Hip Extension with Bands
Also works: Hamstrings
A standing hip extension with a resistance band anchored low and looped round one ankle: you face the anchor and drag the straight leg backwards against increasing tension. The band's rising resistance peaks exactly where the glute is strongest, at the end of the extension, which cable and bodyweight versions do not.
Own the movement
Set up first, then execute. Every cue below is something you can check on your next set.
Before the first rep
- Anchor the band low: a rack upright at ankle height, a door anchor near the floor, or under your other foot.
- Loop the free end round one ankle, over the bone rather than on it, and step back until there is light tension at the start.
- Face the anchor and hold the post or rack with both hands, arms roughly straight.
- Stand tall on the supporting leg with a soft knee, ribs down, hips square to the anchor.
- Brace your abs before the first rep — this is what stops your lower back producing the range.
Every rep
Breathing & tempo — Exhale as the leg travels back, inhale on the return. Two seconds back, one second squeeze, three seconds forward against the band.
Before you load it
- Check the anchor point and the band for nicks before every set. A band that lets go under tension whips back at head height.
Sets, reps & load
Where to start, and what to change when it stops being hard.
Start with a light band — the thinnest in a set is usually right for a first session. Correct tension lets you pause a full second at the end range with a level pelvis. Progress by stepping back from the anchor to add pre-tension before you jump to a thicker band; a band change is a bigger increase than it looks.
What goes wrong
The errors that show up most often, and the cue that fixes each one.
Hold the post with straight arms and keep your sternum over your supporting foot. If you cannot reach the end range upright, move a step closer to the anchor and shorten the range.
Drop to a lighter band. Pick tension you can hold at the end position for two full seconds without the supporting leg shaking.
Count three seconds on the return. The eccentric is half the work and the band will steal it if you let it.
Keep the knee locked and lead with the heel. Think of the whole leg as one rigid lever swinging from the hip.
Why bother
A band gets stiffer the further you stretch it. In hip extension that is a good match: your glute is weakest at the front of the arc, where the band is slack, and strongest as the leg passes under and behind you, where the band is fully stretched. The resistance curve rises alongside the strength curve.
Because the knee stays straight, this is a long-lever movement and the hamstrings share the work with the glutes. That makes it a decent single-leg posterior-chain drill, but it also means the range is short: 10-20 degrees behind neutral before the lumbar spine takes over.
Where it fits
Two or three sets of 15-20 per leg, either as a pre-squat activation set or as accessory work after the main lifts. It travels well — one band and a fixed post are enough — so it is the version to keep when you are training away from a gym.
If this one isn't it
No kit, too hard, or too easy — here's where to go instead.
Same job, different kit
Start here instead
When this gets easy
Asked and answered
Band or cable for kickbacks?
A cable gives even resistance through the whole arc; a band gives least at the start and most at the end. For hip extension the band curve is arguably the better match, since the glute peaks near lockout. The practical difference is small — use whichever you have, and pick the cable if you want a load you can log in kilos.
Why does my supporting leg fatigue before the working glute does?
Because the band is pulling your whole body forward and the standing leg is holding you in place isometrically for the entire set. That is normal, and it is the main drawback of the standing version. Take more weight through your hands on the rack, keep the arms straight rather than bent, and if the supporting side is still the limiter after two sets, switch to the quadruped or cable version where you are not also fighting for balance.
Where should I anchor the band?
As low as possible, so the line of pull runs roughly horizontal to your ankle. Anchoring high changes the resistance direction and turns the movement into a fight against being pulled upward. A rack upright, a heavy machine leg, or a door anchor at floor level all work.
Can I do this without an anchor?
Yes — stand on one end of a loop band with your supporting foot and put the other end round the working ankle. Tension is harder to fine-tune, and it drifts as you move, but for a hotel-room set it is entirely serviceable.