When people think about developing stronger glutes, two exercises usually come immediately to mind: squats and deadlifts.
Both can be valuable exercises.
But there is an important distinction between simply lifting more weight and getting the muscles you want to train to contribute effectively to a movement.
For junior tennis players, this distinction matters.
Tennis requires repeated sprinting, stopping, lunging, rotating, jumping and changing direction. The glutes play an important role in many of those movements, but developing them isn't simply a question of adding heavier weights.
Sometimes the starting point is much simpler:
Can the athlete activate and control the muscles effectively in the first place?
What Does “Glute Activation” Actually Mean?
Glute activation simply refers to the gluteal muscles being recruited during movement.
The glutes aren't one single muscle performing one single job.
The gluteus maximus contributes to movements including:
Different fibres contribute differently depending on the movement and position of the body.
This becomes relevant in tennis because the sport rarely asks an athlete to move in only one direction.
A player accelerates forwards, recovers sideways, rotates through shots, pushes out of wide positions and repeatedly changes direction.
Training therefore needs to prepare the athlete for movement, rather than simply making one exercise stronger.
Myth 1: Heavy Squats and Deadlifts Are All You Need
Squats and deadlifts can be excellent strength exercises.
But they aren't the only way to develop the glutes.
One mistake is assuming that because an exercise uses more weight, it must automatically produce better glute function.
That's not necessarily how athletic development works.
Bodyweight exercises, bridges, controlled hip-extension movements and other targeted exercises can all be useful for teaching an athlete how to recruit and control the glutes.
For developing players, learning good movement patterns before adding significant load is particularly important.
More weight doesn't automatically mean better movement.
Why Glute Function Matters in Tennis
Consider what happens during a single tennis point.
A player may:
-
Push explosively from the ground
-
Sprint towards a short ball
-
Stop rapidly
-
Lunge outside their normal base
-
Rotate through a forehand
-
Recover laterally
-
Change direction again
The glutes contribute to hip extension, rotation and lateral movement — qualities that appear repeatedly in tennis.
They also form part of the physical chain connecting the lower body with the trunk.
That means their role isn't simply to produce force.
They also help the athlete control force.
For a junior player, both are important.
Vertical Force and Horizontal Force Are Different
One of the useful distinctions when thinking about athletic training is that different sporting actions place different demands on the body.
Jumping is predominantly about producing force vertically.
Sprinting requires a much greater horizontal component.
Tennis requires both.
A player might push upwards during a serve and seconds later accelerate horizontally towards a short ball.
That means an athletic development programme shouldn't rely entirely on one type of exercise.
Squats, lunges and similar movements can help develop qualities associated with vertical force production.
Other hip-extension movements can challenge the body differently and may better reflect some of the horizontal force demands involved in acceleration.
The objective isn't to find one perfect glute exercise.
It is to develop an athlete capable of producing and controlling force in multiple directions.
Myth 2: Feeling Sore Means the Exercise Worked Better
Muscle soreness is often treated as proof of a successful training session.
It isn't.
An athlete can feel extremely sore after an unfamiliar or demanding workout without that session necessarily being better for their long-term development.
For junior athletes in particular, the objective shouldn't be to finish every strength session exhausted or sore.
The objective is to develop physical qualities progressively while still allowing the athlete to train, recover and perform.
A successful programme should therefore be judged by movement quality and progression, not simply by how uncomfortable the athlete feels the following morning.
Why Hip Movement Matters
The gluteus maximus plays a particularly important role in hip extension — moving the thigh backwards relative to the pelvis.
This movement appears naturally during walking, running, sprinting and lunging.
For tennis players, good hip function becomes particularly important during acceleration and when pushing out of wider court positions.
But range of motion varies between athletes.
Trying to force an athlete into positions they cannot control simply to achieve greater “activation” is not the goal.
Mobility, strength and control need to develop together.
A Complete Glute Programme Needs More Than One Movement
A well-rounded approach shouldn't focus exclusively on hip extension.
Kieron's original framework identifies four important movement categories:
-
Hip extension
-
Hip hyperextension
-
Hip abduction
-
Hip external rotation
Why does that matter?
Because tennis is multidirectional.
The athlete needs to produce force forwards and backwards, but they also need to move laterally and control rotation.
