Basketball players often suffer from quad-dominance. In simple terms, this means that the quads are doing more work then they should, while the hamstrings and glutes are not functioning at full capacity. The fact that basketball players spend most of the game up on their toes or jumping is a main contributor to this imbalance.

To combat this, Dwyane Wade activates and strengthens his glutes early on in his workouts. The activation ensures his glutes are firing properly when he moves on to other lower-body movements. “[The exercise] is to get the hamstrings and glutes to fire,” says Tim Grover, Dwyane’s off-season strength coach and owner of ATTACK Athletics. “And in any workout, you want to make sure that the glutes are always firing. If there is one muscle that athletes have a difficult time firing, it’s the glutes.”
Activated, strong glutes translate into a faster, more powerful athlete. In the game of basketball, this means stronger drives to the hoop and higher elevation when jumping.
Superset the following Glute Bridge exercise with Dwyane’s Alternate Single-Leg Hamstring Curl to make sure your glutes are activated and ready for the remainder of your workout.
Check out Dwyane’s entire workout here.
Power Plate Glute Bridge
• Lie with back on ground, heels on Power Plate and arms out to sides
• Rise into bridge position so that only shoulder blades touch ground
• Hold for specified duration, keeping straight line from knees to shoulders
• For final set, perform single-leg variation on each side

Modification: If Power Plate is unavailable, perform with heels on small box
Sets/Duration: 2-3×30 seconds
Coaching Points: Do not use elbows to assist in raising hips // Keep back straight // Push through Power Plate with heel[s]