Single-Leg Glute Bridge

Have you been training your glutes for a while? Then it's time to try the single-leg glute bridge. This is a lower-body compound exercise that engages the core, glutes, and legs.

Great for bodybuilders, athletes, and the general population, this incredible exercise will help you develop mass and improve function.

In this article, we discuss the single-leg glute bridge. We cover correct technique, anatomy, expert tips, and how to add it to your workout for the best results.

How To Do

  1. Lie down on your back, bend your right knee, and place the right foot flat on the floor.
  2. Keep your left leg straight.
  3. Inhale, and activate your core muscles.
  4. Breathe out, and lift your hips off the floor until your left leg is parallel to your right leg.
  5. From here, gently lower your hips to the floor.
    Complete all repetitions for the right leg, and then switch sides.

Tips From Expert

  • Set up with your lower back against the floor and arms by your sides. Keep your head against the floor while looking directly up.
  • When raising the working leg, keep your body weight evenly distributed through the supporting foot and shoulders.
  • Avoid leaning too much to one side to limit the risk of strain or injury.
  • Lift your hips off the ground using a slow and controlled movement. Focus on contracting your glutes at the top of the movement.
  • Fully extend your hips as you reach the top position. Your body should form a straight line with your shoulders.

Optimal Sets and Reps

Below we have listed load recommendations for the different training goals including strength, hypertrophy, endurance, and power.

Training Type Sets Reps
Strength Training 3–5 4–6
Hypertrophy 3–4 8–12
Endurance Training 3–4 15+
Power Training 3–5 1–5 (Explosive)
Optimal Sets & Reps of Single-Leg Glute Bridge

How to Put in Your Workout Split

The single-leg glute bridge is a lower-body compound exercise that targets the glutes, core, quadriceps, and hamstring. It has the ability to target multiple muscle groups and improve balance, and stability. This means it can be added to a variety of different workouts.

Full-Body — The single-leg glute bridge is a compound exercise, making it suitable for your full-body routine. We recommend programming it toward the end of your workout as it requires more control and less resistance to perform. This will ensure you have enough energy to perform your larger lifts.

Upper/Lower — Dividing your workouts into upper and lower body allows more time for each muscle group. This means we can increase the number of exercises and sets, enabling us to increase training volume. The single-leg glute bridge targets multiple muscle groups. This makes it great for increasing lower body training volume, which helps promote muscle growth.

Additionally, consider adding it to your leg workouts. This will further increase the training volume.

Push/Pull — The push and pull split is based on increasing our muscle mass and strength based on movement patterns. The single-leg glute bridge is suitable for your push workout. Program it toward the end of your session, after your large and medium compound lifts.

For strength, perform sets of 1–5 repetitions at a high intensity, at 80%–100% of your one repetition maximum. This is the maximum amount of weight you can lift for one repetition with the correct technique.

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Primary Muscle Groups

Gluteus

Large, superficial muscles located at your buttocks just below your lower back area.

Gluteus

The gluteus is on the back and side of the hips. They consist of three muscles: the gluteus maximus, medius, and minimus.

When we perform the single-leg glute bridge, the gluteus muscles shorten, stabilizing and lifting the hips off the floor. From here, they lengthen and lower us to the starting position.

During the single-leg glute bridge, the gluteus maximus muscle activation rate is approximately 54% of a maximum contraction.

Secondary Muscle Groups

Hip Abductors

Muscles located between your lower back and perineum. Consists of three muscle groups.

Quadriceps

Muscles located at the front portion of your upper legs, below your pelvis and above your knees. Consists of four parts.

Hamstrings

Muscles located at the back of your upper leg, below your glutes and above your calves. Consists of three muscles.

Gastrocnemius

Muscles located at the back of your lower leg and consists of your calf. Starts just behind your knee and extends to your ankle.

Soleus

Muscles located behind your gastrocnemius sitting slightly deeper. Runs down your leg and connects with the gastrocnemius to make your Achilles tendon.

Erector Spinae

Muscles that span the entire length of your spine on either side.

Upper Rectus Abdominis

Muscles located just below the lower chest and above the lower abdominals. Between your ribs and pubic bone.

Lower Rectus Abdominis

Muscles located below your upper abs and above your public bone between your ribs.

Obliques

Muscles located on the sides of your rectus abdominals. Runs on the sides of your trunk.

Iliopsoas

Muscles starting at your back, moving through your pelvis connecting just below your groin.