Exercises involving bridges, controlled hip extension, lateral movements and external rotation can therefore all have a place within an appropriate strength & conditioning programme.
The exact exercises chosen should depend on the athlete's age, physical development, training experience and individual needs.
Progression Matters More Than Complexity
One of the most important principles in junior strength and conditioning is progression.
Kieron's original approach divides glute exercises into progressively more challenging levels.
The principle behind that structure is more important than any individual exercise:
Don't jump to advanced exercises before the athlete has mastered the foundations.
A young athlete may begin with simple bodyweight movements that teach control and awareness.
As competency improves, resistance, instability or movement complexity can gradually increase.
Eventually, more advanced exercises may become appropriate.
But there is no prize for reaching them quickly.
The objective is to earn progression through good movement.
What Should Parents Take From This?
Parents don't need to determine which exercise creates the greatest percentage of glute activation.
And they shouldn't need to design their child's strength programme.
Instead, there are several useful questions to ask about physical preparation:
Is my child learning good movement patterns?
Are exercises appropriate for their age and development?
Is progression gradual rather than rushed?
Does the programme train movement in different directions?
Is technique prioritised before additional resistance?
These questions tell you far more about the quality of a junior programme than how much weight appears on the bar.
Glute Activation Is Only One Piece of the System
No muscle works alone.
The glutes interact with the hips, legs, feet, pelvis and trunk as part of a larger movement system.
A tennis player doesn't think about activating an individual muscle while chasing a wide forehand.
The ultimate objective of physical preparation is therefore not to create an athlete who is good at glute exercises.
It is to develop an athlete whose body can coordinate effectively when tennis demands it.
Final Thoughts
The biggest myth surrounding glute training is perhaps the idea that stronger automatically means heavier.
Strength matters.
But so do activation, control, movement quality and progression.
For junior tennis players, building those foundations gradually creates a much better platform for the sprinting, lunging, rotating and changing of direction that the sport demands.
Start with control.
Develop movement quality.
Then progress the load when the athlete is ready.
Because in junior athletic development, the most advanced exercise isn't necessarily the best one.
The right exercise, at the right stage, performed well, usually is.
Glute Activation for Junior Tennis: Why More Weight Isn’t Always Better
When people think about developing stronger glutes, two exercises usually come immediately to mind: squats and deadlifts.
Both can be valuable exercises.
But there is an important distinction between simply lifting more weight and getting the muscles you want to train to contribute effectively to a movement.
For junior tennis players, this distinction matters.
Tennis requires repeated sprinting, stopping, lunging, rotating, jumping and changing direction. The glutes play an important role in many of those movements, but developing them isn't simply a question of adding heavier weights.
Sometimes the starting point is much simpler:
Can the athlete activate and control the muscles effectively in the first place?
What Does “Glute Activation” Actually Mean?
Glute activation simply refers to the gluteal muscles being recruited during movement.
The glutes aren't one single muscle performing one single job.
The gluteus maximus contributes to movements including:
Hip extension
Hip abduction
External rotation
Controlling movement around the hip and pelvis
Different fibres contribute differently depending on the movement and position of the body.
This becomes relevant in tennis because the sport rarely asks an athlete to move in only one direction.
A player accelerates forwards, recovers sideways, rotates through shots, pushes out of wide positions and repeatedly changes direction.
Training therefore needs to prepare the athlete for movement, rather than simply making one exercise stronger.
Myth 1: Heavy Squats and Deadlifts Are All You Need
Squats and deadlifts can be excellent strength exercises.
But they aren't the only way to develop the glutes.
One mistake is assuming that because an exercise uses more weight, it must automatically produce better glute function.
That's not necessarily how athletic development works.
Bodyweight exercises, bridges, controlled hip-extension movements and other targeted exercises can all be useful for teaching an athlete how to recruit and control the glutes.
For developing players, learning good movement patterns before adding significant load is particularly important.
More weight doesn't automatically mean better movement.
Why Glute Function Matters in Tennis
Consider what happens during a single tennis point.
A player may:
Push explosively from the ground
Sprint towards a short ball
Stop rapidly
Lunge outside their normal base
Rotate through a forehand
Recover laterally
Change direction again
The glutes contribute to hip extension, rotation and lateral movement — qualities that appear repeatedly in tennis.
They also form part of the physical chain connecting the lower body with the trunk.
