8 Glute and Hamstring Exercises for Bigger, Stronger Legs
The muscles in your legs are amongst the largest and strongest in your body. Your glute and hamstrings, in particular, are storehouses of strength and power. Training these muscles will promote healthy fat metabolism, improve muscle composition and physique, and improve overall athleticism.
If you're looking to increase your overall strength and improve your physical performance, training your leg muscles should be a top priority. The muscles in your legs, such as your glutes and hamstrings, are some of the largest and strongest in your body. Not only will training these muscles help you build a better physique, but it can also boost your metabolism and enhance your athletic ability. In this blog, we'll delve deeper into the benefits of training your leg muscles and provide some tips on how to get started.
Strengthening your hamstrings, in particular, will help to stabilize and bulletproof your knees as they help to decelerate impact when running, jumping, lunging, and squatting. Having strong glutes and hamstrings will improve not only your athleticism but also your quality of life.
Check out my top 8 glute and hamstring exercises to develop bigger, stronger, and more athletic legs. The following exercise progressions are ideal for exercisers of all fitness levels, from the novice to the elite. Select a few to incorporate into your weekly workout routine, or you can follow one of the sample workouts listed at the end of this article.
Glute Bridge
The glute bridge is a must-have exercise to incorporate into your warm-up routine. Glute bridges reverse many muscular imbalances we develop throughout our lives— especially for individuals that spend 6-8 hours a day sitting. I recommend including the glute bridge into your workouts at least 2-3x a week to maintain good postural alignment. You can even perform the single-leg bridge variation for an added challenge.
Bodyweight Leg Curl
The bodyweight leg curl is one of my favorite hamstring exercises because it strengthens the hip and knee joint hamstrings. Since the hamstrings play a significant role in hip extension and knee flexion, training them in this manner is essential. You can perform this exercise with a stability ball or a furniture slider. Both offer unique challenges for your glutes, hamstrings, and calves, so I recommend incorporating both variations into your workout routine. As with the glute bridge, you can perform the bodyweight leg curl with a single leg.
Back Extension
Back extensions are an excellent training tool to strengthen your entire posterior chain through a full range of motion. Strengthening your spine through extension will do wonders for your posture and alignment, thus reducing pain and stiffness. A healthy and mobile spine makes life a lot easier. Click here for a more detailed breakdown of the back extension and its variations.
Hip Thrust
The barbell hip thrust is an excellent intermediate-level exercise that strengthens your glutes and hamstrings while teaching you how to drive through your hips. This exercise is an invaluable tool to help maximize your strength in the deadlift because it allows you to lift heavier loads without overloading your nervous system. Try to load as much weight as possible without breaking form or technique.
Kettlebell Swing
The kettlebell swing is a unique exercise that gives you a wide range of health benefits, which include increased cardiovascular health, improved muscle endurance, and enhanced strength and power. Like many movements mentioned in this article, the kettlebell swing involves using the hip hinge pattern to swing the kettlebell at shoulder height. Make sure to lock your hips at the top of the movement and control the kettlebell as you swing it back between your legs.
Backward Lunge
The backward lunge is one of the most effective glute and hamstring developers, so I recommend it for beginner and advanced athletes. Stepping back into the lunge better activates the glutes and hamstrings because it is similar to the hip hinge movement pattern and places a more significant stretch on your glutes and hamstring muscles. If you are serious about developing glute and hamstring strength, I recommend adding these to your workout routine.
Romanian Deadlift
The Romanian deadlift is excellent for strengthening your posterior chain and developing hamstring and glute mobility. Keep your legs straight throughout the movement to target your hamstrings and glutes through a full range of motion.
Traditional Deadlift
The barbell deadlift is one of human history's most fundamental strength training exercises. The barbell deadlift is a complex movement involving simultaneous action across multiple body parts. For this reason, I recommend breaking the deadlift down into its constituent parts to solidify ownership of the specific movement patterns. If you practice the glute bridge, hip thrust, and Romanian deadlifts, you will be more than prepared to deadlift a barbell.
Sample Workouts:
Below are three sample workouts (from beginner to advanced) for you to incorporate into your weekly workout routine. Ensure that you warm up properly before you start your workout to improve your performance and mitigate injury.
Beginner workout:
Glute bridge: 2-3 sets of 10-15 reps
Backward lunge w/ bodyweight: 2-3 sets of 10-12 reps (each leg)
Romanian deadlift: 2-3 sets of 10-12 reps
Intermediate workout:
Single-leg glute bridge: 3-4 sets of 8-10 reps
Kettlebell swing: 3-5 sets of 15-20 reps
Dumbbell backward lunge: 3-5 sets of 10-12 reps
Advanced workout:
Barbell hip thrust: 3-5 sets of 3-7 reps
Barbell backward lunge: 3-4 sets of 6-8 (on each leg)
Back extension: 3-4 sets of 8-10 reps
