Having a perfect pair of glutes is everyone’s goal. The glutes will define your shape in different ways. Regardless of the fact that glutes are very important towards the development of a perfect shape, there are few people who know how to effectively work out on their glutes. With the increased usage of social media, there are so many people on the online platforms with their fancy photo and videos always showing you how you are supposed to work out your glutes. Unfortunately, most of them are untrained and they will end up feeding you the wrong information. You might carry out the exercises and you will not be seeing any results. So what do you do in such a situation? Well, read this article to know how to handle the situation.
What are Glute Machines?
The glute machine is used for training in the gym to increase the size of your gluteal muscles. Your butt is not one big muscle, there are three different muscles which make up your butt. The way in which you work on this gluteal muscles will determine your success when you are working out. Before jumping into the best glute machines, here are the three muscles making up your butt.
Gluteus Maximus
The work of the gluteus maximus is to cause the extension of the upper leg or thigh muscles. It is also responsible for bringing your torso forward when you are carrying out the hinge forward exercises.
The muscle can also be used to rotate your legs externally.
In addition, if you are looking out for ways of extending your hips, the gluteus maximus should be one of the butt muscles which you should focus on.
Gluteus Medius
It is found just below the gluteus maximus and its purpose is to support your pelvic muscles. When you are walking up the stairs or running, you are using one leg and the gluteus medius is to stabilize your pelvic muscles so that they cannot drop to the opposite direction.
The gluteus medius will also work to move your thighs away from your body when you are carrying out the exercise.
Gluteus Minimus
It is the smallest of the gluteus muscles and it is situated below the gluteus medius. It also works as a hip stabilizer.
How to Build Your Glutes Using Different Glutes Machines
Using the Glute Ham Raise Machine
The primary function of the GHR is to flex your knees and cause extension of the hips.
How to Use it Effectively
- Begin by setting up the knees either behind or behind and press your feet firmly on the flat surface of the machine. If you are a beginner and you need to make the exercise easier, make sure you position the foot plate away from the hip pad. If you are used to the machine and you need to carry out challenging exercises on your butt, place the foot plate closer to the hip pad of the machine.
- Your torso should be perpendicular to the floor of the machine. To effectively build the glutes, make sure you squeeze the glutes and the hamstrings so that your body becomes parallel to the floor.
- Place your toes on the footplate to get back to the starting position and pull the hamstrings. The glute muscles should be contracted when you are carrying out this.
Common Exercises on the GHR
Swinging GHR
It is one of the common GHR exercises you can carry out. The exercise involves the extension of the hips which play a great role in expanding your glute muscles. It also involves knee flexion which can be used to build stronger knees.
Band Assisted GHR
To carry out the exercise, place one end of the band on your ankles and the other end around your chest just below your armpits. The bands will give you the resistance which you will need and continue carrying out the reps just the same way you do carry out the neutral GHR exercise. As you increase your strength, make sure you decrease the resistance of the bands.
Neutral Hip GHR
It is one of the GHR moves which is recommended by experts. The exercise involves the flexion of the hips and tilting the pelvic muscles. Using the neutral hip can be quite challenging and you will struggle to carry out the first rep. However, as time goes, you will be used to the exercise and you will begin to notice changes on your glutes.
Weighted GHR exercises
As a way of building tighter glutes, you can begin adding some weights when you are carrying out the exercises. Begin by trying to lift the dumbbell after you have known all your body variations.
Training Your Glutes on the Smith Machine
Training using the Smith machine is preferred by most people since it offers convenience and it offers safety.
How Carrying Out Squats on the Smith Machine Can Build Your Glutes
Most of the people carry out squats on the Smith machine but fail to work on their glute since they emphasize on working out their legs. There are a number of people who will inform you that the purpose of the squats is to build the leg muscles only. However, that would be far from the truth and one thing you need to know is that the squats are used to target two primary muscles which are the glutes and leg muscles.
If you go to the gym, you will see someone carrying out squats with heavy plates on each side but when you look at them, you will realize they have no glutes. It is due to the failure to activate the glutes when working out.
Common Mistakes When Carrying out Squats
Mistake #1 Not Squatting Deep Enough
One of the greatest mistakes which most people make when they are working out squats is failing to go deep enough. Someone go deep for only 45 degrees and think they have perfectly worked on their glutes.
