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Structure
Beginner
9 min read

Glutes

The three gluteal muscles cover the back and the side of the pelvis. The gluteus maximus extends the hip, while the gluteus medius and minimus steady the pelvis as soon as the body is supported on one leg.
3D scene
The glutes during a hip hinge
The scene follows the pelvis as the trunk tips forward and then straightens. The gluteus maximus lengthens on the way down, then shortens to bring the pelvis back under the trunk. Without the 3D, the essential point is that the gluteus maximus pulls the back of the pelvis down and the back of the thigh up, which closes the angle formed by the trunk and the femur.
Open in the explorer

Where the glutes are located

The glutes form three stacked layers on the outer and back surface of the pelvis. The gluteus maximus is the most superficial and the bulkiest; beneath it lies the gluteus medius, whose front part stays visible at the surface; the gluteus minimus is the deepest, entirely hidden. This layered arrangement is not only anatomical: it matches two distinct functions, producing movement at the hip and holding the pelvis.

Gluteus maximus

It arises from the back part of the iliac wing, the posterior surface of the sacrum and the coccyx, the sacrotuberous ligament and the thoracolumbar fascia. Its fibres run diagonally downward and outward. Most of it ends on the iliotibial tract, a fibrous band running down the thigh to the knee; the deepest fibres attach to the gluteal tuberosity of the femur.

Gluteus medius and minimus

The gluteus medius arises from the outer surface of the iliac wing and ends on the outer surface of the greater trochanter, the bony prominence felt on the side of the hip. The gluteus minimus, deeper, follows a comparable path and ends on the front surface of that same bony landmark.

Innervation and palpable landmarks

The gluteus maximus is supplied by the inferior gluteal nerve, from roots L5 to S2; the gluteus medius and minimus by the superior gluteal nerve, from roots L4 to S1. Three landmarks can be felt: the iliac crest, the greater trochanter and the posterior superior iliac spine, a small bump visible at the top of the gluteal fold.

What the glutes do

  • Hip extension: the gluteus maximus draws the thigh backward, or straightens the pelvis over the thigh. Its moment of force is greatest when the hip starts from a flexed position.
  • External rotation: the gluteus maximus turns the thigh outward.
  • Abduction: the gluteus medius and minimus take the thigh away from the midline; the upper fibres of the gluteus maximus contribute to it.
  • Pelvic stabilisation: standing on one leg, the gluteus medius and minimus on the supporting side keep the pelvis from dropping on the opposite side.
Hip extension
Movement that takes the thigh away from the front of the trunk, or that straightens the trunk over the thigh. It is the main driving action of the hip hinge and of standing back up from a squat.
hip opening

Seeing the glutes in motion

The glutes during a hip hinge

The scene follows the pelvis as the trunk tips forward and then straightens. The gluteus maximus lengthens on the way down, then shortens to bring the pelvis back under the trunk. Without the 3D, the essential point is that the gluteus maximus pulls the back of the pelvis down and the back of the thigh up, which closes the angle formed by the trunk and the femur.
Current step
A single pivot
The hip hinge plays out between three parts: the pelvis, the lumbar spine resting on it, and the femur articulating beneath. The only useful pivot is the hip, where the femoral head turns in the acetabulum. The lumbar spine is not built to supply the range.
Scene description
A three-dimensional diagram of the lower half of the body seen from behind, standing with the legs straight. The pelvis, both femurs, both tibias and a simplified lumbar spine — five vertebral bodies with their spinous processes — are shown in bone tones, while the feet and a reference trunk stay in a neutral paper shade. In terracotta, gluteus maximus caps the back of the pelvis, the hamstrings run down behind each thigh in two bundles — biceps femoris outside, semitendinosus inside — and two columns of erector spinae flank the spine up to the mid back. A three-second animation tips the pelvis forwards around the hips: the buttocks travel back, the trunk leans over, the knees bend only slightly and the hamstrings lengthen, before the movement returns to standing. The volumes are stylised: this is a teaching diagram, not an exact anatomical reconstruction.
Visible structures
  • Gluteus maximus
    The bulkiest muscle in the body, arising from the back of the iliac wing, the sacrum and the sacrotuberous ligament, and inserting on the gluteal tuberosity of the femur and the iliotibial tract. It extends the hip powerfully, above all at the end of the lockout.
  • Hamstrings
    Biceps femoris on the outside, semitendinosus and semimembranosus on the inside, all arising from the ischial tuberosity and inserting on the fibula and tibia. They extend the hip and flex the knee: in the hinge they lengthen while braking the descent.
  • Erector spinae
    Muscular columns — iliocostalis, longissimus and spinalis — running from the sacrum and iliac crest to the ribs and vertebrae. In the hinge they do not produce the movement: they keep the lumbar spine from rounding while the hip flexes.
  • Lumbar spine
    Five vertebrae stacked between the sacrum and the ribs, shown here as their bodies and spinous processes. A sound hinge rotates the pelvis on the hips while these five levels stay almost still relative to one another.
  • The hip joint
    The femoral head turns inside the acetabulum of the pelvis: this is the only pivot of the movement. The whole point of the hinge is to rotate the pelvis around this axis rather than to bend the back.
Guided steps
  • 1/5
    The hip hinge plays out between three parts: the pelvis, the lumbar spine resting on it, and the femur articulating beneath. The only useful pivot is the hip, where the femoral head turns in the acetabulum. The lumbar spine is not built to supply the range.
  • 2/5
    It arises behind the iliac wing, from the sacrum and the sacrotuberous ligament, and reaches the femur and the iliotibial tract. Its bulk and lever arm make it the main hip extensor, especially through the last part of standing back up.
  • 3/5
    All three set off from the ischial tuberosity and run down behind the thigh to the tibia and fibula. Because they cross both hip and knee, they lengthen further the more the pelvis tips forward with the knees nearly straight.
  • 4/5
    The pelvis rotates forwards around the hips, the buttocks travel backwards, and the knees bend only slightly. The hamstrings lengthen while braking the descent, then the glutes bring the pelvis back upright. The trunk follows the pelvis without the back changing shape.
  • 5/5
    Throughout the tip, the erector spinae work without shortening: they stop the spine from rounding. That is how a hinge is judged — the range comes from the hip, the spine keeps its shape, and force travels from the legs to the trunk without leaking.
Model licence · Z-Anatomy et BodyParts3D — CC-BY-SA 4.0

