Medicine Ball Glute Bridge
The Medicine Ball Glute Bridge is a lower-body exercise that targets the glutes and hamstrings by adding moderate resistance to the standard bridge movement. It strengthens the posterior chain and improves hip extension mechanics without placing heavy compressive loads on the spine.
Iridium categorizes this as a high-rep accessory movement, using your RPE scores to gauge intensity since the medicine ball limits maximum loading. The system tracks these sets against your weekly glute volume landmarks to ensure you reach Minimum Effective Volume without engaging heavy spinal loading. If your 7-day history shows significant lower body fatigue, Iridium selects this isolation exercise to spare your lower back while still targeting the posterior chain.
Form Cues
- Drive through your heels to lift your hips
- Squeeze your glutes hard at the top of the movement
- Hold the medicine ball steady on your hip creases
- Keep your ribs down and core braced
- Tuck your chin slightly to maintain spinal alignment
- Don't hyperextend or arch your lower back at the top
- Don't push through your toes or lift your heels
- Don't let your knees cave inward
- Don't allow the hips to sag before the set is finished
Common Mistakes
- Hyperextending the lumbar spine
- Placing feet too far forward (hamstring dominance)
- Placing feet too close to glutes (quad dominance)
- Rushing the tempo and missing the squeeze
- Allowing knees to valgus (cave in)
Muscles Worked
This exercise primarily isolates the gluteus maximus, forcing it to drive hip extension against the resistance of the medicine ball. It secondarily engages the hamstrings to assist in the lift and recruits the rectus abdominis and obliques to stabilize the pelvis and prevent spinal overextension.
Primary
Secondary
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