Look at any fitness magazine and you’ll be sure to find articles like “The top 5 exercises for a tighter butt” or “7 tips for a better booty”. The Gluteal muscles are often considered glamour muscles, but many don’t realize they also play a key role in stabilization of the Sacroiliac (SI) Joint. This is the area where most people feel back pain.
The Glutes are composed of 3 primary muscles: the Gluteus Maximus, the Gluteus Medius, and Gluteus Minimus. Together they create a powerful compressive force that helps keep the SI joint in place when moving.
This is important for reducing injury risk and preventing pain. While low back pain can come from many different avenues, one of the most common is the inability to stabilize the SI joint.
For example, if you watch someone pick up a box off the floor it usually looks like this.
Notice how the spine is rounded and movement occurs through the low back in order to get down to the box. If you were to do this over and over again, it most certainly could lead to pain overtime.
Why? Because you’d be moving through a segment of your body that designed primarily to be stable and secure.
Think about your low back like a credit card. If you bend a credit card in half, the card won’t break but you’ll notice a thin, white line down the middle of it. If you continue the bend it in the same spot, eventually the card will snap in half. The reason being, you’re creating movement in an object that’s meant to be inflexible and rigid.
So the glutes have a very important job within the human body. And with the statistic that 80% of people will suffer back pain at some point in their life, it’s safe to assume that many have weak gluteal muscles.
With that in mind, here are 3 glute exercises you’ve never tried before, that can be used to improve the function of your backside and performance in the gym.
1. Advanced Clam Shell
- Lie on your side with your head supported by your arm and hips slightly flexed.
- Brace your abs, push into the floor hard with your bottom knee, and raise your hips off the floor.
- From here, move the top knee towards the ceiling without allowing your hips to roll out. This movement should come strictly from the hip joint.
- Bring the knee back down and repeat.
2. Single Leg Foot Elevated Hip Thrust
- Set up with your shoulders against a bench and a box a few feet away from you. You can use another bench if you do not have access to a box.
- Lift the hips off the floor and place one foot on the box.
- From here, drive the heel into the box and push the hips away from the floor.
- Lower back down, leaving a few inches between your hips and the floor and repeat.
3. Supine Leg Whip
- Lie on the floor and perform a glute bridge.
- Take one foot off the floor and extend it into the air. Be sure the hips do not drop when you do this. Keeping the hips level is one of the keys to this drill.
- From here, drop the leg out to the side until you feel a stretch on the inside of the thigh. Again, be sure the hips do not drop or rotate.
- Return back to the starting position and repeat.
The great thing about all three of these exercises is they integrate proper abdominal function with maximal glute work. They’re also all unilateral. The abs and the glutes of one leg must maintain alignment of the spine and pelvis while the opposing glutes create movement.
Each exercise challenges the body to create stability at the low back and then move while maintaining that stability. And if you remember from above, the ability to stabilize the SI joint while moving is the key to pain free performance.
Remember, while the glutes will always be thought of as more of a glamour muscle, they play a vital role in low back health. Add these exercises to your program and I’m sure you’ll notice a difference in how you feel.
Photo Credit:
1. www.bodybuilding-wizard.com
