Donkey kicks are a bodyweight exercise that targets your glutes while you’re on all fours, lifting one leg at a time toward the ceiling with a bent knee. They’re one of the most accessible ways to isolate and strengthen the largest muscle in your body, the gluteus maximus, without any equipment. The movement also activates the gluteus medius (the smaller muscle on the side of your hip) and demands core engagement to keep your torso stable throughout each rep.
How to Do a Donkey Kick
Start on all fours with your hands directly under your shoulders and your knees under your hips. Your back should be flat, forming a straight line from head to tailbone. Before you lift anything, brace your core as if someone were about to tap you in the stomach. This is the foundation of the entire movement.
Keeping your right knee bent at 90 degrees, press the sole of your right foot toward the ceiling. Lift until your thigh is roughly parallel with the floor or slightly above it. Pause for a beat at the top, squeezing your glute, then lower back to the starting position without letting your knee touch the ground between reps. Complete all reps on one side before switching. A good starting point is 3 sets of 12 to 15 reps per leg, resting 30 to 60 seconds between sets.
Muscles Worked
The primary mover is the gluteus maximus, the large muscle responsible for hip extension (pushing your leg behind you). Every time you climb stairs, stand up from a chair, or sprint, your gluteus maximus does the heavy lifting. The gluteus medius, positioned on the outer hip, fires to stabilize your pelvis so it doesn’t drop or rotate while one leg is in the air. This same stabilizing role is critical during walking and running.
Your hamstrings assist at the back of the thigh, and your core muscles work isometrically the entire time to prevent your lower back from sagging or arching. Because donkey kicks engage several muscle groups simultaneously, they contribute to overall lower body development and help prevent the kind of imbalances that lead to injury over time.
Common Form Mistakes
The most frequent error is arching your lower back as you lift your leg. When this happens, your lower back muscles and hamstrings take over the work, and your glutes barely activate at all. The result: a sore back with minimal benefit to the muscles you’re actually trying to train. If you notice your pelvis tilting forward every time you raise your leg, you likely lack the strength or awareness to maintain a slight posterior pelvic tilt (tucking your tailbone) during the movement.
One effective fix is to pull your non-working knee slightly toward your chest at the top of each rep. This “locks” your pelvis in place so it can’t rotate and shift the load to your spine. You can also reduce your range of motion. Lifting your leg too high is a common trigger for the arch. Only go as high as you can while keeping your back flat. A smaller, controlled rep where you feel your glute squeeze is worth far more than a big, sloppy kick.
Other mistakes to watch for: letting your head drop or crane upward (keep your neck neutral, eyes on the floor about a foot ahead of your hands), shifting your weight to one side instead of keeping it centered, and rushing through reps. Slow, deliberate tempo is what makes this exercise effective.
Why Donkey Kicks Are Worth Doing
Strong glutes provide better support and stability to the hip joint, which can reduce hip pain and lower the risk of hip injuries. This matters whether you’re a runner, a desk worker, or someone recovering from a lower body issue. The gluteus medius in particular plays a major role in pelvic stability, keeping your hips level when you walk, run, or stand on one leg. Weak glute med muscles are linked to knee pain, IT band issues, and poor balance.
Donkey kicks also serve as a glute activation drill before heavier compound lifts like squats and deadlifts. Many people struggle to “feel” their glutes working during those movements because the muscle is essentially asleep from sitting all day. Performing 2 to 3 sets of donkey kicks as part of a warm-up can wake up the neural connection between your brain and glutes, helping you recruit them more effectively when the load gets heavy.
Variations to Try
Once bodyweight donkey kicks feel easy at 15 or more reps, you have several ways to progress.
- Resistance band donkey kicks: Loop a small band around both thighs just above the knees, or anchor a longer band under your hands and around the sole of your working foot. The band adds tension at the top of the movement where glute contraction is greatest.
- Weighted donkey kicks: Tuck a light dumbbell behind your working knee and perform the movement as normal. Start light (5 to 10 pounds) because even a small amount of weight dramatically changes the difficulty.
- Standing donkey kicks: Hold onto a wall or sturdy surface and kick one leg back while standing. This version adds a balance challenge and shifts the angle of resistance slightly.
- Smith machine donkey kicks: Position yourself under the bar and press it upward with the sole of your foot. This allows heavier loading for people who want to build more glute size.
- Fire hydrant to donkey kick combo: Start with a fire hydrant (lifting the bent leg out to the side) then transition into a donkey kick. This hits both the gluteus medius and maximus in a single rep.
Programming Donkey Kicks Into Your Routine
Where donkey kicks fit depends on your goal. As a warm-up or activation drill, 2 sets of 15 reps per leg with bodyweight is enough to get the glutes firing before squats, lunges, or deadlifts. As part of a glute-focused workout, aim for 3 to 4 sets of 12 to 20 reps per leg using a band or weight for added resistance. Because donkey kicks are a single-joint isolation exercise, they work best paired with compound movements (hip thrusts, squats, Romanian deadlifts) rather than used as your only glute exercise.
If you’re training glutes two to three times per week, you don’t need donkey kicks in every session. Rotate them with other isolation work like cable kickbacks or hip abductions to keep the stimulus varied. The bodyweight version is also useful on rest days or as part of a mobility routine, since the all-fours position gently loads the hips through a full range of motion without heavy stress on the joints.