4 dumbbell glute exercises that bring the burn

Did you know that I can recognize people who take my workout classes by their bums?

That’s right, I can spot if you’ve been doing your squat pulses and kickbacks, because I’m all about targeted (but low-impact) moves that bring the burn.

To get your booty firing, I’ve lined up 4 killer dumbbell glute exercises.

Each exercise comes from my HILIT Booster workout series on Centr – quick, low-impact sessions designed to turn your day around in just 10 minutes.

To turn these dumbbell moves into one fiery glute superset, do each exercise for 40 seconds, resting 15-20 seconds between each move.

How to do it:

1. Lay on your back, butt on the mat, with your knees bent and feet on the floor. Your knees should be hip-distance apart.
2. Rest your dumbbells (or just one if it’s easier) on your hips, then squeeze your glutes to lift your butt up off the mat.
3. Now pulse by shifting your hips up and down, without touching your butt to the floor until your work time is up.

2. Dumbbell lateral squat walk

Show your gluteus medius and minimus some love as you step it out to the side with this underrated move. Sometimes called a crab walk, it’ll bring the burn while building stability.

How to do it:

1. Stand at one end of your workout mat, feet around hip-width apart. With a dumbbell in each hand, rest the weights at your shoulders.
2. Sink down into a squat then step one foot at a time – one following the other – to walk from one side of your mat to the other, then back again.
3. You should remain in the squat position through the entire exercise. Try to stay as low as possible to really work your glutes.

3. Dumbbell narrow squat pulse

By pulsing you continuously engage the muscles. That means there is no release for your glutes or quads in this exercise – so it will burn! But that’s exactly what we want.

How to do it:

1. Take a narrow stance with only a small space between your feet. Bring the dumbbells together at your chest and rest the ends at your collarbone.
2. Bend at the knees and sink your butt back and down to lower into a squat.
3. Without standing up, pulse up and down in the squat position for the full work time.

4. Dumbbell squat kickback

Ready to try one of my favorite exercises? The combination of squatting and extending one leg back at a time gives your glutes a really intense workout.

How to do it:

1. Take a dumbbell in each hand, rest them at your shoulders and stand with your feet hip-width apart.
2. Sink into a squat and as you rise up, kick your right leg back – flexing your toes so you feel your glutes switch on.
3. Drop down into another squat, then as you rise to standing, kick your left heel back.
4. Continue alternating sides. And remember, the more you flex your toes, the more you’ll feel your glutes activating.

Want more movement advice from the experts?

• 5 fat-burning functional dumbbell exercises
• 4 functional exercises that will test your whole body
• 5 recovery tools Alexz uses to supercharge results
• 7 dumbbell exercises for an epic leg day at home
• Arm goals: 4 of the best dumbbell tricep exercises