A hip bridge (also called a glute bridge) is a bodyweight exercise where you lie on your back, bend your knees, and lift your hips toward the ceiling by squeezing your glutes. It’s one of the most widely used exercises in both fitness training and physical therapy because it targets the glutes and hamstrings with minimal stress on the joints. No equipment is needed, and it can be done almost anywhere you can lie down.
How to Do a Hip Bridge
Lie on your back with your knees bent and feet flat on the floor, about hip-width apart. Your toes should point straight ahead, and your heels should sit roughly 6 to 8 inches from your glutes. Let your arms rest at your sides.
Press through your heels and raise your hips as high as you can without arching your lower back. At the top, your body should form a straight line from your knees through your hips to your shoulders. Squeeze your glutes hard at the top and hold for about two seconds, then slowly lower your hips back to the floor. Keep tension in your glutes and core the entire way down. That’s one rep.
Muscles Worked
The hip bridge primarily works the gluteus maximus (the largest muscle in your backside) and the gluteus medius (the muscle on the outer hip that stabilizes your pelvis). Electromyographic studies measuring muscle activation during a single-leg bridge found the gluteus maximus fires at roughly 51% of its maximum capacity, while the gluteus medius reaches about 58%.
The hamstrings play a surprisingly large role. The same research recorded hamstring activation at around 75% of maximum capacity during a single-leg bridge, making it one of the most active muscles in the movement. The front of the thigh (quadriceps) contributes very little, firing at only about 6% of its capacity on the working leg. This makes the bridge a useful exercise if you tend to rely heavily on your quads during lower body movements and want to shift more work to the glutes and hamstrings.
Your core muscles also work throughout the movement to keep your pelvis stable and your lower back from arching excessively.
The Most Common Mistake
Bridging too high is the error that causes the most problems. When you push your hips past the point where your body forms a straight line, your lower back arches and the exercise turns into a “back bridge” instead of a glute bridge. This shifts the load off your glutes and onto the muscles of your lower back, causing compression and tension that can lead to pain.
The fix is simple: before you lift, press your lower back into the floor to close the natural gap between your spine and the ground. Think about aligning the bottom of your rib cage with your pelvis. This proper alignment will limit how high your hips go, but you’ll feel the work in the right places: a stretch through the front of your hips and a strong contraction in your glutes, not strain in your lower back.
Why Physical Therapists Love It
The hip bridge is a staple in rehabilitation for lower back pain and hip problems. It strengthens the muscles that extend and stabilize the hip while teaching better motor control of the lower back and pelvis. Research has shown that bridging exercises improve coordination in the lumbopelvic region, which is the area where your spine meets your pelvis.
This matters because many people with lower back pain have a pattern where their quadriceps fire first during movement instead of their glutes. That dominance leads to poor glute endurance and delayed glute activation, which contributes to instability. The bridge retrains this pattern by isolating the glutes in a low-risk position. It’s also useful for people with excessive anterior pelvic tilt (where the pelvis tips forward and the lower back curves inward), since the movement teaches you to tuck the pelvis into a neutral position under load.
Hip Bridge vs. Hip Thrust
The hip thrust looks similar but is performed with your upper back elevated on a bench. This creates a larger range of motion because your hips can drop below the level of the bench before you push up. That extra range means more work for the hamstrings and quads in addition to the glutes.
The hip thrust is also much easier to load with heavy weight. You can roll a barbell across your hips and progressively add plates, which is awkward to do from the floor. For that reason, hip thrusts are generally considered the more advanced progression. If you’re new to glute training or working through a rehab program, the floor bridge is the better starting point. Once bodyweight bridges feel easy for sets of 15 to 20, you’re ready to progress.
Variations to Try
The standard two-leg bridge is just the entry point. Several progressions let you increase difficulty as you get stronger.
- Single-leg bridge: Extend one leg straight out so only one foot stays on the ground. This roughly doubles the demand on the working glute and builds hip and trunk stability by forcing your body to resist rotation. It also helps identify and correct strength imbalances between sides.
- Weighted bridge: Place a dumbbell, kettlebell, or weight plate across your hips and hold it in place with your hands. This adds resistance without changing the movement pattern.
- Banded bridge: Loop a resistance band just above your knees. Pressing your knees out against the band during the bridge increases activation of the gluteus medius, the outer hip muscle responsible for pelvic stability.
- Elevated bridge: Place your upper back on a bench to increase range of motion. This can be combined with single-leg or weighted variations for an even greater challenge.
- Isometric hold: Instead of performing reps, hold the top position for 20 to 45 seconds. This builds endurance in the glutes and is particularly useful during early-stage rehab when repeated movement might aggravate symptoms.
For a general strength routine, 3 sets of 12 to 15 reps with a two-second squeeze at the top is a solid starting point. Once that feels comfortable, progressing to single-leg or weighted versions will keep the exercise challenging as your glutes adapt.