That means their role isn't simply to produce force.
They also help the athlete control force.
For a junior player, both are important.
Vertical Force and Horizontal Force Are Different
One of the useful distinctions when thinking about athletic training is that different sporting actions place different demands on the body.
Jumping is predominantly about producing force vertically.
Sprinting requires a much greater horizontal component.
Tennis requires both.
A player might push upwards during a serve and seconds later accelerate horizontally towards a short ball.
That means an athletic development programme shouldn't rely entirely on one type of exercise.
Squats, lunges and similar movements can help develop qualities associated with vertical force production.
Other hip-extension movements can challenge the body differently and may better reflect some of the horizontal force demands involved in acceleration.
The objective isn't to find one perfect glute exercise.
It is to develop an athlete capable of producing and controlling force in multiple directions.
Myth 2: Feeling Sore Means the Exercise Worked Better
Muscle soreness is often treated as proof of a successful training session.
It isn't.
An athlete can feel extremely sore after an unfamiliar or demanding workout without that session necessarily being better for their long-term development.
For junior athletes in particular, the objective shouldn't be to finish every strength session exhausted or sore.
The objective is to develop physical qualities progressively while still allowing the athlete to train, recover and perform.
A successful programme should therefore be judged by movement quality and progression, not simply by how uncomfortable the athlete feels the following morning.
Why Hip Movement Matters
The gluteus maximus plays a particularly important role in hip extension — moving the thigh backwards relative to the pelvis.
This movement appears naturally during walking, running, sprinting and lunging.
For tennis players, good hip function becomes particularly important during acceleration and when pushing out of wider court positions.
But range of motion varies between athletes.
Trying to force an athlete into positions they cannot control simply to achieve greater “activation” is not the goal.
Mobility, strength and control need to develop together.
A Complete Glute Programme Needs More Than One Movement
A well-rounded approach shouldn't focus exclusively on hip extension.
Kieron's original framework identifies four important movement categories:
Hip extension
Hip hyperextension
Hip abduction
Hip external rotation
Why does that matter?
Because tennis is multidirectional.
The athlete needs to produce force forwards and backwards, but they also need to move laterally and control rotation.
Exercises involving bridges, controlled hip extension, lateral movements and external rotation can therefore all have a place within an appropriate strength & conditioning programme.
The exact exercises chosen should depend on the athlete's age, physical development, training experience and individual needs.
Progression Matters More Than Complexity
One of the most important principles in junior strength and conditioning is progression.
Kieron's original approach divides glute exercises into progressively more challenging levels.
The principle behind that structure is more important than any individual exercise:
Don't jump to advanced exercises before the athlete has mastered the foundations.
A young athlete may begin with simple bodyweight movements that teach control and awareness.
As competency improves, resistance, instability or movement complexity can gradually increase.
Eventually, more advanced exercises may become appropriate.
But there is no prize for reaching them quickly.
The objective is to earn progression through good movement.
What Should Parents Take From This?
Parents don't need to determine which exercise creates the greatest percentage of glute activation.
And they shouldn't need to design their child's strength programme.
Instead, there are several useful questions to ask about physical preparation:
Is my child learning good movement patterns?
Are exercises appropriate for their age and development?
Is progression gradual rather than rushed?
Does the programme train movement in different directions?
Is technique prioritised before additional resistance?
These questions tell you far more about the quality of a junior programme than how much weight appears on the bar.
Glute Activation Is Only One Piece of the System
No muscle works alone.
The glutes interact with the hips, legs, feet, pelvis and trunk as part of a larger movement system.
A tennis player doesn't think about activating an individual muscle while chasing a wide forehand.
The ultimate objective of physical preparation is therefore not to create an athlete who is good at glute exercises.
It is to develop an athlete whose body can coordinate effectively when tennis demands it.
Final Thoughts
The biggest myth surrounding glute training is perhaps the idea that stronger automatically means heavier.
Strength matters.
But so do activation, control, movement quality and progression.
For junior tennis players, building those foundations gradually creates a much better platform for the sprinting, lunging, rotating and changing of direction that the sport demands.
Start with control.
Develop movement quality.
Then progress the load when the athlete is ready.
Because in junior athletic development, the most advanced exercise isn't necessarily the best one.
The right exercise, at the right stage, performed well, usually is.