One-leg glute bridge: how Upfit checks your form

Upfit has two versions of this move, one with the left leg raised and one with the right. Both use the same detector. This page covers both.

How do I do a one-leg glute bridge?

Lie on your back with one foot flat on the mat near your hips. Extend the other leg straight out at about 45 degrees. Press through the planted heel to lift your hips until your shoulder, hip and knee form a straight line. Lower back to the mat with control. Then switch sides. Skip this move if it strains your back or hamstrings.

How do I set up my phone for this move?

This is a floor move tracked side-on. Lie with your body parallel to the phone: your head off to one side of the picture and your feet off to the other. The camera needs to see your shoulders, hips and both legs.

What does Upfit check on a one-leg glute bridge?

Upfit works out which foot is planted, because it sits lower in the picture. It then measures the angle at your hip between your shoulders and the planted foot. Flat on the mat that angle is wide open. When your hips lift it narrows. On newer iPhones the lift is measured against your own flat position, so it adjusts to your body and camera angle.

Each rep gets two checks:

• Raised leg. The knee of the lifted leg has to stay straight. If it folds for several frames during the rep, the rep is rejected.
• Tempo. Under about three quarters of a second is flagged fast. Over about four seconds is flagged slow. Both still count.

When does a bridge count?

A rep counts when your hips rise to the bridge position and come back down to the mat, with the raised leg staying straight. The coach counts it aloud.

What does the coach say?

These are real lines from the app's voice set:

• "Lock that floating leg out — knee straight on every bridge!"
• "Slow the bridge down — control the lift and the lower."

Watch: how Upfit checks a single-leg glute bridge

A short walkthrough of how to do it, the phone set-up, what the camera checks and what the coach says.

What can't Upfit check on a one-leg glute bridge?

Upfit does not check that the raised leg is at 45 degrees, or that you raised the leg the coach asked for. It does not measure how high your hips go beyond the lift threshold, whether your hips twist, or whether your lower back arches. Its only form fault on this move is a bent raised knee.

Where can I read more?

• What Upfit can't check, including how the form score works
• How Upfit works
• All exercise pages

Upfit is an iPhone app, out now on the App Store. It is a fitness app, not medical advice. Stop if you feel pain or dizziness.