Glute workouts for men have never been more popular than they are today, especially with the prevalence of social media influencers.
With a carved chest and thick legs, bigger glutes offer an aesthetic and athletic advantage, making them a must-have when you hit the gym.
They look great, boost your confidence, and help with spinal protection, jumping higher, and promoting healthier posture.
This guide will explore the best glute workouts you can start doing today.
Plenty of exercises are similar to what you’d do for your legs, with more emphasis on your butt.
What Are the Benefits of Glute Exercises?
Before we get started on the list of our favorite glute exercises, let’s consider why you need to add them to your regime.
1. Improved Posture
When you have a built gluteus Maximus, you’ll have better hip rotation and a healthier pelvic tilt.
Together, these can improve your posture and athletic performance through wider movements.
You’ll be able to stand taller, which is ideal for your spinal health while also maximizing your confidence.
2. Evolutionary Benefits
Did you know that the larger glute muscles in humans help them stand upright?
These muscles are essential for changing directions, sprinting, walking, and more.
Without them, we likely wouldn’t be bipedal, and our bodies wouldn’t function nearly as strongly as they would throughout the day.
3. Reduced Injury Risk
Aside from assisting with posture and movement, our gluteus medius and gluteus Maximus help reduce the likelihood of injuries in your lower body.
Starting glute exercises helps protect your knees, hamstrings, groin, lower back, and hips.
Boosting this muscle reduces pressure on your knees and hips.
Glute Workouts for Men: Exercises to Start Building Your Butt Today
With a few key examples of how glute exercises can help you achieve your dream physique, let’s get into the list of our top exercises.
Suppose you already know these exercises, and all you need is a recommendation for a workout regimen.
Consider the following table:
| Workout | Recommended Sets | Recommended Reps |
| Barbell Back Squat | 4-6 | 6-8 |
| Barbell Hip Thrust | 3-4 | 15-20 |
| Goblet Squat | 3-5 | 3-5 |
| Bulgarian Split Squat | 3-4 | 12-15 |
| Lateral Lunge | 2-3 | 10-15 |
| Wall Sit | 3-5 | 20-30 seconds |
| Anderson Squat | 3-5 | 12-15 |
| Box Squat | 3-4 | 3-5 |
| Deadlift | 4-5 | 6-10 |
Whether you focus on your gluteus medius or Maximus, we highly recommend these glute exercises for beginners and veteran athletes.
Barbell Back Squat
A barbell back squat is easily one of the most popular glute exercises you can do from day one.
You can even opt to switch out the barbell for dumbbells, making it an easier exercise at home than at the gym.
Squats themselves are a traditional exercise known to assist with glute muscles. When you add weight with a barbell, it intensifies the workout tenfold.
Tips for Doing a Barbell Back Squat
There are a few important practices that can help you make the most of a barbell back squat, including:
1. Keeping your feet shoulder-width apart is essential for barbell squats as it allows you to maintain proper posture with the weight on top of your shoulders.
2. Another top recommendation is to keep your knees bent with your feet shoulder-width apart with each squat. This movement activates your glutes before you return to your starting position.
3. You can use a high or low bar with barbell back squats, depending on the muscle mass you want to build. High bar positions are best for a deeper squat, while lower positions push your hips forward, improving your hamstrings and glutes.
How to Do the Exercise
We recommend four to six sets of six to eight reps for this exercise. Here’s what you should do:
1. Take your bar out of the rack and rest it on your shoulder muscles along your shoulder blades.
2. Take two steps back and keep your feet shoulder-width apart, your toes pointing forward.
3. Make sure your spine is aligned by staring two meters in front of you while in your starting position.
4. Begin “sitting” down with your knees bent and shoulder width apart, as if you’re sitting in a chair.
5. Continue squatting until your hips are just below your knees.
6. Maintaining your weight on your heels, return to a standing position and repeat steps four and five for your desired sets and reps.
Barbell Hip Thrust
Another massive exercise you need to consider when building your glutes is a hip thrust.
What makes this exercise one of the best glute exercises is that you can modify it in seemingly endless ways.
You can do a standard barbell hip thrust, a dumbbell hip thrust, or even a single-leg hip thrust.
Tips for Doing a Barbell Hip Thrust
There are a few tips you can use to do the best possible barbell hip thrust for your glutes.
1. The best tip for these glute exercises is to make sure to engage your glutes with every thrust. When you return to your starting position, squeeze your glutes, keeping them tight.
2. Another important tip is to keep your abs tight as well. Your front and rear muscles will be engaged when you squeeze your glutes and abs.
