Glute Ham Developer Hip Extension
- Target muscle
- —
- Equipment
- Body weight
- Body part
- Hips
- Type
- Strength
The glute ham developer hip extension is a bodyweight strength movement performed on a glute-ham developer (GHD), where you hinge at the hips and drive them through extension to bring your torso back in line with your legs. It trains the back of the hips and posterior chain through a full hinge, and it's a useful way to build hip-extension strength without external load.
How to do the Glute Ham Developer Hip Extension
- 1Set the GHD so the pad sits at your hip crease and the ankle rollers hold your feet securely, with your legs roughly straight.
- 2Climb in face-down with your hips resting on the pad and your ankles locked under the rollers.
- 3Cross your arms over your chest or place your hands by your temples, and brace your core.
- 4Hinge at the hips and lower your torso under control toward the floor, keeping your back neutral rather than rounding.
- 5Lower until you feel a stretch through the back of your hips, without letting your lower back collapse.
- 6Drive your hips into the pad and extend the hips to raise your torso back up.
- 7Stop when your torso is in a straight line with your legs, avoiding any backward overextension at the top.
- 8Pause briefly, then repeat for your target reps under control.
Form tips
- Lead the rise with your hips, not your lower back — think about squeezing your glutes to bring your torso up rather than yanking from the spine.
- Keep the movement slow and controlled in both directions; the lowering phase is where most of the work happens.
- Set the foot rollers snug before you start so your ankles stay locked and you can hinge from a stable base.
- Start with bodyweight only and add reps before you ever consider holding a plate, so your form leads your load.
Common mistakes
- Rounding the lower back as you descend, which shifts load onto the spine and increases injury risk instead of training the hip hinge.
- Hyperextending past a straight body line at the top, which stresses the lower back without adding useful range.
- Rushing the reps and using momentum to swing up, which removes tension from the working muscles and reduces the benefit.
- Setting the pad too high or too low so it isn't at the hip crease, which blocks a clean hinge and forces you to bend from the wrong joint.
Frequently asked questions
What does the glute ham developer hip extension work?
It's a hip-extension movement done on a GHD, so it trains the back of the hips and the posterior chain — primarily the glutes and hamstrings, with the lower back working to keep your spine stable as you hinge.
What's the difference between the GHD hip extension and the glute-ham raise?
The hip extension hinges at the hip — your torso rises while your legs stay roughly straight. The glute-ham raise adds knee flexion, curling your body up by bending at the knees as well. This version isolates the hip hinge.
Is the GHD hip extension good for beginners?
Yes, as long as you control the range and keep a neutral back. Start with bodyweight only, limit the depth to where you can hold form, and add reps before any added load.
How many sets and reps should I do?
Since it's a bodyweight movement, higher reps work well — around 2 to 4 sets of 8 to 15 controlled reps is a sensible starting range. Stop a set once your form starts to break down.
