Glute Ham Raise

advanced · isolation

Setup

Adjust the glute-ham machine to your height, placing your feet against the footplate between the rollers while kneeling face down, knees just behind the pad.

Execution

Start at the bottom position, body straight from the knees to the head, back in a slight natural arch.
Exhale and bend your knees to pull your torso up using the hamstrings, keeping the hips extended the whole way.
Rise until your torso is nearly vertical, squeezing the hamstrings hard at the top.
Inhale and lower back down slowly and under control to the starting position.
If you cannot rise all the way, lightly press your hands on the pad to assist partway through.

Breathing

Exhale as you pull yourself up, inhale as you lower. Do not hold your breath to force your way through the hardest part: there is no weight here, but it is still close to a maximal effort, and it matters even more if you have high blood pressure, heart disease or a hernia.

Quick cues

Hips stay extended through the lift.
Pull with the hamstrings, don't jerk the back.
Lower slower than you rise.
Not strong enough yet? Assist with the hands.

Common faults

Fault: Bending at the hips to help rise instead of using the hamstrings
Fix: Keep the hips locked in extension and let only the knee bend do the pulling.
Fault: Letting the body drop freely back to the bottom
Fix: Count 3 seconds on the way down so the hamstrings control the whole motion.
Fault: The knees aching because the pad is set in the wrong spot
Fix: Readjust the knee pad and footplate to your body height before starting.
Fault: Forcing a full rep before having the strength, which wrecks the technique
Fix: Use a light hand-assist partway until you build the strength to complete it unassisted.

Equipment

machine

Muscle groups

legs, glutes, calves