Hamstring Bridge (VERSION 2)
- Target muscle
- —
- Equipment
- Body weight
- Body part
- Hips
- Type
- Strength
The hamstring bridge is a bodyweight hip-extension exercise that biases the hamstrings by placing your heels further from your hips so your legs sit more extended. With the glutes assisting, you drive your hips up to a straight line from shoulders to knees. It's a joint-friendly way to build posterior-chain strength and is easy to scale at home or in the gym.
How to do the Hamstring Bridge (VERSION 2)
- 1Lie on your back with your knees bent and your arms flat at your sides, palms down for stability.
- 2Walk your heels away from your hips so your legs are more extended than in a standard glute bridge — this shifts the load onto your hamstrings.
- 3Dig your heels into the floor and lift your toes slightly, bracing your core and keeping your ribs down.
- 4Drive through your heels to raise your hips until your body forms a straight line from your shoulders to your knees.
- 5Squeeze your hamstrings and glutes hard at the top, holding for a brief moment without arching your lower back.
- 6Lower your hips under control until they hover just above the floor, keeping tension in your hamstrings.
- 7Repeat for your target reps, then set your hips down and relax.
Form tips
- Place your heels further from your hips than a normal glute bridge — the more extended leg position is what makes the hamstrings, not the glutes, do most of the work.
- Push the floor away through your heels, not your toes, to keep the emphasis on the back of your thighs.
- Keep your core braced and ribs down so the movement comes from your hips, not from over-arching your lower back.
- Lower slowly (2–3 seconds) to keep tension on the hamstrings and get more out of each rep.
Common mistakes
- Hyperextending the lower back at the top instead of stopping at a straight hip-to-shoulder line, which strains the spine and takes load off the hamstrings.
- Driving through the toes or balls of the feet, which shifts the work to the quads and calves and away from the hamstrings.
- Placing the heels too close to the hips, turning the movement back into a glute-dominant bridge.
- Using momentum to bounce the hips up and down instead of controlling the lift and descent, which reduces tension and the training effect.
Frequently asked questions
What muscles does the hamstring bridge work?
It mainly works the hamstrings on the back of your thighs, with the glutes assisting as you extend your hips. The extended-leg setup is what biases the load toward the hamstrings rather than the glutes.
How is a hamstring bridge different from a glute bridge?
In a glute bridge your heels sit close to your hips with knees bent sharply, so the glutes lead. In a hamstring bridge you walk your heels further out so your legs are more extended, putting the hamstrings in charge and using the glutes only as assistance.
How many sets and reps should I do?
For a bodyweight movement, 3–4 sets of 10–15 controlled reps works well. Slow the lowering phase or add reps before adding load.
Is the hamstring bridge good for beginners?
Yes. It's a bodyweight exercise with no equipment needed, and it's gentle on the joints, making it a good way for beginners to build hamstring and posterior-chain strength.
How do I make the hamstring bridge harder?
Progress to a single-leg hamstring bridge by extending one leg and driving up through the other heel. You can also slow the tempo, pause at the top, or extend your legs further to increase the hamstring demand.
