Bar on your hips, fixed path, pure glute drive.
Keep ribs down and finish flat, don't hyperextend your lower back to get higher.
Bridging from the floor with the Smith bar across your hips gives the glutes direct loading through hip extension with zero balancing act, the fixed track holds the bar steady while you drive. The range is shorter than a bench-elevated thrust, which concentrates the work at the top where the glutes squeeze hardest, with the hamstrings assisting from the bent-knee position. Setup takes seconds, and the rack's fixed height makes getting under the bar far easier than wrestling free weights on the floor.
The bridge starts from the floor with a shorter range focused on the top squeeze, the thrust elevates your back on a bench for a longer arc. The bridge is the simpler setup and a great place to build the pattern before adding range.
Wrap a thick bar pad or a folded mat around it before you unrack. Hip discomfort is the number one reason people stop loading bridges, and it is entirely a padding problem, not a strength one.
Because flaring the ribs and arching the lower back fakes extra height without any extra glute work. Finish flat from knees to shoulders with a hard squeeze, that is the entire rep.
