The Only Butt Workout You'll Ever Need
Rather than a sweaty HIIT or Tabata routine that will leave you breathless, these butt exercises [...]
1. Curtsy Lunge and Squat | 20 reps
The curtsy lunge hits your glute muscle that helps pull your legs away from the midline of your body and add that definition we all know and crave while strengthening your abductor and adductors. Adding a squat to your curtsy lunge gives that booty and lower body a beneficial compound move to help tone and tighten.
Step 1: Begin with a curtsy lunge by standing tall, crossing one foot in front of your body and bending the knees. When you do this, your feet should be far enough away from each other so you can bend the back knee at about 90 degrees. The crossover should bring your front knee in front of the opposite hip. The hands are in front of the chest to keep it lifted.
Step 2: Step out to the side so your feet are much wider than your shoulders. Dip into your plié squat and raise your arms overhead. Go as low as you can, trying to get your hips in line with your knees. For a bigger challenge, skip standing up as you transition — keep the knees bent and stay low to hold onto the burn!
Step 3: Cross the other leg in front of your body to perform a curtsy lunge on the other side. Again, give yourself enough room between the feet to perform a deep lunge. This is one rep.
prevnext2. Kettlebell Goblet Squat | 20 reps
Goblet squats are just the exercise you need to perfect the squat movement. They tone your thighs, calves and booty while strengthening your core, and unlike other squat movements, they're surprisingly gentle on your lower back. Grab a kettlebell or a heavy dumbbell and get to work!
Step 1: Stand with feet wider than shoulder-width apart so you can drop into your squat with good posture. Hold the kettlebell at chest height — the bottom of the kettlebell should be no lower than the bra line.
Step 2: Send the hips back and down, letting the knees bend as you go. The knees stay behind the toes and your weight goes into your heels. You should be able to wiggle your toes at the bottom of the squat.
Step 3: Exhale and press into the heels as you raise yourself back up to standing position. Push the hips to the front. Think of your hips as the leader of this movement, guiding the body up and back down while you squeeze your glutes and quadriceps.
prevnext3. Kneeling Roundhouse Kick | 10 reps each side
A great bodyweight exercise that primarily works the glutes, but also hits your abs, lower back, and inner thighs. Keep your hips as aligned as possible throughout the movement, so you're isolating the right muscle groups.
Step 1: Come to all fours with your toes curled under, hands under the shoulders and knees beneath the hips. Look at your mat to keep a straight spine.
Step 2: Lift one leg like you would for a fire hydrant. Try to keep equal pressure in the hands by locking down the core.
Step 3: Kick out to the side. You might not be able to lift and kick the leg as high as you see Jean do here, but that's OK! You can continue closing and opening the kick here or bring it back to the floor after each rep. The intensity is up to you.
prevnext4. Lunge to Single Leg Deadlift | 10 reps each side
Deadlifts are one of the most important exercises for women (here's why) even though most of us aren't implementing them into our routine regularly. Your core will also greatly benefit from the lunge to single leg deadlift. Any exercise that teaches you to balance on one leg without rotating or flexing your foot causes you to target your core muscle for steadiness, and in turn, works as a great compound movement.
Step 1: Begin by grasping a dumbbell in each hand.
Step 2: Take a wide step out to the front with the left leg and lower yourself into a lunge position. Keep your back straight, your chest up, and your front leg bent at a 90-degree angle.
Step 3: Push off with the back leg (weight in your heel), while straightening the front leg. Then, slowly balance yourself on one leg, lowering the dumbbells and chest toward the ground, be sure to keep the abs in tight, the back straight, and all the slack taken out of your body. The leg behind you should be pushing straight back, not flexed at the toes or hanging with slack. Think of it as pushing against a wall with your heel.
Step 4: From this position, return back to standing position and repeat the whole movement stepping out into a lunge with your right leg.
prevnext5. Superman Ball Lifts | 20 reps
An awesome Superman variation that targets the muscles to get you a perkier butt.
Step 1: To get into your starting position, come to all fours and place the ball securely between your ankles. Walk yourself down to your belly with your arms extended in front of you, face to the mat. Modification: Fold your arms under your head and rest your forehead on them.
