Training guide
A lateral band walk is a side step against a mini band. Loop the band just above your knees, sit into a quarter squat with your feet hip-width apart, step sideways without letting the band go slack, keep your toes forward and your trunk still, then step back the other way. Do 10 steps each way as a warm-up, or 2 or 3 sets of 10 to 15 for strength.
It works the side of your hips, the gluteus medius most, in both legs, with the standing leg working hardest. Moving the band to your ankles and then your feet makes your glutes work harder. Band walks belong in hip and knee strengthening for kneecap pain and, gently, for outer hip pain, but they aren't proven to prevent injuries.
This guide shows band walks and monster walks on the 3D figure, where the band goes, what they work, knee and hip pain, and how many to do.
Loop a mini band just above your knees, stand with your feet hip-width apart and sit into a quarter squat. Step sideways, bring the other foot after it without letting the band go slack, keep your toes forward and your trunk quiet, then take the same number of steps back. A quarter-to-half squat drew more glute activity than standing tall, and the standing leg worked harder than the stepping leg.
Moving the band from your knees to your ankles to your feet raised glute activity in 22 adults; the muscle at the front of the hip worked more from knees to ankles but not from ankles to feet. 9 men showed the same pattern. Start with the band above your knees.
Resisted side steps averaged about 40% of maximum for the middle of the gluteus medius across pooled studies, which counts as high, but the gluteus maximus works little. Side planks with a leg lift and single-leg squats and Romanian deadlifts worked the glutes harder. Muscle activity isn't growth.
Adding hip strengthening to knee exercises eased kneecap pain more than knee exercises alone (14 trials, 673 people), but no trial isolates the band walk, and in one trial hip exercise did no better than knee exercise or free activity when everyone had education. Weak hips didn't predict kneecap pain.
The best-tested programme for outer hip tendon pain (the LEAP trial, 204 people) used side steps, 10 each way daily at a light effort in week 1, with a band only from week 3. Its rule: no increase in pain over the bony point on the side of your hip. Keep your pelvis level, the steps small and the band light, because letting the hip drop squeezes the tendon.
Band walks are a moderate side-hip strength exercise that rehabilitation programmes use at 3 sets, though we found no trial of band walks alone for strength or injury prevention, and glute activation warm-ups gave small, inconsistent effects on sprinting and jumping. As a warm-up, 10 steps each way; for strength, 2 or 3 sets of 10 to 15 each way, 2 or 3 times a week (our editorial starting point).
Side-stepping against a looped mini band in a quarter squat, as our move page teaches it: loop the band just above the knees, step sideways against it keeping tension in the band and the toes pointing forward, then take the same number of steps back. People also call it a band walk, banded side steps, side steps with a band, a crab walk with a band or a mini band walk. An X-band walk uses a long band crossed in front of you (no demo).
Coaches use the name for different moves: forward and backward steps against a band, diagonal steps, or even side steps. Our demo takes short steps forward against the bands, then walks backwards: the forward-and-back cousin of the lateral band walk. The monster walk section below covers it.
The side glutes (gluteus medius and minimus) lift the stepping leg out and hold the standing leg's pelvis level; the gluteus maximus helps, more as you squat deeper and the band moves down; and the tensor fasciae latae at the front of the hip also lifts the leg out and stays busy. Both hips work, and the standing (trailing) hip worked harder than the stepping hip. Activity isn't growth.
The band pulls your knees (or ankles, or feet) together, and the further down the leg it sits, the longer the lever and the harder the side glutes work. With the band round the forefeet, measured hip torques show the band tends to turn the hip outwards, so the muscles must turn it in, not out as is often said, and deeper knee bends add more of that twisting demand.
Comfort holding a quarter squat (our move page's prerequisite), and a light mini band. For the feet version, the knee version first, as its move page says.
In the same set-up, women's gluteus medius worked at a higher share of its maximum than men's (34.5 against 24.4%), and women leaned forward more. Hip shape and how wide you can step comfortably vary, so set the step to suit you. With pelvic girdle pain in pregnancy, moving your legs apart can make it worse, as the NHS says.
