Glute bridge hold

Movement

What the movement is

A narrative review describes the supine (face-up) bridge¹. The pelvis rises off the floor until the hip is in a neutral position¹. That position can then be held isometrically for a set time¹. The other option the review describes is lowering the pelvis again straight away¹.

Two muscles measured in held bridges are the gluteus maximus and the biceps femoris^2,4. The biceps femoris is one of the hamstrings, the three long muscles at the back of the thigh^5,8.

Hip extension means moving the thigh backward at the hip, or straightening the body at the hip. The gluteus maximus is aligned and leveraged to extend the hip⁹. The hamstrings extend the hip and flex (bend) the knee^5,10. The two groups work together, as synergists, to extend the hip¹¹.

The versions studies have used

The studies on this page tested the bridge in several forms^2,3,6,7:

• A back bridge held for 3 seconds with the spine in neutral alignment, with and without the left leg lifted².
• A single bridge and a bridge with one leg extended, each held for five seconds⁷.
• A bridge held for 5 seconds while squeezing a pressure cuff between the knees⁶.
• A bridge on an unstable surface, held for 5 seconds with the abdominal drawing-in manoeuvre (drawing the belly in), at three knee angles⁴.
• Bridges on both legs and on one leg, at knee angles of 30, 60, 90 and 120 degrees³.
• A single-leg-lift bridge held for 5 seconds, also done on an unstable surface or with hip abduction (moving the leg away from the body’s midline)¹².
• A single-leg bridge with the knee at 45 degrees, resting on the heel, with the ankle in different positions¹³.

What it loads

The buttock muscle

The gluteus maximus is the largest of the gluteal (buttock) muscles⁵. In 40 healthy, physically active adults holding a back bridge for 3 seconds, it was significantly more active than the tensor fasciae latae². A review says the two muscles share an attachment: the iliotibial band (a long band of tough tissue down the outer thigh)¹⁴.

Lifting the left leg reversed that order in the same study². With the leg lifted, gluteus maximus activity was significantly lower than tensor fasciae latae activity².

In one study of 16 men doing bridges on one or both legs, gluteus maximus activity did not differ across knee angles³. The angles were 30, 60, 90 and 120 degrees³.

Squeezing the knees together raised its activity in another study⁶. In it, 14 healthy women held a bridge for 5 seconds while squeezing a pressure cuff between the knees⁶. That squeeze is hip adduction (moving the leg toward the midline of the body)⁶. It significantly increased gluteus maximus activity⁶. Activity rose from 20.4% to 26.88% of maximal voluntary isometric contraction (a muscle’s hardest effort while the joint stays still)⁶.

The back of the thigh

The hamstrings occupy the back of the thigh^5,8. The group is made up of three long muscles: the biceps femoris, the semitendinosus and the semimembranosus⁵.

In 21 healthy adults holding a bridge on an unstable surface, biceps femoris activity increased considerably as the knee bend angle decreased⁴. The angles tested were 120, 90 and 60 degrees⁴.

Ankle position also shifted the work in one study of 22 futsal (indoor five-a-side football) players¹³. They did a single-leg bridge with the knee at 45 degrees, resting on the heel¹³. The study also recorded the outer part of the gastrocnemius, a calf muscle¹³. Two ankle positions were compared in the held phase¹³:

Ankle position on the heel	Biceps femoris activity	Outer gastrocnemius activity
Dorsiflexed (toes pulled up toward the shin)	Lower13	Higher13
Dorsiflexed and turned out	Higher13	Lower13

The back muscles

The erector spinae is the group of long muscles beside the spine that straighten the back. It makes up most of the back’s muscle mass⁵. It is the primary extensor (a muscle that straightens a joint) of the vertebral column (the spine)⁵. In the lumbar (lower back) region, the multifidus (a deep muscle running along the spine) lies nearer the midline than the erector spinae¹⁵. It belongs to a different muscle group¹⁵.

In 30 healthy university students holding bridges for five seconds, the back muscles recorded showed similar relative activity levels⁷. The iliocostalis is the outermost of the three columns of the erector spinae. The muscles recorded were the lumbar multifidus and the lumbar and thoracic (chest-level) parts of the iliocostalis lumborum⁷. The ratios between these muscles were about 1⁷. The authors said this supports the assumption that the back muscles help control spine position and movement in a similar way during these bridges⁷.

A second study compared multifidus with erector spinae activity across nine exercises, in 40 healthy, physically active adults². The ratio was highest of the nine in the back bridge with the left leg lifted²:

Exercise, held for 3 seconds	Multifidus to erector spinae activity ratio
Back bridge	2.762
Back bridge with the left leg lifted	3.352

The study of 16 men looked at knee angle and the strength of the held contraction³. In it, erector spinae activity changed in a similar way to hamstring activity³.

