Forget J-Lo. Her rump is round, fine, but it’s not solid, and it certainly wouldn’t win any bodybuilding competitions. If you want J-Lo’s ass, you’re on wrong site. If you want rock hard glutes, keep reading. The best answer to the question of how to get an amazing backside can be summed up in one word—squats—but because no one wants to do the same exercise every day and because we all have slightly different weakest links, I’ve compiled a list of a few great butt-building exercises you can work into your existing exercise routine. Squats, of course, take their rightful place at the top of the list.
1. Squats: By “squats,” I mean ass-to-grass squats. Unless you have some physical ailment or other reason why you are physically incapable of doing a complete squat, let gravity take its course. Even if your hip and/or ankle flexibility, or lack thereof, hinder you from getting into a full squat, go down as far as you can and over time, the weight of the bar will push you down and stretch your lower limbs. Before you know it, you’ll be doing a complete squat, but if you purposely stop yourself at parallel, not only will you never gain your complete range of motion, but you’ll never experience the full butt-beautifying benefits of full squats either.
2. Romanian Deadlifts (RDLs): You’re probably familiar with RDLs, and you might classify them as a hamstring and lower back exercise as opposed to a glute exercise, but think again. Your butt’s right between your lower back and your hamstrings, so it’s quite hard not to engage your glutes when executing a proper RDL. To isolate your butt even more though, try shifting your weight slightly farther back on your heels; you’ll shift your center of gravity backwards, putting more weight (and emphasis) on your glutes.
3. Reverse Hyperextensions (Reverse Hypers): This exercise might not be as familiar to you. To do a reverse hyper, lie face down on a bench, holding onto the legs of the bench for support. Keeping your legs straight and feet together, raise your legs as high as you can behind you, hold it for a two-count and lower your legs back to the starting position. You can make these harder by holding a dumbbell between your ankles. To make sure you’re isolating your glutes, focus on clenching your butt each time you raise your legs and especially during the two-count.
4. Supplemental Stuff: Okay, so “supplemental stuff” isn’t an actual exercise. You caught me. But it’s still important. By “supplemental stuff” I mean a group of exercises that target various smaller muscles in and around your backside, but each individual exercise is incapable of building your entire butt like squats, RDLs, and reverse hypers can. These exercises include adduction/abduction machines, leg curls, bridges, leg lifts, side lunges and the like. If you have a noticeable weak link, target it with a supplemental exercise. Otherwise, save yourself time and energy and see results faster by sticking to the other three exercises on this list.
Whether you like it or not, the fact is people notice your butt, and with warmer weather (hopefully) around the corner, people will soon notice your butt even more. Show them something you’re actually proud to show off this Spring by adding one of the Big 3 on this list to each workout (or every other workout if you’re in the gym every day). Four to five sets of four to five reps is a good starting point, but you can vary volume and intensity to suit your goals. For a more toned, thin look, do 8-10 reps per set. To bulk up, increase the weight, but stick to the 2-4 rep range.
Jon North had his football career cut short by injuries, but within two years of turning to Olympic Weightlifting as an outlet he has risen to a # 4 National Ranking in the sport. He is an elite lifter and trainer for California Strength Academy and a candidate for both the National and World teams as well as the 2012 Olympics in London.