Bret Contreras

Her form is incredible! Not much to say here except that if you're the type to get sore if you double up on squat movements (in this case a squat and a step up), do that on Friday since you get an extra day to recover. Great workout here! #fypage #trainerreacts #trainertips #glutegrowth

l've performed and prescribed every type of split in my 28 years as a personal trainer and for glute development, my go to is 3 days full body. This is what I prescribe for Booty by Bret members. Or you can do LULUL (lower, upper, lower, upper, lower). This is what many of my glute squad members do as they like just doing glutes with me. Many competitors perform either two leg days - one that's glutes and quads and one that's glutes and hams. Or they do a quad/glute, ham/glute, and pure glute day (3 lower body days). As I said, l've done them all, and l've had clients do them all over the years. And 3 days full body or LULUL is best for glutes IMO. It's also best for quads, hams, and adductors IMO. Why? Because you're training each muscle group and primary pattern 3 times per week. You get super strong this way. It's mostly fresh volume (not much junk volume) with greater frequency. Win win. But I'm a teacher at the end of the day. I like people knowing about the different options. You can and should try them all. And I think you'll come to the same conclusion as me over time. My clients can recover from it just fine. We rotate the focus to different lifts which spares the joints and keeps it interesting. I know I totally highjacked her workout to talk about splits. I don't really have any feedback. Maybe lean back on the leg extensions if you desire more rectus femoris growth. Maybe add in an abduction movement. Maybe place feet higher on the leg press and out further on the Bulgarian if you want more glute and less quad. But that doesn't make sense if you have a dedicated quad day. So great workout and exercise selection! Hope you guys enjoy these tips. #fypage #trainerreacts #trainertips #glutegrowth

Just four exercises? Hallelujah! I love it. Excellent form here and great exercise selection. Two simple suggestions. You always have to prioritize recovery and don't forget the abduction. #fypage #trainerreacts #trainertips #glutegrowth

Imagine telling someone in 2025 to do overhead squats, cleans, box jumps, and kettlebell swings for glute HYPERTROPHY instead of hip thrusts. Unstable movements aren't ideal for growth and neither are plyos and super explosive lifts. The contractions are too rapid to maximize muscle force (mechanical tension). You know what I can't stand the most in this industry? Haters. There's nothing you can tell them to change their minds, because this isn't about science. It's about jealousy. For some bizarre reason, they hate hip thrusts. It's not a rational dislike for the exercise; it's an irrational loathing for it. You can hear it in their voices. I've been dealing with this B.S. for 18 years. They say the most moronic things to bash the hip thrust. 3 studies to date show that hip thrusts appear equal to squats, step ups, leg press, and/or stiff leg deads for glute growth. You have the Plotkin 2023 paper, the Kassiano 2024 paper, and the Bartolomei 2024 paper. Showing hip thrusts are REALLY good for glute growth. Would you rather trust peer-reviewed, published studies or some dude's biased opinion? 8 studies to date show that hip thrusts are equal or BETTER than squats at improving function. How would powerful hip extension ever NOT be good for athletic performance? All in all, hip thrusts appear to tie squats for vertical jump but are better for horizontal jump, sprint speed, and possibly rotational power. This bro listed all vertical exercises. A recent review paper found that horizontally loaded plyos and exercises are superior to vertically loaded plyos and exercises for transfer to performance. Why would you only load up one vector? No coach does that to maximize performance. Hip thrusts are easy to learn and easy on the body. They're super stable. You can do a lot of volume with them without getting too sore or worrying about injuring yourself. And they work the glutes without working the legs so much. Not every woman wants muscular legs. Bros aren't the experts in glute development; women are. The average female lifter knows more about glute training than the top bros in this industry. If you look at their programs for glute training, they're laughable. #trainertips #trainerreacts #glutegrowth

l've had some crazy cases of glute imbalances over the years. So the methods have become more extreme. First the 2:1 method. Then the single leg kickback/reverse hyper method. And eventually the 2 single leg and 1 double leg day/wk method. #fypage #trainerreacts #trainertips #glutegrowth

If people just had a system, they'd see such better results. Ninety percent of lifters out there seem to just show up to the gym and do some random things without much rhyme or reason. I make sure to emphasize progressive overload in my Booty by Bret programming as it is the key to continous, long term gains. #fypage #trainerreacts #trainertips #glutegrowth