The abdominal muscles

The rectus abdominis is the prime mover (the main muscle that makes a movement) for bending the spine forward, as in sitting up⁵. On the flanks, the external oblique is the outer of three muscle layers, and the internal oblique the middle one⁵. OpenStax names both obliques as prime movers for twisting at the waist and for bending to the side⁵.

Studies of held bridges found these muscles working at different levels^7,12:

• In 30 students, rectus abdominis activity was significantly lower than that of both obliques in each of three bridges⁷.
• In the same students’ single bridge, the two obliques did not differ significantly⁷.
• With one leg extended, the external oblique was significantly more active than the internal oblique on the side opposite that leg⁷.
• On the same side as the extended leg, the external oblique was significantly less active than the internal oblique⁷.
• In 15 healthy adults, internal oblique activity on both sides was greater in the single-leg-lift bridge than the standard bridge¹².
• Rectus abdominis activity on both sides was greater than in the standard bridge in the single-leg-lift bridge on an unstable surface or with hip abduction¹².
• In 14 healthy women, the knee squeeze significantly increased rectus abdominis, external oblique and internal oblique activity⁶.

How the body adapts

The bridge studies on this page measured muscle activity during the bridge^2,7. The studies below looked at training some of these muscles.

What training does to the buttock muscle

A meta-analysis (a study that pools the results of several earlier studies) looked at resistance training in healthy adults aged 18 to 45¹⁶. It pooled studies lasting at least 5 weeks¹⁶. It found a moderate effect on gluteus maximus hypertrophy (growth in the size of a muscle)¹⁶.

One study randomised untrained college-aged adults to 9 weeks of hip thrust or back squat training¹⁷. Increases in gluteal cross-sectional area (the size of a slice cut straight across a muscle) were similar between the two¹⁷. Strength gains in that study favoured the exercise each group trained¹⁷.

Resistance training in general

A network meta-analysis (a meta-analysis that compares many options at once) pooled randomised trials in healthy adults¹⁸.

Every resistance training prescription it examined was superior to no exercise for muscle strength¹⁸. The prescriptions differed in load, sets and weekly frequency¹⁸. Higher loads, over 80% of the one-repetition maximum (the heaviest weight a person can lift once), gave the largest strength gains¹⁸. Every prescription was also superior to no exercise for muscle hypertrophy, and all promoted it comparably¹⁸.

Progressive overload

A 2026 position stand describes progressive overload as the need to increase the stimulus placed on the muscle throughout a training programme¹⁹. The studies below made the bridge harder by changing the support under it or the length of the hold^20,21,22.

Harder versions

• In 57 young, physically active male students, one-leg support was more intense than two-leg support²⁰. This was measured with an accelerometer (a sensor that records movement) on the pelvis²⁰.
• In the same men, the hardest versions were on a Swiss ball (a large exercise ball), mainly on one leg²⁰.
• In 76 men and women doing front, back and side bridges, one leg generally gave more sway than two²³. A hemisphere ball (a half-ball balance trainer) gave more than the floor²³.
• A review of the supine bridge, in its part on low back pain, describes switching between two legs and one leg²². It names this as the next step to add load²².

Training trials

In 40 healthy adults randomly allocated to four exercise groups, two groups trained a bridge three times a week for five weeks²⁴. Each session was three sets of 10 holds of 10 seconds, and one group lifted the right leg²⁴. Its external oblique and lumbar multifidus thickened significantly more than in the standard bridge group²⁴.

Two trials of 30 people each compared bridging with and without a balance pad, in six sets of 15-second holds^21,25. Both ran three times a week for six weeks^21,25. In one, the internal oblique thickened significantly only in the pad group²¹. In the other, only the pad group changed significantly in lumbar stability²⁵. In neither did the changes differ significantly between the groups^21,25.

A programme of five exercises

A double-blind randomised trial in young, physically active men set the back bridge from seven recorded versions²⁶. It was one of five exercises, the bird-dog among them, done twice a week for six weeks²⁶. In the fourth and eighth sessions, each man tried the next-harder version²⁶. Pelvic acceleration in a back bridge test fell significantly in both training groups and in the control group²⁶. The change did not differ significantly between the three groups²⁶.

Hold time

In 25 young men holding a bridge for 30 seconds, gluteus maximus activation rose over the first 8 to 10 seconds, then stayed high²⁷. The authors suggest holds over 10 seconds may recruit the transversus abdominis better²⁷. The supine bridge review describes starting at 5 to 10 seconds and progressing to 20 or 30 seconds, by level of conditioning²².

