Best Beginner Glutes Workouts

The Glute Kickback Machine helps strengthen your glutes using a machine for added resistance. This exercise gives you better control and stability while allowing you to focus on the movement without worrying about balancing.

How to do it

1. Stand with your chest against the padding and hold the handles.
2. Balance on one leg and place the other foot on the pedal.
3. Push your leg back while squeezing your glutes.
4. Hold briefly at the back, then slowly return to start.
5. Switch legs and repeat.

Cable Hip Extension is an exercise where you attach your leg to a cable machine and extend it behind you while standing. This helps strengthen your glutes and improve balance, as the cable provides controlled resistance.

How to do it

1. Set the pulley to the lowest position and attach the ankle cuff to your right ankle.
2. Stand facing the pulley with your feet hip-width apart, holding the frame for support.
3. Engage your core and keep your back straight.
4. With a slight bend in your knee, extend your right leg behind you by squeezing your glute.
5. Return to the starting position and switch to your left leg.

The Single Leg Glute Bridge is a bodyweight exercise that focuses on strengthening your glutes one side at a time. This variation helps improve muscle activation and balance by isolating each side of your body.

How to do it

1. Lie on your back with your knees bent and feet on the ground, arms at your sides.
2. Tighten your core and tilt your pelvis slightly up.
3. Push through your right heel to lift your hips, squeezing your right glute until your body is in a straight line from knees to shoulders.
4. Lower back down and switch to the left side, repeating the movement.

The Single Leg Hip Thrust targets the glutes and hamstrings while improving strength and balance on one leg. This exercise adds instability, enhancing muscle activation and helping to correct strength imbalances between your legs.

How to do it

1. Lie on your back with knees bent and feet flat on the ground.
2. Extend your arms beside your body, palms down.
3. Tighten your core by breathing deeply into your stomach.
4. Lift one foot off the ground and extend that leg out.
5. Push through the heel of the grounded foot to raise your hips, forming a straight line from your knees to shoulders.
6. Lower your hips back down and repeat on the other leg.

The Elevated Hip Bridge is a challenging move that targets your glutes by elevating your feet on a surface like a bench. This variation improves your range of motion for better muscle engagement during the exercise.

How to do it

1. Lie on your back with your feet on a step or box, hip-width apart and knees bent at 90 degrees.
2. Place your arms at your sides, palms facing down.
3. Tilt your hips slightly while engaging your abdomen to keep your back flat.
4. Lift your hips by squeezing your glutes until your body forms a straight line from your knees to your shoulders.
5. Lower your hips back down to the ground in a controlled manner.

The Hip Thrust is an easy exercise that focuses on strengthening your glutes. It helps improve your glute drive, which benefits many other movements and exercises.

How to do it

1. Lie on your back with your feet flat and hip-width apart.
2. Place your arms at your sides, palms down.
3. Tilt your hips up while tightening your tummy to keep your back flat.
4. Lift your hips by squeezing your glutes until your body forms a straight line from knees to shoulders.
5. Lower your hips back down to the ground in a controlled manner.

The Single Leg Kickback is a bodyweight exercise that strengthens your glutes. By lifting one leg at a time, it helps improve muscle balance and stability.

How to do it

1. Start in a kneeling push-up position, hands under your shoulders and knees under your hips, bent at 90 degrees.
2. Engage your core to maintain a flat back.
3. Bend your ankles to 90 degrees and lift your right leg back and up using your right glute.
4. Raise your leg until your body is straight, keeping the knee bent. Squeeze your glutes at the top for a moment.
5. Lower your leg back down and switch to the left leg. Repeat.

The Cable Pull Through is an effective exercise that strengthens your glutes and improves your hip hinge movement. It uses a cable for steady resistance, making it easier to build muscle and enhance glute power. This is a good choice for beginners wanting to develop their lower body strength.

