From Kim K to Beyonce to Nicki Minaj to Iggy Azelea to J-Lo, the booty has now become a prized asset, but other than aesthetics, there are other reasons why have a well toned butt is important. For one, you will have better protected joints.
When the glutes are toned and become stronger, the femurs get pulled backward during hip extension. This allows the bones to be centered in the middle of the hip socket thereby reducing the pressure on your knees. This will actually “adjust” the way you walk.
3 Exercises to help tone your butt:
1. Donkey kicks with resistance
The name of the exercise is quite funny but trust me, there is nothing funny about the “pain” you’ll feel afterwards. This is how you do it:
Start by coming down on all fours with your knees directly under your hips and your hands directly under your shoulders. Make sure that your spine is not rounded, and maintain the lower back curve.
Lift your right leg (as it is) and push upwards, towards the ceiling. This is the basic move. The resistance comes in when you add a resistance band to the workout. Place the resistance band around your left knee and under your right foot. The more resistance there is, the faster the results! Do 5 reps of 10 every other day, and get that booty workin‘!!
2. Wide-Stance Barbell Squat
This is one of the most popular exercises for making yourself more bootylicious; the wide-stance barbell squat is about building the glutes, making them larger and perkier, which is what you want.
FACT: You are going to need very strong arms and back to do with exercise often so make sure to work on your arms as well.
When done right, you will reap the full benefit of the exercise but when done the wrong way, you risk throwing your back out and breaking a bone. So if you are a beginner, start with the lightest weights and ask for help if you need some.
With the barbell on your shoulders and feet at a wide stance, take a deep squat down engaging your glutes and other leg muscles.
3. Glute Bridges
Unlike the usual bridges (which are simple and doesn’t have much resistance) this is a little more difficult. A two-part exercise, starting with glute bridges.Lying on your back with your knees bent and feet flat on the floor, place the weight on your pelvic area.
Keeping your core tight, rise your hips up off the floor and thrust them as high into the air as you can, squeezing your butt at the top. Keep shoulders on the ground.
Lower hips back down, but do not touch butt to the floor and repeat.
