Drills and Exercises to Help You Dominate the World: 1-Leg Hip Thrusts

Fall is officially here everyone. As much as I like the comfortable conditions, I know what's lurking around the corner...but let's not think about that too much right now. I got something fun for all of you today.

When it comes to movement and trying to correct certain faulty patterns the biggest thing we focus on is the hinge. He can loosely connect the hinge to bending over to pick things up. Usually we focus on make sure we include a hinge pattern in a strength program or if the person’s hinge isn’t clean, focusing on ways to clean it up.

Now most that know what I’m talking about, hinging, their brains will go right to the deadlift, RDL or the Dan John classic Goat Bag Swing, as an exercise. I think we can go a little deeper and simpler than that, for the most part. Thanks to Brett Contreras (really smart dude) the popularity of the hip thrust has gone to new heights. Among it's many benefits, I love it for patterning a hinge, while keeping the risk low. If you’ve paid attention to the research coming out, you’ve probably seen that Hip Thrusts has been proven to be more bad ass than things that we know and love like squats and deadlifts. For those looking for aesthetics, these babies will kick those selectorized machines to the curb any day too.
 
Upping the ante just a bit brings us to 1-leg hip thrusts. I once heard a friend tell a new client, when these start to suck less then you’ll know you’ve made serious progress. Yes they’re difficult in terms of how much effort is required to do a set of 10-12 each side, but as far as coaching and technique, they’re fairly simple. A drunk monkey could coach them essentially and boy do they work well.

As far as progressions go, these aren't right at the beginning, but near it. Before that I'd consider your standard bridge, then 1-leg bridge, then a hip thrust (2 legs) then these suckers.

Here is my client Laura getting her 1-Leg Hip Thrust on.

Once you've got those progressions mastered you can do things like put a band over the lap, put a KB in your lap, or even more fun barbell 1-leg hip thrusts. Down the line after that you can start to do stuff that's to an intergalactic. Things like adding chains and raising the level of the surface your pushing off of, like Lisa Lewis is doing here.

Video Credit-Tony Gentilcore and Girls Gone Strong

Bottom line here is, a variation of these (or some regression) should be found in every strength program. 99% of my programs have some variation, you can ask the Strength Campers all the variations I know. It doesn't have to be a barbell hip thrust for a million pounds like Contreras does either. When trying to pattern the hip hinge, make sure you keep this guy in your toolbox. 

​That's all there is today guys, go out there and get after it!