Why the barbell hip thrust is the perfect exercise for stronger core and glutes
The hip thrust is a great exercise for your leg day, since it strengthens your glutes, core and the entire posterior chain. When you add a barbell to the exercise, the results are stunning
There are a few reasons why the barbell hip thrust will never be as popular as other compound lower body moves like barbell squats or deadlifts. The thing is, the barbell hip thrust isn’t just competing with other such exercises, but also the convenience of doing them. That’s because the barbell hip thrust is difficult to set up and execute. Its biggest advantage though, is that it can protect your knees while still hitting the glutes, the quadriceps, the hamstrings, the lower back and even the core.
And while squats and its variations can do exactly the same thing, there are always chances of worsening an old injury or being afraid of the load on the knees. This is where the hip thrust fits in so well. But it is a tedious thing to set up, especially if you’re looking to load the hips and your gym does not have a machine for this move. In fact, I attempted the hip thrust for the first time in months only after the gym I went to brought in a new machine for it.
These are the instructions to set up a barbell hip thrust, taken from Gymshark.com: “Keep the bench in its horizontal setting, ensuring it rests against a solid surface (like a wall) so it won't move. Sit on the floor, resting your upper back against the side of the bench, and place your feet flat on the ground, between hip-width and shoulder-width apart, at a 90-degree angle" states the article, titled How To Do Barbell Hip Thrusts For Stronger Glutes."
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You then have to use a barbell pad and place it over your hips so that the barbell doesn’t dig into the skin. Then place your hands on the bar, and engage your core before lifting up like in a glute bridge, with the soles always in contact with the floor. The upper back is always in contact with the bench as the main support.
“Push the floor away by driving through your heels and extending your hips towards the ceiling. Squeeze your glutes at the top of the contraction without overextending the lower back," the article adds. The video below shows this.
Coming out of the exercise, loading more weights and resetting again without a gym partner can be time-consuming. There are other ways to do it, like using dumbbells or a single heavy kettlebell held with both hands. And the exercise, once mastered, is a great challenge. The trick is knowing that the exercise is all about how the weight is lifted. For example, in a squat, the weight is resting on the shoulders, far from the main muscles it is loading. A barbell hip thrust brings the weight a lot closer to the muscles it will affect.
I came across an excellent comment on a Reddit thread while researching the pros and cons of the hip thrust: “Since hip thrusts don't share much in terms of motor pattern with any powerlifting or weightlifting lift they offer poor specificity. Thus the hip thrust is not going to be the first choice for assistance for the elite lifter when compared to other deadlift and squat variants," wrote the user on a thread which asked Are Hip Thrusts really as effective as many trainers claim? This might explain why the hip thrust keeps losing against something as simple as a Bulgarian squat.
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The reason it feels easier on the knees is also because of the lower range of motion that your joints have to go through, compared to the squat. House of Hypertrophy is a really good YouTube source for research-based videos. They published a roundup of observations on the effects of a barbell squat and a hip thrust on the muscles worked and most research points to the hip thrust being an excellent secondary exercise to add to the main compound lift. The video says that a shorter range of motion could mean hip thrusts are easier to recover from.
One of the studies they mention is titled, Addition Of The Barbell Hip Thrust Is Effective For Enhancing Gluteus Maximus Hypertrophy In Young Women. And it hints that the leg press, the stiff-leg deadlift and the barbell hip thrust are an excellent trio to maximise growth and strength.
There are some easy alternatives to the hip thrust, one of them being weighted glute bridges, that have almost the same setup but without a bench. Kettlebell swings are not just more fun and better at raising the heart-rate but also works on explosive strength. The single leg hip thrust without weights but done off the bench is also another challenging bodyweight exercise. All these follow the same principles and it comes down to what your goals are. But adding at least one form of the hip thrust can be a game-changer to leg day.
Pulasta Dhar is a football commentator, writer and podcaster.
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