{"id":3087,"date":"2025-02-19T15:18:44","date_gmt":"2025-02-19T04:18:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/movewithnicole.com.au\/blog\/understanding-gluteal-muscles-techniques-for-building-strength.html"},"modified":"2025-02-19T15:18:45","modified_gmt":"2025-02-19T04:18:45","slug":"understanding-gluteal-muscles-techniques-for-building-strength","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/movewithnicole.com.au\/blog\/understanding-gluteal-muscles-techniques-for-building-strength.html","title":{"rendered":"Understanding Gluteal Muscles: Techniques for Building Strength"},"content":{"rendered":"

Butts are all the rage these days: on TV, in magazines, and behind retail store windows. And thanks to social media, we thoroughly know what butt muscles looks like \u2014\u00a0check Instagram\u00a0if you\u2019re still confused.<\/p>\n

But a lot of us are fuzzy on\u00a0butt anatomy:\u00a0exactly what those globular lobes are and how they function.<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re interested in improving on your rear view, the first step is knowing exactly what those mounds of muscle are up to on a day-to-day basis; the better to ensure that they\u2019re doing their job properly whether you\u2019re at play, at work, or working out.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s your butt anatomy primer.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Which Muscles Comprise Your Butt?<\/h2>\n

Compared to, say, your knees, whose range of motion is primarily limited to one plane of movement, your hip joints are quite mobile, allowing your femurs to move in three planes: back and forth, side-to-side, and rotationally.<\/p>\n

Here are the key posterior muscles that control those motions.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

The star: Gluteus maximus<\/h3>\n

Function:<\/strong>\u00a0There\u2019s a reason why your glute max is often referred to as the\u00a0strongest muscle in your body; like your other gluteal muscles, it helps rotate your thighs outward, but it\u2019s also the one that\u2019s most responsible for extending your hip, and therefore helping you maintain an erect posture.<\/p>\n

As the largest muscle in the body, it\u2019s capable of generating tremendous force.<\/p>\n

No basketball player could dunk a ball, no running back could tear through the line, and no fitness enthusiast could squat or deadlift big weights without tons of help from the glute max.<\/p>\n

Location:<\/strong>\u00a0The glute max originates at your pelvis and sacrum and inserts in two places: your iliotibial band (a tract of connective tissue that runs along the outside of your thigh) and your femur, just below your butt cheek.<\/p>\n

How to target it:<\/strong>\u00a0Work all that glorious sinew\u00a0with\u00a0squats, deadlifts,\u00a0lunges, and any other move that requires you to extend your hip.<\/p>\n

Supporting cast: Gluteus medius<\/h3>\n

Function:<\/strong> Appearing just above and outside the rounded portion of your butt, the glute med\u2019s primary job is to abduct your legs. It also aids in rotating your thighbones both internally and externally.<\/p>\n

Location:<\/strong>\u00a0This fan-shaped sheet of muscle originates along the top ridge of your hip bones and attaches to the\u00a0greater trochanter \u2014\u00a0the bony protrusion on the outside of your hip.<\/p>\n

How to target it:<\/strong>\u00a0Work it directly\u00a0with exercises like the\u00a0clamshell\u00a0or the\u00a0banded lateral walk.<\/p>\n

Supporting cast: Gluteus minimus<\/h3>\n

Function:<\/strong>\u00a0The gluteus minimus is the medius\u2019 little brother; its primary responsibility is to provide stability to your thigh while you\u2019re standing on one foot.<\/p>\n

Location:<\/strong>\u00a0The glute min is similar in shape to the glute med, and lies directly beneath it.<\/p>\n

How to target it:<\/strong>\u00a0You can emphasize the glute min with\u00a0side plank variations.<\/p>\n

Bit players: Deep rotators<\/h3>\n

Lying beneath the much-admired gluteal muscles is an under-appreciated group of smaller ones called the\u00a0deep lateral rotators.\u00a0 All of them originate at the back of your pelvis and attach to the top of your thighbone, wrapping around it like a flag around a pole.<\/p>\n

As their collective name suggests, your deep lateral rotators rotate your thighbones outward, which you\u2019ll recall is known as external rotation. You\u2019ll rarely have much cause to consider these muscles unless something goes wrong with them.<\/p>\n

Piriformis syndrome \u2014\u00a0inflammation, tightness, or spasms in the topmost rotator \u2014 is fairly common among both athletic and sedentary populations, and can cause radiating pain in the buttocks and hamstrings.\u00a0Hip stretches\u00a0can help.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

What Do Glute Muscles Do?<\/h2>\n

Your glutes are responsible for several important hip joint movements.<\/p>\n

Hip extension<\/h3>\n

\"Quadruped<\/p>\n

Pulling your knee toward your chest is known as hip flexion; the opposite movement is called hip extension, and it\u2019s among your glutes\u2019 primary jobs.<\/p>\n

Fully contracting these muscles draws your thighs behind you. Think of a sprinter in full stride: the glutes on her back leg are about as contracted as they get.<\/p>\n

Hip abduction<\/h3>\n

\"woman<\/p>\n

Most people are familiar with the \u201cinnie-outie\u201d groin torture machine at the gym: It\u2019s the one you sit on, bracing the insides or outsides of your knees against the pads, then drawing them together or spreading them apart against resistance.<\/p>\n

The glutes are responsible for that second action: bringing your femurs from an adducted\u00a0(drawn-together) position to an\u00a0abducted\u00a0(spread-apart) one, as demonstrated in the clamshell exercise depicted above.<\/p>\n

Hip rotation<\/h3>\n

\"andrea<\/p>\n

The phrases \u201cinternal rotation\u201d and \u201cexternal rotation\u201d sound fancy, but they just mean turning a limb toward (internal) or away from (external) your body\u2019s midline.\u00a0The glutes do both.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn short,\u201d says Trevor Thieme, C.S.C.S., \u201cthe glutes help move your legs and hips \u2014 and provide balance and stability \u2014 whenever you sprint, jump, climb stairs, or get up out of a chair.\u201d<\/p>\n

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