How Doing Hip Thrusts Will Make You Insanely Strong

Hip thrusts are one of the best exercises to do if your goal is to be as strong as you can possibly be. Body strength is dependent on many muscles, but glutes are one of the most important determiners of how physically strong you are.

Strong glutes are essential for maintaining good posture, a strong back, and good lower body strength. Incorporating hip thrusts into your workout routine is a must if you want to develop a big, strong rear end.

The hip thrust is a popular exercise among weightlifters due to its focus on the posterior chain (particularly the glutes) through the use of a bent leg hip extension while lying on an elevated surface.

In this article, we will discuss hip thrusts in detail.

Why Should You Do Hip Thrusts?

Hip thrusts are excellent for women looking to grow their glutes. (Image via Flickr)

Experts agree that hip thrusts are beneficial for a wide variety of people, from athletes to those over the age of 65, as they increase glute strength and size in a way few other exercises can.

Core, pelvic, and lower body stabilitybenefit from strong glutes. Injury to the knees, back, and other joints is more likely to occur if you don't have strong glutes. In sports, having strong glutes helps with jumping, sprinting, and changing directions. As a general rule, robust glutes are a prerequisite for nimble movement.

The hip thrust is one of the best exercises for isolating the gluteus maximus, the largest muscle in the butt and the entire lower body. That's what sets it apart from exercises like the squat and deadlift, which call for the use of a larger number of muscle groups working together.

The hip thrust is effective at targeting glutes because of the way it is performed. The hip thrust is a variation of the glute bridge in which the load is placed on top of the hips and the person lifts their hips until their knees form a 90-degree angle.

High levels of glute activation can be attributed in large part to the combination of hip extension, knee flexion (when the knee is bent), and hip load. The exercise effectively isolates the glutes without putting the hamstrings to much use.

In addition, you can effectively target your glutes with this lower body exercise without using an excessively heavy load.

How to do Hip Thrust Workout

Floor hip thrusts are a variation you can attempt, but consult your trainer first. (Image via Flickr)

To do the exercise:

Position yourself with your back against something high (a box or bench), knees bent, and feet flat on the floor.
The feet should be about shoulder-width apart, and the seat should be at the level of your hips. Prop your upper back and arms up on the bench or box.
Keep your chin tucked in, and drive through your heels to bring your thighs parallel to the floor, creating a 90-degree angle with your legs.
Contract your buttocks at the top, and slowly release.
Starting with three sets of 12 reps, you can gradually increase to twenty reps using only your bodyweight.

Incorporating hip thrusts into a full body or leg-specific workout is a great way to get the most out of your time in the gym.

Check out these hip thrust variation exercises for beginners.

Make sure you're giving yourself and your legs enough time to recover in between sets of hip thrusts and other leg exercises like squats and deadlifts.

Always get warmed up before doing any kind of strength training. Dynamic stretching after a 5-10 minute moderate cardio warm-up can do the trick.

Do you need any equipment for performing hip thrusts?

Practicing the correct form for this exercise is very important to avoid injury. (Image via Flickr)

Hip thrusts can be done as a bodyweight workout in itself. Once you're well acquainted and comfortable with the bodyweight version, you can challenge yourself by trying a single-leg variation or by adding weight to the exercise in a safe manner using a barbell, a plate, or a dumbbell.

Thrusters are specialized pieces of equipment that some gyms stock specifically for this exercise. It's an L-shaped apparatus consisting of a floor-level platform and a padded bar on which to rest your upper back. This device is preferred by many, as it's steady and easy to use during the exercise.

Common Mistakes

When doing a hip thruster, it's important to avoid making these common mistakes. Making a mistake could reduce the effectiveness of the procedure and even cause injury to the spine or neck.

1) Coaches advise clients to find a comfortable foot position. However, foot placement can affect which muscle is activated during the move. Moving the feet closer or farther from the body may change how this exercise feels.

If the quadriceps muscles are overworked, the feet may be too close to the hips. Moving them away from the body will help load the hamstrings and glutes. Moving them too far away will reduce the glutes and emphasize the hamstrings.

2) Hip thrusters require focus

As they work out the glutes, they can make you insanely strong. (Image via Flickr)

The weight bench supports the upper back (lower shoulder blade area) but not the neck or head. Dropping the head and looking up while lifting the hips is possible. That can cause spine overarching, so avoid it. Instead, tuck the chin to the chest and extend the hips. This engages the core and prevents torso arching and spine overextension.

3) If you lift too much or have tight hip flexors, you can lift the hips partially but not fully to line them up with the shoulders and knees. Ypu will miss the best part of the exercise.

Try lowering the weight to fully extend the hips. Tight hip flexors may prevent the hips from rising. Before the thruster, do glute bridges to open the hips.

Properly executed hip thrusters are a great way to build up glute size and strength. The good news is that they're accessible to all people.