3. The third tip to keep in mind is to maintain proper form when performing a barbell hip thrust. Try not to arch your back and keep your hips forward. This can help to avoid hip and back injuries.
How to Do the Exercise
Do this exercise in three to four sets of 15 to 20 reps. Here are the steps:
1. Sit on the floor in front of your bench with your back resting against the side.
2. Put a loaded barbell onto your thighs, rolling it up until it’s sitting on your lap.
3. Engage your abs and squeeze your glutes while you drive your heels into the floor.
4. Begin extending your hips, raising them toward the ceiling until your upper body and thighs parallel the ground.
5. Return to your starting position and repeat steps three and four for your desired sets and reps.
Goblet Squat
One of the best glute exercises we always have in our routine is a goblet squat.
Not only does it help to build muscle mass, but it can also help to open up your hips. These benefits make it one of this list’s most versatile butt exercises.
If you’re looking for an excellent warmup glute workout that every lifter can master, the goblet squat is a sure-fire winner.
Tips for Doing a Goblet Squat
Here are a few tips that could assist you in putting one of the best glute exercises to good use.
1. Always make sure you have your hips slightly forward with your toes pointing directly ahead when doing a squat. Ideally, you’ll want it to look like you’re standing on skis to maintain proper form with this workout.
2. Another form tip is to maintain the position of your knees. You’ll want to keep each knee in line with the laces on your shoes, preventing your back knee from caving. By doing this, you’ll feel the true burn of lifting weights throughout your glutes.
3. Finally, keep your spine straight when making any squatting motion. A great pointer is to tuck your hips, as this will naturally maintain a straight back. If you notice your back is curving inadvertently, you’re likely squatting too low.
How to Do the Exercise
We recommend doing goblet squats in three to five sets, each having three to five reps. Follow these steps:
1. Enter your starting position with your feet shoulder-width apart and your toes pointing forward.
2. Hold your kettlebell or dumbbell with both hands, tightening your abs and keeping the weight at chest height.
3. Slowly lower yourself into a sitting position, bending your knees until you’re in a squat position.
4. Keep your chest and back straight while slowly lowering yourself into a low squat.
5. Push all your power through your feet to return to your starting standing position.
6. Repeat steps three through five until you complete your workout.
Bulgarian Split Squat
The Bulgarian split squat is one of the best exercises for men to produce strong glutes.
At first glance, it’s easy to see how these effective glute exercises are more challenging. You’ll probably arrange it in the middle of your workout rather than in the beginning.
One of the benefits of building glutes with these squats is that they work on your quads, an essential muscle group for other glute exercises.
Tips for Doing a Bulgarian Split Squat
Let’s explore some tips to take advantage of this exceptional glute exercise.
1. This exercise’s top tip is to ensure your core is engaged. As you elevate your left or right leg for this workout, your core will be responsible for maintaining your balance. As such, engaging these muscles can help you stay stable and build your glutes.
2. Starting with lower weights is a fantastic way to manage these exercises for men. With a lower weight, you can focus on keeping the perfect form to work your muscle groups. As you get more experience, you can add more weight to the workout.
How to Do the Exercise
Try three to four Bulgarian split squat sets with 12 to 15 reps. Follow this procedure:
1. Using a weight bench, enter your starting position with your right foot on the bench and your back to the bench.
2. Hold a dumbbell in each hand while ensuring your front-facing foot is stable.
3. Keep your knee slightly bent as you lower your body toward the floor, continuing to bend your knee.
4. Maintain good posture, keeping your torso straight as you push yourself back up to your starting position.
5. Continue with steps three and four until finishing your entire workout on both sides.
Lateral Lunge
A lateral lunge is a fantastic way to add a new element of depth to your workout.
It’s also one of the most effective glute exercises focusing on frontal planes of movement compared to sagittal.
When combined with your other glute exercises, like hip thrusts, lateral lunges boost your overall performance.
Tips for Doing a Lateral Lunge
Let’s jump into some great tips that can help you get the most out of your lateral lunge.
1. One of the largest benefits of this workout is that it’s highly adjustable with different variations. You can do a dumbbell lunge, adding even more weight to the regime, or do a plain lunge without weight to get started.
2. Pay close attention to the form of your left or right knee when bending into a squat for this workout. Far too often, people allow their knees to collapse over their feet, reducing the exercise’s effectiveness. Instead, lower yourself from your hips, keeping your back straight, just as you would with a squat.
3. An amazing tip for working all three gluteal muscles with lunges is to ensure you alternate your legs. By doing the same number of reps and sets per leg, you’ll be using the best butt exercises to grow your glutes in no time.
