6 Best Glute Machine Exercises To Build A Stronger, Rounder Butt

Best Glute-Focused Machine Workout

Our machine workout for glutes and hamstrings is designed to maximize glute activation while ensuring well-rounded development. We’ve combined the best glute and hamstring workouts into a well-programmed session.

Our workout begins with the hack squat machine, a powerful compound movement that works the glutes and quads. Place your feet higher and wider for more glute activation. It’s one of the best types of squats for glute growth and function.

The Smith machine squat works on the hip hinge, a functional movement pattern that translates to better sports performance.

We’ve programmed the hip thrust machine in the middle of the session. It’s a great way to directly target the glutes using the hip extension. You’re able to ensure consistent tension through the full range of motion due to the fixed movement path.

Towards the end of the session, we’ve programmed some inner and outer thigh machine glute exercises as a superset. This ensures complete glute development and gives you a higher volume finisher. Perform each exercise one after the other with no rest in between.

The cable donkey kicks are a pure glute isolation exercise that is easy to perform. They’re great for added workout volume towards the end of a session when your glutes are starting to fatigue.

If you don’t have access to equipment, you can switch these out with some of our best bodyweight glute exercises. Perform this workout twice per week alongside our underrated glute exercises.

Use your one-repetition maximum percentage to work out your training intensity. This is the maximum amount of weight you can lift for one repetition. Our one rep max calculator can be used to work this out. 

Anatomy Of The Glutes

Your gluteus muscles are made up of three smaller muscle groups: the gluteus maximus, gluteus medius, and gluteus minimus. Here’s how each one functions during movement and activity.

Gluteus Maximus

The gluteus maximus muscle is the largest and most superficial of the three glute muscles. This means that it’s closest to the surface of the skin and therefore, easiest to see. 

Your glute maximus originates from the back of your pelvis and inserts into your thigh bone. It brings your thighs backwards, playing important roles in power generation and stability. 

Research shows that the back squat and hip thrust activate your glute maximus at 53% and 75% of a muscle contraction. Therefore, it plays a primary role in these important functional movements. 

Gluteus Medius

The gluteus medius muscle is located just under the glute maximus. It originates from your hip bone and inserts into your thigh bone, more laterally than the glute maximus. 

Your glute medius brings your legs away from your body’s midline, rotates them inwards, and rotates them outwards. This makes it crucial for hip stability during movement and activity, preventing your pelvis from dipping to one side. 

We’ve included some targeted gluteus medius exercises in our glute workout program for complete development. 

Gluteus Minimus

The gluteus minimus is the smallest and deepest of the three gluteal muscles, sitting underneath the gluteus medius. It can be felt by pressing against the skin, even if it can’t be directly seen.

Your gluteus minimus muscle originates from the hip bone and inserts into the thigh bone. This is at a different point than the gluteus medius. 

It brings your legs away from your body and rotates them inwards. This means that it works with your gluteus medius muscle to provide pelvic stability when walking and running.

Isolating the gluteus minimus muscle can be hard due to its deep location. Use our gluteus minimus exercises to help develop them. We’ve included some of these in our glute workout plan.

Benefits Of Glute Machine Exercises

These are the main benefits of using our glute machine exercises for men and women. Ensure you follow our suggested program, taking note of the common mistakes and activation tips.

Supports Well-Rounded Glute Development 

The glute muscles are made of three smaller muscle groups: the gluteus maximus, gluteus medius, and gluteus minimus. Each one performs different primary movement patterns, with the contribution of each one depending on the exercise position. 

Most compound free-weight exercises use the glute maximus muscles as the primary movers. This leads to the other two glute muscles being underdeveloped and less functional if these are the only movements.

Glute hypertrophy machines make it a lot easier to isolate specific glute muscles using guided movements. For example, cable hip abductions can be used to develop the glute medius muscles. 

This targeted training leads to well-rounded glute development across all three muscles. You’re able to perform a much higher training volume for each smaller glute muscle group. This is a key factor for effective muscle gain.

Enhances Athletic Performance

The glutes are the largest and most powerful muscle groups in the human body. Well-developed glutes are vital for explosive speed, power, and movement. 

The glutes perform hip extension, helping athletes to sprint, jump, and change direction quickly. They provide stability to the hips and pelvis during movement. This makes them important for movement efficiency, posture, and power generation.

Machine-based glute exercises offer a safe and controlled way to overload the glute muscles without the balance and technique requirements. This makes it much easier to train and develop the glute muscles for better sports performance. For example, the hip thrust machine develops the hip extension power needed for jumping. 

