How to Build Bigger Glutes

How do you build bigger glutes? Prioritize hip thrusts and glute bridges, the exercises that load the hip into full extension, the position where the gluteus maximus generates the most force. Add a hip hinge movement like Romanian deadlifts for the glutes and hamstrings together, keep squats in the mix since they still contribute real glute work, and include some lateral movement, like cable kickbacks or banded walks, for the gluteus medius on the side of the hip. Hit enough weekly volume across all of it, and keep adding weight or reps over time.

Here's why hip thrusts outperform squats for glute growth specifically, and how to build a routine around that.

Why do hip thrusts build glutes better than squats?

Because of where each exercise is hardest. A squat is heaviest on the glutes near the bottom of the movement and gets easier for them as you stand up, while the quads take over more of the load through the top portion of the rep. A hip thrust is the opposite, the resistance is heaviest right at full hip extension, the exact position where the gluteus maximus is anatomically strongest and most active. A 2015 study led by Bret Contreras, published in the Journal of Applied Biomechanics, put this to the test directly, comparing EMG activity in the back squat and barbell hip thrust in trained women lifting at a matched 10-rep-max load. The hip thrust produced significantly higher average and peak gluteus maximus activity than the squat, along with more hamstring activity, while quad activity was roughly the same between the two exercises.

Does that mean squats aren't worth doing for glutes?

No, they're just not the most direct glute exercise. Squats still train the glutes through a long range of motion, especially when taken to a real depth, and they build overall leg strength and size that a hip thrust alone doesn't provide. The practical takeaway from the EMG research isn't "stop squatting," it's that a routine relying on squats and lunges alone is leaning on exercises that are only moderately effective at directly loading the glutes, while skipping the one that loads them hardest.

What trains the side of the glutes, not just the size?

Hip abduction, not hip extension. The gluteus medius and minimus sit on the side of the hip and are responsible for pulling the leg outward and stabilizing the pelvis, a completely different job from the gluteus maximus that hip thrusts and squats mainly target. Exercises like banded lateral walks, cable kickbacks performed out to the side rather than straight back, and the hip abduction machine train this part of the glute directly. Skipping lateral work entirely is one of the more common reasons a lifter who trains glutes hard still feels like something's missing from the shape.

Does the hip hinge matter too?

Yes, it covers ground that neither squats nor hip thrusts fully do. A Romanian deadlift or similar hip hinge loads the glutes and hamstrings together through a long stretched range of motion, which squats and hip thrusts train less directly. Between a squat, a hip thrust, and a hinge movement, the glutes end up covered through three genuinely different positions and ranges of motion instead of one.

How many sets do glutes need each week?

Somewhere around 10 to 20 direct sets per week works for most lifters, in the same range as other major muscle groups, split across hip thrusts or bridges, a hinge movement, and lateral work. Since squats and lunges already provide some indirect glute volume, lifters training a full push-pull-legs or full-body split often find the direct number can sit toward the lower end of that range without shortchanging growth.

What rep range works best for glute growth?

A moderate to higher rep range, roughly 8 to 15 for hip thrusts and hinge work, tends to work well, since these are exercises that can be loaded heavily but also tolerate higher reps taken close to failure without excessive joint stress. Lateral work for the glute medius often responds better to higher reps still, in the 12 to 20 range, since it's a smaller muscle doing a stabilizing job rather than moving heavy load.

Knowing whether your glutes are actually getting stronger, rather than just feeling worked after a session, comes down to whether your hip thrust and hinge numbers are trending up over weeks and months. Ori logs every set and rep automatically, so that trend is sitting in your training history instead of something easy to lose track of on a muscle group made up of several parts that are easy to train unevenly.

Let OneFit AI build the plan for you

OneFit AI generates a personalized plan from your goals, picks the exercises, and adjusts as you get stronger. Free to download.

FAQ

Do squats build glutes as well as hip thrusts? Not quite, at least not the gluteus maximus specifically. A 2015 EMG study led by Bret Contreras found the barbell hip thrust produced significantly more average and peak glute activity than the back squat at a matched relative load, with no real difference in quad activity between the two. Squats are still a valuable glute exercise, just not the most direct one.

Why won't my glutes grow even though I squat and lunge regularly? Often because those exercises put more relative demand on the quads than the glutes, especially with a more upright torso or shallower depth. The glutes are worked hardest near full hip extension, the position hip thrusts and glute bridges load directly, so a routine without them can leave a lot of glute-specific stimulus on the table.

What builds the side of the glutes, not just the size? The gluteus medius and minimus, the muscles on the side of the hip, respond to hip abduction rather than hip extension. Exercises like cable kickbacks to the side, banded lateral walks, and the hip abduction machine target them directly. Hip thrusts and squats train mainly the gluteus maximus and do little for this part of the glute.

How many sets a week do glutes need to grow? Somewhere around 10 to 20 direct sets per week works for most lifters, similar to other muscle groups, split across hip thrusts or bridges, a hip hinge movement like Romanian deadlifts, and some lateral work for the glute medius.

How often should you train glutes for the best results? About 2 to 3 times a week for most lifters, with at least a day of rest between hard sessions. Splitting hip thrust, hinge, and lateral work across multiple sessions tends to work better than trying to cram all of it into one long glute day.