Natural Glute Ham Raise
The natural glute ham raise trains your hamstrings through a demanding eccentric range by anchoring your feet and lowering your torso toward the floor under control, then pulling yourself back up using your hamstrings and glutes rather than a machine pad. Unlike the machine version, you need something to anchor your ankles, whether that's a partner holding them, a low bar, or a padded anchor point, since there's no fixed footplate doing that job for you. It's a favorite among athletes and lifters chasing hamstring strength and injury resilience, since the deep eccentric loading is hard to replicate any other way.
Why it works
As you lower your torso from a kneeling position with your ankles anchored, your hamstrings have to control the descent eccentrically across both the knee and the hip at the same time, which is a demand very few other exercises place on them. The glutes and lower back help extend the hip and keep your torso rigid through the movement, while the calves assist in stabilizing the anchored ankle position. That combination of knee flexion and hip extension working together under a long eccentric load is a big part of why the exercise is associated with building hamstring strength specifically at the lengths where strains tend to happen.
Set up
- Kneel on a padded surface with your ankles anchored, either under a low bar, a partner's hands, or a fixed anchor point.
- Keep your hips extended and your body in a straight line from knees to head at the start.
- Cross your arms over your chest or keep them ready to catch yourself if you lose control.
How to do it
- Begin lowering your torso forward from the knees, keeping your hips extended the whole time.
- Resist the fall with your hamstrings for as long as you can, keeping your body in a straight line rather than folding at the hips.
- Once your hamstrings can no longer control the descent, catch yourself with your hands and let your chest touch down.
- Push off the floor with your hands and pull with your hamstrings and glutes to return to the starting position.
- Keep your hips extended throughout the pull back up, rather than piking at the waist first.
Form cues
- Straight line from knee to head, don't fold at the hips.
- Resist the fall as long as your hamstrings allow.
- Catch yourself with your hands, don't just drop.
- Hips stay extended on the way back up.
Breathing: Take a breath as you start to lower, hold it through the hardest part of the descent, then exhale as you pull back up to the top.
Common mistakes
Folding at the hips during the descent instead of keeping a straight line.
Fix: Focus on keeping your hips extended and let the knees do the bending, folding at the hips takes the load off the hamstrings.
Dropping straight to the floor instead of controlling the eccentric.
Fix: Slow the descent down and only let your hands catch you once your hamstrings genuinely can't hold the position any longer.
Using momentum to swing back up instead of pulling with the hamstrings.
Fix: Push off the floor just enough to get moving, then finish the pull deliberately with your hamstrings and glutes rather than throwing your torso up.
How to program it
- The deep eccentric loading on the hamstrings here causes real soreness, often more than lifters expect from a bodyweight movement, so once or twice a week with several days of recovery in between is a reasonable starting frequency.
- 2 to 4 sets of 3 to 8 controlled reps is plenty to start, since the eccentric demand builds fatigue faster than the rep count suggests.
- Avoid stacking a heavy natural glute ham raise session in the same week as a heavy Romanian deadlift or a hard sprint session, since both hit the hamstrings through a similar lengthened range.
Safety notes
- Start with a small range of motion and a spotter or a very secure anchor before attempting the full movement, an uncontrolled drop can strain the hamstring badly.
- Back off the range or the frequency if you notice soreness lasting more than two or three days, that's a sign the eccentric load outpaced your current hamstring capacity.
Exercise profile
- Force
- Pull
- Mechanics
- Compound
- Category
- Strength
Frequently asked questions
How many sets and reps of natural glute ham raise should I do?
2 to 4 sets of 3 to 8 controlled reps is a reasonable starting point, since the eccentric demand on the hamstrings builds fatigue faster than the rep count alone suggests.
How often should I train natural glute ham raise?
Once or twice a week with several days of recovery between sessions is a sensible starting frequency, since the deep eccentric loading tends to cause more soreness than most bodyweight exercises.
Can I do a natural glute ham raise without a machine or a partner?
You need something to anchor your ankles, whether that's a partner holding them, a low bar, or a fixed anchor point. Without any anchor, a Romanian deadlift trains a similar hamstring pattern using a barbell instead.
Why are my hamstrings so sore after natural glute ham raise?
The eccentric, lengthened-position loading here is unusually demanding on the hamstrings, more than most exercises place on them, so noticeable soreness after your first few sessions is common. Ease into it with a smaller range of motion and fewer reps at first.
What's the difference between a natural glute ham raise and the machine version?
The machine version uses a fixed footplate and pad to anchor your ankles and support your knees, while the natural version relies on a partner or an improvised anchor, which usually means less structural support and a slightly different balance demand.