Step 2: Squeeze the glutes tightly as you lift the ball off the floor. At the same time, lift your chest and reach your arms in front of you. Try not to press your belly into the floor with great force. Keep the work in your backside and maintain length from your fingertips to toes. With control, lower the ball, and focus the movement in your hamstrings. Modification: Keep your head resting on your arms and skip the chest lift.
prevnext6. Frog Lifts | 20 reps
This is a great burnout move to get through as many pulses as you can to really exhaust those muscles. It's all about focusing on your hamstrings and the glute muscles to raise your legs. Do not swing or use your lower back to manipulate the movement.
Step 1: Begin in a kneeling position and place the ball behind you between the heels. Walk yourself down to the floor and prop up your chest with your elbows. Bend the knees at 90 degrees and squeeze the ball with your heels, which will make your knees move outward to the edge of your mat.
Step 2: Squeeze the glutes and the ball to lift the knees off the ground. Pause at the top for 1-2 seconds. Continue squeezing as you lower your legs, but do not collapse at the bottom of the movement.
prevnext7. Squat Step with Resistance Band | 20 reps on each side
This is one of our favorite exercises to strengthen the gluteus medius, which is situated on the outer surface of the pelvis, and is the perfect way to improve hip stability and strengthen hip flexors.
Step 1: Begin by standing with feet a little closer than shoulder-width apart. Securely resistance band around ankles. Drop your butt back into a squat form, focusing the weight in the heels, keeping the abs pulled in tight and the chest up.
Step 2: Side step quickly in a controlled motion, keeping resistance on the band the entire time, back and forth for your reps. Don't sacrifice proper form and start bending over with chest down! Also, STAY LOW!
prevnext8. Weighted Plié Squat | 20 reps
If adding weight to your squat is a new move for you, work through the initial burn and keep this exercise in your lower body routine to build those muscles. Want to ramp it up? Perform this move on your tip toes—a triple threat that targets your glutes, inner thighs and calves.
Step 1: Hold one dumbbell in front of you and step the feet out into a wide stance. Turn your toes at least 45 degrees. Drop the shoulders from your ears and lift the chest.
Step 2: Drop your hips down to a plié squat, trying to get the thighs parallel with the floor. Exhale and push out of it to straighten the legs and repeat.
prevnext9. Glute Bridge March | 10 reps on each side
This effective glute exercise targets the booty while you work on that stable, strong core, so you'll feel strong while working on your tush.
Step 1: Lie on your back with your knees bent and feet on the floor. Place your hands to your sides, palms down. Squeeze your glutes together as you lift the hips. Push the belly button down into the spine so the lower back isn't doing any of the work.
Step 2: Keeping the knees bent, lift one leg up until the thigh is completely vertical. As you lift, press into the heel of your grounded foot. Don't let those hips drop! Release the leg and repeat on the other side.
prevnext10. Romanian Deadlift | 20 reps
One of the best exercises for hitting the glutes and hamstrings is the Romanian Deadlift. This specific version of the deadlift removes the knees from the equation, so the emphasis is all on the hamstrings and glutes. The glutes and legs are large muscle groups, so don't be afraid to go heavy with your dumbbells.
Step 1: Hold your dumbbells so they're resting on your thighs, palms facing you. Shoulders should be back with your back slightly arched and your knees a slight bend.
Step 2: Lower the dumbbells down to your shins by pushing your your butt back as far as you can, keeping your weight in your heels. Keep dumbbells close to your body, gaze forward and keep shoulder back. Return to starting position in a slow and controlled motion, driving the hips forward to stand tall. That is one rep. Repeat for allotted time.
Now that you have your lower body workout ready for the gym, head over to find the best 17 Free Weight Exercises for Toned Arms!
Related:
Brazilian Booty Lift Workout
The Exact Changes One Woman Made to See This Stunning Booty Transformation
20-Minute Leg & Booty Burner [VIDEO]
The Most Important Exercise You Should Be Doing (but Probably Aren't!)