From our lateral band walk page, with our editorial wording. The lab studies used steps of about 30 cm.
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The movement on the figure: Lateral band walk
In 22 healthy adults (11 men, 11 women) side-stepping in a squat, gluteus maximus and medius activity rose when the band moved from the knees to the ankles, and again from the ankles to the feet (round the balls of the feet). Knees to ankles raised the gluteus maximus by about 38%, the gluteus medius by 42% and the tensor fasciae latae at the front of the hip by 83%; the front-of-hip muscle didn't rise further at the feet.
In 9 healthy men, the gluteus medius worked progressively harder as the band moved down, at about 24, 29 and 35% of maximum, and the gluteus maximus switched on most with the band at the feet. Two small lab studies, but they agree.
It's the easiest position, and the one our move page teaches. When 3 sets of 15 steps feel easy, move the band to your ankles, then your feet, changing one thing at a time. Our move page says the band round the ankles makes it harder; there's no separate demo for the ankle position.
In 36 adults with the band round the forefeet, the authors found that the common idea of the band creating an inward-turning pull for the glutes to resist is wrong: the band tends to turn the hip outwards, so the muscles turn it in, and posture didn't change the side-lifting demand. Knee bend alone explained 87% of the variation in the twisting demand, so a deep squat with a foot band is the hardest version. The glutes still work harder with the band at the feet.
In squats, the stiffest band at the forefeet drew the most hip muscle activity in 35 adults, and the authors of a side-stepping study expected a stronger band to raise activity. We found no study of band stiffness, band colour, step width or knee position in band walks themselves.
From our lateral band walk (band at the feet) page, whose prerequisite is the knee version. Our strength workout for dancers uses 3 sets of 15 steps each way; the move page gives no dose.
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The movement on the figure: Lateral band walk, band at the feet
In 24 healthy adults, side-stepping in a self-chosen squat (knees bent about 41 to 43 degrees, trunk leaning about 25 degrees) drew more glute and less front-of-hip activity than standing tall. The authors read the levels as training glute endurance and control more than strength, with a medium band.
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Even in the squat, the tensor fasciae latae at the front of the hip stayed more active than the glutes, measured through the skin (surface electromyography, or EMG). But with fine wires in the muscles of 20 people, the side step had the second-best glute-to-front-of-hip ratio of 11 exercises (the clamshell was first).
In 21 people, the standing leg's gluteus medius worked at 52% of its maximum against 35% for the stepping leg, and a second study found the same. Stepping both ways gives each hip a turn.
Across 56 studies, resisted side steps generated high average activity (about 40% of maximum) in the middle part of the gluteus medius, among the best options with standing resisted abduction, the single-leg bridge and the lateral step-up.
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The gluteus maximus worked at about 27% of maximum in band walks in 21 people, and 4 to 6% in monster walks. Hip thrusts, squats and hinges load it far more.
In 24 athletes, resisted side-stepping drew the lowest peak gluteus medius activity of the exercises tested, and the authors suggest it suits rehabilitation more than athletes. Modelled muscle forces in 14 female footballers put the side plank, the loaded single-leg squat and the loaded single-leg Romanian deadlift in the top tier for the gluteus medius.
One study tested turning the hip in or out, and its abstract reports no significant difference in glute activity. Keep your toes forward, as our move page says.
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Activity measured over a few reps shows effort, not what a muscle will build, and rankings of hip exercises by EMG agreed poorly with modelled muscle forces. Read every percentage on this page as a rough guide.
From our monster walk page, whose dose is 2 to 3 sets of 10 to 15 steps forward and the same back (its editorial starting point). Its demo uses one band at the knees and one at the ankles; one band works too. The diagonal version, stepping forward and out at about 45 degrees, has no demo.
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The movement on the figure: Monster walk
Band walks step sideways; monster walks step forwards and back (sometimes diagonally) against the band. A review found only 4 lab studies of the two, and the gluteus maximus worked very little in monster walks (4 to 6% of maximum). Use monster walks as a change, not a replacement.
10 steps each way, 1 or 2 sets (our glute gym and home glute workouts). A few minutes of walking first if it's your first exercise.
