The 45 degree hyperextension is one of my favourite accessory glute exercises.   Working the glute group through hip extension, but with the legs anchored and the torso moving is actually getting the glutes to work as they should do in every day life – to keep us upright!

The glutes have many functions, but training them through the action they perform for us every day helps in every aspect of life

One aspect of the 45 degree hyperextension that I don’t like is actually its name!

If we use this exercise correctly – we are extending at the hip joint using the glutes, but definitely not hyperextending at the lumbar spine.  A great cue that I like for this is to actually encourage a bit of flexion of the spine, so cueing oriole to actually round out their back and ‘slouch’ a little as they come up.

Whilst this may seem a little strange, what we are doing here is gently lengthening the spinal extensors. If they are being lengthened, then they cannot be contracting to assist the movement….

Whilst most modern gyms do have a hyperextension workstation, many don’t, and due to its relatively large footprint its quite rare to see them in hotel or home gyms.

But fear not!  This its a great way to add this very useful exercise into your workouts using just a regular exercise bench.

Check out the video below for a demonstration and explanation on the 45 degree hyperextension workaround.

This video its taken from my 3 x 52 Workout app –  which serves three full body workouts per week, complete with tuition videos for every exercise just like this one, you can check out the 3 x 52 app here