When performed consistently, this helps athletes move and perform better while limiting potential injury risk. 

Reduces Injury Risk And Enhances Stability 

One of the biggest advantages of using exercise machines is the increased stability and safety provided. Free weights require increased balance and coordination to maintain the correct movement pattern. This can make it harder to overload the glutes without form breakdowns, especially for beginners. 

Machine glute exercises use guided movement patterns that reduce the balance and coordination requirements. This provides enhanced exercise safety and stability, ensuring proper muscle activation and reduced injury risk.

This makes them ideal for beginners learning the correct technique and advanced lifters looking to overload their glutes.

Improves Posture 

Posture is the way you hold your body when sitting, standing, and moving around. It’s determined by the alignment of your muscles, joints, and spine when balancing and stabilizing against gravity. 

Bad posture, where your body deviates from a neutral or efficient alignment, is often linked to muscular imbalances. Weak glutes, for example, could cause more forward pelvic tilt, which can contribute to poor movement and discomfort. 

Strong glutes ensure that your body maintains good posture, reducing lower back strain and improving movement efficiency. Glute machine exercises ensure effective isolation and progressive strengthening. Consistent performance can therefore strengthen the glutes and improve posture.

Prevents Pain 

Weak or inactive glute muscles can often be a cause of hip and lower back pain. During movement, the glutes play a vital role in stabilizing the hips and pelvis. 

When the glutes are underdeveloped, the surrounding structures compensate during movement and exercise. This repeated stress can cause hip impingements, labral tears, and hip dysplasia. 

Strengthening the glutes using machine exercises helps align the hips and distribute force across the body more evenly. The controlled lifting environment allows resistance to be progressively increased with a lower risk of form deviations. This type of exercise is an effective way to prevent and gradually alleviate pain in the hips, pelvis, and lower back.

Common Mistakes To Avoid

Each of these common mistakes should be avoided when performing our butt workout with gym machines. Being aware of each one helps maximize glute engagement and get the most out of your training. 

• Using Momentum — The fixed movement path makes it much easier to use momentum to complete the repetitions. This reduces time under tension and limits potential muscle growth. Use slow, controlled repetitions, pausing at the top and squeezing your glutes at the peak of each contraction.
• Incorrect Machine Set-Up Position — Each machine should be adjusted according to the movement pattern and your body dimensions. Adjust the seat height and pad so your hips and knees are aligned before starting each set. The stress should be on your glutes rather than your lower back or hips.
• Poor Range Of Motion — A full range of motion ensures you work the glutes through their full contraction and relaxation cycle. Cutting the repetitions short leads to poor glute engagement, limiting muscle and strength development. Lower down and extend your hips to the top position. 
• Letting The Knees Cave — Focus on pushing your knees out during squatting movements to stop them from caving in. This reduces glute activation and places excessive stress on your knee and hip joints. 
• Overarching The Lower Back — Arching your lower back when lifting is a common way to compensate when the weight becomes more difficult. This takes away stress from the glutes and places it on the spine. Keep your core braced with your pelvis tucked under to ensure the correct position. 

Tips For Maximizing Machine Glute Training

Improve your glute activation with machines by following these handy tips. Each should be applied to your glute machine training, regardless of your exercise goal. 

• Focus On Your Mind-Muscle Connection — Actively squeeze your glutes throughout each repetition, especially at the top position. This increased activation helps enhance glute muscle recruitment, ensuring the glutes do most of the work. It’s a key factor for effective muscle growth.
• Apply Progressive Overload — Your muscles need a progressive exercise challenge to adapt and grow stronger. In training terms, this is known as applying progressive overload, ensuring the exercise becomes harder over time. This is a vital exercise principle for muscle growth and muscular strength development.
• Use A Wide Exercise Variety — Your glutes are made up of three main muscle groups. Combining different machine exercises that hit the glutes from multiple angles ensures each one is sufficiently worked. This also helps prevent training plateaus and improves motivation.
• Warm-Up And Cool Down — Each session should start with a specific warm-up to raise your body temperature and loosen stiff joints. This helps improve your glute activation and reduce injury risk. Finish each session with a cool-down to reduce the chance of delayed onset muscle soreness.

Conclusion

Our best glute machine exercises should form the foundation of your training routine when used alongside functional compound free-weight movements. They work each smaller muscle group, using a variety of different movements for well-rounded development. Add them to your glute routine and let us know how you get on!

Frequently Asked Questions