As many of my clients know, I am a HUGE fan of training the posterior chain. And thanks to Bret Contreras, also known as “The Glute Guy,” I am never without new ways of thinking about the glutes. There is a running joke at my gym that EVERYTHING is about the glutes. As I tell my clients, “Just so you know, you will never hear me tell you to “Keep your weight on your toes,” or “Let your knees cave,” or “Whatever you do, DON’T squeeze your ass.” Instead, you will always, nay, constantly hear “Weight back!” “Knees out!” “Crack the walnut! Squeeze the crap out of your butt! Hips through! Squeeze!”
Needless to say, we laugh. A lot. 😉
Bret loves glutes. So do I. My mission this coming New Year is to build the strongest, most powerful backside imaginable, for me, and of course, for my clients. When I try something new, guess what? They do it too. If I post a new video of me doing barbell glute bridges, I am almost sure to get a message from one of my ladies saying “Guess I know what we’re doing tomorrow in class!” Hey, what’s good for me is also good for them. And while some of my clients may not be ready for barbell glute bridges, it doesn’t mean we cannot load them with a dumbbell or sandbag or even simply wrap a mini-band around the legs for resistance. Oh, glute bridges, how much do I love thee!
Your glutes are your biggest muscle. Without them, your pants sag, your back hurts….it’s just not pretty. People train what they see….but don’t forget that while you may not see your backside, uh, I do. We all do. And I want you to train it. Why??? Well, for starters, you will FEEL better. You will walk faster. You will stand taller. You will move better. Your back will thank you. Your pants will thank you. Your pants will definitely thank you.
I hit my glutes every time I train, even on my bench day. Oh, how I love my bench day. And I have two of them in my program. Lucky me!! But I digress. Even on my bench day, I get some glute work in. It takes all of about 5 minutes, if that. After every session, I do two exercises, with or without a band, depending on the exercise. I try to mix it up each time. My glute finishers could be banded clams, seated band abductors, band hip rotations, feet elevated hip thrust, monster walks, etc.
Right now, my program looks like this:
Monday: Back squat, Bulgarian split squats, single leg deadlifts, rows. Two glute finishers.
Tuesday: Bench (volume), press (single arm, barbell, swiss bar), rows, push ups. Two glute finishers.
Wednesday: 30 minute glute program (band hip thrusts, goblet squats or skater squats, single leg deadlifts or superman or RDL’s. Two glute finishers.)
Thursday: Back squat, Bulgarian split squats, deadlift (trap bar, conventional). Two glute finishers.
Friday: Bench (heavy), press (Log or dumbbell), close grip bench, rows, CURLS!! And two glute finishers.
Saturday: If I get a chance, another 30 minute glute only workout. Last week, I worked up to a heavy single a 400lbs with my barbell glute bridge. 😉
And you know what? I feel AWESOME. I started the extra glute work at the beginning of October, and I am reaping the benefits. Not only have gained some inches, I am stronger, my lifts are more powerful, and to top it off, I am really enjoying my new shape. 😉 I have also increased my food intake which is definitely helping with the size of my butt and the ability to move more weight. 😉 But that is for another blog post.
I have put together a short video of one of my glute sessions. If you are curious about what a 30 minute glute only program looks like, check it out. Thanks to Bret and Strong Curves as well as Bret’s online site Get Glutes, my glutes will never be forgotten. 😉