Glute Ham Raise
Kneeling on a glute ham bench with your feet locked in, you lower your straight body forward by extending your knees, then pull yourself back up with your hamstrings.
- Primary muscles
- Hamstrings
- Secondary
- Glutes, Lower back, Calves
- Difficulty
- Intermediate
- Logged as
- Reps
Why do it
The glute ham raise trains your hamstrings to bend the knee while your hips stay straight, with your body weight as the load. The curved pad and footplate make it easier than a Nordic curl, because you can push your toes into the plate to help through the toughest part. It suits intermediate lifters with access to the bench and makes a strong partner to hip-dominant moves like deadlifts. Push off the floor with your hands or shorten the range until you can do full reps.
How to do it
Set up on the glute ham bench with your knees just behind the pad and your feet locked under the rollers.
Start with your torso upright and your body in a straight line from knees to head.
Lower your torso forward slowly by straightening your knees, keeping your hips extended.
Pull yourself back up with your hamstrings. Push your toes into the footplate or push off the floor with your hands if you cannot complete the rep on your own yet.
Common mistakes
Folding at the hips on the way up
Piking your hips to get up shortens the lever and turns it into a back extension. Keep a straight line from knees to head and pull with your knees.
Knees on top of the pad
With your knees on or in front of the pad, the movement jams and your kneecaps take the pressure. Set the pad so your knees sit just behind it.
Falling forward quickly
Dropping down fast skips the lowering, where your hamstrings work hardest. Lower slowly, and shorten the range if you can't control it yet.
Feet loose under the rollers
If your feet can slide, you lose the anchor you pull against. Lock them in tight and set the footplate so you can press your toes into it.
Sets, reps and progression
How many sets you do and how close to failure you take them depend on your goal and your week, not on the exercise. These guides cover it:
Alternatives that train the same thing
Same movement, a different angle or piece of equipment.
