WHO THIS IS FOR
IS THIS YOU?
The quad-dominant rider whose glutes have gone quiet
You feel everything in your quads on the bike and suspect your biggest muscle is doing the least work.
The cyclist with knee pain that won't settle
You want to know whether building the glutes and hips fixes the knee tracking issue at the root.
THE ROADMAN VIEW
The Roadman view
Here's the thing about cycling that nobody warns you: it turns your glutes off. You're sat down, hinged forward, pushing through a relatively narrow range with the quads doing most of the talking. Over thousands of hours, the body does what it always does — it gets efficient at exactly what you ask of it and lets everything else go quiet. The glute, which is the single most powerful muscle you own, ends up doing a fraction of what it's built for.
That matters for two reasons. First, power: a glute that fires properly adds force to the pedal stroke that a quad-dominant rider is simply leaving on the table. Second, protection: when the glute is asleep, the knee and lower back end up covering for it, and that's where the recurring niggles come from. The lateral hip muscles matter just as much — they're what keep the knee tracking straight under load. Let them go weak and the knee starts drifting inward, which is a fast route to anterior knee pain.
The fix is direct and it's fixable. You load the glute deliberately — hip thrusts, single-leg deadlifts — so it has to do the work the bike lets it avoid. You add single-leg squats to catch the side imbalance, and Copenhagen planks for the lateral hip stability. Two sessions a week. Within a couple of months most riders feel the difference, not just in the gym but in how the power sits on the bike and how the knees feel after a long ride.
EXPERT EVIDENCE
WHAT THE EXPERTS SAY
- Derek TeelStrength coach for cyclists (Dialed Health)
Glute and posterior-chain work is among the highest-value training a cyclist can do, precisely because the riding position under-recruits these muscles. Hip hinges and single-leg loading wake up the glutes and hamstrings, which adds power to the pedal stroke and takes strain off the quads and knees.
Hear it: The Best Exercises For Cyclists (Strength Training) - Phil BurtFormer Team Sky and GB bike fitter who has fitted elite cyclists including Bradley Wiggins, Chris Hoy, and Chris Froome
Weak glutes and poor hip stability show up repeatedly behind cyclists' knee complaints. When the glute isn't doing its job and the lateral hip can't hold the knee in line, the knee drifts and takes the load it was never meant to carry — which is why so many tracking issues are a hip problem in disguise.
Hear it: I Tried A Bike Fit From Team GB Bike Fitter (Here's What Happened)
PRACTICAL APPLICATION
DO THIS WEEK
Make the hip thrust your primary glute lift
Upper back on a bench, barbell or dumbbell across the hips, drive up until your body forms a straight line and squeeze the glutes hard at the top. 3 sets of 8–10. This is the most direct way to load the glute through full extension.
Use single-leg Romanian deadlifts for the hamstrings and balance
Hinge at the hip on one leg, lowering a dumbbell toward the floor while the back leg extends behind you. 3 sets of 6–8 per side. This loads the glute and hamstring while exposing any left-right imbalance.
Train lateral hip stability with Copenhagen planks
Side-lying with the top foot on a bench, lift the hips and hold a straight line. 3 sets of 20–30 seconds per side. This builds the lateral hip strength that keeps the knee tracking straight under load.
Wake the glute up before you ride
A short pre-ride activation — bodyweight glute bridges, banded lateral walks, 2 minutes total — primes the glute to fire on the bike rather than leaving the quads to do everything. Cheap insurance, especially before hard sessions.
COMMON MISTAKES
WHAT CYCLISTS GET WRONG
MISTAKEAssuming long hours on the bike already train the glutes.
FIXThe seated position under-recruits the glutes — riding more entrenches the imbalance. You have to load the glute deliberately in the gym to wake it up.
MISTAKETraining only big bilateral lifts and skipping lateral hip work.
FIXHip thrusts build the glute, but the knee also needs lateral stability. Add Copenhagen planks and banded walks so the knee tracks straight under load.
MISTAKELetting the lower back take over on hip thrusts and deadlifts.
FIXIf you feel a hip hinge in your lower back, the glute isn't doing the work. Reduce load, brace the core, and consciously drive through the glutes until the pattern is clean.
FAQ
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Why are my glutes weak from cycling?
What is the best glute exercise for cyclists?
Will training my glutes make me faster on the bike?
How do glutes affect cycling knee pain?
Should I activate my glutes before riding?
How long until glute training shows on the bike?
RELATED EPISODES
HEAR THE CONVERSATIONS
RELATED TOPICS