These warm-up exercises will help!

They are the strongest muscles in our body, but one of the most

overlooked. The glutes  consist of three major muscle groups:

the gluteus maximus, gluteus medius, and the gluteus minimus. We

need them for standing up from a sitting position, walking ,

bending forward, moving our leg up toward the torso, and

squatting .

Here’s the problem: our glutes stop working  when we sit,

restricting blood flow and weakening the muscle. Even if you

work out  every day, if you spend the rest of the day

sitting, you’re contributing to weak glutes.

After sitting all day, many people are unable to properly use

their glutes when they get to the gym, relying too much on their

quads or lower back muscles.

If you’ve been struggling with low back or knee pain ,

the cause is probably weak glutes. To make sure your glutes

are fired up and ready for the workout — especially if

you’re coming to the gym after sitting all day at work —

here’s how to activate them before you work out .

1. Donkey kick

 Start on all fours, making sure your hands are directly

below your shoulders and your knees are below your

hips.

 Lift one leg behind you, keeping your knee bent, until

your leg is in line with your body and the bottom of

your flexed foot is parallel to the ceiling.

 Repeat 15 times with one leg before switching sides and

complete another 15 repetitions.

Remember not to arch your back, and focus on your

glutes doing all the work!

2. Single-leg glute bridge 

 Lie on your back with your hands by your sides, legs

bent, with your feet flat on the floor.

 Lift one leg off the floor, then squeeze your glutes

and slowly raise your hips off the floor. Your upper

back stays on the floor while you lift your hips and

keep one leg straight.

 Complete 15 reps on one leg before switching legs and

completing 15 reps on the other side.

3. Clamshells

 Lie on your side with your knees slightly bent, knees

and hips resting on top of each other. Rest your head

on your arm or prop up your head on your hand.

 While you keep your feet together, raise the knee on

top, opening your hips. When you can’t lift your knee

further, slowly lower it and bring your knees together.

Repeat for 15 repetitions on one side before switching sides

A collaboration with Uplaunch and P6 CrossFit