Connections

The muscles it works

• The gluteus maximus, the largest gluteal muscle, more active than the tensor fasciae latae in a held back bridge^2,5.
• The hamstrings, whose biceps femoris was more active as knee bend decreased on an unstable surface^4,5.
• The erector spinae, whose activity changed in a similar way to the hamstrings’ in one study³.
• The external oblique, more active than the internal oblique on one side and less active on the other when one leg was extended⁷.
• The rectus abdominis, less active than the obliques in three bridges⁷.

Other muscles measured

The multifidus, the tensor fasciae latae, the internal oblique and the outer gastrocnemius were also recorded in held bridges^2,12,13.

Sources

1. Colonna S, D'Alessandro A, Tarozzi R, Casacci F (2025). Supine Bridge Exercise: A Narrative Review of the Literature (Part I).. Cureus. doi:10.7759/cureus.80349 PMID 40206899
2. Khosrokiani Z, Letafatkar A, Sheikhi B, Thomas AC, Aghaie-Ataabadi P, Hedayati MT (2022). Hip and Core Muscle Activation During High-Load Core Stabilization Exercises.. Sports Health. doi:10.1177/19417381211015225 PMID 34060953
3. Hirose N, Tsuruike M (2018). Differences in the Electromyographic Activity of the Hamstring, Gluteus Maximus, and Erector Spinae Muscles in a Variety of Kinetic Changes.. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research. doi:10.1519/JSC.0000000000002747 PMID 30102684
4. Kim S, Park J, Her J (2023). Comparison of Muscle Activity and Muscle Thickness According to Knee Flexion Angle during Supine Bridge Exercises using the Abdominal Drawing-in Maneuver on an Unstable Surface.. Journal of Sports Science and Medicine. doi:10.52082/jssm.2023.431 PMID 37711708
5. Betts JG, Young KA, Wise JA, Johnson E, Poe B, Kruse DH, Korol O, Johnson JE, Womble M, DeSaix P (2022). Anatomy and Physiology 2e. OpenStax. Link
6. Jang EM, Kim MH, Oh JS (2013). Effects of a Bridging Exercise with Hip Adduction on the EMG Activities of the Abdominal and Hip Extensor Muscles in Females.. Journal of Physical Therapy Science. doi:10.1589/jpts.25.1147 PMID 24259933
7. Stevens VK, Bouche KG, Mahieu NN, Coorevits PL, Vanderstraeten GG, Danneels LA (2006). Trunk muscle activity in healthy subjects during bridging stabilization exercises.. BMC Musculoskeletal Disorders. doi:10.1186/1471-2474-7-75 PMID 16987410
8. Hu Y, Raja A (2026). Anatomy, Bony Pelvis and Lower Limb, Hamstring Muscle. StatPearls. PMID 31536294
9. Pourahmadi M, Asadi M, Dommerholt J, Yeganeh A (2020). Changes in the macroscopic morphology of hip muscles in low back pain.. Journal of Anatomy. doi:10.1111/joa.13086 PMID 31475359
10. Obey MR, Broski SM, Spinner RJ, Collins MS, Krych AJ (2016). Anatomy of the Adductor Magnus Origin. Orthopaedic Journal of Sports Medicine. doi:10.1177/2325967115625055 PMID 26798764
11. Lee DK, Oh JS (2018). Relationship between hamstring length and gluteus maximus strength with and without normalization.. Journal of Physical Therapy Science. doi:10.1589/jpts.30.116 PMID 29410579
12. Yoon JO, Kang MH, Kim JS, Oh JS (2018). Effect of modified bridge exercise on trunk muscle activity in healthy adults: a cross sectional study.. Brazilian Journal of Physical Therapy. doi:10.1016/j.bjpt.2017.09.005 PMID 28943402
13. Elias G, Jerez-Mayorga D, Intelangelo L (2024). Does the Position of the Ankle Matter During the Single Gluteal Bridge in Futsal Players? An Electromyographic Analysis.. Journal of Sport Rehabilitation. doi:10.1123/jsr.2022-0425 PMID 37917981
14. Duke MPR, Jones A, Takla A, Johnson MI (2025). The Relationship Between Tensor Fascia Latae and Gluteus Maximus Has the Potential to Indicate Early Intra-articular and Degenerative Pathologies of the Femoral-Acetabular Joint: A Narrative Review.. International Journal of Sports Physical Therapy. doi:10.26603/001c.129974 PMID 40041534
15. Willard FH, Vleeming A, Schuenke MD, Danneels L, Schleip R (2012). The thoracolumbar fascia: anatomy, function and clinical considerations.. Journal of Anatomy. doi:10.1111/j.1469-7580.2012.01511.x PMID 22630613
