Booty Burner!

–> LEARN MORE ABOUT THE BOOTY BURNER

the Most Underrated Glute Exercise

the Most Underrated Glute Exercise

by | May 12, 2021 | Blog, Bodyweight, Butt, Core, Exercises, Pain Relief, Warm Up

The stronger your mind-body connection is?

The more you can lift, the faster you can run and the further you can cycle!

Basically the STRONGER YOU ARE!

Strength is not just about brute force but also about neuromuscular efficiency – how quickly can you recruit the CORRECT muscles to perform a movement and produce force.

That’s why it is key we include exercises to really improve that mind-body connection and make sure we are able to engage the correct muscles whenever we need.

Because as much as we focus on form, proper form does NOT always mean you’re engaging the correct muscles.

Actually often the more experienced a lifter you are and the more athletic you are, the more you can mimic a proper looking movement pattern while compensating and recruiting the incorrect muscles to do so.

This can not only result in injury but often holds us back from lifting as much as we truly can.

It prevents us from being as strong as possible because we aren’t using muscles efficiently together. We aren’t making the correct muscles pull their own weight.

That’s why you need to include some isolation moves to activate those underactive muscles and make sure you’re engaging the correct muscles at the proper times.

One muscle that often needs to be the focus of our activation work is our GLUTES.

Our glutes are commonly underactive due to our modern lifestyle.

So focused activation work can help us improve our mind-body connection to better recruit our glutes during compound lifts and when we run or cycle.

One of my favorite moves, and a very basic and often underutilized move, is the Single Leg Bent-Knee Reverse Hyper.

This move is fundamental if you want to improve your hip extension and focus on isolating those glutes.

And it’s a really great way to test if your hamstrings tend to want to take over and compensate for your glutes.

Often our hamstrings can become synergistically dominant for underactive glutes and that can result in hamstrings strains, lower back, hip and knee pain.

So if you tend to feel your hamstrings even during moves like glute bridges? You need to give this reverse hyper variation a try.

To first test your glute activation, lie face down on the ground. You can relax your chin on your hands as you straighten both legs out. Then bend one knee to about 90 degrees. Flex that foot. Do not curl the heel in toward your butt as this will engage your hamstrings.

Then drive your heel toward the ceiling and extend your hip.

What do you feel firing first? Do you feel your hamstring first or your glute?

Do you feel both? Or can you just isolate your glute?

If you can just isolate your glute fabulous! Do 15-20 reps and pause at the top to really establish that mind-body connection and even get a little pump going.

If you can’t feel your glutes, try adjusting how you’re cueing and performing the move.

Here are a few tweaks to try.

#1: Focus on driving your hip down into the ground as you drive the heel back so you don’t rotate open. Think about almost pushing your hip bone down into the ground instead of just lifting up.

#2: Think about STOPPING the lift with your glute over just trying to lift up higher. You want to focus on that glute engagement over the movement itself.

#3: Kick just slightly out as you lift. Remember not to curl your heel in toward your butt. Our hamstrings are worked by that knee flexion so avoiding it can help. However, going too straight with your leg can also make it harder for some to focus on their glutes.

#4: Slightly abduct your knee or move it out to the side before you lift. This can better engage the glute medius to help engage that glute max. Just be careful you don’t rotate your hip open. Just slightly move the knee out to the side.

Try one of these tweaks at a time to see what helps. You may even find you need to combine all the cues to get that glute firing without the hamstring trying to take over.

As silly as it may seem, sometimes just changing how we cue ourselves to perform a movement with a very slight adjustment can really help us better establish that mind-body connection when we’ve struggled in the past.

Just don’t rush through the movement. Pause and assess. Be intentional with the exercise over just trying to get through the reps.

Doing the “right moves” without feeling the correct muscles working won’t get you the results you want.

Focus on activating your glutes.

SUMMARY:

Use this underrated glute isolation move as both an activation exercise but also a test of hamstring compensation. It is a great way to make sure your hamstrings aren’t trying to take over and work when your glutes truly should be.

Be conscious of what you feel working during your workouts and do not simply go through the motions.

The more we can truly create proper recruitment patterns and use the correct muscles efficiently and effectively, the stronger we will be.

Sometimes we need to take things back to basics to get results.

