Banded hydrant circles that set the glutes on fire.
Keep your hips level and fight the band the whole circle. Don't let it snap your leg back in.
Where a normal fire hydrant works one line of motion, drawing circles keeps the hip abductors under tension through every angle of the arc, and reversing direction means no portion of the circle gets neglected. The band fights both the lift and the return, so there is nowhere in the rep to relax. One hip at a time, it is a small movement with a disproportionate burn, ideal for building the lateral hip control that keeps knees tracking straight.
Start small and controlled, only as big as you can draw without your hips rocking. A smooth, small circle under constant band tension beats a big sloppy one every time.
Yes, reverse halfway through your reps or alternate sets. Each direction loads the arc differently, and skipping one leaves half the movement untrained.
The regular version is straight up and down, one line of resistance. Circles sweep through multiple hip angles in a single rep, trading peak range for continuous tension, so they complement rather than replace each other.
