To train (the glutes) or not to train?

Some like them big, some like them small, some firm and so on. Sir Mix-A-Lot has never been shy about his personal preferences.

But tastes aside, do your glutes matter?

Yes they do, and a lot. Being the largest muscle group in the body, the glutes (maximus, medius, minimus) have several important functions. I listed some of them below.

1. Strong glutes help to stabilise lower back and hips ad prevent pain in those areas.

2. Having strong and functional glutes decreases chances of knee pain (instability of the hip may, and often does, lead to knee issues)

3. Strong glutes help with balance and stability of the body, which alongside CORE strength, is of a particular importance as we age.

Unfortunately, despite being an important part of our body, glutes don't get much training due to modern lifestyle as we spend more time than ever in a sitting position at work, car or at home in front of the TV.

During pregnancy, our glutes become weaker as moms-to-be counterbalance the weight of the growing baby in the front of the body by changing neutral pelvic floor alignment and subsequently deactivating gluteal muscles. (This may explain why my bum looked flatter after each of my pregnancies!)

To train (and grow) glutes properly, a variety of movement should be performed to target all gluteal muscles starting with effective mobilisation and continuing to a variety of exercises that train glutes in both shortened and lengthen positions.