How to Do the Exercise
We recommend doing lateral lunges in two to three sets of 10 to 15 repetitions. Follow these steps:
1. Begin by standing with your feet separated by hip-width. Keep a slight bend in your knees and your shoulders over your hips with a neutral neck and head position.
2. With your hands at each hip, tension your core, hips, and shoulders while keeping your spine in neutral position and your chest upright.
3. Take one large step to the side, shifting your body weight to your lead-leaning leg.
4. Slowly bend your hips while sitting back until your shin is upright. Keep your knee in position, so it’s above your third and second toes with your foot pointing forward.
5. Return to your starting position and repeat steps three and four until you’ve completed your reps for each leg.
Wall Sit
If you compare a wall sit to any other workout on this list, you might wonder if it’s as useful as everyone says.
Interestingly, as simple as it is, a wall sit is equally as effective as squats, kettlebell swings, and even using a resistance band.
The key to making a wall sit work for your glutes is using your glutes to create tension rather than relaxing into the wall.
Tips for Doing a Wall Sit
Let’s dive into some of the best tips you can use to begin building muscle with a wall sit.
1. Our top recommendation for this workout is to make sure you add weight to the regime, especially when training your glutes. With added weight with a kettlebell or dumbbell, you can maintain better tension, building your gluteal muscles.
2. Unlike other exercises, you’re not going to want to increase your sets or reps with a wall sit for a more challenging workout. Instead, you’ll want to increase the lengths of time you’re against the wall, making your entire lower body burn with gains.
3. Above all else, starting small is important if it’s your first time doing a serious lower-body workout. Try a wall sit without weights to get an idea of the perfect form. Once you feel more comfortable, you can then begin adding weights.
How to Do the Exercise
Try the wall sit in three to five sets, holding each sit for as long as 20 to 30 seconds. Consider these steps:
1. Find a solid, flat wall that you can comfortably lean against, pressing your torso against the surface.
2. Slide down the wall until your thighs are parallel to the ground, taking a kettlebell or dumbbell into your hands.
3. Keep your knees positioned above your ankles with your head, shoulders, and back pressed against the wall.
4. Hold this position for 20 to 30 seconds, maintaining the proper form while keeping your glutes and core engaged for stability.
Anderson Squat
The Anderson squat goes by many names, including the bottoms-up squat.
It’s a unique exercise that works your gluteus minimus, medius, and Maximus by performing the latter half of a squat.
In this squat, you’ll essentially be do an explosive upward motion (without bouncing) with the help of a rack, bar, and weights of your choosing.
Tips for Doing an Anderson Squat
Let’s look at a few tips you’ll need to know to get the most out of your Anderson squats.
1. The most important thing to remember with these exercises for men is that they start where you’re most often the weakest. Instead of doing a full squat, you’re starting from the bottom, which can be pretty challenging. That said, it’s a phenomenal addition to your workout, helping you improve your overall technique.
2. There are a couple of variations you can use when doing an Anderson squat, one being overhead and the other a front squat. Serious athletes looking for an even larger build prefer these techniques.
3. The key to effectively performing an Anderson squat is to master the art of body awareness and positioning. By knowing the proper form, keeping your core and back straight, and having good hip positioning, you’re well on your way to success.
How to Do the Exercise
Do three to five sets of Anderson squats with 12 to 15 reps. Simply follow these steps:
1. Set your safety pins at your desired starting height and load your weights onto the barbell.
2. Position your body in a squat position under the barbell with the bar resting on your back shoulder blades. Grip the bar with both hands, knuckles facing forward.
3. Slowly squeeze your shoulder blades together and lift the bar, unbending your knees until you’re fully extended.
4. Pause at the top of your position. Slowly lower the weight and your body, allowing your knees to bend until you return to your starting position.
5. Repeat steps three and four until you’ve completed your entire workout.
Box Squat
Like a wall sit, the box squat is an often undervalued exercise that offers a killer workout for your glutes and legs.
It’s one of the best exercises for men on this entire list that requires very little equipment.
By adding this exercise to your regime, you’ll be working on your quads, glutes, and hamstrings the entire time.
Tips for Doing a Box Squat
Let’s review some great tips that can help you do the most effective box squats.
1. Unlike a traditional squat, box squats are best done with your feet a little more than shoulder-width apart. Doing so will help you have far more stability, making it exceptionally simpler to lean into your squat further with weight on your shoulders.
2. You’ll want to customize the difficulty of this workout based on your ability rather than recommendations. Starting with too much weight can put you at risk for injury, while too little weight won’t work your glutes and hamstrings as effectively.