This was a hotel gym - wtf?! Amazing. Excellent glute and hamstring workout. Cardio after weights, not before. Not a very big deal but definitely worth considering as this could potentially negatively impact your strength session. Which is what create curves. Things she got right. Dynamic stretching before, static after the strength session. Super strong dumbbell b-stance RDL/bilateral RDL superset. Hip thrusts needed better bar padding. Seated hip abductions with a forward lean for more glute max. Banded RDLs - these look great! Perfectly placed in the workout. Lying leg curls to finish off. Excellent glute and hamstring workout. Could have done frontal plane abduction like a plate glute medius hip thrust or a cable glute medius kickback or an extra range side lying abduction or even band standing abduction for the glute med (seated works the glute max). Could have done the b-stance/bilateral tactic with hip thrusts too since the bar padding was limiting the load. These are just nit-picky tips but l've been doing this for decades and love offering tips. I hope you find my advice to be helpful! #fypage #trainerreacts #trainertips #glutegrowth

Fitness friends: simply doing the exercises is just part of the equation. To significantly recomp (grow booty while reducing waist size) you must get markedly stronger. This is what happens to most of my clients that I train in real life. Their weight stays the same but their shape changes and their body fat reduces. So do all the right exercises but also make sure you're getting stronger. My clients don't always look like it, but they're strong AF. #fypage #trainerreacts #trainertips #glutegrowth

This exercise is amazing! I call them smith reverse hypers. She calls them froggies. It's like an open chain version of the [closed chain] hip thrust. #fypage #trainerreacts #trainertips #glutegrowth

l've always loved variations. This one kicks butt! I like it more than the standard variation where you're leaning forward so much. When you train glutes frequently, you have room for variety in your program. That's why we train glutes 3X/wk here at Glute Lab and with Booty by Bret. It's more fun. You do one thrust/ bridge, one squat/lunge, one hinge/pull, and one abduction (frontal or transverse) for 3 sets each session. Works very well I must say 👌#fypage #trainerreacts #trainertips #glutegrowth

I just wanted to do this guy a solid. It's not easy for us bros out there on social media. This is an excellent post and a solid system. Good job @alexbush_ #fypage #trainerreacts #trainertips #glutegrowth

The younger generation would not believe this. Twenty years ago you would be absolutely crucified online if you showed support for the smith machine. Strength coaches hated it. Physios hated it. Even personal trainers. I was one of the only guys defending it. I'd mention increased stability and they'd pretend that that's terrible for hypertrophy and that instead unstable training was superior. It was crazy times. I'm so happy I no longer have to deal with this BS if I praise the Smith machine. Finally it's getting the love it deserves. And it's incredible for glute building. Squats. Romanians. Thrusts. Lunges. Step Ups. Good Mornings. Froggies. Bridges. So good! #fypage #trainertips #trainerreacts #glutegrowth

l'm all for influencers using science to convey their message. But I have a suspicion here that Aliaa just made up this Hotta 2018 paper. I have every study on this topic. The correct papers to cite if discussing the lengthened debate for glutes are Kubo 2019, Plotkin 2023, Maeo 2023, Kassiano 2024, and Bartolemei 2024. And anyone who has read those studies would be telling people to do hip thrusts to target the glutes. But also to do both stretch and squeeze position movements. So Aliaa, I ask one question of you. Just yes or no. Did you make up this Hotta 2018 reference? If I'm wrong, I will make an apology post. But if I'm right, stop using this made up paper as evidence. That's not how science is done. Take the time to read the damn research. I'll email you them if you'd like. It will take a couple of hours and then you'll be fully educated on the topic. But if you're going to cite research, make sure it's accurate. You've posted this same incorrect post numerous times now. You can film a more educated video on the topic and update your caption. Again, I'm happy to help if need be. #fypage #trainerreacts #trainertips #glutegrowth

