Exercises · Glutes · Barbell

Barbell hip thrust

How to do it

1. Sit with your upper back against a bench and the bar over your hips.
2. Drive your hips up until your body is flat from knees to shoulders, then squeeze.
3. Lower your hips under control and repeat.

Form cues that help

• Set your feet so your shins are close to vertical at the top.
• Tuck your chin slightly and keep your ribs down, so the movement comes from your hips and not your lower back.
• Push through your whole foot and pause briefly at the top with your glutes squeezed.
• Use a pad or folded mat on the bar if it presses into your hips.

Common mistakes

• Arching the lower back at the top. Finish with your body flat, not bent backward.
• Feet too close or too far away. Adjust until you feel your glutes working rather than your thighs or your lower back.
• Rushing the reps. Pause at the top and lower with control.
• Going too heavy too soon. Add weight only once your form stays the same from the first rep to the last.

Alternatives and variations

• The glute bridge, with your back on the floor and no bar, is a good place to start and needs no equipment.
• A dumbbell or a machine can stand in for the barbell when the bar is awkward to set up.
• The Romanian deadlift trains the glutes and hamstrings with a hip hinge from standing.
• The back squat and lunge work the glutes through a different movement.

How to progress it

Start with a weight you can lift cleanly for a full set, then add reps, and once you reach the top of your rep range, add a little weight. Log every session so you can see what you did last time. See progressive overload.

See it moving in FollowSet

FollowSet has a 3D demo for the barbell hip thrust and shows the working muscles, and it logs every rep. Download it on the App Store.

General information, not medical advice. Stop if you feel sharp pain in your lower back or hips, and ask a qualified coach or clinician if you have an injury.