We are never above those simple fundamentals!

Working to improve your glute activation?

Check out my Booty Burner Program!

–> LEARN MORE

How To Fix Knee Pain – Do These 4 Moves

How To Fix Knee Pain – Do These 4 Moves

by | Feb 25, 2021 | Blog, Butt, Exercises, Foam Rolling, injury-featured, Pain Relief, Stretches

Achy and sore knees are an all too common complaint.

And nagging knee pain can become a daily annoyance.

Knee pain can make walking up stairs or getting down on the ground uncomfortable and difficult.

It can make us fear moves like squats and lunges so much that we simply stop doing them all together.

It can hold us back from training intensely.

Knee pain can cause us to simply no longer enjoy the activities we used to love like running or jumping.

And the worst part is often we’ve done a ton of things to TRY to address the problem.

We’ve focused on all of the muscles right around our knee trying to strengthen everything to improve our knee stability.

But all too often this not only doesn’t provide lasting relief, but it actually BACKFIRES.

So if trying to strengthen the muscles right around your knees isn’t necessarily the answer, what is? How can you get rid of nagging knee pain for good?

First, there are two joints you need to be paying attention to instead of just focusing only on your knees…

Your ankles and your hips!

If there is immobility or instability at either one of these two joints, your knees are going to suffer the consequences.

All too often when we lack mobility in one area, we seek out mobility from another.

So if your ankles aren’t mobile? You’re going to search for mobility from your knees! Mobility your knees really aren’t meant to provide!

And instability at your ankles or hips is what can lead to improper alignment up and down your legs, causing muscles around your knees to even become tight and overworked, further perpetuating your aches and pains!

That’s why I want to share 4 essential exercises with you to address both ankle and hip mobility and stability issues.

 4 Must-Do Moves To Prevent Knee Pain:

Improving your range of motion and stability at both joints can help you avoid perpetuating your knee issues and even alleviate the overload.

#1: Knee-Friendly Ankle Mobility Stretch

Improving your ankle mobility, specifically your ability to dorsiflex or draw your toes up toward your shin can go a long way in preventing knee pain during squats and lunges, not to mention when you run or ride!

Especially if you are suffering from knee pain currently, many ankle mobility drills can be uncomfortable as your knee will travel even past your toes.

That’s when this Knee-Friendly Ankle Mobility Stretch comes in handy.

Because the ball of your foot is up on a block or weight, you’ve put your ankle into dorsiflexion before you even shift your weight forward.

Most ankle mobility moves require your knee to move past your toe for the full range of motion.

But because of this starting position, your knee doesn’t have to travel forward that much for a full range of motion.

This can help alleviate some pressure on your knees as you work to improve that ankle mobility.

Keeping your heel on the ground with the ball of your foot up, shift your weight forward as much as you can. If your heel starts to lift, you’ve gone too far.

Then shift back and repeat.

#2: Single Leg Toe-Raised Calf Raises

It’s key you activate any weak or underactive muscles if you want to maintain the range of motion you are working hard to build.

If you don’t establish the mind-body connection to those muscles?

You are just going to keep perpetuating the same patterns of overuse, leading to your knee pain.

Having mobile, but also STABLE ankles is key if you want to avoid injury.

That’s why it’s key after you do any mobility work that you do activation moves to strengthen weak muscles and work to maintain that range of motion.

And especially if you’ve ever had issues on just one side, you want to address the imbalance with imbalanced prehab. Which may even mean doing this move on only one side or more reps on one side at least.

I recommend having your hands on a wall or something to help you balance so you can focus not only on driving off the entire ball of your foot for the calf raise, but also so you can focus on dorsiflexing your foot as much as possible as you move to your heel.

Make sure to move slowly lifting your toes toward your shins to sit back on your heel before lowering your foot to the ground to press up onto the ball of your foot. Do not just rock and use momentum.

You can also do this as a bilateral move instead if both sides need equal attention.

#3: TFL Foam Rolling

The TFL or tensor fasciae latae is a hip flexor muscle that is a common culprit of not only hip pain, but also knee and even ankle pain.

This muscle can have a far reaching impact because of it’s connection to the knee through the IT Band.

So if you’re a runner who’s had IT Band or knee issues, you need to include this move as part of your warm up!

