There is always this common myth that only squats give you that beautiful round booty that you try so hard to get. However, there are so many more reasons other than the aesthetics of your butt as to why you should be doing more hip thrusts. Working your glutes in this way will make them stronger and can improve tight hip flexors and sore knees but also help improve other lifts you might do like your squats and deadlifts. Yet, despite the many other reasons that aren’t anything to do with aesthetics why is it I am still yet to see a man do them on the gym floor? Why are hip thrusts so good? Well…read on because I’m hoping it may help you guys make the change.
Firstly, think of it simply. You are isolating your glutes so much in this exercise especially because your knees remain bent the whole time. What I love about this exercise too is how many different variations and tempos there are-more of which I will delve into later. People forget you are working your hamstrings as well as your glutes. Stronger glutes= getting better at climbing those stairs, getting in and out of a seated position and generally supporting your body in everyday life. Without strong glutes you may develop or even currently have tight lumbar muscles which could also lead to bad posture or lower back pain. Does this sound a bit of you?
BUT WHERE DID IT COME FROM?
As early as the 1920s, an Australian strongman called Don Athaldo included the bodyweight glute bridge to strengthen the glutes. Different forms of the hip thrust were done during this time. Mostly, the variations of the hip thrust were done much later for physical therapy and in the 70s hip thrusts were recommended by sports scientists to improve the performance of sprinters. It only really became well known until 2006 when Bret Contreras introduced it with a heavy barbell, to which he did many different variations in his gym. He got many testimonials from clients showing the great improvement in their glutes and soon it became widespread and common in most people’s programmes today (women especially who are still striving for that pretty peach.
TOP TIPS FOR DOING THE HIP THRUST
· Ensure your setup is perfect-that the pad is in the middle, that you’re in the middle, that the bench isn’t too high. A bad setup will mess up the whole execution of this lift.
· Push through your heels and keep heels flat on the floor at all times.
· Brace in just before you come up.
· Push your knees out at the top and really exaggerate the squeeze in the glutes.
· Tempo: Come up quickly and with aggression, but pause at the top for a split second as you squeeze your glutes to engage them properly.
· Make sure your hips come up high enough, otherwise you are not getting that full range of motion to have maximum tension in the glutes.
· Never throw your head or body backwards-keep your chin resting on your chest with eyes facing forwards and only lift your glutes and hips.
VARIATIONS OF THE HIP THRUST
What I love most about Hip thrusts is that practically anyone of any ability will be able to do them. If you’ve never done them before then it is probably best to do a bodyweight variation lying flat on your back on the floor. Adding a band will add more intensity when bodyweight becomes too easy. As some clients have experienced having a bar against the bench too difficult you can still do the hip thrust with a barbell lying flat on the floor until you are ready to use the bench. Once you want to use the bench again start on bodyweight and then add a band.
If you are wanting to build strength, then my recommendation would be to keep to an 8-10 rep range and aim to increase weekly (progressive overload). When increasing weight, aim for 10kg at a time rather than 5kg. Adding a band will seriously intensify the lift.
Other ways of doing them are with high rep ranges (12-15) and using a band again will make it more difficult. Tempos are also vital in this left. Having a 3 second pause at the top will kill you as well as a 3 second tempo on the way down.
Kas Glute bridges I have tried for the first time recently and boy they are a killer! The difference with this type of hip thrust is your glutes and hips do not come all the way down (just above halfway down) and the engagement in the glutes doing it this way is lethal! At the moment I am doing 4 sets of 15 in one of my leg sessions and obviously having to go much lighter. Give them a go and let me know what you think!
WHAT YOUR HIP THRUST JOURNEY COULD LOOK LIKE
Glute bridges from the floor-bodyweight or banded…….Using a bar on the floor….bodyweight or banded using a bench. Experiment with different variations. If you’re wanting to progress quickly with them, in 2 different leg sessions do one for strength (8-10 rep range) and then another banded, going lighter with a rep range of 12-15.
LASTLY
Just in case you’re interested to know, my PB on a hip thrust was 200kg x3 reps back in 2020. But, please remember once upon a time I struggled with 40kg. Anything you want to improve on requires hard work, so keep going with them. Everyone should be doing the hip thrust, not just women. Especially men who love to squat and deadlift, just by incorporating these you will notice a huge difference in the speed, strength and overall performance of your other compounds. Get a decent pad too-it does tend to hurt and feedback from male clients, particularly uncomfortable around the manhood area!
Want to learn to hip thrust or even improve your hip thrust? DM me today on Instagram @natashakostalas or check out our website KostalasPT.com to enquire for a consultation!
Comments