Barbell Hip Thrust
The barbell hip thrust is a hip-extension lift: with your upper back resting on a bench and a padded barbell across your hips, you drive your hips up until your body is level from knees to shoulders. It works the glutes above all, with the hamstrings assisting, and the load is heaviest at the top of the rep, where the glutes are fully squeezed.
Also called: Hip Thrust, BB Hip Thrust, Barbell Hip Thrusts, Barbell Glute Bridge (loaded · Equipment: barbell · Pattern: hinge
Step by step
- Sit on the floor with your upper back against the long edge of a flat bench, so the edge sits just below your shoulder blades. Many lifters brace the bench against a wall or rack so it cannot slide.
- Roll a padded barbell over your legs until it sits in the crease of your hips. Hold it in place with both hands just outside your hips.
- Plant your feet flat, about shoulder-width apart, far enough from your hips that your shins will be vertical at the top.
- Tuck your chin, bring your ribs down and take a breath to brace your trunk.
- Drive through your heels and mid-foot to push your hips up, tucking your pelvis under as you rise. Your upper back pivots on the bench edge.
- Finish with your thighs and torso level, shins vertical and glutes squeezed hard. Hold for a moment without arching your back.
- Bring your hips back down under control until they are just above the floor, then drive up again.
- After the last rep, sit your hips down on the floor and roll the bar off your legs.
- Chin tucked, ribs down
- Shins vertical at the top
- Push the floor away through your heels
- Tuck your tailbone under at lockout
- Squeeze your glutes and pause at the top
- Upper back pivots on the bench edge
In VALDA, these cues are one tap away on the exercise while you train.
What it trains
| Muscle | Role | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Gluteus maximus: lower | Prime mover | A |
| Gluteus maximus: upper | Prime mover | B |
| Hamstrings: biceps femoris (long head) | Secondary | C |
| Hamstrings: semimembranosus | Secondary | C |
| Adductor magnus | Secondary | B |
| Erector spinae | Stabiliser | C |
| Rectus abdominis | Stabiliser | D |
| Quadriceps: vastus lateralis | Dynamic stabiliser | C |
Evidence grades: A = strong research base · B = good · C = limited · D = coaching consensus.
What goes wrong, and the fix
Arching the back to finish
Fix: Keep your ribs down and tuck your pelvis under as you reach the top.
Bar pressing hard into the hips
Fix: Use a thick bar pad and set the bar in the crease of your hips.
Feet too far forward
Fix: Bring your heels back until your shins are vertical at the top.
Feet too close to the hips
Fix: Move your feet out until your shins are vertical at the top.
Cutting the top of the rep short
Fix: Drive until your thighs and torso are level, then hold for a moment.
Head craned back
Fix: Tuck your chin and keep your eyes forward, looking down your body.
Bench sliding away
Fix: Brace the bench against a wall or rack before you load the bar.
What the research says
Muscle growth · first choiceSport performance · first choicePowerStrengthRehab & prehabGeneral fitnessEndurance
- Glute growth — A 2025 meta-analysis concluded that hip-extension exercises such as the barbell hip thrust are a priority choice when glute growth is the main aim. A nine-week MRI trial found hip thrusts and back squats grew the glutes by a similar amount, while the squat grew the inner-thigh (adductor) muscles more.
- Sprint transfer — In a six-week trial in adolescent athletes, hip thrust training improved 10–20 m sprint times more than front squat training, while the front squat improved vertical jump more. It is a single small trial.
- Load and effort — Research comparing loads finds muscle growth is similar across a wide range of loads when sets are taken close to failure. Studies show sets that finish a few reps short of failure capture most of the benefit.
- Volume — Research links more weekly sets for a muscle to more growth, with diminishing returns. Training a muscle at least twice a week has been associated with more growth than once, and many lifters spread their glute sets this way.
- Pairing — The hip thrust is hardest at the top, where the glutes are shortest. Many programmes pair it with a squat or Romanian deadlift, which load the glutes in a stretched position. There is no direct research testing that pairing.
Swap it mid-workout
With VALDA Pro, FLEX offers alternatives like these when you swap an exercise mid-workout.
Log the barbell hip thrust in VALDA, with these cues one tap away while you train and your history for it in one place.
General information about exercise technique, not medical advice. If you have an injury or a health condition, your healthcare provider is the right person to ask.