10 Best Glute Ham Raise Alternatives for Limited Equipment
If you can’t do the glute ham raise, pick exercises that stress hip extension and eccentric knee flexion. Top options include Romanian deadlifts, Nordic hamstring curls, single-leg RDLs, kettlebell swings, and machine lying curls. When you try a Nordic curl, lower slowly with hips extended and resist the fall to emphasize eccentric hamstring load.
Original Exercise: Glute Ham Raise
How to Perform Glute Ham Raise
- Begin by adjusting the equipment to fit your body. Place your feet against the footplate in between the rollers as you lie facedown. Your knees should be just behind the pad.
- Start from the bottom of the movement. Keep your back arched as you begin the movement by flexing the knees. Drive your toes into the foot plate as you do so. Keep your upper body straight, and continue until your body is upright.
- Return to the starting position, keeping your descent under control.
Pro Tips
- Category: Powerlifting
- Force: Pull
- Movement type: Compound
Best Glute Ham Raise Alternatives
1. Clean
72.9% MatchHow to perform this exercise
- With a barbell on the floor close to the shins, take an overhand (or hook) grip just outside the legs. Lower your hips with the weight focused on the heels, back straight, head facing forward, chest up, with your shoulders just in front of the bar. This will be your starting position.
- Begin the first pull by driving through the heels, extending your knees. Your back angle should stay the same, and your arms should remain straight. Move the weight with control as you continue to above the knees.
- Next comes the second pull, the main source of acceleration for the clean. As the bar approaches the mid-thigh position, begin extending through the hips. In a jumping motion, accelerate by extending the hips, knees, and ankles, using speed to move the bar upward. There should be no need to actively pull through the arms to accelerate the weight; at the end of the second pull, the body should be fully extended, leaning slightly back, with the arms still extended.
- As full extension is achieved, transition into the third pull by aggressively shrugging and flexing the arms with the elbows up and out. At peak extension, aggressively pull yourself down, rotating your elbows under the bar as you do so. Receive the bar in a front squat position, the depth of which is dependent upon the height of the bar at the end of the third pull. The bar should be racked onto the protracted shoulders, lightly touching the throat with the hands relaxed. Continue to descend to the bottom squat position, which will help in the recovery.
2. Cable Deadlifts
70.3% MatchHow to perform this exercise
- Move the cables to the bottom of the towers and select an appropriate weight. Stand directly in between the uprights.
- To begin, squat down be flexing your hips and knees until you can reach the handles.
- After grasping them, begin your ascent. Driving through your heels extend your hips and knees keeping your hands hanging at your side. Keep your head and chest up throughout the movement.
- After reaching a full standing position, Return to the starting position and repeat.
3. Double Kettlebell Alternating Hang Clean
68.9% MatchHow to perform this exercise
- Place two kettlebells between your feet. To get in the starting position, push your butt back and look straight ahead.
- Clean one kettlebell to your shoulder and hold on to the other kettlebell.
- With a fluid motion, lower the top kettlebell while driving the bottom kettlebell up.
4. Barbell Straight Leg Deadlift
68% MatchHow to perform this exercise
- Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and your toes pointing forward.
- Hold the barbell with an overhand grip, hands slightly wider than shoulder-width apart.
- Bend at your hips and lower the barbell towards the ground, keeping your back straight and your knees slightly bent.
- Lower the barbell until you feel a stretch in your hamstrings.
- Engage your hamstrings and glutes to lift the barbell back up to the starting position.
5. Clean Deadlift
67.7% MatchHow to perform this exercise
- Begin standing with a barbell close to your shins. Your feet should be directly under your hips with your feet turned out slightly. Grip the bar with a double overhand grip or hook grip, about shoulder width apart. Squat down to the bar. Your spine should be in full extension, with a back angle that places your shoulders in front of the bar and your back as vertical as possible.
- Begin by driving through the floor through the front of your heels. As the bar travels upward, maintain a constant back angle. Flare your knees out to the side to help keep them out of the bar's path.
- After the bar crosses the knees, complete the lift by driving the hips into the bar until your hips and knees are extended.