3. Box squats are a fantastic alternative to back or front squats, especially if you’re prone to injuries. With a box squat, you’ll put slightly less pressure on your knee joints, which is always beneficial.
How to Do the Exercise
If you want a recommendation, try this workout in three to five sets, each having three to five reps. Here are the steps:
1. Set your barbell in your squat rack based on your height. Ideally, the bar should be a little shorter than your shoulders.
2. Take a plyometric box and position it a couple of feet behind the bar. The height of the box should allow you to squat while keeping your knees at a 90-degree angle. Also, make sure you have enough space between the barbell and the box to allow you to step backward.
3. Step underneath the barbell and hold it with both hands, allowing the bar to rest on your shoulder blade muscles.
4. Slowly unrack the bar and step backward until you’re hovering over the plyometric box.
5. Keep your feet more than should-width apart and slightly bend your knees, keeping your neck and head in a neutral position.
6. Bend your hips, knees, and ankles, lowering your body into a squat position until your butt touches the box. Pause for two seconds on the box to get rid of your physical momentum.
7. Return to your standing position, pushing your power through your feet to unbend your knees, keeping your heels and toes engaged.
8. Repeat steps five through seven for your desired number of sets and reps.
Deadlift
The final exercise we’ll explore to help you build your gluteus minimus and Maximus is a deadlift.
Undoubtedly, deadlifts are a full-body exercise, but did you know they’re also a phenomenal option to work your glutes?
By keeping tension on your posterior, you’ll use your glutes as the driving force for movement, isolating and working these specific muscles.
Tips for Doing a Deadlift
Deadlifts can be slightly intimidating, especially for beginners. Let’s jump into a few tips to help you get started.
1. It can be challenging to get the squat formation out of your head when it comes time for deadlifts. However, it’s best to remember it’s a hinging movement, not a squat. You’ll want to start at your hips when lowering the deadlift using a hinging motion.
2. To ensure you’re working your glutes, you’ll want to keep them engaged at the end of your deadlift. You can do this by keeping the bar pressed against your quads as you stand. The less you hyperextend, the more work your glutes.
3. Doing a deadlift requires much physical power, so you’ll want to be in your most powerful stance. Try jumping in place, noting where your feet naturally land. This position is your strongest stance, which you should use for deadlifting.
How to Do the Exercise
We recommend doing your deadlifts in four to five sets with six to 10 reps. Check out these steps:
1. Stand above the barbell with the middle of your feet under the bar.
2. Slowly bend over and grab the bar with both hands, keeping your arms shoulder-width apart.
3. Bend your knees until your shins are touching the barbell.
4. Slowly lift your chest, straightening your lower back as you enter your starting position.
5. Take a large breath, and hold the air in your lungs as you stand up into a straight back with the weight in your hands.
6. Hold the weight in your upright position for one to two seconds, locking your knees and hips while keeping your glutes engaged.
7. Return the weight to the floor and repeat steps four through six until your workout is complete.
Glute Workouts for Men FAQs
1. What are some glute workouts that are easy on the knees?
Bad knees are more common than you’d think, which is why there are many knee-friendly exercise variations to consider.
A few of the best glute workouts for men that you can do if you have sore or previously injured knees include:
- One-legged deadlifts
- Box squats or chair squats
- Bridges
- Fire hydrants
2. How to know if glute workouts are working?
As with any muscle group, the best way to know your glute workouts are working is if you feel a burn in the muscle groups.
As you work your gluteal muscles, they’ll break down and repair themselves to get stronger.
This process can cause muscle soreness and fatigue, especially in your posterior.
Another surefire way to tell your glute workouts are working is to check the growth of your posterior.
They’re working in your favor if you notice you have more butt definition.
3. Are at-home glute workouts effective?
Interestingly, glute workouts are some of the most effective at-home workouts you can do.
Many options require dumbbells rather than barbells.
You can get a highly effective workout without the gym if you use the same amount of weight with the same number of reps.
4. How often can I do glute workouts?
Remember, when you’re training your muscles, it’s important to have recovery days for the muscles to rebuild.
That said, keep your gluteal training to two to three times weekly, giving a rest day in between.
5. Do glute workouts burn calories?
As with any exercise, glute workouts put your body to the test and burn calories.
Strength training is one of the most effective ways to burn calories while building muscle that can also burn calories at rest.
Start Doing the Best Glute Workouts for Men Today!
There’s nothing better than starting to work towards your dream physique immediately.
Instead of waiting for your next gym day, start with basic glute exercises at home to widen your hips and prepare your muscles.
A built posterior is fantastic for improving posture and leg definition, and there’s no better time to start than now.
