5 Exercises That Will Give You A Toned Butt

Known across the world for an array of names, including booty, derriere, backside, rump, fanny, keister, caboose, tush, your butt is the one body part that you’d do well to build, tighten, and tone.

It comprises one of the largest and strongest group of muscles in your body – the gluteals and the hamstrings. Your gluteus maximus, gluteus medius, and gluteus minimus along with your biceps femoris, semitendinosus and semimembranosus work together to extend, rotate and abduct your hip region.

Why Do You Need To Train Your Glutes?

A shapely backside isn’t just good to look at. As you walk, run, or climb, a toned butt can help you stabilize your pelvic region. You’ll also be able to improve your posture, alleviate pain in your lower back, hips, and knees while enhancing your athletic performance. You’ll even be able to reduce bone density loss.

That is not all of it. As your muscles burn more calories at rest than fat, training your glutes and hamstrings can help you increase your lean muscles. As a result, it accelerates the process of fat loss and maintenance. Here’s why you should start training your glutes.

• Corrects poor posture issues.
• Reduces lower back pain.
• Prevents lower body injuries.
• Enhances athletic performance.
• Increases bone density.
• Promotes fat loss and fat loss maintenance.

How To Get Toned Glutes

Take your pick from these lesser known moves or try them all to sculpt your butt, hamstrings, quads, thighs, and calves.¹²

1. The Squat Hold And Pulse

This is probably a more challenging exercise to perform as people with poor ankle mobility will find it hard to squat down properly.

Directions

• To begin with, stand with your feet apart as wide as your hips.
• Push your hips back so your weight goes down into your heels again.
• Squat down to a 90-degree angle just as you did before.
• Stand back up while pressing down through your heels, but don’t stand upright.
• Make tiny up and down movements repeatedly.
• For best results, 2 sets of 20 reps can be a great place to start.

2. The Glute Bridges With Leg Lifts

This position has the maximum glute muscle activation and is a very effective exercise.

Directions

• Lay on your back with your knees bent and your feet planted firmly on the floor.
• Press your hips up to the ceiling and squeeze your glutes, much like you would while doing a gymnastics bridge.
• Slowly lower your hips back to the floor and repeat this move as many times as you can.
• Now, take turns extending one leg at a time as you push up into bridge mode.
• Keep your extended leg as straight as possible for maximum toning.

3. The Single-Leg Hip Raise

This exercise will fire up those glute muscles and will develop them to a good extent.

Directions

• Lie down on the floor facing upwards with your left knee bent and your right leg kept straight.
• Raise your right leg until it’s in line with your left thigh.
• Now, push your hips upward while keeping your right leg elevated.
• Pause a little and then slowly lower your body and leg back to your starting position.
• Complete about 20-25 repetitions with your left leg, then switch over and do the same number with your right leg.

4. The Swiss-Ball Hip Raise And Leg Curl

This exercise is great for building endurance and power in the hips and glutes

Directions

• Lie down on the floor facing upwards and place your lower legs and heels on a Swiss ball.
• Now, push your hips up so that your body forms a straight line from your shoulders to your knees.
• Without pausing, pull your heels toward you and roll the ball as close as possible to your butt.
• Pause for 1 or 2 seconds, then reverse the motion, by rolling the ball back until your body is in a straight line.
• Lower your hips back to the floor.
• About 15-20 reps of this move should do the trick!

5. The Single-Leg Deadlift

The deadlift in and of itself is a great exercise for building the posterior chain (lower back, glutes, and hamstrings), take it one level up with a single-leg deadlift and your glutes will be on fire.

Directions

• Grab a pair of light dumbbells and stand on your left foot.
• If you think that dumbbells will make this too hard for you, just use your body weight instead.
• Lift your right foot behind you and bend your knee so your right leg is parallel to the floor.
• Now, bend forward at your hips, and slowly lower your body as far as you can, or until your right lower leg almost touches the floor.
• Pause a little and then push your body back to your starting position.
• If this move is getting a little too difficult to do, let your toes rest on the floor for balance instead of raising your leg completely.
• If you can do the exercise right, 20 reps with either foot can turn out to be a very productive workout.