Traditional glute movements like squats, deadlifts, and lunges will probably form the basis of your exercise regimen if “develop a big and powerful butt” is at the top of your list of fitness objectives.
While such workouts will undoubtedly assist you in accomplishing your goals, you may also wish to include other exercises in your programme. According to Morit Summers, a certified personal trainer and the proprietor of Form Fitness Brooklyn in New York, the Kas glute bridge is a booty-building exercise that is essentially an isolated, controlled hip thrust.
Summers outlines all the advantages of the Kas glute bridge in this section. Additionally, she explains how it varies from the conventional hip thrust and how to carry out and alter the exercise depending on your degree of fitness.
The Kas Glute Bridge Technique
While the two exercises have a similar setups (with your shoulder blades resting on a bench and your hips raised toward the sky), Summers notes that the Kas glute bridge requires less force and a smaller range of motion. As she says, “you can do seemingly much bigger loads when you execute a full hip thrust because you’re allowing your body to fold and generate more power to propel the weight up.” “With the Kas glute bridge, you’re entering a much limited range of motion and targeting just the glutes, and you’re not allowing the body to be involved in the same manner,” the expert explained.
In a Kas glute bridge, you thus slowly and deliberately raise and drop your hips a little distance. However, when performing a normal hip thrust, you lower your butt to the ground and propel your hips up quickly toward the ceiling.
- Kneel down on the floor with your feet placed slightly wider than hip-width apart, the middle of your shoulder blades resting against a bench or box. Put a barbell or dumbbell in the crease of your hips and hold it there with both hands.
- Engage glutes, drive through heels, and raise the barbell to the ceiling by extending hips to return to the starting position while maintaining a flat lower back, chin tucked, and forward look. The body should create a straight line from the shoulders to the knees, with the knees aligned with the heels and bent at 90-degree angles.
- Slowly lower your hips by two to three inches while maintaining a flat lower back and strong knees. After that, extend your hips slightly while pushing through your heels. When doing the exercise, make sure to use your glutes rather than your back.
- Return to the beginning posture by continuing to lift the hips until the body is in a straight line from the shoulders to the knees.
Benefits of the Key Kas Glute Bridge
Kas glute bridges put your booty to the test, as you’ve probably guessed by this time. Details on how it can benefit your behind are provided below.
Boosts Muscle Growth by Spending Long Periods of Time Under Tension
Since you’re not attempting to generate as much power with Kas glute bridges as you are with regular hip thrusts, Summers advises performing them at a slower pace. According to the American Council on Exercise, your muscles spend more time under strain, which is the amount of time they are contracting against an external resistance (think: weights) (ACE). According to ACE, increasing the amount of time under tension increases metabolic exhaustion and muscle breakdown while also having the potential to increase muscle growth with enough rest.
Although gradual hip thrusts can be used to lengthen the period of time under stress, the Kas glute bridge may still have a slight advantage. While the Kas glute bridge has a narrow enough range of motion that your glutes are under stress throughout the entire exercise, according to Summers, the hip thrust will undoubtedly cause you to lose some tension in the glutes as you lower down to the floor.
Strengthens with the Ability to Add a Load
The range of motion required to do the Kas glute bridge and the standard glute bridge, which are both done while lying on the floor, is less than that required to perform a hip thrust. However, Summers notes that the Kas glute bridge is more easier to load than the floor-based exercise. A dumbbell or barbell can be placed on the waist to load a basic glute bridge, but it can be distracting and challenging to maintain in place while completing reps, she says. It’s much simpler to load the Kas glute bridge if you perform it from a bench, box, or other stable surface, according to Summers.
Worked Kas Glute Bridge Muscles
According to Summers, you will primarily use your butt muscles, particularly the gluteus maximus, to extend the hips and raise the barbell up because the range of motion in a Kas glute bridge is less than a hip thrust. As a result, the workout aids in developing powerful glute muscles, which, according to ACE, are necessary to stabilise your pelvis and guarantee the appropriate operation of your lower body. According to ACE, in particular, weak glutes might cause you to compensate during movements with the hamstrings and quadriceps, which can ultimately result in injury.
The Kas glute bridge differs significantly from conventional hip thrusts in that it engages the glutes. Summers explains, “The Kas glute bridge is just supposed to be glutes.” “Because the hip thrust adds a power aspect and more motion, occasionally folks won’t truly feel their glutes functioning; instead, their quadriceps and hamstrings will be engaged. They are actually just using the ground to generate electricity and force.” However, an isolated Kas glute bridge makes your buttocks do the majority of the job.
However, your core, which safeguards the spine, still participates in the action. Specifically, during most activities, the core offers stability and prevents your lower back from arching excessively, which can cause back pain and injury. And that includes exercises like the hip thrust and Kas glute bridge where you press weight overhead or have a large weight resting on your body.
