Nowadays, most people have jobs that require them to sit a lot. In this position, especially the muscles on the back of your body (glutes, hamstrings, back) are stretched and inactive, whereas the entire front (quadriceps, chest muscles) is often very tight.
This can lead to muscular imbalances over time. Thus, it is important to activate the right muscles during your training. Studying in medical school has changed my outlook on fitness and exercise. While I work out, I think about the anatomy of the muscles and how they are activated by the brain. This helps me to fully stimulate a motor unit and thus hit all muscle fibers.
Today’s article gives tips on how to activate all muscles of the lower body: Glutes, Hamstrings and Quadriceps.
This post is the follow-up to science of muscle activation, I recommend you check that out first before reading on.
WHAT IS THE FUNCTION OF THE GLUTES?
The Gluteus maximus, medius and minimus are hip extensors (raising your leg to the back) and abductors (raising your leg to the side).
They help stabilize your pelvis in a neutral position which is crucial to prevent back pain, disc herniation and all kinds of arthritis of the hip and knee-joint.
To fully engage the Glutes you need to posteriorly tilt the pelvis. This doesn’t mean you should thrust your hips forward in an uncontrolled manner. Always keep tension in the Glutes and think about them as your primary muscles to complete the exercise.
Don’t lift heavy until you can engage your Glutes with bodyweight exercises!
The Glute Bridge with weights is an advanced exercise. You should only use weights if you can complete all repetitions without feeling them in your lower back. This exercise should activate your glutes, hamstrings and core. Make sure to push through your heels the whole time. I also recommend you start the movement by pressing your lower back on the ground and then raising your hips, while holding this position. This way, your hips will be tilted posteriorly and your glute activation will increase.
The Hip Thrust is one of the best exercises to target your glutes and build a bigger butt. It will also prevent back injuries. Start out bodyweight and then add weights.
If you struggle with proper form, check out my Hip Thrust Challenge for explanation.
Do these exercises before you do heavy strength training exercises like squats, or super set them.
SAMPLE WORKOUT
Warm up:
Side Clam -20x
Side leg raise – 20x
Glute bridge feel elevated – 20x
Fire Hydrants -20x
Superset Squats- 10x with Donkey Kicks – 20x
Superset Lunges -10x with Bridges – 12x
Superset Reverse Hyper -15x with Deadlifts -8x
Repeat for 3-4 sets for each Super set
ADDITIONAL TIPS
Make sure to strengthen your transverse abdominis (deep pelvis muscle). This will help you to posterior pelvic tilt the hips and work the Glutes and Abs together.
As a side note, I noticed my Glutes activate to a much higher degree when I try to squeeze the Glutes and abdominal muscles together. Try that out when squatting or deadlifting.
Hip Thrusts and Bridges: Press the lower back on the ground, raise the head and dig heels into ground. Push through as if you want to split the ground apart.
Use resistance bands. The gluteus maximus is easier to activate but gluteus medius is a bit tricky. Gluteus medius needs to be strong to stabilize the pelvis and prevent knee arthritis.
Use ankle weights: I use ankle weights on a daily basis to properly activate the glutes. Resistance bands are great to hit the outer part of the glutes (the “shelf”), while ankle weights hit more the lower part of your glutes (the hamstring tie-in). Combine both and you have your ultimate butt-burner workout!
ACTIVATE THE GLUTEUS MEDIUS:
Use resistance bands around knees when you are doing Squats, Deadlifts, Bridges, Hip Thrusts, Fire Hydrants, Side Clam etc.
HIT all muscle fibers - Lower Body
