Exercise
Single Leg Bridge With Outstretched Leg
How to Perform - Single Leg Bridge With Outstretched Leg
- Lie flat on your back with your knees bent and feet flat on the floor hip-width apart, arms resting at your sides with palms facing down.
- Extend one leg straight out at hip height, keeping it in line with your opposite thigh while maintaining a neutral spine position.
- Press your heel firmly into the ground on your supporting leg and engage your core by drawing your navel toward your spine.
- Exhale as you drive through the planted heel to lift your hips up toward the ceiling until your body forms a straight line from your shoulders to your extended leg.
- Squeeze your glutes at the top of the movement and ensure your hips remain level without rotating or tilting to either side.
- Hold the elevated position for 1-2 seconds while maintaining steady breathing and keeping your extended leg straight.
- Inhale as you slowly lower your hips back toward the floor with control, stopping just before your lower back touches the ground.
- Complete all repetitions on one side before switching to the other leg, maintaining the same body alignment throughout the exercise.
Important information
- Keep your hips square throughout the movement - don't let one side drop lower than the other when lifting or lowering.
- If you feel strain in your lower back, decrease the range of motion or place your arms wider for additional stability.
- Focus on using your glute muscles to power the movement rather than pushing through your lower back.
- For increased difficulty, place your supporting foot further away from your buttocks or add a brief pause at the top of each repetition.
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The Single Leg Bridge With Outstretched Leg stands as a remarkable intermediate-level exercise that simultaneously targets multiple crucial muscle groups, primarily the glutes, hamstrings, and abdominals. This versatile movement has gained popularity among both bodybuilding enthusiasts looking to sculpt defined posterior chains and individuals in recovery phases seeking controlled, effective rehabilitation options.
When incorporated into a consistent training regimen, this exercise delivers exceptional benefits for strength development, particularly in the posterior chain, while simultaneously challenging your core stability. The unilateral nature of the movement—working one leg at a time—creates an additional stabilization demand that conventional bilateral bridges simply cannot match, making it particularly effective for identifying and addressing muscle imbalances between your left and right sides.
The beauty of the Single Leg Bridge With Outstretched Leg lies in its ability to intensify glute activation without requiring external weights. By extending one leg, you're essentially increasing the leverage demand on the working side, forcing those glutes and hamstrings to generate significantly more force than they would during standard bridge variations. Meanwhile, your core musculature works overtime to maintain proper pelvic positioning and prevent rotation—a challenge that translates to improved functional strength in everyday movements and athletic performance.
For those focused on aesthetic bodybuilding goals, this exercise helps develop the rounded, lifted appearance of the glutes while simultaneously defining the hamstrings. From a recovery perspective, the controlled nature of the movement makes it ideal for rebuilding strength following lower body injuries, particularly those affecting the knee or ankle, as it minimizes joint stress while maximizing muscle engagement.
The exercise serves as an excellent progression from basic glute bridges but doesn't require the equipment demands of weighted hip thrusts, making it accessible in virtually any training environment. Whether you're looking to enhance athletic performance, improve posterior chain aesthetics, or build foundational strength, the Single Leg Bridge With Outstretched Leg delivers impressive results when performed with proper form and consistency.
FAQ - Single Leg Bridge With Outstretched Leg
This exercise primarily targets your glutes and hamstrings on the working leg, while significantly engaging your core muscles for stabilization. Your lower back and hip stabilizers also work isometrically to maintain proper pelvic alignment throughout the movement.
You can make Dumbbell V-Ups easier by bending your knees, performing just the upper body portion while holding the dumbbell, or doing alternating sides instead of the full movement. For beginners, master the basic V-Up without weight before adding resistance.
The most common mistakes include rounding your lower back, rotating your hips instead of keeping them square, rushing through the movement, and not hinging properly at the hips. Focus on maintaining a neutral spine, moving with control, and keeping your standing knee slightly soft rather than locked.
Incorporate this exercise 2-3 times weekly with 2-3 sets of 10-15 repetitions per leg for optimal results. Allow 48 hours between sessions for your glutes and hamstrings to recover, especially if you're new to this movement or experiencing significant muscle fatigue.
Absolutely! Increase difficulty by elevating your supporting foot on a bench or stability ball, adding a pulse at the top of each repetition, or incorporating isometric holds at the peak position for 3-5 seconds. You can also place a resistance band just above your knees for added tension in the glutes.
