Sit to stand exercises

Breaking down the glute bridge

By Jack Nuske

20/03/2023

Another simple but great movement is the glute bridge. True to its name, it is an exercise that targets the gluteal muscles (among other muscles that are involved in hip extension).

The action of hip extension is an important part of everyday activities like walking or standing up. You can imagine these muscles have an even more important role in sports/physical activity - think running, kicking, pushing off and jumping.

Performing the exercise is relatively simple:

Bend both legs so the feet are flat on the ground

Keeping your knees from wobbling in or out, lift your bum off the ground as far as your can (without going too far into an arched position)

Slowly lower yourself back down to the starting position.

The glute bridge is great because it can be modified in so many ways to increase how hard it is, or to target/incorporate other muscles into the movement. A simple Google search will show some people claiming they have more than 20 different variations. Easy ways to make it harder are to slide feet out a little bit and only have heels on the ground as this can increase how much work the hamstrings (back of thigh) have to do. Other ways include adding a band, raising feet to an elevated position or doing one leg at a time. I’d recommend starting with the basic glute bridge above.

How many can you do before those buns get tired?