Glute Ham Raise

The glute-ham raise is a great posterior chain exercise to develop strength and hypertrophy, in the hamstrings, glutes, and lower back. 

One of the main benefits of the glute-ham raise is it's one of the few ways to work out the hamstrings without loading, and compressing the spine. Your lower back is worked a lot when doing exercises like squats, deadlifts, RDL, stiff-legged deadlifts and good mornings. Glute ham raises allows you to train without stressing the lower back much. This also makes it a good option for people who have back issue.

Many athletes have muscular imbalances between their quads and hamstrings which can increase the risk of injuries. Using the glute-ham raise to strengthen the hamstrings can help address this imbalance, and help prevent hamstring injuries. 

Glute Ham Raise (GHR)

Glute Ham Raise (GHR)

How to do a Glute-Ham Raise
Ideally, you'll use a machine at a gym. I have done them with someone holding my feet and while on the floor with my feet under something to hold me in place, but this isn't ideal.

• Set up with the knees either directly on or slightly behind the pad, with the feet against the platform and the back of the calves pressed against the ankle hook.

• Start with the torso perpendicular to the floor.
• Squeeze the hamstrings, glutes, and abs, and lower under control until the torso is parallel to the floor.
• From there, return to the starting position by pushing the toes into the foot plate and pulling up with the hamstrings. Keep the glutes contracted.

Try and maintain a straight line through your knees, hips, shoulders, and neck throughout the exercise. 

What if you can't do a single rep?
The one drawback of the glute ham raise is many will struggle to do one rep with good form. There are several ways to build up to doing an unassisted rep

• My favourite way to start is by using a cable to help complete a full rep.  Holding a double-rope cable attached high to the weight stack counterbalances your body weight, making it a great way for a beginner to strengthen the hamstring and build up to doing a full unassisted rep as you can gradually decrease the assistance as you get stronger.  This has worked well for a lot of my clients.
• Go slow on the eccentrics and then use your hands to push your self back up to the top. This is the method I used many years ago when I first started training for it years ago.
• Use resistance bands to assist you.
• Doing machine leg curls and other hamstring exercises.

Glute Ham Raise

Glute Ham Raise

Ways to Progress

• Increase the number of sets and reps you can do with your bodyweight. This will be enough for most people for a long time.
• Slow eccentrics.​​ 
• Paused glute ham raises. Pause at the bottom for 1-5 seconds will make the reps more challenging. 
• Add weight ether by holding it by your chest, or by wearing a weighted vest. ​

​Common Mistakes

• Bending at the hips. Often people will bend their waist forward as they raise their body from a horizontal position. This normally occurs due to a lack of strength in the hamstrings, as bending moves tension away from the hamstrings.  You want to  maintain a straight line through your knees, hips, shoulders, and neck throughout the exercise. Not being able to maintain this is a sign that your hamstrings and glutes aren't strong enough. You will need to regress to an easier variation to build up your strength.
• Some people set up with their knee too high on the pad. This can cause knee pain people. Move your knees back behind the pad.​

Chris Adams 
Personal Trainer 
Nottingham