Gluteal Amnesia and Dead Butt Syndrome - How To Test Your Glutes, Best Exercises and Gluteal Anatomy

In todays video we look at Dead Butt Syndrome and Gluteal Amnesia. We go into how to test if your glutes are firing properly, what the anatomy of the glutes is and also exercises to start strengthening up the glute muscles.

So what are the three gluteal muscles?

Without diving too deep into anatomy and kinesiology, your glutes are divided into three distinct muscles:

Gluteus maximus. This is the largest glute muscle, responsible for the shape of your butt. It helps keep us upright when sitting or standing. Your gluteus maximus is also important for activities that require generating force from your lower body: jumping, running, standing up, climbing a staircase, etc.

Gluteus medius. The gluteus medius is between the gluteus maximus and gluteus minimus. Its role, like the gluteus minimus, is to help with the rotation of the leg and the stabilization of the pelvis.

Gluteus minimus. The smallest and deepest of the three main glute muscles, the gluteus minimus is also an important part of rotating lower limbs and keeping the pelvis stable when we move.

In addition to these three, the tensor fasciae latae — commonly known as the
IT band — assists with balancing the pelvis and providing stability through the knee when we walk or run.

Why do the glutes stop working or firing correctly?

There are several reasons why your glutes may not be firing sufficiently.

The first reason is a lack of muscle recruitment.

A common pattern of imbalance is tightness in the back extensor and the hip flexor musculature, coupled with deep abdominal and gluteal muscle group weaknesses. This is commonly referred to as lower cross syndrome.

Dominant Hamstrings

The problem with dominant hamstrings is that they can interfere with the use and/or recruitment of your glutes – as both your glutes and hamstrings are the primary drivers of any hip extension action, like squats, deadlifts, lunges, step ups, glute bridges, hip thrusts, etc. When you remove your glutes from the equation you end up over-working your hamstrings (due to the lack of adequate load sharing) – which is the reason a lot of people struggle to see results when working to tone, strengthen and build their glutes.

If your hamstrings are over-innervated (aka “tight” or “short”) they will limit the mobility of your hip joint. One of the most common compensation patterns that we see as a result of this tightness is the toe touch pattern – which is when more movement is forced to come from your lower back (or lumbar flexion) instead of a hip extension, as it should.

Nerve Damage

Weakness or paralysis of these muscles caused by a damaged superior gluteal nerve can result in a weak abduction in the affected hip joint. This gait disturbance is known as Trendelenburg gait. In a positive Trendelenburg's sign the pelvis sags toward the normal unsupported side (the swing leg). The opposite, when the pelvis is elevated on the swing side, is known as Duchenne limp. Bilateral loss of the small gluteal muscles results in a waddling gait

The superior nerve starts out in the pelvis and supplies the tensor fasciae latae, the gluteus minimus, and the gluteus medius muscle

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[Entropyserf]

Thank you. My physical therapist literally just stood there and watched me do my exercises incorrectly. I told her I felt like I had muscle compensations and glutes weren’t firing right… YouTube videos are better for learning correct exercise form

[esteroqueen]

This detailed explainatiom in the description explains everything I have. I have been in pain for over a year now. I went to a chiropractor once he said I have a tilt. These excercises are so much better than in other videos. I wrote this with tears in my eyes. I feel I might have found something that works. I started tonight doing these exercises and feel so much hope. Thank you so much for this video.

[lauratimmins]

As a personal trainer working for a physio with her patients and my own glutes issues from cycling and hiking causing muscles imbalances. Your detailed video is so awesome. From the assessment to exercise prescription and proper execution and variations. Hope you continue to do other videoes of the upper body. Thanks kindly. 😊

[durgaharidas]

16:40 Hip flexor stretch + glute activation
17:40 clamshell
18:31 clamshell variation
19:09 hip abduction
20:06 hip medial rotation
21:00 hip raises
21:31 Bulgarian split squats

[ashwoo]

Definitely more beneficial than the physical therapy I was released from for no apparent reason and little progression. The sporadic hip locking pain that prompted me to start PT after my last pregnancy didn’t get better until I started researching things for myself. Your video has been the most thorough in helping me to understand where to start and why.

