Gluteus Maximus Exercises: 6 Moves To Add Size & Roundness To Your Butt

Your gluteus maximus can become bored.

It wants something different to take it to the next level.

Doing the same workouts over and over will cause you to hit a plateau very fast. This simply means your glutes won’t budge further in size.

Sometimes all you need to do is add a little spice to your routine.

In this quick guide you’re going to discover 6 glute exercises that will challenge your butt to grow bigger.

Even if it’s bored. 😉

The Gluteus Maximus Exercise Overview

So instead of just listing the exercises, we created a 11 minutes routine combining all of these moves.

No equipment needed.

However, if you have a resistance band you can use it for some of the workouts.

Keep in mind that it’s optional.

You’ll be given a workout chart below showing the amount of sets and reps for each exercise. Try to keep your rest time between 30 to 50 seconds, you want to maintain a level of intensity.

Okay, let’s dive into these powerful gluteus maximus exercises.

1. Lying Banded Kickbacks

Starting off the routine is an exercise you might be familiar with.

This does a great job at glute activation. In other words, waking up your glutes.

This is something you should be doing in all of your workouts to maximize your efforts. If you want to know more about glute activation, make sure to check out this guide.

Okay back to the exercise.

How to do it

• Lie face down as demonstrated in position A.
• The resistance band should be around both ankles.
• You’re going to raise your left leg upwards as high as possible and hold for one second.
• Return to position A, now do the right leg and repeat.

2. Side Plank With Leg Lift

With this exercise you will be working the gluteus maximus and your core.

When you’re performing this exercise try to keep your body stable. You’re going to feel a lot of tension in your gluteal muscles and core.

This is a good thing as you are working multiple muscle groups at once. Which leads to more calorie burn.

How to do it

• Get into position A as shown in the image above on your right arm, in the side plank position.
• Make sure to tighten your core to stabilize your body.
• Now raise your left leg parallel to the ground and hold that position for 30 seconds.
• Return to the starting position, rest and repeat.

3. Glute Bridges With Mini Band

An absolute classic for growing bigger and rounder glutes.

If you’re not doing this exercise you’re missing out on some serious gains. It gets even better when you add extra resistance with a band or dumbbell.

How to do it

• Get into starting position A demonstrated in the image above, lying on your back, using both hands to hold down the resistance band across your hips.
• Now brace your hips forward as high as possible then squeeze your glutes for at least 2 to 3 seconds.
• After that return to the starting position and repeat.

Note: Squeeze the glutes as hard as possible on each rep. This simple hack works!

4. Standing Abductor Lift

The gluteus medius is going to get its fair share of burn from this exercise.

Even though the gluteus maximus is going to take most of it.

This exercise is perfect if you’re trying to build rounder hips and glutes.

How to do it

• Get into the starting position, with the resistance band around both ankles, hands on the wall.
• Raise your right leg sideways as far as you can, hold that for one second.
• Now return to the starting position and repeat.

Note: When you’re doing this exercise go at a slower pace. This will increase time under tension for the gluteal muscles.

5. Single-Leg Banded Glute Bridge

Talking about taking things to the next level, this exercise does exactly that.

Just a slight twist on the standard single leg bridge. This small change it going to really hit your gluteus maximus.

How to do it

• Get into position A demonstrated in the image above, left heel on the ground, right foot extended upwards.
• Use both hands to hold the resistance band across your hips.
• Now use your right heel to power your hips upward, hold for one second.
• Return to starting position and repeat.

6. Knee Tuck Bridge

Finishing off the routine is another glutes lifter.

Simple but super effective in adding more resistance without any accessory.

How to do it

• Use both hands to hold your left knee towards your chest, right foot flat on the ground as shown in position A.
• Now use your right foot to brace your hips upwards as far as possible, hold for 1-3 seconds.
• Return to the starting position and repeat.

Note: Remember to squeeze those glutes as if your life depends on it for each rep.

The 11 Minute Gluteus Maximus Exercise Chart

See The Workouts Demonstrated Below

Using This Gluteus Maximus Exercise Routine

Whether you’re a beginner or advanced this routine will do great things for your glutes.

If you’re going to use this as a main routine then do it at least 3-4 times a week.

If you already have a butt workout routine then you can use this as a warm-up or finisher.

Time Under Tension For Bigger Gains

It’s a simple concept that you should apply to your glute training.

Time under tension is basically the time a muscle spends under load during a rep.[1]

So for example, when performing glute bridge, squeeze the glutes for at least 1 to 3 seconds on each rep.

The longer the contraction the more load on the glutes.

Remember that your muscles don’t have the ability to count, it responds to load.

That’s why you shouldn’t just blast through the reps for the sake of finishing the routine.

Perform the exercises at a moderate pace so you can actually feel the tension and load on the glutes.

Start Hitting The Gluteus Maximus

There you have it a simple routine that can add some spice to your training.

Go ahead and give it a try.

Your glutes will love the new challenge!