Overview
The Side Lying Glute Series strengthens the glutes and lateral hip stabilisers while the client lies on the carriage. It can be taught with the strap or strapless — the setup is the same for both, so once the client is positioned well, either version is easy to add.
Setup
The setup is critical: the back of the neck is easily shoved up into the shoulder rest, which creates strain and undermines the exercise.
- Use the small Pilates ball as a pillow and lie on the side facing the wall, resting the side of the head on the pillow — only the head and neck are on the pillow.
- Shuffle the bottom (lower) hip towards the back corner of the carriage.
- Tuck the bottom knee in.
- Place the top heel on the front padded side of the footbar, with the knee and heel in line with the top hip.
- This is positioning first, not neutral: pull the top knee forward in front of you, lift the bottom waist, and stack the hips.
- Once the alignment is right, the glutes fire on their own — like the sprinter and scooter positions.
Key Teaching Cues
- Inhale to prepare; exhale to slide the carriage away.
- Inhale to bend the top knee forward, aiming the knee forward and keeping it in line with the thigh.
- Exhale to press the carriage away.
- Cue the client not to sag into the reformer — staying lifted off the carriage is what gets the glute firing.
Common Faults
- The neck being shoved into the shoulder rest — re-check the pillow and head placement.
- Sagging the waist into the carriage, which switches the glute off.
- The knee drifting out of line with the thigh and hip.
- The hips unstacking as the leg works.
Variations
- Strapless version: same setup, with the top leg driving the carriage against the footbar.
- Strap version: add the strap when the client is ready for more range or load.