Hamstrings

Our hamstrings are at the back of the upper leg. They consist of four muscles that flex the knee and extend the hip. During the single-leg glute bridge, the hamstring muscles isometrically contract. This is when the muscle contracts, but does not change in length. This stabilizes the knee in the flexed position for the duration of the movement.

Iliopsoas

The iliopsoas muscle group attaches to the front of our lower back vertebrae and the inner side of the pelvis. They attach to the inner side of the femur. Their purpose is to flex the hip, stabilize the pelvis, and maintain posture.

During the single-leg glute bridge, the bridging leg iliopsoas stabilizes the pelvis to keep the hips level. Meanwhile, the iliopsoas of the passive leg isometrically contract to keep the leg straight.

Erector Spinae

The erector spinae consists of three muscle groups that run the length of the back of our spine and attach to the vertebrae, ribs, and sacrum. Their role is to straighten, rotate, side bend, and stabilize the spine.

When we perform the single-leg glute bridge, these muscles isometrically contract to keep our torso straight and rigid.

Upper Rectus Abdominis

The rectus abdominis consists of two sections: the upper rectus abdominis and the lower rectus abdominis.

The upper rectus abdominis is situated at the front of the torso below the chest. It arises from the pubic symphysis, a joint between the left and right pelvis. It attaches to the sternum and fifth and seventh rib cartilage. Its primary function is to curl the spine and stabilize the core.

During the single-leg glute bridge, the upper rectus abdominis isometrically contracts to keep our core rigid.

Lower Rectus Abdominis

Our lower rectus abdominis is below the upper fibers on the front of our trunk. It shares origin and insertion points with the upper rectus abdominis fibers. Its purpose is to stabilize the core and curl the spine.

When we perform the single-leg glute bridge, the lower rectus abdominis isometrically contracts to maintain a neutral spine.

Obliques

The obliques are on the outer sides of the trunk and run lateral to the rectus abdominis. They rotate, laterally bend, and curl the spine. During the single-leg glute bridge, these muscles shorten to stop the torso from rotating, keeping the spine rigid.

Quadriceps

The quadriceps are at the front of the upper leg. This group of muscles attaches to the front of the hip and thigh bone or femur.

When we perform the single-leg glute bridge, the quadriceps muscle eccentrically contracts (lengthens) as we lift the hips. They work with the glutes and hamstrings to lift the hip.

From here, they shorten, allowing us to lower the hips to the starting position. Meanwhile, the quadriceps of the passive leg engages to keep the leg straight.

Hip Abductors

The hip abductors consist of the gluteus medius, gluteus minimus, and tensor fasciae latae. These muscle internally rotate, abduct, and stabilize the hips.

During the single-leg glute bridge, these muscles shorten to stabilize, and keep the hips level and the legs in line.

Gastrocnemius

Our gastrocnemius is at the back of the lower leg. It originates from the back of the upper leg bone or femur. It attaches to the heel bone via the Achilles tendon. During the single-leg glute bridge, the gastrocnemius isometrically contracts to form a stable base.

Soleus

The soleus is beneath the gastrocnemius. It arises from the back of the femur and attaches to the heel bone via the Achilles tendon. When we perform the single-leg-glute bridge, the soleus works alongside the gastrocnemius to create a stable base at the ankle.

Equipment

Bodyweight

Bodyweight

Requires bodyweight resistance and additional equipment for proper execution.

Variations

Exercises that target the same primary muscle groups and require the same equipment.

Bodyweight Squat

Donkey Kick

Cobra Stretch

Lying Glute Stretch

Bodyweight Single-leg Deadlift

Bridge Kick

Glute Bridge March

Plank & Rear Kick

Curtsy Lunge with Towel

Squat to Jumping Jack

Alternatives

Exercises that target the same primary muscle groups and require the different equipment.

Hack Squat

Barbell Deadlift

Barbell Squat

Front Squat

Hip Thrust Machine

Barbell Sumo Deadlift

Dumbbell Deadlift

Smith Machine Squat

Dumbbell Sumo Squat

Trap Bar Deadlift

Who Should Do?

The Average Gym Goer

The average gym goer’s training focus is to increase muscle and improve function in a time-efficient manner. This can achieved by performing compound exercises that target multiple muscle groups. Using multiple muscle groups allows us to increase resistance, volume, and intensity, enabling us to overload muscle tissue to promote growth.

