The Only 5 Glute Exercises You Need to Fix Flat Hips
The premise is that squats and lunges alone train the glutes from a limited set of angles and often let the quads take over. This routine sequences five exercises deliberately: two heavy compound lifts that load the muscle in its shortened and lengthened positions, one single-leg movement, and two isolation finishers for the smaller outer glute muscles.
What are the five exercises and why in that order?
| Order | Exercise | Role | Sets and reps |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Barbell hip thrust | Peak tension with the glutes fully shortened | 4 sets of 8 to 12 |
| 2 | Romanian deadlift | Tension with the glutes and hamstrings fully lengthened | 3 sets of 8 to 12, 3-second descent |
| 3 | Bulgarian split squat | Single-leg strength and correcting left-right imbalances | 3 sets of 10 to 15 per leg |
| 4 | Cable kickback | Isolating the gluteus maximus | 3 sets of 12 to 20 per leg |
| 5 | Seated hip abduction | Gluteus medius and minimus | 3 sets of 20 to 30 |
What are the key form cues?
- Hip thrust: tuck the chin, drive through the heels, shins vertical at the top, and squeeze for one to two seconds. Feet too close shifts the work to the quads; too far, to the hamstrings.
- Romanian deadlift: hips travel back, not down — it is a hinge, not a squat. Keep a soft knee bend and stop when the back wants to round.
- Bulgarian split squat: a slight forward lean over the front leg biases the glute; staying upright makes it a quad exercise. The back leg is for balance only.
- Kickback and abduction: control over load — if you cannot pause at the top, the weight is too heavy.
Read the research behind it
Training a muscle in both its shortened and lengthened positions is a real principle, not a marketing line — progressive overload and eccentric training and muscle growth cover the mechanisms. If the split squat bothers your knees, our evidence article on that exact question addresses it. Strong glutes also unload the lower back, which is why they appear throughout our lower back guide, and hip-loading work matters for bone density after 40.
Get every new breakdown
New research-backed workouts on YouTube every week — no gym required.