When the TFL becomes overactive and tight, it can also try to compensate and work when your glute medius should actually be the prime mover. This perpetuates what has been called gluteal amnesia.

It can inhibit your glute medius from working correctly to support and stabilize your hip, which can also lead to further knee issues.

This simple foam rolling move is key to use even before a glute medius activation exercise as it will help you relax the TFL so it isn’t as likely to try to engage and take over.

Place a ball in the lateral side of your hip and lie slightly propped up on your side with the ball pushing in toward your hip socket.

Relax as you hold. To help the muscle relax and release itself, lift and lower your leg to tense and relax the muscle.

You can prop yourself up more or fully lie over the ball depending on how much pressure you want to create. Make sure you can actually relax as you hold. You don’t want to tense against the pressure.

You may even find standing to hold against the wall is better pressure to start.

#4: Extended ROM Side Lying Leg Raises

Improving your hip stability will help protect your knees. That’s why it is key you include moves to activate your glute medius.

The glute medius is a key hip stabilize, not to mention strengthening it will help prevent your TFL from becoming overworked!

Because a tight and overworked TFL can cause hip internal rotation and external tibial rotation, it can lead to our knees caving in during things like squats.

It can cause tracking issues so that your hips, knees and ankles aren’t all in proper alignment during even exercises like lunges.

Basically, it can lead to movement patterns that end in knee pain.

By strengthening your glute medius, you can prevent this improper movement pattern.

And that’s why moves like side lying raises or abduction exercises are so key.

By lifting this basic move off the ground to perform it on a bench instead, you can allow yourself to work through a bigger range of motion to strengthen the glute medius. This is even a great way to progress that basic move from the floor without adding loads.

Just be conscious you do actually feel your glute medius working and not your TFL taking over.

A great way to help avoid your TFL compensating is to turn your toe down toward the ground as you lift or even kick slightly back.

The internal tibial rotation can help inhibit the TFL while the kick back can slightly engage the glute maximus.

SUMMARY:

Using these four moves you can improve your ankle and hip mobility and stability to help prevent your knee from suffering the consequences of issues at these other two joints!

You can choose to include one or two of these in your warm up routine or combine all four for a quick mobility series. Even just 1-2 rounds through working for 30-45 seconds per move or side can go a long way!

Ready to say “Bye bye” to aches and pains? Check out my Injury Prevention Bundle.

Do the prehab work DAILY to keep those aches and pains away!

 

Are You Bridging Wrong?

Are You Bridging Wrong?

by | Jan 15, 2018 | Blog, Butt, Exercises

Glute bridges are a basic bodyweight move.

People will even say, “These are easy!” And think they are beyond that basic bodyweight exercise.

But guess what!?

All too often people aren’t doing them correctly! AND even the most advanced exerciser needs to return to that FUNDAMENTAL move.

Let me ask you a few quick questions too…

  • Have ever felt your low back during glute bridges?
  • Or maybe your hamstrings are doing all the work?
  • Or maybe your quads are working?
  • Heck…maybe you even feel your traps and shoulders!

Answer yes to one of these?…Or maybe all of these, huh?

Well it’s called the GLUTE BRIDGE for a reason…Not because these other muscles should be working, but because your GLUTES should be powering the move.

So if you’re feeling these other muscles engaging and taking over for your glutes, you not only aren’t reaping the benefits of the glute bridge, so may need to change your form, but you’ve also got some compensations you may need to address that could lead to injury!

And if you’re now thinking…”Well I just really don’t feel anything. And I don’t feel my glutes at all so I probably just need to do something HARDER…”

You’re also wrong.

Yes, as we advance, we want to add weights and harder variations to keep challenging our muscles so we get results.

BUT…No matter how advanced you are, heck actually even the MORE advanced an exerciser you are, the MORE you should be able to contract your glutes during a basic bodyweight bridge.

Now note I didn’t say it should necessarily be “hard” to do as an advanced exerciser, but you should be able to contract your glutes to create a burn even with just your own bodyweight no matter how much you lift.

Because it all comes down to the mind-body connection.

If you can’t recruit the muscles correctly with your own bodyweight, there is a good chance you won’t recruit the right muscles as you add more and more load or try harder and harder variations.

