Short on time? Train your biggest muscles with this time-saving workout for maximum returns

Build your glutes with this straightforward workout

A man performs a deadlift with a kettlebell at home in his bedroom. He is stood with feet together, hips hinging forward so his torso leans forward, and a kettlebell held in his hands at about shin height. We see a bed behind him and a laptop in front.
(Image credit: Getty Images)
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It can be difficult to find time to work out, but it isn’t impossible.

If you can find 30 minutes, this workout by coach Harriet Harper will strengthen and tone your glutes with just a set of dumbbells and a resistance band.

These large muscles, found in your backside, are responsible for keeping your pelvis stable and helping you walk, run and jump.

Keeping them strong can help you avoid falls and reduce your risk of injuries. Here’s how to target them with just four moves.

Harriet Harper
Harriet Harper

Harriet Harper is a British fitness and strength coach and the founder of the HHF method app, a popular training app in the UK.

1. Banded lateral kicks

Harriet Harper performs banded lateral kicks in a gym. She is standing on her right leg, with a resistance band looped around her shins, extending her left leg to the sides as she holds a metal railing.

(Image credit: Harriet Harper)

Sets: 2 Reps: 8-10

“If you are at the gym, these can be easily done on a cable machine, but from home, just grab a resistance band,” says Harper. “Make sure you hold onto something, as stability is key.”

How to do it

  • Stand with a wall on your left hand side and loop the resistance band around your shins or just above the knee.
  • Place your hand on the wall for support, brace your core and balance on your left leg.
  • Gently raise your right leg to the side, using your glutes to initiate the movement.
  • Pause for a second at the widest part of the kick, then lower your leg and repeat.

2. Single-leg dumbbell hip thrust

Harriet harper performs a Single leg hip thrust. The image shows two pictures side-by-side. In the first, Harriet sits with her back against a weights bench, knees bent, feet on the floor and a weight held against her right thigh. In the second, her hips are elevated and her left leg is in the air.

(Image credit: Harriet Harper)

Sets: 3 Reps: 8-10 each leg

“A brilliant exercise for the glutes, and tough even with bodyweight,” says Harper. “Try to choose a dumbbell weight that challenges you.”

How to do it

  • Sit on the floor with your back against a bench or couch. You want the raised surface to sit just below your shoulder blades.
  • With your legs bent and feet in front of you, hold a dumbbell against your right thigh.
  • Keeping your pelvis level, thrust your hips up, so they’re in line with your shoulders. As you do this, lift your left leg into the air while keeping it bent at the knee. Ensure you reach lockout (full hip joint extension) at the top, but don't overextend.
  • Pause, then lower and repeat.

3. Dumbbell Romanian dead lift (RDL):

Harriet harper performs a Romanian deadlift. There are two images side-by-side. In the first Harriet stands upright, holding dumbbells by her thighs. In the second, she is hinging forward from her hips, with the dumbbells held by her shins.

(Image credit: Harriet Harper)

Sets: 2 Reps: 6-10

“An RDL is a hip hinge movement with a slight bend to the knee to minimize hamstring recruitment and instead focus on the glute muscles,” says Harper. “We want to maintain a neutral spine, so no looking at yourself in the mirror!”

How to do it

  • Stand with feet hip-width apart and hold a pair of dumbbells either at the front or the side of your legs.
  • Keep your core engaged as you hinge at the hips, pushing your butt back and lowering the dumbbells to just below the knee. Think about moving the dumbbells in a straight line down, feeling a stretch in your glutes as you move.
  • For extra muscle engagement, imagine you have oranges underneath your armpits that you are trying to squeeze to recruit your lats (back muscles).

4. Bulgarian split squat

Harriet Harper performs a Bulgarian split squat. The collage shows two images, in the first Harriet stands on her right leg with her left leg behind her, placed on a weight bench. In the second, she is bending her right knee so that she is squatting down over her right foot, with the left leg still elevated and a dumbbell in her right hand.

(Image credit: Harriet Harper)

Sets: 2 Reps: 6-8 each side

“This is a unilateral exercise, so you are working one leg at a time, and your rear foot is going to be elevated on a bench,” says Harper.

How to do it

  • Stand in front of a bench or chair and take a step forward, then place your right foot behind you on the raised surface, so you're standing on your left foot.
  • Keeping your left shin vertical, bend your knees and push your butt back to lower your body, so you’re squatting over your left leg.
  • Push back up to the starting position. If you lack stability, hold onto something to stabilize yourself.
Lou Mudge
Lou Mudge
Fitness Writer

Lou Mudge is a Health Writer at Future Plc, working across Fit&Well and Coach. She previously worked for Live Science, and regularly writes for Space.com and Pet's Radar. Based in Bath, UK, she has a passion for food, nutrition and health and is eager to demystify diet culture in order to make health and fitness accessible to everybody.


Multiple diagnoses in her early twenties sparked an interest in the gut-brain axis and the impact that diet and exercise can have on both physical and mental health. She was put on the FODMAP elimination diet during this time and learned to adapt recipes to fit these parameters, while retaining core flavors and textures, and now enjoys cooking for gut health. 

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