2 or 3 sets of 10 to 15 steps each way, 2 or 3 times a week, stopping 1 or 2 steps before your form slips, with 60 to 90 seconds' rest or alternated with another move (our editorial starting point). That sits within the doses trials and guides used: side stepping for 3 sets of 1 minute in a kneecap pain programme, 3 sets of 15 each side in a ballet programme, an NHS trust leaflet's 3 sets of 10 crab walks 3 to 4 times a week, and a review's 3 sets of 10 to 15 steps or 1-minute sets, 2 to 4 times a week.
No: band walks are a moderate side-hip exercise that rehabilitation programmes use at 3 sets. But we found no trial of band walks alone for strength, and the one training study that listed monster walks among its hip exercises (24 women runners, 8 weeks) found no difference between its groups.
More steps (up to 15), then a stronger band, then the band lower (knees, ankles, feet), then a deeper squat: one change at a time, as our plans' double progression does. When 3 sets of 15 with the band at your feet are easy, move on to side planks with a leg lift, single-leg work or the abduction machine.
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Count band walks with your other side-hip work. Our hip abduction machine guide puts about 5 of the glute plan's weekly sets on side-hip work.
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Stay in the quarter squat: the glutes work more and the front of the hip less.
Keep them pointing forward, as our move page says.
Take smaller steps, or use a lighter band.
Take smaller steps and keep tension in the band. As an NHS trust leaflet puts it: "Do not allow your knees to come together or lose the tension on the band."
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Keep your feet hip-width apart at the end of each step.
Use a lighter band or none, and smaller steps, as our move page and outer hip pain guide say.
Across 14 trials (673 people), hip and knee strengthening eased kneecap (patellofemoral) pain more than knee strengthening alone, by about 1.5 points on a 0 to 10 scale, without a measurable change in strength. Other reviews and an international consensus agree, and the National Athletic Trainers' Association recommends starting with 3 weeks of isolated glute strengthening. No trial isolates band walks.
In 112 people aged 16 to 40 with kneecap pain, hip exercise, knee exercise and free activity, each with the same education, gave the same results at 3 months and at a year.
Across 18 studies (4,818 people), there was moderate evidence that hip weakness wasn't a risk factor for future kneecap pain, and lower hip strength may follow the pain rather than cause it.
Adding hip exercises to thigh exercises improved walking but not pain across 8 trials; in 89 people, hip strengthening eased pain and improved function without changing the load on the inside of the knee. NICE offers strengthening exercise to everyone with osteoarthritis, and warns that pain may increase at first. Our knee arthritis guide has the plan.
20 women runners gained hip strength over 6 weeks without any change in how their hips and knees moved when running, and programmes that did change knees caving in mostly trained the knee and ankle too. Practising the movement matters, as our knock knees guide explains.
In the LEAP trial (204 people aged 35 to 70), education plus exercise succeeded at 8 weeks in 51 of 66, against 38 of 65 after a steroid injection and 20 of 68 with wait and see. Its side steps began without a band, 10 each way daily at a light effort in week 1 and 15 in week 2, with band side-slides of 5 to 10 each way at a somewhat hard to hard effort from week 3.
Letting the hip drop or the knee drift in (hip adduction) loads the outer hip tendons most, which is why the trial's education and expert reviews target it. We found no study of the tendon during band walks; keeping your pelvis level and the band light is our reading.
Weaker hip abduction predicted injury to the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in 501 athletes (15 injuries), but stronger hip abduction did in 171 basketball players (12 injuries). A 2026 position statement says direct evidence linking targeted glute work to fewer injuries remains limited. The only prevention trial we found with band side steps was a whole ballet programme, which cut injuries among the dancers who kept to it; its parts can't be separated.
Pain from 0 to 2 out of 10 is fine, and up to 5 is acceptable if your knee is back to its usual level by the next morning; for tendon pain just below or above the kneecap, keep it to 3 or less. Sharp, catching or giving-way pain, or new swelling, means stop. That's our knee guides' rule.
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No extra pain over the bony point on the side of your hip during or after, and the hip no worse that night or the next morning, as our outer hip pain guide says.