And if you aren’t using the right muscles?

Well that is when you risk overloading muscles that can’t handle the load, which can lead to INJURY.

That is why I wanted to share a few quick tips and coaching cues hat I use with my clients so they can get those glutes activated and firing.

Because the basic glute bridge is a must-do activation move. It can help activate the glutes and improve your hip extension so you can run faster and lift more.

BUT it must be done correctly so your glutes actually engage!

So if you’re not feeling those glutes working, try these 4 tips to improve your bridging.

Bridging Tip #1: Mind Your Set Up!

Many people when they go to bridge up just lie on their back and lift their butt off the ground. They pay no attention to foot positioning or what muscles they are using to drive up.

But by paying attention to how you are driving up and the positioning of your feet, you can make sure your glutes are working and other muscles, like your hamstrings, aren’t compensating.

glute-bridgeA great way to start to set up is to lie on your back and place your feet flat on the ground just beyond your fingertips when your arms are straight down by your sides. If your feet get too far away from your butt, you are more likely to use your hamstrings.

You also want to make sure your feet are flat on the ground. You’ll sometimes see images of people up on their toes during bridges, but talk about a way to make it more challenging to engage your glutes. Actually, if you struggle to engage your glutes, think about driving more through your HEELS as you bridge up.

Then, once you have this positioning, bend your elbows and drive them into the ground. You want to think about driving your elbows down into the ground and then even drive through your upper back as you bridge up. This will help prevent you from feeling bridges in your upper traps and neck. It can also help you make sure your glutes are working and you aren’t again making your hamstrings the prime movers.

And then when you bridge up, driving your heels and upper back into the ground, think about driving your knees forward over your toes.

Don’t lift your heels to try and do this. Or adjust your feet in closer (adjusting your feet in closer may actually make you start to feel the bridge in your quads if your hips are tight). Your knees will not actually go over your toes!

The point is by thinking about driving your knees toward your toes, you won’t drive yourself backward onto your shoulders. You will also make sure to evenly drive through your upper back. This will help focus on the glutes and make sure your hamstrings and traps don’t get overloaded.

Then make sure your feet are even and about hip-width apart. You don’t want your knees falling open or caving in. You CAN do a close-stance glute bridge or a wide-stance glute bridge but you need to still make sure your ankles, knees and hips are in the proper alignment. If they aren’t in alignment, you are going to perpetuate poor movement patterns.

This proper set up can also help you unlock tight hips by forcing your glutes to create hip extension as you bridge up. It will also prevent your quads from taking over, which if they do start trying to work, won’t help you open up tight hip flexors.

Part of this set up also needs to be learning to engage your abs, which can be done using a posterior pelvic tilt!

Bridging Tip #2: Tilt It Up Aka Stop Trying To Use Your Back To Get Up Higher!

One of the things that happens most often is that, in an attempt to bridge up HIGHER, people arch and use their lower back. And then they just push and ignore the fact that all they feel is their lower back.

Why does this happen? Why aren’t your glutes firing like they should be and you are instead loading your low back?

Because when we are focused on simply bridging up higher to replicate a movement, instead of focusing more on the muscles that should be working, our bodies recruit whatever muscles are easily available to meet our demands.

We will demand mobility out of an area that really shouldn’t be providing that mobility. And we will overuse muscles that aren’t meant to handle the load. Because our body takes the path of least resistance to do the movements that we ask of it.

And this process of compensation often happens because our hips are tight and our glutes, and even our abs, are underactive.

That is why it is key to do bridges correctly so you can improve your hip extension AND activate your glutes and abs. And the key to doing this is the posterior pelvic tilt!

By using the posterior pelvic tilt, you can engage your abs, prevent hyperextension of your lumbar spine AND get your glutes to power the bridge and hip extension.

To do the posterior pelvic tilt, set up at the bottom of the bridge with your feet flat on the ground and elbows driving down into the ground too.

Feel the space between your low back and the ground? Push that space away so you are tilting your hips and pressing your low back into the ground.

You may feel too like you are drawing your abs in toward your spine.

Keeping the core engaged like this, bridge up. Squeeze your butt and pause. Do not worry about how high you go. Just squeeze the butt as you keep your abs engaged in this way. Then lower down.

