The Exercise Physiologists at Peak Performance know all the muscles in the body, but which ones are our favorite?! Every week we will feature a different muscle- so you guys get an anatomy lesson and learn how to work that muscle. It’s Muscle Madness!
Matt, what’s your favorite muscle?
My favorite muscle is the gluteus medius, or glute med for short.
Where is it?
The glute med sits underneath the gluteus maximus, and starts on the rear of the ilium (round part of your hip) and ends on the outside of the femur.
What does this muscle do?
This small muscle helps to abduct the leg from the hip, and acts as a stabilizer during squat movements. The glute med also acts to stabilize the body while on one leg, particularly in day to day activities like walking, running, and balancing. A weak gluteus medius can result in catastrophe for your gait and balance!
What’s a good exercise to strengthen my gluteus medius?
A great hip training exercise is a single leg stand or balance. I like to throw in a twist for my clients to make it more challenging. For this exercise, keep a main portion of your weight on the outer foot of the outside leg, and don’t let the band pull you over!