The LEAP trial accepted no change in pain over that bony point, and NHS inform keeps pain within 0 to 5 out of 10.
The two holds (3 to 5 holds of 5 to 10 seconds, and 5 to 15 seconds each side, twice a day) use their move pages' doses from the LEAP programme, and side-stepping 10 steps each way next to a counter (its move page's dose). Clamshells, 2 or 3 sets of 12 to 15 each side (our beginner lower body workout); side-lying leg raises, 12 each side (our glute workout at home); standing band abduction, 1 to 2 sets of 12 to 15 each side (our glute challenge workout); side planks with a leg lift, 2 sets of 8 to 10 each side once side planks are steady (our runners' workout); the abduction machine, 2 to 3 sets of 12 to 20 (our glute workouts).
3D demoSupine isometric hip abduction (belt press)Beginner · A band
3D demoStanding wall-press hip abductionBeginner · A wall
3D demoSide-stepping (sideways walking)Beginner · A wall
3D demoClamshellBeginner · No equipment
3D demoLateral band walkBeginner · A band
3D demoLateral band walk, band at the feetIntermediate · A band
3D demoMonster walkBeginner · A band
3D demoSide-lying leg raiseBeginner · No equipment
3D demoStanding band hip abductionBeginner · A band + An anchor point
3D demoSide plank with leg liftAdvanced · No equipment
3D demoHip abduction machineBeginner · Strength machineThe clamshell is done lying down and had the best glute-to-front-of-hip ratio of 11 exercises in fine-wire EMG; band walks are done standing and work both hips. Our clamshell guide covers banded clamshells, and puts band walks among the harder side-hip moves that come after them.
The machine lets you add weight in small steps and push closer to failure; band walks work both hips while standing and travel anywhere. Both count as side-hip work. Our hip abduction machine guide lists band walks among its home alternatives.
A crab walk with a band is the same exercise by another name; the face-up crawl on your hands and feet is a different move, in our crab walk guide. An X-band walk crosses a long band in front of you, adding some upper-body work; it has no demo.
Band walks are a warm-up or circuit item in our glute, band and knee sessions, from 10 steps each way to 2 sets of 10 to 15.
A 25-minute glute workout with bodyweight and a mini band: bridges, clamshells, band walks, kickbacks and lunges.
25 minBeginner9 movesA wall, A bandA 50-minute gym glute workout: hip thrusts, deep squats, Bulgarian split squats, back extensions and hip abduction, with sets, reps and rest.
50 minIntermediate11 movesA band, A barbellA full-body resistance band workout: squats, rows, push-ups, presses, pull-aparts, band walks, good mornings and flyes.
30 minBeginner9 movesA band, An anchor pointA 20-minute warm-up that trains your knees to track over your toes: side-hip strength, squats and lunges with alignment practice, balance and quiet landings.
20 minBeginner10 movesA wall, A bandA 25-minute routine for uneven hips: side-hip holds, leg raises, single-leg bridges, step-ups, side planks and balance, for hip strength and pelvic control.
25 minBeginner10 movesA wall, A stepSession A of the 30-day glute challenge: a bridge-to-hip-thrust ladder, a split squat ladder and side-hip work, at home or in the gym.
20 minBeginner16 movesA wall, A bandA lower body workout at home: split squats, slider hamstring curls, single-leg bridges, step-ups, band walks and calf raises, with dumbbell options.
30 minIntermediate12 movesA wall, A stepAn 8-week glute workout plan: two glute days and two upper-body days a week, with hip thrusts, squats, hinges and side-hip work, plus a home option.
4 training days50 minIntermediate3 days a weekA free 30-day glute challenge for home or the gym: three 20-minute sessions a week with bridges, split squats, hinges and side-hip work, and rest days.
3 training days20 minBeginner3 days a weekAn 8-week resistance band workout plan: three full-body sessions a week at home or away, with how to choose bands, add tension and anchor them safely.
3 training days35 minBeginnerStart without a band, with small steps at a light effort, as the LEAP programme did, and add a light band only when that's comfortable. Follow our outer hip pain guide.