You may notice at the top you start to lose the tilt as you just try to drive up higher. This means you are trying to again arch your lower back instead of just extending your hips.

It is key with all of these tips, and with all exercises for that matter, that not only do you pay attention to form, BUT you THINK about the muscles that are working so you can realize if you lose the posterior pelvic tilt and stop using your glutes.

Lower back down and repeat. If you need, reset that posterior pelvic tilt each time. But focus on maintaining that so you CAN’T arch your low back and can only bridge as high as you glutes, and hips for that matter, allow!

Bridging Tip #3: THINK About The Muscles That Should Be Working

As I mentioned above, you have to THINK about the muscles working. Part of contracting your muscles and feeling them work is about establishing the mind-body connection so your mind can more efficiently and effectively recruit the right muscles for the job.

And basic bodyweight activation moves like the bridge are the easiest way to improve your mind-body connection so things work correctly during more compound lifts.

Think about how many times you’ve just gone through the motions of a workout? Or pushed through even when you sort of know the wrong muscle, aka your low back, is working.

You just figure, “Hey gotta get through the workout!”

The problem is…That attitude can lead to injury. AND it can also mean that all these workouts you’re spending “working your glutes” are actually going to waste.

Cause guess what!?!

Your glutes aren’t working!

So during these moves THINK about your glutes driving the movement. That way you can adjust if they aren’t. And by focusing on your glutes working, you can contract them even harder as you pause at the top of the bridge.

Heck…it can even be fun to see how much shakeage you can create by mentally trying to contract harder!

Bridging Tip #4: What If I STILL Don’t Feel My Glutes?!

There is a chance that you will still struggle, even after trying to tweak your form, with activating your glutes. Heck maybe even just one side doesn’t seem to want to engage!

This is where some mobility work, some Foam Rolling and Dynamic Stretching may need to come into play first to loosen those tight muscles so your glutes can engage properly.

Using rolling first can help you relax tight and overexcited muscles, muscles your mind may want to usually recruit first.

Roll your hamstrings (often for people rolling right under the glute helps).

foam-rolling-hamstrings

Roll your hips to help loosen tight hips before you bridge. Heck, roll your quads!

tfl-foam-rolling

Start there. Then do even a dynamic stretch or two, like the Half-Kneeling Hip And Quad Stretch, to start to open up your hips.

THEN try the glute bridge.

Often rolling, stretching THEN activating can help us FEEL the glutes working when they should be!

That process will allow us to restore muscles to their proper length tension relationships so we can get the right muscles working…AKA our GLUTES!

But what if it is only one side?

Well the focus on that tight side and even try some unilateral activation before.

Try a Fire Hydrant or Donkey Kick. Another basic bodyweight moves to focus on that side that isn’t firing.

fire-hydrantsTHEN return to the bilateral move once you’ve established the mind-body connection! (I mention the Fire Hydrant too because sometimes activating the glute medius helps the glute maximus fire better even during moves like the Glute Bridge!)

But NEVER underestimate the importance of the Basic Bodyweight Glute Bridge. And don’t ignore the importance of those other silly looking basic activation moves for your glutes either!

Those moves are what help you prevent injury and get the right muscles working.

These silly, BASIC moves are so important it’s why I created a 28-Day Booty Burner to help my clients get their glutes working the way they should be!

Learn More About Glute Activation And Unlocking Tight Hips –>

How To Activate Your Glutes Before You Workout

How To Activate Your Glutes Before You Workout

by | Apr 9, 2017 | Blog, Butt, Exercises, Pain Relief, Workouts

So you want a sexy, strong butt…because let’s face it…who doesn’t!?!

Whether you just want your butt to look firm and toned or you want to lift more, run faster or even PREVENT INJURY, glute activation is a MUST.

And it can be done quickly BEFORE you workout so you get even more out of all of those squats, lunges and deadlifts.

Because while squats, lunges and deadlifts are AMAZING compound exercises, if your glutes aren’t ALREADY activated, they won’t work properly during those moves.

Which can not only lead to injury, but also cause your quads and legs to change while your glutes stay the same.

So if you want to get the most out of your workouts, you’ve got to activate your glutes BEFORE.

