5 Effective Exercises That Will Build Up Your Glutes, Improve Your Posture And Burn Fat
Has your lack of physical activity made you feel a bit weak in the
glutes ? No wonder – the muscles to suffer the most from a sedentary
lifestyle are the glutes, which constitute the largest and most powerful
muscle group in your body.
This muscle group consists of three major muscles: the glute maximus,
glute medius and glute minimus, and all of them work together to
extend, abduct and rotate your hips. Just think of how involved they are
in every complex movement you perform, from moving the body in all
possible directions to climbing and running.
That makes them incredibly important when it comes to physical
health, stability and athletic potential. But when you spend too much
time sitting, you glutes can lose their power and efficiency at
supporting the spine and stabilizing your pelvis, resulting in an
unstable pelvis, decreased leg strength and poor posture.
Furthermore, having untrained and atrophied glutes will give you a
hard time during any kind of intense physical activity and increase your
risk of injury and back and knee pain.
Then comes the issue of aesthetics, of course – who on earth prides
with having a flat, flabby behind that looks squashed in their favorite
pair of jeans? Yet, shaping a strong attention-grabbing behind isn’t as
hard as you might think. You can sculpt a great backside by performing
these exercises few times per week!
1. WEIGHTED BRIDGE
A largely underappreciated exercise that isolates the glutes, strengthens the hip flexors and increases core stability.
Lay on your back, bend your knees and position the feet slightly
wider than hips width apart and firmly locked on the ground. Place a
light dumbbell on each of the hips and lift them by tightening the
glutes, thighs and abs, and explosively thrusting your hips upwards.
On the way up, squeeze your buttocks as hard as you can. In the final
position, the body should form a flat line between the knees and
shoulders. Perform 3 sets with 15 repetitions each.
2. LUNGES
The lunge is a total lower body workout that can powerfully tone your
legs and backside while also improving the flexibility of the hips.
Start with a straight upper body, legs at hips width apart, shoulders
back and chin up. Step forward with one leg, lowering the hips until
both knees are bent at a 90 degree angle.
Make sure the front knee is right above the ankle and the other knee
is slightly above the ground. Push back to the starting position and
repeat with the other leg. Perform 3 sets with 10-20 repetitions each.
3. SQUAT PULSE
This is basically an enhanced variant of the regular squat, so performing it will bring those great results even faster.
Stand with feet at hips width apart and arms fully extended out in
front. Lower your body down into a squat, keeping the back straight.
Hold the position at the bottom and pulse a few inches up and down by
raising and lowering your behind.
Do 15 pulses, then return in standing position. Perform 3 sets with 15 repetitions each.
4. DONKEY KICKS
This exercise works the lower back, core, legs and bottom.
To perform it, get on all fours on the ground, knees placed below
your hips and hands at shoulder width apart. Keeping a 90 degree angle
at the knee, lift one leg up until the thigh and knee come in line with
the rest of your body and the foot is high up and parallel to the
ground.
Hold the position for a few moments, keeping the glutes tight, then
slowly return to the starting position and repeat the movement with the
other leg. Perform 3 sets with 15 reps each.
5. FIRE HYDRANT
Excellent exercise for strengthening both the glutes and the hamstrings.
Start in the same position as for the donkey kick, on all fours with
knees at hips width apart and bent at a 90 degrees angle. Keeping the
back straight, raise one thigh and bring it close to the chest, then
open it outwards, keeping the thigh parallel to the floor. Hold for few
moments, then slowly return to the starting position and repeat with the
other leg.
Perform 3 sets with 15 reps each.