The Hip Hinge

The hip hinge is sometimes called the most fundamental human movement. When you sit down on the toilet and get back up, that is a hip hinge. When you do squats at the gym, your are performing a hip hinge. The hip hinge activates the hip extensors, in other words, your gluteal muscles, which are the largest muscle group of the human body.

The Gluteus Maximus, the largest gluteal, has been the subject of considerable interest by those who study evolution. This is because the Gluteus Maximus is much larger in humans than in our nearest evolutionary relative, the great apes. Evolutionary biologists have debated exactly what the function of the large human Gluteus Maximus is.

From this research it has emerged that the Gluteus Maximus is activated by activities such as sprinting, jumping and climbing. While endurance activities such as walking, swimming, and bicycling are great for your cardiovascular system, they are not effective ways of activating your gluteals.

Squats, or the hip hinge, are an effective way of activating your gluteals if you aren’t going to sprint or climb at tree.