Although it is permissible to pursue aesthetic goals, the major purpose of a workout programme should be to enhance the functional ability of the gluteal muscles. The three distinct but interrelated gluteal muscles—the gluteus maximus, gluteus medius, and gluteus minimus—contribute to our ability to do daily activities such as standing, sitting, and walking.
Strong gluteal muscles are essential for maintaining pelvic stability, great posture, proper alignment, and proper body mechanics during physical activity. Here are seven exercises that, with the guidance of a personal trainer, may help you grow stronger gluteal muscles.
Physical Activities for Novices
1-Contraction of the Glutes
Action:
Maintain a supine posture with your knees bent and your feet firmly planted on the ground. Place the feet about hip-width apart. Engage the abdominal muscles and adopt a little posterior pelvic tilt. As you elevate your body off the floor, exhale, contract your glutes, and drive your hips up and away from the floor. As you inhale, you should lower your hips to the starting position. Perform 12 repetitions, then rest for one minute before performing two to four further sets.
2-Hip abduction when side-lying
Action:
Posture yourself in a side-lying position on the floor with your legs extended and your hips in a neutral position. Place the bottom portion of your arm behind your head for support, and align your head with your spine. Exhale, then raise the upper leg while keeping the foot in a flexed posture. Inhale deeply, then gently lower your leg. Complete 12 repetitions on one side, then swap and complete the set on the other. Complete six sets in total (three per leg).
3-Step-up
Material requirements:
A platform-based piece of exercise equipment, such as an aerobic step or plyometric box.
In the climbing phase, you should:
Position your feet just behind your hips while facing a platform. Place your right foot on the platform, then initiate forward movement by kicking off with your trail leg (left foot). Ensure that your foot, ankle, and knee are aligned with your body as you step up. During the descending phase, gently shift your weight forward and load your right leg with weight. To return to the starting position, take a step backward with your left foot, followed by a step backward with your right foot. Perform 12 reps before switching sides and repeating the workout. There will be a total of six sets of lead leg exchanges (three on each leg).
Training for the Middle Ground
4-The Front Squat
Action:
Place a dumbbell on each shoulder’s front edge, stand tall with your feet slightly wider than hip width apart, and spin your shoulders in a circular motion. As you bring your weight back into your heels and bend forward at the hips, knees, and ankles, take a deep breath and clench your abdominal muscles. As you squat until your thighs are parallel to the floor, be careful to keep your chest up and push your hips back. When you are ready, exhale as you push your feet firmly into the ground and simultaneously stretch your legs to return to a standing position. Perform 10 repetitions followed by a one-minute break before beginning another set, for a total of two or three sets.
5-“Goblet Squat”
Action:
Assume a standing stance with feet shoulder-width apart and outwardly rotated hips. While doing so, hold a dumbbell or kettlebell in front of the chest and keep the elbows near to the body. Positioning oneself for squatting demands bending at the hips, knees, and ankles. Continue until your hips are somewhat closer to the ground than your knees. To stand, firmly push the soles of the feet into the floor and return the body to its initial position. Perform 10 repetitions followed by a one-minute break before beginning another set, for a total of two or three sets.
6-Lunge that is Perpendicular to the Body’s Longaxis
Action:
Holding dumbbells in each hand, maintain a stance in which the feet are under the hips. Inhale deeply and then firmly put your left foot on the ground. Then, rotate the right leg outside so that you may take steps with the right foot forward and backward. Exhale, then transfer your weight to your right foot and push off it as you return to the starting position. Alternate legs twenty times for a total of twenty repetitions. Repeat the preceding action followed by a brief pause for two or three sets.
Complex Exercises
7-Recline in a squatting position
Action:
Place the bar so that it rests on the upper trapezius muscle and is positioned comfortably across the back of the shoulders (upper back). Maintain a standing stance in which the toes point forward and the feet are in front of the hips. To enter a squatting position, bend at the hips, knees, and ankles in that order. Throughout each phase of the exercise, be careful to maintain an erect chest and torso posture. Knees, hips, and ankles are extended to return to the starting position. (At the bottom of the squat, the spine and tibia should be parallel.) Choose a weight that is challenging enough to allow you to finish 8–10 repetitions. Three times with a pause in between, repeat the preceding action.
8-Holding a Glute Activation Lunge Position
Action:
Maintain a standing stance with the feet below the hips, the medicine ball in front of the chest, and the elbows close to the body. Take a right footstep to the position corresponding to 3 o’clock. To assume the posture of a lateral lunge, you must apply pressure to your right foot and drive your hips backward. To stand and return to the starting posture, exert substantial force on both feet. Then, stride forward with your right foot and, while lowering yourself into a lunge stance, cut across your body’s midline (to the 11 o’clock position). Simultaneously, rotate your body to the right to increase the amount of stress on your gluteal muscles. After finishing your exhale, return to your starting position. This is an example of the repetition. After eight repetitions with the right leg, switch to the left leg and repeat. Aim to do three total sets on each leg.
9-Leg Splits
Action:
Adopt a split stance by placing your left foot on a bench placed behind you and advancing with your right foot. While holding a dumbbell in front of your chest, maintain tight closeness between your elbows and torso. Taking a deep breath in, while keeping the body upright, bring the left knee, commonly known as the back knee, closer to the floor. As you exhale, return to the starting position by pushing the right foot, which is the leading foot, into the ground. After doing 10 repetitions on one leg, switch to the other. Perform three sets of exercises on each leg.
10-Squat Jumps
Action:
Adopt a split stance by placing the right foot in front of the left foot and maintaining this posture. While concurrently modifying your foot posture, lunge forward until your thighs are parallel to the floor, and then push off the ground to jump upward while simultaneously adjusting your foot position. Perform 16 repetitions, alternating between the left and right leg with each jump. Three times with a pause in between, repeat the preceding action.