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Keep the squat shallow and stay within the knee rule above; our runner's knee guide has the plan.
Keep the band above your knees; the feet version waits, as our inner and outer knee ligament (MCL and LCL) sprain guides say.
With pelvic girdle pain in pregnancy, skip it or keep the stance narrow, as our move page says: the NHS lists moving your legs apart among the things that can make it worse.
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Follow your surgical team's timeline for side-lying and banded hip work.
If you get chest pain or pressure, feel faint or dizzy, are unusually breathless, or your heart races or beats irregularly during exercise, as our plans advise. The American Heart Association says these need immediate medical evaluation.
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For chest pain that comes on suddenly and doesn't go away, feels tight or like squeezing, spreads to your arms, neck, jaw, stomach or back, or comes with sweating, feeling sick, light-headedness or breathlessness; arm pain that comes on suddenly with pressure, heaviness or squeezing across your chest; severe difficulty breathing, or a chest that feels tight or heavy; someone who faints while exercising; palpitations that don't go away, or come with chest pain, shortness of breath or feeling faint; or a headache that starts suddenly and is extremely painful, especially while lifting or straining. The NHS says a bleed on the brain may be more likely when lifting something heavy. Don't drive yourself to A&E.
Ask for an urgent GP appointment or get help from NHS 111 for a headache that's triggered or made worse by coughing, sneezing, bending down or exercising.
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Get advice from NHS 111 if your knee is very painful, you can't move it or put weight on it, it's badly swollen or has changed shape, it locks, gives way or clicks painfully (painless clicking is normal), or it's hot and red and you have a high temperature. NHS inform adds a knee that swells straight after a twisting injury to that list. See a GP if knee pain doesn't improve within a few weeks. In the US, your doctor or urgent care.
Call 999 or go to A&E for severe hip pain after a fall or injury, or if you can't walk or put weight on the leg. Ask for an urgent GP appointment or get help from NHS 111 for severe hip pain that started suddenly without an injury, or a hip that's swollen and hot. See a GP if hip pain hasn't improved after 2 weeks of looking after it yourself.
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Call 999 or go to A&E if you heard a crack, the joint or limb has changed shape or points at an odd angle, it's numb or tingling, or the skin looks blue or grey or feels cold. Get help from NHS 111 (in the US, urgent care) if it's very painful, very swollen or bruised, very stiff, or you can't put weight on it or walk more than a few steps.
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Call 999 or go to A&E: loss of feeling or numbness around the genitals or bottom, new trouble peeing or controlling your bladder or bowels, changes in genital sensation during sex or problems with erections or orgasm, or pain, tingling, weakness or numbness in both legs. These are signs of cauda equina syndrome, which needs treating in hospital urgently. Don't drive yourself.
See a GP if pain spreading down a leg hasn't improved after a few weeks of home treatment, is getting worse or stops your normal activities. Sciatica on both sides, or weakness or numbness in both legs that's severe or getting worse, is a 999 call or a trip to A&E.
Very sore, swollen, tight muscles and dark urine after an unusually hard or high-rep session need medical help the same day: it could be rhabdomyolysis, as our elbow pain from pull-ups guide explains. Normal soreness peaks a day or two after a new exercise and fades.
See a GP if you think you have a hernia, a bulge or lump that may get bigger when you strain and smaller when you lie down. Get help from NHS 111 if you have a hernia and pain in or around it, a bloated tummy, you feel or are sick, you're vomiting blood or your vomit looks like coffee grounds, you're constipated, you have a high temperature or feel hot, cold or shivery, or you've suddenly become confused. Call 999 or go to A&E for a femoral hernia (a small lump at the top of your thigh, in your groin) with very bad tummy pain, sickness, being unable to fart or poo, a high temperature or sudden confusion.
The NHS lists lifting heavy weights among the causes of a femoral hernia. After an inguinal hernia repair, avoid heavy lifting or strenuous activity for at least 4 to 6 weeks.