To estimate the hip extension torque angle curve in a kickback, you take the perpendicular distance between the hip joint center and the cable line of action. So the first kickback did a great job of mimicking the body's internal hip extension strength curve (we are 2.5 stronger in deep hip flexion compared to full hip extension). But the second kickback reduced the effective torque at the onset by creating a nonperpendicular angle between the shin and cable and reduces the moment arm overall throughout the movement. Sure you can use more weight but this just doesn't make much sense IMO. Samialexis (tried tagging her but she doesn't allow it) mentioned learning it from someone else but that's the problem these days. Not everyone is well versed in biomechanics. The first kickback variation was better IMO. #fypage #trainertips #trainerreacts #glutegrowth

Okay, I got sent this clip by numerous people so here's my response. They weren't hating on hip thrusts here...just not going so heavy that you can't lock out. They're pro thrusters lol. Firstly, yes you should lock out your hip thrusts IMO. Until we have more research, that's the default IMO. Maybe on the last couple reps you can sad a little bit, but you should get 85% of the way up at least. Don't keep going until you're barely moving the bar. Rely on other movements to hammer that stretch position. So I agree to not go too heavy so that you don't lock out. But i don't agree that you should never go heavy with up thrusts (assuming you lock out). We thrust 3X/wk so variety is necessary. As to the quad scare claim, I agree. Probably 2/3rds of women feel that they're quad dominant and have gluteal amnesia whereas in reality it's a very small fraction. In general, people are weak and carry a lot of bodyfat and then start resistance training and get stronger all over and they recomp and look slimmer. No need for the masses to avoid squats and lunges and leg presses. Someone said that @sandybrockmanfitness said that squats are the best glute exercise for growth during this podcast. I didn't listen to the entire episode on @tscpodcast but if she did say this. I disagree. Plotkin 2023 showed that squats and thrusts tied for glute growth. Indicating that they're equal on a set per set basis. Imagine how many more sets of hip thrusts you can do per week than squats and still recover. So I think the evidence points towards thrusts being superior if you just want glute growth. Lastly, I do agree that sensations like the burn, the pump, soreness, and being exhausted are overrated. They're indicators but far less important than progressive overload for hypertrophy. #fypage #trainerreacts #trainertips #glutegrowth

It's always thrusts, Bulgarians, and Romanians, and possibly 45s and kickbacks. These are the main glute movements responsible for building booties, according to modern social media influencers. Success leaves clues! I would add single leg press, glute dominant squats, single leg RDLs, step ups, and seated hip abductions to this list. And glute medius hip thrusts and kickbacks for glute med. But the main thing is that 3-5 movements are always being mentioned and they're the best! #fypage #trainerreacts #trainertips #glutegrowth

Let's talk about dropsets. It's fine to do them, but chances are you're just thinking about the current workout and not the future. I get it...you want to feel fatigued. But how are you going to utilize progressive overload? The next week, are you going to a) try to beat what you did before the drop and tie the dropset, b) try to tie before the drop and beat the dropset, or c) beat both the first set and the dropset? Because progressive overload means doing more than you did the previous week. Progressive overload is tricky enough with straight sets or pyramids. But it's even more complicated when you incorporate advanced techniques. And I'm just talking about strategy here, not physiology. If it makes you super fatigued and diminishes your following workouts, how are you gonna beat your performance? This is especially important for those who are training glutes 3X/week like what my glute squads do and what my Booty by Bret members do. Think of lifting like a game of chess. You have to consider your next moves. It's not all about the workout you're doing today. You also have to consider next week's workouts, etc. if you fail to plan, you plan to fail. #fypage #trainerreacts #trainertips #glutegrowth

My clients with the biggest glutes rarely get super sore. If they did it would be counterproductive as they train glutes frequently and need to be recovered. #fypage #trainerreacts #trainertips #glutegrowth

Important topic here! Training frequency dictates how many exercises and sets you can and should perform, along with effort and genetics (damage and recovery genes). Some people are freaks and can recover from more volume. But most of us would struggle to perform this workout twice per week. If training glutes three times per week, consider just doing one exercise from each pattern. That's what I do with my BBB program. And you don't always have to do 3 sets of every exercise. Sometimes 1 or 2 sets is fine. #fypage #trainerreacts #trainertips #glutegrowth

Brief full body (or lower/upper splits) workouts consisting of one set to failure on around 6-10 exercises done 2-4 times per week are incredibly effective and efficient. I was so skeptical until I tried it myself around 24 years ago. Saw insane gains. #fypage #trainerreacts #trainertips #glutegrowth