6. Band Good Morning
63.8% MatchHow to perform this exercise
- Using a 41 inch band, stand on one end, spreading your feet a small amount. Bend at the hips to loop the end of the band behind your neck. This will be your starting position.
- Keeping your legs straight, extend through the hips to come to a near vertical position.
- Ensure that you do not round your back as you go down back to the starting position.
7. Assisted Prone Hamstring
62.7% MatchHow to perform this exercise
- Lie face down on a mat or bench with your legs fully extended.
- Have a partner or use a resistance band to secure your ankles.
- Engage your hamstrings and lift your legs towards your glutes, keeping your knees straight.
- Pause for a moment at the top, then slowly lower your legs back down to the starting position.
- Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.
8. Barbell Good Morning
62.2% MatchHow to perform this exercise
- Start by standing with your feet shoulder-width apart and the barbell resting on your upper back.
- Keeping your back straight and your core engaged, hinge forward at the hips, pushing your buttocks back as if you were trying to touch the wall behind you with your glutes.
- Lower your torso until it is parallel to the ground, feeling a stretch in your hamstrings.
- Pause for a moment, then return to the starting position by squeezing your glutes and pushing your hips forward.
- Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.
9. Dumbbell Deadlift
61.9% MatchHow to perform this exercise
- Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart, toes pointing forward.
- Hold a dumbbell in each hand, palms facing your body, arms extended downwards.
- Bend at your hips and knees, lowering the dumbbells towards the ground while keeping your back straight.
- Push through your heels and extend your hips and knees, lifting the dumbbells back up to the starting position.
- Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.
10. Dumbbell Clean
61.7% MatchHow to perform this exercise
- Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart, holding a dumbbell in each hand with an overhand grip.
- Bend your knees and lower your hips into a squat position, keeping your back straight and chest up.
- Explosively extend your hips and knees, driving through your heels to jump off the ground.
- As you jump, shrug your shoulders and pull the dumbbells up towards your shoulders, keeping them close to your body.
- Catch the dumbbells at shoulder height, with your elbows pointing forward and your palms facing up.
Why You Might Need a Glute Ham Raise Alternative
People substitute the glute ham raise for several practical and clinical reasons. Gyms often lack a dedicated GHR machine, and some lifters experience knee or lumbar pain when forcing the combined hip-extension/knee-flexion pattern. Alternatives let you isolate hip hinge mechanics or place more emphasis on eccentric control to stimulate distal hamstring fibers. For rehab or pain management choose movements with lower shear forces—hinge from the hips with a neutral spine and bend the knees only where pain-free. For strength and hypertrophy, pick exercises that let you progressively overload (heavier RDLs or weighted Nordic eccentrics) while maintaining proper hip position and slow eccentrics to maximize hamstring activation.
How to Choose the Right Substitute
Match the substitute to the movement pattern, loading needs, and your injury profile. If you need hip-dominant loading, choose Romanian deadlifts or single-leg RDLs—hinge at the hips, push them back, and keep the bar or kettlebell close to the shin to feel the hamstring stretch. If you want knee-flexion emphasis, use Nordic curls or machine lying curls and control the eccentric phase. Consider equipment: if you lack weights, progress with tempo and volume on bodyweight Nordics. For rehab, prioritize pain-free range of motion and slow eccentrics while monitoring posterior chain activation.
Frequently Asked Questions
What muscles does Glute Ham Raise work?
The glute ham raise targets the hamstrings (biceps femoris, semitendinosus, semimembranosus) while also recruiting the glutes and lower back for hip extension. It combines eccentric knee flexion with concentric hip extension, so focus on controlling the hip hinge and knee bend to maximize hamstring activation.
What is the best bodyweight alternative to Glute Ham Raise?
The Nordic hamstring curl is the best bodyweight alternative because it loads eccentric knee flexion intensely. Anchor your feet, keep hips extended, and lower slowly with hands ready to catch so the eccentric portion stimulates the hamstrings effectively.
Can I build muscle without doing Glute Ham Raise?
Yes—you can build hamstring muscle with other exercises that allow progressive overload and eccentric emphasis, like Romanian deadlifts, single-leg RDLs, and weighted Nordic curls. Ensure you hinge properly (neutral spine, push hips back) and use slow eccentrics or added weight to drive hypertrophy.
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