In order to build your glutes, it is recommended that you go deep up to 900 or simply put a position which is parallel to the floor. Going lower would also be more effective when looking to build your glutes.
Mistake#2 Putting So much Weight on the Bar
Another great mistake is putting too many weights on the bar which will affect the way in which you will carry out the exercise effectively. As identified previously, you need to go deep so that you target the glute muscles.
Putting too much weight will make it difficult for you to do the squats deeply. When looking to work out on your glutes using the Smith machine, lifting heavy weights should not be a priority. Rather, you should make sure you use lighter weights which will make it easier for you to carry out deeper squats in a slow manner.
Create a connection of the mind and the muscle so that you will work out the glutes properly.
Mistake#3 Positioning Your Feet Wrongly
The position of your feet when carrying out the squats is also important. If you place the feet close to each other, you will be working out the quads only. You will be like that person with big quads but no glutes.
When performing the squats using the Smith machine, it is always important to make sure the feet are placed forward so that the knees will not go past the toes when exercising. If you carry it out in the wrong way, there will be so much stress on the knees which will prevent you from carrying out a deeper squat.
Your knees might also get an injury when they go past the toes since there is so much pressure on them.
Training Your Glutes Using the Stair Stepper Machine
When using the machine, it is also very critical to ensure you are climbing it in the right form. Kate Bishop who came up with the training app Find Your Trainer insists that the stair stepper machine is appropriate for someone who wants to challenge themselves when they are climbing the stairs in an upright manner with no pain.
Making the Best Glute Workout from the Stair Stepper Machine
Use a Number of Step Patterns to Target the Glutes
The benefit of using the Stepper Machine is that it targets all the glute muscles. We have already mentioned these muscles previously at the beginning of the article.
According to the American Council of Exercise, using the stair stepper is one of the top ways through which you can build your glute muscles.
However, the way in which you are stepping will determine whether you are truly working on the glutes or the quads. Begin by carrying out a warm up by walking up the stairs as you would in a flight.
When using the machine, you can combine it with the other cardiovascular exercises to make sure you have heard an effective workout. Here are some of the common steps to carry out on the machine.
- Single Steps
When carrying out the steps, you should walk up just the same way as if you are working on a flight of stairs. The hands should be always by your side when walking up the stairs.
- Crossover Steps
The steps are carried out laterally. You should cross the legs one over the other leg as you climb on the next step.
- Leg Lifts
You can carry out the exercise by placing the palms on the side rails to make sure you have got balance. Hold the leg up for about a second before bringing it down. Continue carrying out the exercise as you slow down to make sure you have maintained the right form.
Your legs should also be straight and there should be no arching of your back.
- Double Steps
The exercise involves skipping a stem each time as you alternate the legs. It will help in focusing on your glutes and the hamstrings.
Establish an Interval Routine Workout
Carrying out the exercise in the form of intervals will help build tone for your butt, legs and other lower parts of your body.
The intervals should also be a bit longer since this will give you the time for your heart to adjust before beginning the next exercise. You can carry out the different step patterns at an interval of about 3 minutes.
There are also other exercises which can be carried out on the hip extension machine referred to as the Pilates. The advantage of using Pilate exercises to work on your glutes is that they can be carried out by anyone.
GHR without any equipment?
Is there a way to do a GHR without any equipment or glute machine? If you are looking to glute ham raise without machine, then you can try some alternatives. Try this youtube video for “Natural” Glute Ham Raise (GHR) Alternatives.
Take Away
The above are some of the techniques of working out your glutes on different machines. If you are looking for a way of building your glutes, there you go. Also, make sure you keep your workout exercise for about 2-3 times a week. When you work on your butt muscles too often, it can hinder their growth. Carrying the exercise for about 2-3 times a week will help the butt muscles to recover and grow before you embark on another exercise.
Another common mistake which people make when they are working out on their glutes is failing to include a protein diet in their meals. Your progress at the gym will be hindered if you fail to incorporate proteins in your diet. As a way of building rounder and bigger glutes, make sure you have taken great proteins. Take it within the recommended amount.