16. Krause Neto W, Krause TLV, Gama EF (2025). The impact of resistance training on gluteus maximus hypertrophy: a systematic review and meta-analysis.. Frontiers in Physiology. doi:10.3389/fphys.2025.1542334 PMID 40276368
17. Plotkin DL, Rodas MA, Vigotsky AD, McIntosh MC, Breeze E, Ubrik R, Robitzsch C, Agyin-Birikorang A, Mattingly ML, Michel JM, Kontos NJ, Lennon S, Frugé AD, Wilburn CM, Weimar WH, Bashir A, Beyers RJ, Henselmans M, Contreras BM, Roberts MD (2023). Hip thrust and back squat training elicit similar gluteus muscle hypertrophy and transfer similarly to the deadlift.. Frontiers in Physiology. doi:10.3389/fphys.2023.1279170 PMID 37877099
18. Currier BS, Mcleod JC, Banfield L, Beyene J, Welton NJ, D'Souza AC, Keogh JAJ, Lin L, Coletta G, Yang A, Colenso-Semple L, Lau KJ, Verboom A, Phillips SM (2023). Resistance training prescription for muscle strength and hypertrophy in healthy adults: a systematic review and Bayesian network meta-analysis.. British Journal of Sports Medicine. doi:10.1136/bjsports-2023-106807 PMID 37414459
19. Currier BS, D'Souza AC, Singh MAF, Lowisz CV, Rawson ES, Schoenfeld BJ, Smith-Ryan AE, et al (2026). American College of Sports Medicine Position Stand. Resistance Training Prescription for Muscle Function, Hypertrophy, and Physical Performance in Healthy Adults: An Overview of Reviews.. Medicine and science in sports and exercise. doi:10.1249/MSS.0000000000003897 PMID 41843416
20. Heredia-Elvar JR, Juan-Recio C, Prat-Luri A, Barbado D, de Los Ríos-Calonge J, Vera-Garcia FJ (2024). Exercise Intensity Progressions and Criteria to Prescribe Core Stability Exercises in Young Physically Active Men: A Smartphone Accelerometer-Based Study.. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research. doi:10.1519/JSC.0000000000004630 PMID 38088901
21. Cho M (2015). The effects of bridge exercise with the abdominal drawing-in maneuver on an unstable surface on the abdominal muscle thickness of healthy adults.. Journal of Physical Therapy Science. doi:10.1589/jpts.27.255 PMID 25642086
22. Colonna S, D'Alessandro A, Tarozzi R, Casacci F (2025). Supine Bridge Exercise for Low Back Pain: A Fascial Approach for Movement Impairment Syndromes (Part II).. Cureus. doi:10.7759/cureus.83785 PMID 40486307
23. Vera-Garcia FJ, Irles-Vidal B, Prat-Luri A, García-Vaquero MP, Barbado D, Juan-Recio C (2020). Progressions of core stabilization exercises based on postural control challenge assessment.. European Journal of Applied Physiology. doi:10.1007/s00421-020-04313-9 PMID 32048007
24. Yang HS, Lee YS, Jin SA (2015). Effect of evidence-based trunk stability exercises on the thickness of the trunk muscles.. Journal of Physical Therapy Science. doi:10.1589/jpts.27.473 PMID 25729194
25. Gong W (2015). The effect of bridge exercise accompanied by the abdominal drawing-in maneuver on an unstable support surface on the lumbar stability of normal adults.. Journal of Physical Therapy Science. doi:10.1589/jpts.27.47 PMID 25642035
26. Prat-Luri A, Vera-Garcia FJ, Moreno-Navarro P, Juan-Recio C, de Los Ríos-Calonge J, Heredia-Elvar JR, Elvira JLL, Barbado D (2025). Short-term bridging and bird-dog exercise programs did not enhance trunk performance and whole-body dynamic balance in young physically active males: A double-blind randomized trial.. PLoS One. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0325040 PMID 40471900
27. Kellis E, Konstantopoulos A, Ellinoudis A (2023). Effect of Bridge Exercise Duration on Lateral Abdominal Muscle Thickness and Gluteus Maximus Activation.. Journal of Sport Rehabilitation. doi:10.1123/jsr.2022-0286 PMID 37225173

Every source the library cites

Changes

• October 23, 2026 Added a Progressive overload section.
• September 29, 2026 Tidy pass: minor review findings fixed, glosses aligned with the reviewed glossary.
• September 29, 2026 Added a figure showing where it sits, links to the exercise pages that load it, and tighter wording in a few places.