Simple Glute Medius Exercise for Runners

I've received a few emails asking me to elaborate on one of the glute medius exercises I demonstrated on Instagram a few weeks ago...

The video above describes and demonstrates how to preform the hip hitch exercise, one of my favourite glute medius exercises for runners.

Hip Hitch Exercise for Glute Medius

The hip hitch exercise is remarkably effective when performed properly, and really quite simple once you get the hang of it.

However, there are a couple of subtleties to the exercise that need to be appreciated, for you to get the most from the drill and avoid using the wrong muscles, such as tensor fascia lata or quadratus lumborum (lower back muscles).

Ideally, you should feel a co-contraction between your glutes, and your abdominal muscles, rather than feeling the movement come from your lower back.

Once you get the hang of the movement, aim for 3 sets of 15 reps on each leg, focussed on form.

Understanding the Glute Muscles [Video] <- What do each of the glute muscles actually do?

Learn how to engage glute medius

The hip hitch provides a great functional progression to the more basic side lying leg raises (shown in the video below), which are great for teaching runners how to engage glute medius.

The side lying leg raises also build intrinsic awareness of what using glute medius should feel like, a proprioceptive awareness you can then take into the hip hitch exercise.

These are a great place to start!

Let me know how you get on in the comments below...