[paulataylor]

Great video! I’m a retired LMT, and walked for 23 years in a large spa. My legs we’re getting week after I retired, so last year I sought a medical opinion and was told meds for inflammation, injections ( which I had for one knee 15 years ago) then knee replacement ( x rays showed bone on bone, but I had no pain) I suggested PT, , , , did it for three months, only was given Bridge for glutes! I’ve since found that glute strengthening exercises were needed from some knowledgeable PT practitioners here in the USA, two weeks of engaging my extremely weak glutes has helped my weak legs and left knee. You are the icing on the cake! Thanks!

[paigehuffman]

Finally! this is by far, hands down the bet presentation and teaching i have seen on this subject! Wonderfully explained and thank you for taking the time to be so thorough and also present so many different exercises for specific patterns of misfiring! Brilliant..will try them all and hopefully fix my patterns and my sad, non responsive booty! Cheers to you!

[mooingkat]

My dead butt is affecting my daily activities for so long and I hadn't been able to find out why one side of my pelvis is always tilted until recently. Thanks for such a detailed explanation. I hope these exercises will help me balance my pelvis to diminish the pressure on my right knee.

[texasgirl]

Excellent presentation! You were very thorough and went into depth regarding this problem, and yet made it easy to understand. Now, I'm getting busy doing these exercises to hopefully rid myself of this annoying pain I'm having in my rear end, hamstrings and low back. Thank you!

[latishaperry]

You made everything clear. Thank God for your content.

[dianemitchell]

Excellent! Thank you! I’ve just been diagnosed with inactive right glute and this is super helpful for my understanding and also for what to do about fixing it.

[thesetruths]

Excellent. I've committed to doing hips/butt, legs, knees, and ankles for one year, 3 times a week or more. I change it up everyday so my muscles never get too used to one or a few exercises.

[dawnhabeck]

Excellent teaching for healing from very smart perspective

[christopherlane]

Thank you Travis, great presentation. really enlightening and has given me hope to restore my athletic movements. It's hard to believe that this DB explanation has not been shared with me before whilst consulting with four qualified (paid for) physios. Will certainly recommend your YT channel. 🙏👍

[radzy]

Hello Travis, this was such a detaied explanation of the whole problem, yet it was very easy to understand. It helped me out a lot!
I was new the gym and my trainer didn't explain me the right posture for squats and a few months later I ended up getting imbalanced glutes. It lowered my confidence level and I completely quit the gym.
I have been to 2-3 physicians, but none of them could pinpoint what the issue was. I have seen numerous videos on this topic and it gave me anxiety because there were several things that could be wrong in my body and there was no clear way to find it out. I thought I'd never be able to build proper glutes and I had completely given up. I used to do yoga and stuff but it was my dream to have a muscular physique and I had to let it go.
Decided to check this out as just another video that gonna give the same advice but no, you explained it so well, right from the way our body moves to the ways we can fix the issues. The movements you suggested to figure out what the problem is and the exercises at the end helped me a ton more than anything else!
I wasn't able to feel my right glute for years! but I did all of your exercises and on the first day itself, I was able to establish the mind to muscle connection and felt so much burn in my right glute, it was unbelievable.
3 weeks have passed since I started doing your exercises and I can now engage the right muscles. There's a slight difference in my right glute too and I cannot thank you enough! I am a student right now but I will support the channel once I'm stable, thanks a ton! you gave me my confidence back 😭 God bless you!

[celiamccormick]

Great video & and I will try many suggested!!

[carolinekeane]

I appreciate the no jargon explanation I have done all of what you show and feel pain in the top of my thighs and lower abdomen I can feel my glutes a bit but during your exercises but the pain is in my upper thighs

[googoo]

You are an amazing person! Thank you so much, thats so very helpful. Great video well put together and very informative. Much gratitude

[Anthro]

This is fantastic, thank you for sharing such great information and helpful methodology.

[newsnetworkz]

Thank you, I suffer IT band issues on my right side and my right glute got sleepy/lazy/etc for some reason. I am going to try these techniques and rehab exercises