The movements they take part in

The glutes are the main drivers of the hip hinge, where hip extension makes up most of the work. They are just as involved in the squat, particularly in standing back up from the bottom position, together with the quadriceps.
The gluteus medius works as soon as support becomes one-legged: climbing stairs, lunging, walking, running. Its action is less visible then, but constant.

Synergists

  • The hamstrings assist hip extension and take a growing share as the hip approaches a straight position.
  • The adductor magnus, through its posterior fibres, contributes to hip extension.
  • The erector spinae hold the trunk while the hip opens.
  • The tensor fasciae latae shares its insertion on the iliotibial tract with the gluteus maximus.

Antagonists

  • The psoas and the iliacus flex the hip.
  • The rectus femoris, a head of the quadriceps, also contributes to hip flexion.
  • The adductors oppose the action of the gluteus medius.

What the 3D model simplifies

Limit
Three layers, a single view
The scene presents the glutes as three distinct volumes. In the body, the gluteus minimus is entirely covered and the gluteus medius is visible only on its front part: what is seen at the surface does not match what can be felt.
The model shows neither the deep rotators of the hip nor the variable thickness of the subcutaneous fat, which strongly changes the outer shape of the region. How the insertions of the gluteus maximus are shared between the femur and the iliotibial tract differs between anatomical descriptions and between individuals.

Sources

Key sources

  • Standring S (2020). Gray's Anatomy: The Anatomical Basis of Clinical Practice, 42nd edition. Elsevier.
  • Neumann DA (2016). Kinesiology of the Musculoskeletal System: Foundations for Rehabilitation, 3rd edition. Elsevier.
  • Schoenfeld BJ (2010). The mechanisms of muscle hypertrophy and their application to resistance training. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research.
Put it into practice in Shapier

Train the glutes with the glute bridge

Open in Shapier the glute bridge sheet, a hip extension exercise that targets the glutes.
Train the glutes with the glute bridge
Body Lab explains; Shapier lets you act and track.

Check my understanding

When standing on one leg, which muscles keep the pelvis from dropping on the opposite side?
Where does most of the gluteus maximus end?
When is the gluteus maximus moment of force greatest?
Choose an answer

Read next

  • Hamstrings
    The hamstrings occupy the back of the thigh. They extend the hip and flex the knee, and their length depends on the combined position of these two joints.
    With a 3D scene
  • Quadriceps
    The quadriceps brings together four muscles on the front of the thigh that share a common tendon. It extends the knee, and one of its heads also crosses the hip.
    With a 3D scene
  • Erector spinae
    The erector spinae form three muscular columns running along the spine. They straighten it, control its forward bending and hold the trunk during hip hinge movements.
    With a 3D scene

Where to go next

Available offline

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Trust and method

Author
equipe-editoriale-shapier
Editorial review
Thanh Chau
Scientific review
Pending
Published on
August 2, 2026
Reviewed on August 2, 2026
Next review due August 2, 2027
Limits of this page
  • The gluteus minimus is entirely covered by the gluteus medius and appears in the scene only once the superficial layer is removed.
  • The deep rotator muscles of the hip, lying beneath the glutes, are not drawn separately.
  • The proportion of gluteus maximus fibres ending on the fascia lata rather than on the femur varies between anatomical descriptions.
Sources
  • Standring S (2020). Gray's Anatomy: The Anatomical Basis of Clinical Practice, 42nd edition. Elsevier.
  • Neumann DA (2016). Kinesiology of the Musculoskeletal System: Foundations for Rehabilitation, 3rd edition. Elsevier.
  • Schoenfeld BJ (2010). The mechanisms of muscle hypertrophy and their application to resistance training. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research.
Educational content. Body Lab does not diagnose and does not replace professional advice.
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