(And P.S. Guys – this applies to you too. If you want to prevent low back, hip and knee pain, run faster, and lift more, you have to activate those glutes…Plus I won’t lie…Women like a nice backside. 😉 haha)

Below are 3 moves you can do before your lower body workouts to make sure your glutes are activating and firing.

These moves are all BODYWEIGHT because with bodyweight we have the ability to contract our glutes harder and establish the mind-body connection.

Too often we add weight to try to get the glutes to work, but then they stop firing. Bodyweight and light resistance for higher reps is KEY to getting them activated and pumped.

Using these 3 moves you can also unlock your hips to improve hip extension and work all 3 gluteal muscles.

It is important that your glute activation ALSO works on hip extension because tight hips can not only lead to pain and injury, but they can keep your glutes from working proper and cause that LOWER BELLY POOCH!

Use these 3 moves and get your glutes working properly before your workout for a strong and sexy butt!

3 Moves To Activate Your Glutes Before You Workout

Bench 2-Way Leg Swings:

This move works all three gluteal muscles, opens up your hips AND even helps you build core stability.

It is the perfect move if you can literally only do one thing that day to activate your glutes and core. This move alone will get you ready to feel your glutes during your workout!

bench-two-leg-swings

To do the Bench 2-Way Leg Swings, place one knee and both hands on a bench with your knee under your hips and your hands under your shoulders. Your other leg will be off to the side of the bench hanging straight down to the ground.

Keeping your arms straight, brace your core and then lift the leg off the bench straight up to the side. Keep the leg straight as you lift and don’t bend your elbows or lean away to try to lift higher. Squeeze your glute to lift the leg up and out to the side. Try to get it as straight out to the side as possible. Feel the outside of your hip working.

Lower back down and then lift the same leg straight back toward the wall behind your. Again, squeeze your glute to lift your leg straight out behind you and extend your hip. Keep your core engaged and do not hyperextend your low back or rotate your hips open just to kick the leg up higher as you lift it back behind you.

Lower back down and repeat the lifts on the same side. Do not bend your arms or really rock away to get the leg up higher. You want to move from the hip and use your glute.

Do not just swing the leg, but focus on FEELING your glute working. Complete all reps on one side before switching. Move quickly between the two lifts.

Side Balance Leg Raise:

This is the perfect way to activate your hip stabilizers aka your gluteus medius and minimus to prevent pain and injury AND even make sure your gluteus maximus engages during your workout! PLUS, this move will work your core and even your shoulders!

To do the Side Balance Leg Raise, start on one knee with your other leg out straight to the side. Then place your hand down on the outside of your knee so you are in a side balance position. Your hand should be under your shoulder while your knee will be just slightly below your hip. You want to keep your chest open and not rotate toward the ground.

Then lift your top straight leg up toward the ceiling. Lift the leg as close to parallel to the ground as you can and then lower back down. Do not swing your entire body to lift the leg. Keep your core tight and do not let your body rotate toward the ground or open toward the ceiling as you lift. Make sure your toe doesn’t rotate open as you lift.

Feel the outside of your glute and hip working to lift the leg. Complete all reps on one side before switching.

Feet-Raised Hip Thruster:

Take the basic glute bridge and amplify the pump with the Feet-Raised Hip Thruster. This move will work on hip extension and get those glutes burning and engaged! It is the perfect way to unlock your hips as you activate your glutes.

bilateral-off-box-hip-thruster

To Feet-Raised Hip Thruster, place a box and a bench close enough together that your back can be on the bench and your feet up on the box. You just don’t want your legs to be out too far. If your legs are out too straight, you will use more hamstrings than glutes.

Then with your feet and back both up on boxes or benches, bridge up, driving up through your heels and your upper back. Make sure to engage your abs and even do a pelvic tilt if you struggle to keep your low back from taking over.

Drive your hips up and squeeze your glutes. Lift your hips to full extension and hold for a second and then lower back down. Make sure you don’t drive yourself backward over the bench. You want to bridge straight up and feel like you are driving your knees forward over your toes.

Lower back down, making sure to drop your butt below the height of the box and repeat. You do not have to touch the ground each time, but you do want to do a bigger range of motion than you could if performing a bridge from the ground.

–> 5 Signs Your Hips Are Locked Up And Glutes Are Inactive <–

LEARN MORE –>