You hit your workouts hard. You’re lifting, squatting, and pushing, yet you’re still confused as to why your glutes haven’t grown. To put it simply, you probably haven’t been activating your glutes to the extent that you think. And, it’s extremely frustrating to feel like you are following all the right steps to have strong glutes. I have been stuck in that “Why am I not getting results?” way myself.
But the good news? Once you understand the mistakes, your results finally start to shift. Let’s break it down, and yes, by the end of this story, you’ll know how fixing your glutes can be as transformational as learning how to improve gut health, small changes, big results.
You’re Rushing the Warm-Up
We all do this. You enter the gym, check the mirror, and jump straight into squats. But your body isn’t a switch. If your warm-up is sloppy, your glute activation stays low. Other muscles take over: your quads, lower back, even your hamstrings.
Your glutes are strong, but they’re lazy. They wake up only when you specifically nudge them.
Try this:
- 20 slow glute bridges
- 15 side-lying clams
- 20 banded lateral walks
These take two minutes. But those two minutes decide whether your workout builds your booty or burns your lower back.
You’re Training With Ego, Not Intention
A mistake I made for years: lifting heavier just to feel strong. But here’s the truth. If you cannot feel your glutes squeeze, the weight means nothing. I remember pushing myself through heavy hip thrusts but feeling everything except my glutes. without burn. No pump. No growth.
Intent beats intensity.
Slow reps.
Full range.
Clean movement.
When your glute activation improves, even light weights feel heavy because your muscles actually work. And yes, that’s when the magic happens.
You’re Sitting Too Much (And You Don’t Balance It Out)
Our lives are designed for sitting. Work, travel, scrolling, meetings all of it shuts down your glutes. Long periods of sitting cause the hip flexors to become tight. The tightness of these muscles does not allow the gluteus maximus to function properly.
A simple fix: move every hour.
Stand. Walk. Stretch your hip flexors.
Small changes like these matter the same way small dietary changes matter when you learn how to improve gut health consistency always wins.
You Aren’t Prioritizing the Mind-Muscle Connection
If you cannot feel the squeeze, your glutes cannot grow. The mind-muscle connection is not “gym bro advice.” It’s science. Focus creates activation. Activation creates growth.
During your reps, think:
“Squeeze. Lift. Control.”
Touch your glutes while you train. Put your hand there and feel the muscle contract. That one second of awareness can double the effectiveness of your set.
This is where most people lose gains; the reps are there, but the intention is missing.
How to Fix It: Your Glute Growth Blueprint
Here’s what actually works, after coaching many women through these mistakes:
Warm up with purpose
Always start with a small routine to spark glute activation before your lifts. Don’t skip it.
Swap speed for control
Slow reps. Deeper reps. Controlled reps. Your glutes respond to quality.
Program glute-focused days
Heard of moves like hip thrusts, RDL, kickbacks and Bulgarian split squats. Equalized strength would work out activation.
Stretch what blocks the glutes
Tight hip flexors, lower back, and hamstrings often steal the load. Loosen them.
Move more during the day
You do not really need 10,000 steps; you just need to keep your poor posterior divided from settling in a matter of hours.
Don’t ignore your overall health
Hormones, sleep, stress, and even gut health directly influence the muscle recovery process. Just a few minor changes in your lifestyle for example, eating foods rich in fiber and drinking sufficient water will be very beneficial to your training efforts.
This is just one way of knowing how to get good gut health and at the same time get better overall fitness results.
The Bottom Line
Your glutes aren’t “stubborn.” They’re just not being activated, trained, and triggered the right way. Once your glute activation improves, your workouts hit differently. Strength rises within you. You lift better. You change faster.
Your body listens when you train it with intention.
So spark the fire. Wake the muscle. Build the growth you deserve.