Dr. Bret Contreras

Mainly if you just know that the glutes

pull the leg backwards as in sprinting, or if you're in a deep squat or lunge and you stand up, that's hip extension.

It also raises the leg out to the side and also rotates the body outward, not inward, outward.

And those are the roles of the glutes.

And then how you create a proper program design

is an interesting topic because most people in the past, they've only focused on hip extension.

In the past, it was always just- Squat or deadlift.

Squat or deadlift or lunge.

Back in our era, it was squat, deadlift, lunge.

That's all people did.

Those are vertical hip extension exercises and they're very, very effective.

The thing is they also grow the legs very well.

So if you're a male and you want to grow the legs, yes, have at it.

What if you're a woman that doesn't want a lot of leg growth or you're just trying to maximize your recoverable volume?

I've noticed a very important phenomenon happen over throughout my career being the glute guy.

In the 90s, you remember it, in the 90s, it was people just did squats, lunges, deadlifts.

That's how you developed your glutes.

And then I come along, and earlier I mentioned these strength coaches that were doing glute activation.

And the glute activation wasn't squats, deadlifts, lunges.

We were doing glute bridges on the ground.