Oh my God Becky…… Having a perky backside is more popular than ever.

Magazine covers are plastered with beautiful butts and Instagram is flooded with fitness models showcasing perfectly sculpted glutes.

Does all that leave you with some serious booty envy? Well, you’re in luck: despite your genetics, you can actually grow some glutes!

Here are some tips to help you sculpt a booty worthy of breaking the internet:

Don’t just squat! Squats are large compound movements that involve many muscle groups in addition to the glutes. Sometimes other muscles, particularly the quads, can take over when you’re squatting, and keep you from achieving maximum glute activation. What does this mean exactly? Not only will you create an imbalance between your quads and hamstrings, but your quads may actually get bigger than your glutes, which is not the look most women are looking for when attempting to work their booties. The fix: Incorporate a variety of exercises into your strength routine including hip thrusts, glute bridges, back extensions and kickbacks.

In addition to exercise selection, frequency is also something to consider. Ideally, you should train glutes more than once a week. While everyone has a different workout routine, if growing your booty is a priority, glute-specific exercises should be incorporated into your workouts at least 2-3 days per week. You can either train glutes on their own days entirely, or incorporate glute exercises each time you workout. Just be careful if you’re planning to hit glutes everyday: if you go too heavy or for too long, you won’t make it through the rest of the week’s workouts. Pace yourself and plan ahead.

So you’ve picked out some new exercises and planned out a gym schedule…next you should consider the rep ranges and equipment. To get the most out of your workouts, consider mixing compound movements (squats and deadlifts) with isolation movements (glute bridges), and heavy weights (think barbells and low reps), moderate weights (think dumbbells and moderate reps), and light weights (bands, bodyweight exercises and high reps). Also remember to throw in some lateral movements to target the glute medius and abductors. Not only will that keep you well-rounded and help prevent injury, but it will create full, proportional glutes.

Lastly, don’t spend hours on the stairmaster- or any other cardio equipment for that matter. While cardio torches fat and is good for your cardiovascular health, excessive amounts can actually negate your muscle building progress. Plus, cardio will never sculpt or “tone” anything. Your glute activation during time spent on cardio equipment is so minimal, don’t expect to grow your glutes simply but skipping steps on the stairmaster. Stick to cardio for heart health and conditioning, and save the booty work for the weight section.

Not sure how to target your glutes? Coming soon to the NAC.. the Booty Builder – the original hip thrust machine!

 

This article was written by NAC personal trainer.

Schedule a complimentary program review to evaluate your current training program.

 

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