IS THE VIRAL GLUTE CHART TRUE?
You have seen the chart. One picture of the glutes, split into “upper,” “lower,” and “whole,” each with its own list of exercises. The promise: do these moves and you can grow each region on its own, like shaping clay.
It looks scientific. It gets shared everywhere. But is it true?
Here is the honest answer. Part of it is real. Part of it is half-right. And one big part is simply wrong. Let us check each claim against the actual research, one box at a time.
| THE MYTH: “Pick the right exercise for each region and you can sculpt your glutes part by part.” |
The gluteus maximus is one muscle. You can emphasize its parts, but it grows as a whole.
READ THIS FIRST
ACTIVATION ISN’T GROWTH
Almost every “target this region” claim comes from EMG studies. A bigger EMG signal means a muscle is more active in that moment.
Here is the catch. A strong signal tells you a muscle is working hard right now. It does not tell you the muscle will grow bigger over weeks. Activation is about emphasis, not size.
| EMG means electromyography. It records how much electrical activity a muscle makes while it works. More activity is a hint about effort, not a promise of growth. |
We are not guessing about this. A 2023 Auburn University study put it to the test. It measured glute EMG during hip thrusts and squats, then measured real muscle growth with MRI after nine weeks. The hip thrust lit up the glutes harder on EMG at every site. But both exercises grew the glutes about the same. The bigger signal did not mean more growth.
| Keep this rule for the rest of the guide: more activation is a hint, not a promise. |
Vigotsky et al. (2018), Frontiers in Physiology · Plotkin et al. (2023), Frontiers in Physiology
PART 1 · UPPER GLUTE REAL ✓ Abduction for the upper shelfThe chart says: train hip abduction (moving the leg out to the side) to hit the upper glute, with moves like cable abduction, side-lying abduction, and lateral band walks.This holds. Fine-wire EMG, where wire electrodes sit inside the muscle, shows the upper gluteus maximus and gluteus medius fire hardest during hip-abduction moves. These exercises deserve a place in your program if you want fuller hips at the top.The honest note: “fires hardest” still means emphasis. It is a good reason to include abduction work, not proof that you can grow only the top corner of your glutes by itself.Selkowitz, Beneck & Powers (2013), JOSPT |
PART 2 · LOWER GLUTE HALF-RIGHT “Grow your lower glute”The chart says: train deep hip extension (squats, lunges, split squats, step-ups) to grow the lower glute.Here is the true part. The lower portion of the gluteus maximus does work more during deep hip extension. A study that compared the upper and lower parts of the glute max found they can be emphasized differently. So yes, these moves lean on the lower glute.Here is the part that is not proven. Firing more is not the same as growing a separate shape. No study has shown you can build an isolated “lower glute” into its own form while leaving the rest behind. You bias the fibers. You do not carve a slice.Selkowitz, Beneck & Powers (2016), JOSPT |
PART 3 · WHOLE GLUTE LEGIT ✓ Hip thrusts build glutesThe chart says: horizontal hip extension, like the hip thrust, trains the whole glute.This one is solid. The hip thrust loads the glute hard through full lockout, where the muscle is shortened and working against the most resistance. Activation studies show the glute max is highly active here. And the growth study from earlier showed the hip thrust grew the glutes as well as anything tested.Strong activation plus proven growth. This part earns its spot.Williams et al. (2021), JSCR · Plotkin et al. (2023), Frontiers in Physiology |
THE VERDICT
BIAS IT, DON’T SCULPT IT
The useful idea: different jobs emphasize different fibers. Abduction leans on the upper glute. Deep hip extension leans on the lower glute. Horizontal hip extension hammers the whole thing. Doing all three gives you the most complete glute development.
The myth: that you can carve an isolated “region” into a separate shape, or that the move with the biggest EMG number automatically grows the most muscle.
| Train every angle for full development, not for sculpting. That is the honest version of the chart. |
BY THE NUMBERS (ILLUSTRATIVE)
This table shows which region each move emphasizes most, based on EMG. It is a guide to emphasis, not a growth ranking.
| Exercise | Upper glute | Lower glute | Whole glute |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cable / side-lying abduction | ●●●●● | ●● | ●● |
| Lateral band walk | ●●●● | ●● | ●● |
| Squat / lunge / split squat | ●● | ●●●● | ●●● |
| Step-up | ●● | ●●●● | ●●● |
| Hip thrust | ●●● | ●●● | ●●●●● |
| Glute bridge | ●●● | ●●● | ●●●● |
Dots show emphasis from EMG research. They are illustrative and are not a measure of how much each move grows that region.
AT A GLANCE – PICK BY GOAL
| Your goal | Train this | Example moves |
|---|---|---|
| Fuller hips / upper shelf | Hip abduction | Cable abduction, side-lying abduction, band walks |
| Stronger base / lower glute | Deep hip extension | Squat, lunge, Bulgarian split squat, step-up |
| Overall glute size & power | Horizontal hip extension | Hip thrust, glute bridge |
| Complete development | All three | Mix abduction + squats + thrusts |
| BOTTOM LINEThe chart is not all wrong. Abduction for the upper glute is real. Deep hip extension does lean on the lower glute. The hip thrust is legit. What it gets wrong is the dream of sculpting one region into its own shape, and the idea that the biggest EMG number wins. Bias your fibers with smart exercise choice. Grow the whole muscle with hard, full-range work. Train on evidence, not on a chart. |
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REFERENCES
1. Vigotsky AD, Halperin I, Lehman GJ, Trajano GS, Vieira TM. Interpreting Signal Amplitudes in Surface Electromyography Studies in Sport and Rehabilitation Sciences. Front Physiol. 2018;8:985. doi:10.3389/fphys.2017.00985
2. Plotkin DL, Rodas MA, Vigotsky AD, et al. Hip thrust and back squat training elicit similar gluteus muscle hypertrophy and transfer similarly to the deadlift. Front Physiol. 2023;14:1279170. doi:10.3389/fphys.2023.1279170
3. Selkowitz DM, Beneck GJ, Powers CM. Which exercises target the gluteal muscles while minimizing activation of the tensor fascia lata? Electromyographic assessment using fine-wire electrodes. J Orthop Sports Phys Ther. 2013;43(2):54-64. doi:10.2519/jospt.2013.4116
4. Selkowitz DM, Beneck GJ, Powers CM. Comparison of electromyographic activity of the superior and inferior portions of the gluteus maximus muscle during common therapeutic exercises. J Orthop Sports Phys Ther. 2016;46(9):794-799. doi:10.2519/jospt.2016.6493
5. Williams MJ, Gibson NV, Sorbie GG, Ugbolue UC, Brouner J, Easton C. Activation of the gluteus maximus during performance of the back squat, split squat, and barbell hip thrust and the relationship with maximal sprinting. J Strength Cond Res. 2021;35(1):16-24. doi:10.1519/JSC.0000000000002651
