Stephanie Sanzo's Deadlifts & Full Glute Workout

Do you want stronger glutes and a more toned butt?

Of course you do!

Not only does having a pair of powerful glutes improve your physique, but it also improves athletic performance. With stronger glutes, you’ll be more explosive and exert greater overall strength and power.

Follow along with Primeval Labs athletes Stephanie Sanzo (StephFitMum) as she takes you through her personal deadlift and glute workout.

Give this a try if you’re looking for a challenge or looking to spice up your current training routine.

Stephanie Sanzo Deadlift & Glute Workout

Exercise	Sets	Reps
Sumo Deadlifts	3	5
Box Squats	3	8
Barbell Hip Thrust w/ Band	5	8-10
Cable Pull Through	5	10
Abductor Machine	5	15-20
Kettlebell Walking Lunges	5	10 / leg
Lying Hamstring Curls	5	8-10

*Note: This is A LOT of volume to complete in one training session. Stephanie broke this particular workout into an AM/PM session. Doing so allows her to maintain a high level of performance across all sets of exercises.

For this particular workout, Stephanie performed sumo deadlifts and box squats in her first training session of the day, and performed the remainder of the workout in the PM training session.

Workout Training Tips

Sumo Deadlift

Compared to the conventional deadlift, the sumo deadlift trains your quads slightly more. And since the sumo deadlift has you beginning in a more upright position it helps reduce strain on the lower back.

Plus, if you’re someone who suffers from poor ankle or T-spine mobility, the sumo deadlift may be a better option for deadlifting.

Sumo deadlifts are the hardest at the bottom of the movement, which means you need to create maximal torque to pull the bar from the floor.

Make sure to keep your knees pointed out so they do not interfere with the bath of the bar as you approach lockout.

Box Squats

Box squats are a little-known secret of the powerlifting world that has exploded in popularity amongst the non-powerlifting gym crowd in recent years.

This squat variation forces you to squat backward rather than straight down when squatting which helps reduce discomfort in the knees that many lifters experience when performing traditional barbell back squats. This is due to the fact that sitting back onto the box helps you maintain a perpendicular shin angle.

Box squats may also be a safer alternative to traditional squats for casual lifters as they have a target to aim for when squatting down rather than dropping down into the hole and not really knowing where the “bottom” is.

Barbell Hip Thrust

Hip thrusts are possibly the best glute exercise there is. They stimulate the fibers of the upper glutes considerably more than squats or even deadlifts. Part of what makes the hip thrust such a phenomenal mass builder for the glutes is that it allows you to achieve a peak muscle contraction.

To perform the barbell hip thrust:

Sit on the ground with your back against a bench, feet planted firmly in front of you with a padded barbell across your hips.

With strong stable knees, contract the glutes to extend the hips and drive the barbell up until your body forms a straight line from your knees to your shoulders. Pause at the top for a solid count of one squeezing your glutes as hard as possible, then slowly lower your hips back to the ground.

For an added challenge, on your last set of hip thrusts pause at the top of the last rep and hold for as long as you can. This creates more metabolic stress and increases the amount of work your glutes have to do, which helps build more muscle!

Stephanie uses a mini-band around her legs when performing these to increase activation of the glute med and help maintain constant tension on the glutes throughout the entire exercise.

Cable Pull Throughs

Similar to the barbell hip thrust, the cable pull through allows you to maximally contract the glutes at the top of every rep. Another advantage to this exercise is that it allows for constant tension on the glutes thanks to the use of the cables. This is one area where the barbell hip thrust suffers, as at the bottom of the movement tension is taken off of the glutes.

Combining the two exercises allows you to move maximal weight and create maximum tension on the muscles.

Stephanie recommends to really sit back into the exercise to get a complete stretch on the hamstrings which allows for peak contraction during the exercise.

Kettlebell Walking Lunges

Walking lunges are a great exercise to hit all the muscles of the upper leg, particularly the glutes due to the high demands placed on them during the exercise.

If you want to work your quads more, use a shorter stride length, and if you want to target more of the glutes and hamstrings, take a longer stride. You can even alternate between the two different stride lengths with each set you perform.

If you don’t have access to kettlebells, you can perform walking lunges using a pair of dumbbells or barbell across your back.

Leg Curls

To finish off today’s workout, Stephanie performs slow eccentric lying leg curls. She finds that her hamstrings respond really well to eccentric movements, as it allows her to increase time under tension and really feel the hamstrings working throughout the entire range of motion.

Stephanie Sanzo Pre Workout Stack

To get pumped for this daunting workout, Stephanie relies on her favorite pre workout supplement stack:

Mega Pre Black

Mega Pre Black is a high-energy pre-workout scientifically formulated to help you push harder and last longer in your workouts. Seamlessly combining powerful CNS stimulants, cognitive enhancers, and nitric oxide boosters, Mega Pre Black helps prepare your mind and body for the tremendous amount of work they’re in store for.

Intracell 7 Black

Intracell 7 Black offers hard-training athletes a complete source of fuel during intense exercise. Each serving of Intracell 7 Black supplies fast-digesting carbohydrates (from FOUR different sources) along with essential amino acids, electrolytes, and blood flow enhancers to help ensure your muscles have everything they need to push as hard as they can for as long as they can.