Before you start. This guide is for general education and is not medical advice. Check with your doctor before beginning an exercise program, start with a light resistance you can control, and stop if you feel pain in the lower back, hips or knees. Read our full exercise disclaimer.
What these two exercises do
Both train hip extension, the movement of driving the thigh back behind the body. That is the job of the glutes, with the hamstrings assisting and the lower back holding the spine still.
- The pull-through is a two-legged hip hinge, the same pattern as a deadlift or kettlebell swing, with the cable pulling backward between the legs. Because the load comes from behind, the glutes stay under tension at the top, where a barbell gives you a rest.
- The kickback is a single-leg isolation exercise. One ankle in a strap, the other foot planted, and the working leg sweeps back and up from the hip. It is the exercise for feeling the glute work on its own.
Learn the pull-through first. It teaches the hip hinge with a built-in safety feature: if you round your back, the cable simply pulls you toward the machine instead of loading the spine.
Cable pull-through
Setup
- Attachment: a rope. A single D-handle also works but the rope is easier to hold between the legs.
- Pulley height: the lowest setting.
- Weight: moderate. A resistance you can hinge for 10–15 clean repetitions while keeping the arms straight and relaxed. If the arms start pulling, it is too heavy.
- Position: face away from the machine with the rope between your legs. Step forward one or two paces until the stack lifts slightly with the hips fully extended. Feet wider than shoulder width, toes slightly out, knees soft.
How to do it
- Reach back between the legs, take a rope end in each hand with palms facing in, and walk forward until the cable is taut. Stand tall with the arms straight and relaxed; the hands rest near the top of the thighs.
- Brace the core, chest up, shoulders down. The arms are hooks, nothing more.
- Inhale and push the hips back, letting the torso hinge forward with a flat back and the knees bending only slightly. The hands travel back between the thighs as the cable pulls them. Keep the shins nearly vertical.
- Stop when the torso is roughly parallel to the floor, or earlier if the back begins to round. You should feel a stretch in the hamstrings.
- Exhale and drive the hips forward to stand tall, squeezing the glutes at the top. Do not lean back past vertical; stand straight and finish with the hips, not the lower back.
- Pause for one count at the top and repeat. At the end of the set, walk back toward the machine to let the stack down.
Common mistakes
Pulling with the arms. Bent elbows and shrugged shoulders mean the arms are moving the stack. Lighten the weight; the hands only hold the rope.
Squatting instead of hinging. Knees bending deeply and the hips dropping straight down turns the exercise into a squat and takes the hamstrings out. Push the hips back, not down; shins stay close to vertical.
Rounding the back. A rounded spine under load is the one thing a hinge should never do. Keep the chest up, and stop the hinge the moment the back starts to round.
Hyperextending at the top. Leaning back past vertical to "squeeze harder" loads the lower back, not the glutes. Finish tall and stop.
Standing too close to the machine. If the cable goes slack at the top, step forward.
Make it easier or harder
- Easier: shorten the hinge to a quarter range while you learn the hip-back cue; or hold a staff or broom handle along the spine (without the cable) to feel what a neutral back is.
- Harder: a 2-second pause at the bottom; a 3-second return; or more weight, as long as the arms stay straight and the back flat.
- Variation: single-leg pull-through, with the non-working foot lightly touching the floor behind you for balance; or a wider "sumo" stance for more inner-thigh work.
Cable glute kickback
Setup
- Attachment: an ankle strap, fastened snugly above the ankle bone so it does not slide.
- Pulley height: the lowest setting.
- Weight: light. A resistance you can kick back for 12–15 slow repetitions per leg with a still torso. On most machines that is the first one or two plates.
- Position: face the machine, close enough that the cable is taut with the working foot beside the standing foot. Hold the upright or the frame with both hands for balance. Soft bend in the standing knee, slight forward lean from the hips, flat back.
How to do it
- Fasten the strap on one ankle, clip it to the cable, and hold the frame. Shift your weight onto the standing leg.
- Brace the core and set the torso: hips square to the machine, back flat, chest toward the frame.
- Exhale and sweep the working leg straight back from the hip, the knee nearly straight, until the leg is behind the body and the glute is fully squeezed. The foot does not need to go high; the glute stops working at roughly hip height, and anything higher comes from arching the back.
- Hold the squeeze for one count. Hips stay square, torso stays still.
- Inhale and return the leg under control over about two seconds, stopping just before the foot touches the floor so the glute stays under tension.
- Finish all reps on one leg, then switch the strap and repeat on the other.
Common mistakes
Kicking too high. Past hip height the glute is done and the lower back takes over by arching. Stop where the squeeze is strongest.
Rotating the hips. Opening the hip to get the leg higher moves the work to the outer hip and the back. Keep both hip bones facing the machine.
Swinging. A fast kick with momentum is a hamstring flick, not a glute exercise. Slow down; two seconds out, pause, two seconds back.
Standing knee caving in. The supporting knee should point over the second toe. If it collapses inward, lighten the weight and shift the hips back slightly.
Leaning hard on the frame. Hands are for balance, not for hanging. If you need to hang, the weight is too heavy.
Make it easier or harder
- Easier: reduce the range to a short sweep; or do it with a very light weight and a 1-second squeeze while you learn to feel the glute, not the back.
- Harder: a 2-second squeeze at the back; a 3-second return; or a slight bend in the working knee at the top, which shortens the hamstring and leaves more for the glute.
- Variation: standing cable hip abduction, sweeping the strapped leg out to the side with the body side-on to the machine, for the outer hip; same cues for torso and tempo.
Sets, reps and where it fits
Pull-throughs take moderate weight and moderate reps: three sets of 10–15 at the start of a leg day as a hinge warm-up, or at the end as a glute finisher. Kickbacks are a high-rep isolation movement: two to three sets of 12–15 per leg, at the end of a leg session or paired with cable squats. Choose the weight by the torso: if the back arches or rounds, go lighter.
Safety
- Check the cable, pulley and carabiner before every session, and check that the ankle strap buckle is closed and the strap is not frayed.
- Set the pulley height with no tension on the cable and make sure the pop-pin is seated.
- For the pull-through, clear the floor behind you; you will be stepping backward to let the stack down.
- Return the stack under control at the end of each set; for the kickback, bring the foot to the floor before you unclip.
- Stop if you feel sharp pain in the lower back or hip. Shorten the range and lighten the weight on the next set; if it persists, talk to a professional.
Choosing a machine for glute work
Any single low pulley covers both exercises. A functional trainer or cable column whose carriage goes all the way to the floor gives the cleanest line of pull for the kickback; a cable crossover with a wide base gives room to step forward for the pull-through. An ankle strap is a cheap addition; see machine attachments. If you are choosing a machine, send your room size on WhatsApp and we will tell you what fits.
More cable exercises
- Cable Crossover Exercises: The Complete Home Gym Guide
- Cable Squat and Split Squat
- Cable Woodchop and Pallof Press
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The exercise guides on this site are for general education only and are not medical advice. Consult your physician before starting an exercise program. You exercise at your own risk. Read the full exercise disclaimer.