Love Your Butt! Keep Your Glutes Strong to Prevent Pain

When I was 39, I started having some weird lower back pain. I was very active with yoga and swimming and didn’t want my back to hold me back. I wasn’t even 40! Why was this happening?!

I went to see one of the physical therapists in my office (I am also an acupuncturist), and after a brief assessment, she told me that my glutes were weak. “How was this possible?” I thought to myself. I was so active! But sure enough, the next time I practiced yoga, I realized that during my one hour practice, I never used my glutes. Not once. 

There is a term “Gluteal Amnesia,” which is pretty much what it sounds like. As you age, your glutes “forget” to turn on, forcing other muscles to compensate. As humans, we are master compensators. “Forgetting” to use the glutes leads to tight hamstrings and hip flexors, as well as lower back pain, like I had.

Once I realized the problem, I made it my mission to activate my glutes whenever possible, and to help my students (and anyone who would listen) to get to know and activate their glutes. Bringing awareness to my glutes has not only kept me from having back pain for the last decade or so, but has also changed my approach to yoga.

For me, yoga has become a vehicle for staying strong, mobile, and out of pain. As a 52 year old, active, aging woman, I want to stay active for as long as possible. Can you relate? Giving my butt some love and attention has improved my chances so far.

Why strengthen the glutes?

There are three gluteus muscles, aka “the glutes” that make up the majority of the buttocks and create the rounded shape that you sit upon. These muscles have multiple actions:

• Hip extension: they move our thigh backward. This is useful for movements like walking, running, and swimming, as well as going up stairs, picking up something heavy, and standing up from sitting.
• Abduction and adduction: moving the thigh away from and toward our midline (respectively). This is helpful with any lateral, or side-to-side, movements, like rollerblading, getting in and out of a car, tennis, etc.
• Medial and lateral rotation: turning our leg in and out. They help us push off the floor and propel us forward and to the sides. These 2 actions account for many sports and daily activities.

When your glutes are weak, or like in my case, when you “forget to use them,” the body compensates, relying on other muscles to do the work. Over time, this can end in injury or dysfunction, since the other muscles, like the hamstrings and lower back, weren’t meant to be the leader in performing those actions. When we get the glutes to do what they were meant to do, the secondary muscles can step back from over functioning.

I write more about the glutes in my post “Why Core Strength is Essential and How to Get it.” I include the glutes when I speak about The Core.

Why stretch the glutes?

With all of the work they do for you (or should do for you), they also need to be stretched. Tight glutes can also lead to lower back pain because if you can’t move through the required range of motion, these movements will cause pulling on other parts of the body (like the lower back), which can lead to pain.

If you only strengthen you will lose range of motion; if you only stretch, you will lose strength. Both are equally important for keeping your body functioning the way that it should.

You never want to stretch muscles when they are cold. Sitting in a hot tub or sauna is not enough to warm them, you need to use them. After you strengthen the muscles, stretch them out to retain or improve their range of motion. You will feel more ease in your movements and can be less sore after strengthening.

Yoga for stretching and strengthening

Here are some yoga poses and sequences to help you strengthen and stretch your glutes. You may have to intentionally activate them at first when strengthening, especially if you are not used to using them.

Keep in mind that you are not looking for “buns of steel,” but rather a gentle activation of the muscles. Find the balance between strength and ease.

Homer, my dog, wanted to be part of the photo shoot. He’s a helpful Yoga Dog.

Glute Strengthening

Locust– Lie face down on your mat with your forehead on the floor, your arms alongside your body with your palms down. Bring your legs parallel to each other. Engage your pelvic floor and your lower abdominals. Lift everything that you can off the mat while keeping your neck long. Your gaze should be slightly forward on the floor. Feel your glutes working as your thighs come away from the floor. If you aren’t sure if they are engaged, reach back with your hands and touch them. Hold this pose 3-5 breaths, then rest.