How to do it

1. Set the pulley to the lowest position with a rope attachment.
2. Stand with your back to the pulley, hold the rope with palms facing in, and keep your arms resting on your hips.
3. Step forward 1-2 feet from the pulley with feet wider than shoulder-width apart.
4. Engage your core, keep your back straight, and hinge your hips back while keeping your knees slightly bent.
5. Hinge until your back can no longer stay straight, then return to the starting position.

The Stability Ball Hip Bridge is a variation of the Glute Bridge that strengthens your glutes while using a stability ball for added challenge. It helps you improve muscle activation and stability. This exercise is performed by holding the position for a set time.

How to do it

1. Sit on a stability ball and roll forward until your upper back is resting on it.
2. Place your feet shoulder-width apart on the ground and keep your knees at a 90-degree angle.
3. Put your hands on your hips or hold them above the ground for balance.
4. Lower your hips just above the floor, then raise them back to the starting position.

Step Ups are a simple exercise that strengthens your legs, focusing on your glutes, quads, and hamstrings. They allow you to work each leg individually while standing, making them easier for beginners to perform.

How to do it

1. Stand in front of a plyo box, about 3-6 inches away.
2. Shift your weight to your left leg and lift your right foot over the box, then step your right foot onto the box.
3. Keep your back straight and shift your weight to your right leg as you step your left foot onto the box next to your right foot.
4. Step back down by reversing the movements, starting with your left foot followed by your right foot.

The TRX Glute Bridge is a variation of the regular Glute Bridge that focuses on strengthening the glutes. By using TRX straps, this exercise adds instability, which helps engage your muscles more effectively.

How to do it

1. Lie on your back with your knees and hips bent at 90 degrees.
2. Place your heels in the TRX straps so your lower legs are parallel to the floor.
3. Extend your arms at your sides with palms facing down.
4. Tighten your core and lift your hips while keeping your knees bent at 90 degrees.
5. Lift your hips until your knees and shoulders are in a straight line, then lower back down.

The Dumbbell Glute Bridge adds weight to the classic Glute Bridge, making it a more challenging exercise that focuses on strengthening your glutes. By placing a dumbbell on your hips, you increase resistance to enhance your workout.

How to do it

1. Lie on your back with your feet flat on the ground, about shoulder-width apart.
2. Hold a dumbbell with both hands on your hips.
3. Lift your hips by pushing through your heels until your body forms a straight line from shoulders to knees.
4. Hold this position and engage your glutes throughout the exercise.
5. Keep your shoulders and feet on the floor.

The Dumbbell Hip Thrust is a challenging exercise that targets your glutes and hamstrings. By adding a dumbbell for resistance, you can enhance the effectiveness of this exercise beyond the typical bodyweight version.

How to do it

1. Lie on your back with your feet flat on the ground, about 6 inches from your glutes.
2. Hold a dumbbell with both hands over your hips.
3. Squeeze your glutes and push your heels into the ground to lift your hips.
4. Keep your hips in line with your shoulders and knees and hold for a moment.
5. Lower your hips back down to the starting position while keeping tension in your glutes.
6. Ensure your feet and shoulders stay on the floor throughout the movement.

The Smith Machine Hip Raise is a glute and hamstring exercise that uses a Smith Machine for better stability. This exercise helps you focus on strengthening your glutes while minimizing the risk of losing balance.

How to do it

1. Lie on a bench under the Smith Machine bar.
2. Position your feet shoulder-width apart on the bar, knees bent toward your chest.
3. Engage your core and keep your spine straight before lifting the bar by extending your legs down.
4. Raise your pelvis towards your rib cage until your lower back lifts off the bench.
5. Lower back to the starting position.

The Frog Pump is a bodyweight exercise that strengthens your glutes. By positioning your feet together and knees outward, it effectively engages your hips and glutes.

How to do it

1. Lie on your back with your knees bent and feet pressed together.
2. Lift your hips by squeezing your glutes until your body forms a straight line from knees to shoulders.
3. Lower your hips back down to the starting position.