Exercise guide · Intermediate · Compound

Barbell Glute Bridge: How to Do It & Muscles Worked

The barbell glute bridge lifts a bar across your hips from the floor by squeezing the glutes. It loads the glutes hardest at full hip extension, which squats and deadlifts do not, so it is a good complement to them.

Primary muscles
Glutes
Secondary muscles
Hamstrings
Equipment
Barbell
Level · type
Intermediate · Compound

Written by the FitStack training team. Last reviewed .

Demonstration of the barbell glute bridge
Front view: muscles worked by the barbell glute bridge. Primary: glutes. Secondary: hamstrings.
Back view: muscles worked by the barbell glute bridge. Primary: glutes. Secondary: hamstrings.
Primary Secondary

How to do the barbell glute bridge

  1. Step 1: Start by lying flat on your back on the ground with your knees bent and feet flat on the floor.
  2. Step 2: Place a barbell across your hips, holding it securely with both hands.
  3. Step 3: Engage your glutes and core muscles, then lift your hips off the ground until your body forms a straight line from your knees to your shoulders.
  4. Step 4: Pause for a moment at the top, squeezing your glutes.
  5. Step 5: Slowly lower your hips back down to the starting position.
  6. Step 6: Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.

Form cues

  • Lie on your back with a padded bar across your hip crease and your feet flat, heels about a hand length from your glutes.
  • Tuck your chin and ribs down so your lower back stays neutral.
  • Drive through your heels and squeeze your glutes to lift the bar until hips and thighs form a straight line.
  • Pause for a second at the top, then lower under control.

Common barbell glute bridge mistakes

  • Arching the lower back to get the hips higher.

    Fix: Stop when your hips are fully extended and keep your ribs down.

  • Feet too far away, which shifts the work to the hamstrings.

    Fix: Bring the heels closer until your shins are vertical at the top.

  • Rushing the top position.

    Fix: Hold the squeeze for a full second on every rep.

Sets, reps and programming

Do 3 or 4 sets of 8 to 15 reps after your main lower-body lift. The bench-supported hip thrust lets you use more range and load once the floor version is easy.

Suggested sets, reps and rest for the barbell glute bridge by training goal
Goal Sets Reps Rest Effort
Strength 3–5 3–6 3–5 min 1–3 reps in reserve
Muscle growth 3–4 6–12 2–3 min 1–2 reps in reserve
Muscular endurance 2–3 12–20 1–2 min 1–3 reps in reserve

Ranges follow the ACSM position stand on progression in resistance training. Muscle grows across a wide range of loads when sets end close to failure (Schoenfeld et al., 2017), longer rests between heavy sets support strength and size (Schoenfeld et al., 2016), and stopping a rep or two short of failure works about as well as training to failure (Grgic et al., 2022). Estimate your working weights with the strength calculators.

Variations and progressions

Barbell Glute Bridge alternatives

More exercises that train the glutes as their main target:

Barbell Glute Bridge FAQs

Glute bridge or hip thrust: which is better?

They train the same muscles. The hip thrust, with your upper back on a bench, has a longer range of motion and usually allows more load; the floor bridge is easier to set up. Contreras et al. found the hip thrust activates the glutes more than the back squat.

How heavy should glute bridges be?

Heavy enough that the last two or three reps of a set of 10 to 15 are hard while you can still hold the top for a second.

More glutes exercises

See the best glute exercises, ranked →

Sources

  1. American College of Sports Medicine. Progression models in resistance training for healthy adults. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2009;41(3):687-708.
  2. Schoenfeld BJ, Grgic J, Ogborn D, Krieger JW. Strength and hypertrophy adaptations between low- vs. high-load resistance training. J Strength Cond Res. 2017;31(12):3508-3523.
  3. Schoenfeld BJ, Pope ZK, Benik FM, et al. Longer interset rest periods enhance muscle strength and hypertrophy in resistance-trained men. J Strength Cond Res. 2016;30(7):1805-1812.
  4. Grgic J, Schoenfeld BJ, Orazem J, Sabol F. Effects of resistance training performed to repetition failure or non-failure on muscular strength and hypertrophy: a systematic review and meta-analysis. J Sport Health Sci. 2022;11(2):202-211.

Step-by-step instructions and demonstration media are from the ExerciseDB exercise dataset; cues, mistakes, programming and FAQs are written by FitStack.

This guide is general fitness information, not medical advice. Stop if an exercise causes pain and speak to a doctor or physiotherapist about injuries or health conditions before starting a new programme.