The single-leg glute bridge is a lower-body compound exercise that engages the core, glutes, and legs. Because of this, we can increase lower body training volume. Furthermore, the use of the single leg requires us to engage our core and hips. This keeps our torso rigid and hip level, improving stability and balance, which can be carried over into daily life. 

If you want to learn more, read up on these glute bridge benefits. These will help you understand how glute training can improve training and quality of life. 

Athletes

An athlete’s training requires functional compound movements to increase muscle mass, strength, power, agility, and balance. Functional compound movements replicate movement patterns for daily life or sport. Simulating these movements will help improve movement quality, and enable us to address areas of weakness, enhancing efficiency. 

The single-leg glute bridge is a functional compound movement that challenges our balance and stability while engaging our glutes. The hip raise enables us to develop muscle and improve hip function. Meanwhile, our core and abductor muscles stabilize our torso and hips. 

This makes them great for sports containing running and sudden changes in direction, including tennis, football, and basketball. Consider performing the single-leg glute bridge with these oblique exercises to improve performance.

Who Should Not Do?

People With Significant Glute Weakness

You should avoid doing the single-leg glute bridge if you have significant glute weakness. This may prevent you from keeping your hips level during the movement.

The single-leg glute bridge is excellent for improving glute activation and improving stability. However, when the glutes are weak it can be difficult to keep the hips level.

We recommend starting with the standard glute bridge. This will enable you to build glute strength. Once you have increased glute strength, you can progress to the single-leg variation.

People With Hip Pain

If you are suffering hip pain you should be cautious with the single-leg glute bridge. The hip is a complex joint that is the site for many muscle attachments and connective tissue. When there is pain and inflammation it can impair the quality of movement.

The single-leg glute bridge can be used to improve hip strength and stability. However, if there is pain and dysfunction, it can place additional stress on the joint and surrounding tissue. This can pain and lead to further aggravation.

If you are experiencing hip pain, consult your physical therapist to obtain an exercise routine tailored to your specific needs.

Benefits Of The Single-Leg Glute Bridge

Decreases Knee Pain

The single-leg glute bridge can decrease knee pain, which can be the result of direct trauma or poor biomechanics. As mentioned, our glute muscles externally rotate, and stabilize the hip. This makes them vital to hip, knee, and ankle posture.

However, when they are weak, it can lead to injuries including lower back pain, ankle sprains, and knee pain. The single-leg glute bridge can help strengthen our gluteus maximus and medius. This will improve hip stability and alignment, decreasing hip pain and injury.

Improves Hip Function

The single-leg glute bridge is fantastic for improving hip function. The hip is one of the largest joints in the body. It is a ball-and-socket joint, meaning it is capable of moving in many directions. Because of this, it requires several muscles to move, and soft tissue to hold it into place.

However, when there is a weakness in the surrounding connective tissue, it can lead to hip dysfunction and impaired movement.

The single-leg glute bridge can increase muscle mass and strengthen the surrounding tissue. Furthermore, performing the glute bridge with a single leg requires us to engage our deep glute muscles. This helps improve hip stability and function.

Can Be Done Anywhere

The best thing about the single-leg glute bridge is that it can be done anywhere. Glute training is such an important part of our training. It can enhance lower body function and improve our hip, knee, and ankle health. 

Being able to perform it anywhere where there is floor space means we can maintain excellent hip function.

Frequently Asked Questions

What do single-leg glute bridges do?

The single-leg glute bridges strengthen the glutes, core, and legs. The hip-raising component targets the glutes and feet placed on the floor. Meanwhile, the core must engage to keep our hips level. This makes it a great functional movement.

Why are single-leg glute bridges so hard?

Single-leg glute bridges can be difficult if you lack glute strength. Weak glutes and hip abductors can make it difficult to raise the hips and keep the hips level. We suggest performing the standard glute bridge to build strength.

When should I do single-leg glute bridges?

You should do the single-leg glute toward the end of your workout. While it is a compound movement, it requires little resistance. Consider adding it to the end of your routine to conserve your energy for your bigger lists.

How often should I do single-leg glute bridges?

You can do the single-leg glute bridge two to three times per week. This allows for a 24–72 hours rest period which is adequate for recovery and muscle growth. 

Resources

Endomondo.com refrains from utilizing tertiary references. We uphold stringent sourcing criteria and depend on peer-reviewed studies and academic research conducted by medical associations and institutions. For more detailed insights, you can explore further by reading our editorial process.

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