How To Do Back Extensions For Bigger Glutes

Back extensions are a common exercise for building the lower back. But you can modify back extensions to make them target the glutes and hamstrings.

Many lifters have used back extensions for years. But many of these same lifters still have weak, flat glutes. It’s not about what you do. It’s about how you do it.

Not Kosher

These days, you often find Phit Vixens on social media doing farcical workouts. In the same breath, they then try to sell you their 28-day “booty-building” program. There is nothing wrong with trying to make money. But it’s definitely wrong to lie about how you built your body.

A lot of these women are not telling you that they have photoshopped their photos. A lot of these women are not telling you that they are on anabolic steroids. And a lot of these women are not telling you that they have had a BBL.

I’m not here to judge them. People can do what they want with their physiques. I’ve never used anabolic steroids, but I know why many athletes do. Despite the risks, steroids work.

The major problem is when these charlatans are just flat-out lying to the people. In the 2010s, an infamous social media “trainer” was flaunting her “booty-building” workout. Eventually, she was exposed for having a BBL. It wasn’t the squats that gave her a big butt. It was the BBL shots.

The Main Factor

Genetics determines the natural size and shape of your glutes.

Some people like me have flat butt genetics. And some people have big butt genetics. But even if you were born Frank Flat or Pamela Pancake, you still have the ability to build great glutes.

I was a skinny scarecrow for the first 20 years of my life. If I can build my posterior chain, I know you can too.

Back Extensions For Glutes

Many lifters perform back extensions with a form that makes my eyes bleed. The worst form mistakes are:

1) Overarching the back at the top of the movement
2) Coming up too high at the top of the movement

Arching your back too much at the top can lead to disaster. If your thighs lift off the bench, your weight is too light to see results. To perform a proper back extension for your glutes, you will:

1) Turn Your Feet Out On The Foot Platform

When most lifters do back extensions, their feet are straight at the bottom of the footplate.

There is nothing wrong with this foot position. But what you must know is that your foot position will determine which muscles you will hit. If your feet are straight, you will mostly hit your lower back. When you turn your feet out, you will hit your glutes and hamstrings harder.

2) Keep Your Chin Tucked In And Your Upper Back Rounded

In standard back extensions, you will perform them with a flat back.

A flat back position is not wrong. But it will ensure that your lower back is doing more of the work. To engage your glutes and hamstrings, tuck your chin to your chest. Then, round your upper back before you rise. By doing this, you prevent your lower back from arching.

3) Drive Your Hips Into The Pad

There is no value in trying to get hollow reps in. You want your reps to have purpose.

To start the back extension, drive your hips up through the pad as you rise. This way, your glutes and hamstrings will do most of the work instead of your lower back.

4) Add Load

Doing back extensions with no added load is fine if you are just learning the move.

But if you want to build glutes that stick out like a full moon, you’ve got to add load to this exercise. As your back extensions get stronger, your posterior chain gets bigger. There are three options you can use to add load. You can use a dumbbell, a barbell, or a band. The video below demonstrates all three versions.

Back extensions can be done on the 45-degree apparatus or a GHD.