Warrior 1–Stand with your feet a leg length apart. Aim your right foot toward the front of your mat, and rotate your left foot 45 degrees toward the front of your mat. Turn your hips to face forward as much as possible without strain. Your hips will be on a slight diagonal.

Press the outer edge of your left foot into the mat (hip extension with lateral rotation). This should engage your left quads and glutes. As you do this, rotate your left hip forward. It may not seem possible to do this, but it is.

With your weight standing into your left foot, bend your right knee over your ankle while keeping your torso vertical, shoulders over hips. Lift through the pelvic floor and lower abdominals. Raise your arms over your head with the shoulder blades moving downward and apart. Stay for a few breaths then repeat on the left.

Utkatasana side steps–start in Utkatasana at the back of your mat facing toward the left side. Start with your feet together, activating the glutes, pelvic floor, lower abs and inner thighs. Keeping the legs parallel, slowly step your right foot about 10” toward the front of your mat, then step your left foot to your right foot. Continue until you get to the front of your mat, then go back the other way. To up the challenge, put a lateral leg lift in before you step. To up the challenge even more, put a stretchy band around your thighs or ankles. Go back and forth 3-4 times in each direction. 

Bridge– Lie down on your back with your knees bent, feet on the floor. They should be between hip and shoulder distance apart, and parallel. It should feel comfortable, not too wide, not too narrow. Placing a block between the thighs (like in the photo) helps keep the thigh parallel.

Engage your pelvic floor and lower abdominals. Press your feet into the floor to lift your hips as high as they will go without struggle or strain. Press your heels into the floor to engage the glutes, which should initiate the action. If you don’t know if they are working, reach down and touch them. Make sure your weight is evenly distributed on both feet.

Arms can be alongside the body palms facing upward, or you can bring the arms into Yoga Mudra, where the palms are pressed together and the fingers are interlaced, like one fist made by two hands. Stay 5 breaths, then rest.

Glute stretching, aka “hip openers”

Pigeon pose–Bring your right knee forward on the floor so that the knee is directly in front of your right hip. Slide your right foot forward toward your left wrist so that you are laterally rotating your right thigh. Both hips point straight ahead.

Lengthen your torso forward and place your head on the floor, a block, or your hands. It should rest on something. Feel free to place a block or rolled towel under your right hip for some support if you feel strain in your knee. Stay 5-10 breaths, allowing gravity to pull you into the pose.

Cow Face pose– From pigeon, tuck your left knee behind your right knee with your feet out to either side. Sit between your feet on the floor or a block. Keep your spine vertical, or tip your pelvis forward with a flat back. You should feel the stretch in the right hip, but may also feel it in the left. Stay 5-10 breaths, relaxing into the stretch.

Ankle to Knee–From cow face, slide your knees apart so that your shins are either one in front of the other, or stacked one on top of the other. Your ankles and knees should align, either one in front of the other or one on top of the other. Keep your spine vertical, or tip the pelvis forward with a flat back. Stay 5-10 breaths, relaxing the hips and thighs as much as you can.

Half-Seated Spinal Twist–Straighten your left leg in front of you and bring your right knee into your chest, placing your right foot on the floor to the left of your left leg. Wrap your left arm around your right knee as you twist to the right. Keep the spine vertical and rotate from your obliques. Your left arm will create a hip stretch for the right hip. Stay 5-10 breaths then do all 4 poses on the other side.

If you’d like me to guide you through this entire sequence (it takes about 15 minutes), watch this video!

Join me on the mat in December!

Starting December 9 I’ll be teaching special classes to make the holiday season a bit less crazy. Well, the holidays might still be crazy, but you won’t get sucked into the chaos. Getting on the mat for even 15 minutes can completely change the way you feel.

End of Year Yoga Launch gives you the opportunity to get in a little self care without feeling overwhelming. Mindful Core, Movement and Meditation, Stretch Out, Strength for Life, and Better Balance. All classes include glute stretching and/or strengthening.

If you’ve tried to sign up before and couldn’t, I have now fixed the link. Sorry about that! Click the button below to sign up or find out more!