Barbell Glute Bridge
The Barbell Glute Bridge is a floor-based strength exercise that isolates and builds the gluteus maximus by driving the hips upward against a weighted barbell. It allows for heavy loading of the hips with minimal lower back strain, making it an excellent accessory movement for developing posterior chain power.
Since the glutes can tolerate high volume and heavy loads, the AI analyzes your set-by-set RPE and velocity to ensure you are stimulating the muscle without compensating with your lower back. By integrating recovery data like HRV and sleep quality, the app determines whether your central nervous system is ready for a heavy loading session or if you should focus on lighter, higher-repetition work. Over time, the AI learns your specific strength curve to optimize weight jumps, preventing the common plateau associated with linear progression.
Form Cues
- Place the barbell directly over your hips with a pad for comfort
- Drive your heels firmly into the floor to initiate the lift
- Squeeze your glutes hard at the very top of the movement
- Keep your chin tucked and ribs pulled down towards your pelvis
- Control the weight on the descent without crashing to the floor
- Don't hyperextend your lower back at the top
- Don't let your knees cave inward
- Don't push through your toes or lift your heels
- Don't use momentum to bounce the weight off the floor
- Don't place your feet too far forward or too close to your glutes
Common Mistakes
- Arching the lumbar spine
- Improper foot placement
- Insufficient hip extension
- Neck hyperextension
- Rolling the bar too high up the stomach
Muscles Worked
This exercise primarily targets the gluteus maximus, allowing for a peak contraction where the muscle is shortest. It also recruits the hamstrings for hip extension and the erector spinae for stability, though the bent-knee position reduces hamstring involvement compared to straight-leg variations.
Primary
Secondary
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