Speak to your GP first if you haven't exercised for some time or have medical conditions or concerns, as the NHS advises. Get advice before hard or straining work if your blood pressure is uncontrolled (140/90 or higher at a clinic, or 135/85 at home), or you have heart disease or chest pain when you're active, a pacemaker or defibrillator, diabetic eye disease, glaucoma, a hernia, recent eye or tummy surgery, or you're pregnant, as our breathing guide lists.
With controlled high blood pressure, the American Heart Association considers low- to moderate-intensity strength training with proper breathing safe. Breathe out as you lift, as our breathing guide advises.
They're a moderate side-hip exercise, about 40% of maximum for the middle of the gluteus medius in pooled studies, used at 3 sets in rehabilitation programmes, and a stronger or lower band raises the work. But we found no trial of band walks alone for strength, and harder side-hip moves exist.
Measured hip torques show the opposite twisting demand. The glutes still work harder with the band at the feet.
Weak hips didn't predict kneecap pain, hip strength and ACL studies point both ways, and we found no prevention trial of band walks; one ballet programme that included them cut injuries among dancers who kept to it.
Hip strength rose without changing how runners' knees moved. Practising the movement itself matters, as our knock knees guide explains.
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The tensor fasciae latae stayed more active than the glutes in surface EMG even in a squat, though fine-wire EMG favoured the glutes.
Small studies found small, inconsistent effects, and sometimes worse jumps: in 11 athletes, jump height fell at most rest intervals after a glute warm-up. None of these warm-ups used band walks.
Cable hip abduction grew the gluteus medius and minimus about 4% in 10 weeks in one trial, and band walks are lighter than that. The main glute muscle grows from loaded hip extension, and hip dips are a normal shape, as our glute and clamshell guides say.
One study tested it, and its abstract reports no significant glute difference. Keep your toes forward.
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Loop a mini band just above your knees, stand with your feet hip-width apart and sit into a quarter squat. Step sideways, bring the other foot after it without letting the band go slack, and keep your toes forward and your trunk still. Take the same number of steps back.
Start above the knees, the easiest. Moving it to the ankles and then the feet made the glutes work harder in two small studies; at the ankles the front of the hip also worked more, but not further at the feet.
Mainly the gluteus medius and minimus on the side of your hip, plus some gluteus maximus and the tensor fasciae latae at the front of the hip. The standing leg works harder than the stepping leg.
A quarter to half squat gave more glute and less front-of-hip work than standing tall. Go only as low as your knees are comfortable.
As a warm-up, 10 steps each way. For strength, 2 or 3 sets of 10 to 15 steps each way, 2 or 3 times a week: our editorial starting point, within the doses trials used, such as 3 sets of 1 minute or 3 sets of 15 each side.
As part of hip and knee strengthening, yes: adding hip work to knee exercises eased kneecap pain more than knee work alone. No trial tests band walks on their own, and in one trial hip exercise did no better than free activity with education. Stay within our knee pain rule.
Gentle side steps are part of the best-tested programme for outer hip tendon pain, starting without a band. Keep your pelvis level and your steps small, and stop if the bony point on the side of your hip hurts more during or after.
A little: they work the side glutes moderately, and side-hip training grew them about 4% in 10 weeks in one trial. Hip thrusts, squats and hinges build most of the glutes, as our glute guide explains.
Band walks step sideways; monster walks step forwards and back, sometimes diagonally, against the band. The gluteus maximus worked very little in monster walks in the studies reviewed. Both have 3D demos on this page.
Light warm-up sets on most days are fine; for strength, 2 or 3 sessions a week is enough (our suggestion). With outer hip pain, the LEAP programme did unbanded side steps daily at a light effort.
Clamshells, side-lying leg raises, standing band abduction, side planks with a leg lift or the hip abduction machine work the same muscles. Side planks with a leg lift and single-leg squats work them harder.
We found no trial that tested them for that, and studies of hip strength and ACL injury point both ways. The programmes that cut ACL injuries combine jumping, landing, strength and agility work, as our knee control warm-up explains.
Exercise education, not a personal prescription, and clinical review of these guides is pending. Check with a GP before starting hard training if you have a heart condition, chest pain, dizziness or breathlessness when active, and stop for sharp or increasing pain. Health disclaimer.
