Everyone wants to grow their glutes but one of the biggest problems is an inability to feel or active them. Simply, you’re not growing a muscle you can’t feel. This typically results in hamstring dominance or back issues as these regions are forced to compensate and do more work.
How to fix this issue:
- Use pauses: This will increase neurological signalling to the region which will increase contraction potential. Focus on multiple reps with anything from 3-10 second pauses per rep in phase one. Aiming for 40-60 seconds of time under tension purely from an isometric element. This will dramatically improve your ability to feel your glutes in a few weeks
- Release your hip flexors: Tight hips can result in a flow-on effect whereby your glutes become dysfunctional. This is a natural side effect of excessive sitting. If you’re overlooking tight hips you may be missing a big piece of the puzzle
- Add a mini band: A light band around the knees will increase the recruitment of your Glute Medius. This brings more glutes to a movement eg hip thrust and it’ll potentially offset some hamstring dominance.
- Check technique: Not fully extending all the way to the top ensures you don’t reach full extension which can diminish contraction potential. Likewise, the amount of knee flexion and foot placement can impact the hamstring contribution.
If you’re a person with this problem, release your hips then try hip thrusts plus a mini band around the knees for 3 sets of 12-15 reps with a 3-second pause per rep. You want a full lockout at the top for a full range of motion.
Another great tip is to film yourself so you can check your form!
Yours in health,
Glen Carroll / Clean Health Fitness Institute Senior Presenter
Clean Health Fitness Institute
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