9 exercises to stabilize the hips and strengthen the glutes (2023)

Today I'm sharing 9 of my favorite hip and glute strengthening exercises that will stabilize your hip joints and help relieve pain.

I will include bodyweight exercises, band exercises, as well as some more challenging variations with sliders.

Why you should strengthen your glutes

Did you know that Maximus gluteal muscle What is the largest muscle in the human body?

The gluteal muscles are one of the largest stabilizer and motor musclesare designedBe the strongest muscle in your body. (That should tell you something.)

And if you're experiencing hip pain or pelvic dysfunction, there's a good chance your glutes are out of balance.

Most people have extremely weak glutes. We simply do not develop our glutes to their full potential, for several main reasons:

Our sedentary lifestyle because we spend most of the day sitting.

Our general internal limiting beliefs about getting stronger, we don't prioritize exercise, and maybe we're scared of weights. (Although glute strength can be achieved without additional weight!)

All this led to an interesting phenomenon...

...A newly developed condition called 'dead donkey syndrome'... also known as gluteal amnesia.

If you've ever tried to tighten your butt after sitting for a long time and no matter how hard you try, you just can't feel it...my friend has butt amnesia.

And everyone experiences it at some point in their life.

Hip stability vs. hip mobility

Do you need to mobilize or stabilize your hips?

First, let's look at the hip joint. The hip joint is a ball-and-socket joint and is designed for mobility (like the shoulder joint).

The hip joint is surrounded by stabilizers (muscles). Too much mobility can cause a loss of alignment and balance in the hips.

Stable hips are based on balanced muscle stabilizers.This means that you want to have healthy, active muscles (not too tight and not too relaxed).

Now it's important to understand two things when it comes to this:

1. The gluteal muscles tend to weaken with misuse (and lack of use).
2. The hip flexors tend to become tight and overactive with misuse (and overuse).

So what ends up happening when you sit for hours all day?

BOM…extremely tight hip flexors and very weak glutes.

However, what do people do when they start to feel pain in the butt? They begin to stretch their buttocks... all the time... which leads to more weakness... more pain... And the cycle continues.

Even yoga practitioners understand the importance of stabilizing the hips, developing more strength, not just flexibility and mobility (1).

How to effectively stabilize the hips

Now, even before we get to the exercises,first we have to release the hip flexors.

Here's the thing.tight hip flexorsit will inhibit the glutes (which is exactly what they do when they become overactive), and this will lead to compensation.

First we want to inhibit the hip flexors,tin belt tensioner(which is also a hip flexor) and release the tension so we can "unlock" the hips and let the glutes do their job properly (and through the full range of motion).

I have step by step instructions on how to let goPSOAS(the largest hip flexor of the mule).

The link will open in a new tab so you can return to this post. (Or you can read it later. Just be sure to release PSOAS before doing the exercises below. You'll notice a big difference, I promise.)

• Video post step by stephow to release the psoas muscle(the largest hip flexor muscle in your body). The link will open in a new tab!

9 exercises to strengthen the hips for hip pain

I created step by stepvideoguide below to guide you through each hip strengthening exercise.

If you can't see now, I've also included pictures of hip strengthening exercises.

recommendwatch the video tutorialwhen you can to make sure you're doing everything right.

here it isI recommend a resistance loop belt. I bought these recently and they are amazing. I like its quality.

Details of the hip exercise:

pushes back

Stepping backwards is an excellent exercise that strengthens the buttocks and the stability of the trunk. Make sure you keep your glutes and core engaged here.

• Back thrust.
• Keep the knee above the foot.
• Keep your spine straight.
• Repeat on the same side or alternately on each side.

Mod for Beginners:You can also do static backward lunges, keeping your foot flat on the ground as you move up and down.

back slide lunge

Are you ready to step up to the next level? Try sliding back lunges.

This is a great low-impact exercise that also challenges your core. Be careful not to overcompensate by rounding your back. What's more,these are the sliders i use.

Hip joint for raising legs

The hip hinge is not exactly a squat. Be sure to push your glutesback down...you don't have to go too low in this exercise. (you can add tape to this exercise).

gluteal bridge

When performing the bridge exercise, always usebend. You can select a low resistance strip as shown. But recently I switched to using itscreen stripsThey don't roll up and make a big difference in glute activation.

• Strengthen your core and keep your abs tight.
• Engage the glutes (before lifting the hips).
• Push through your heels to lift your hips.
• Keep breathing.
• Squeeze your glutes at the top. with
• Slowly lower your hips.

Does the bridge exercise cause pain?look at thisbridge step by step guide herewhich will show you how to properly bridge.

gluteal bridge of one leg

[Advanced]This exercise is demanding. You need to keep your core and glutes engaged as you push through your heels.

The moment you loosen those muscles, the lower back will come into play. And you don't want to transfer the load to the lumbar spine.

If this happens, don't worry, just take a break and take a deep breath while you rest.

When you feel ready, you can try another set. If this seems too demanding, continue with the bridge exercise for a while.

Glute bridge for pulling the band

[Mediator]This is an excellent hip stabilization exercise.

• Start with the bridge exercise.
• Lift your hips and keep your glutes contracted.
• Pull the band by moving your knees outward.

This exercise activatesMaximus gluteal musclegby.

Lateral leg raises with a band

[Mediator]You can perform this exercise using just your body weight, but I like to add a band to ensure proper glute medius engagement.

Pro Tip: Adding a strap will force you not to lift your leg too high, where it can start to bend to the side and catch your leg.QL muscleinstead.

Keep this exercise small. Be careful not to roll your hips forward or backward or bend to the side.

• Click here for 4 moregluteus medius activationexercises.

Claw

[Mediator]I have a love-hate relationship with this exercise. I don't recommend it if you have a flare or if you have piriformis pain.

The main reason is... most people do this exercise wrong and end up feeling more sore afterwards.

This exercise is intended to activate the gluteus medius. Make sure you keep a neutral position and don't rock back and forth to open your hips more.

gluteus maximus contractions

This is an excellent exercise to activate the gluteus maximus and really connect with this muscle.

Again, this is not good exercise (small contractions). Our goal is to activate the muscle by recruiting motor units.

I hope these exercises will help you. If you think you have constant pain in the butt, I recommend itone of my programsto help you correct your pain triggers and learn how to prevent re-injury.

Is piriformis syndrome not going away?This recovery program includes everything that has helped me overcome this pain and continue living.painlessfor many years without disease outbreaks.

Click here to learn more