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Exercises to sculpt a perfect bottom
Such exercises include squats, lunges, kicks, hip thrusts, step-ups, bridges, among others and many of these exercises are simple and can be done at home or at the gym. PHOTO | INTERNET
What you need to know:
- Working out the glutes provide a base for your spine with a good cushion, which will help stabilise your hips and prevent pain in the neck, lower back, and muscles.
Many times women always feel left out when an article focuses on male fitness goals such as biceps, a toned chest and abdominal muscles. A well sculpted bottom happens to be an important aspect of a female’s good looks more than it is to a man’s. It may be equivalent to a toned chest or biceps in the male fitness world.
The question is: Can one change how one’s butt looks like naturally? The answer is, yes. Just as men go to the gym and workout to get a toned chest, so can women go to the gym to get a toned bottom.
According to Johnson Busingye, a gym instructor at Kampala Serena Hotel, all it takes is working on a muscle group called glutes found in the buttocks.
“The glutes or gluteal muscles are the largest and one of the strongest muscles in the human body. Actively working them out with different exercises can make them stronger and consequently bigger,” he says.
Working on your glutes helps improve your speed and springiness and will protect your lower back from injury. Most importantly, a well sculpted butt will improve any female’s confidence.
Glute exercises are meant to target the muscles in the buttocks which extend to the lower back and hips. Such exercises include squats, lunges, kicks, deadlifts, hip thrusts, step-ups, bridges, among others and many of these exercises are simple and can be done at home or at the gym.
Squats
A squat is a strength exercise where you bend your knees and lower your hips from a standing position and then straight up again. During the movement, the muscles in the buttocks and hips stretch, flex and contract. Longer term, these muscles grow in size just like any muscle that is worked on.
“To get better results, we add weights into the squats. The trainee does the squats while carries weights on a barbell. The weights demand more exertion from the body and builds strength into the muscles,” Busingye says.
He adds that one should keep their feet a little more than hips-width apart and make sure the back is as straight as possible during squats.
Step-up
To perform this exercise, you stand in front of an elevated surface like a bench that is as high as your knees. You then place one leg on the elevated surface and use that leg to lift your whole body up until your other foot joins lands in the elevated surface.
“The step-up is an easy exercise you can do at your veranda, in your sitting room or bedroom. It helps you focus on strength and balance in your hamstrings, butt, thighs and lower back. The exercise helps develop a nice butt," Busingye says.
The right way to do the exercise is to focus on one leg for several sets before changing to the other leg.
Lunges
To do this exercise, you stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and hold dumbbells in your hand. You take a long step forwards with one leg and lower the hind leg into a lunge while keeping your posture upright. Busingye advises that you must ensure that your knees do not travel over your toes and your hind knee shouldnot touch the ground. Use your front heel to push yourself to standing position and repeat.
He says the arm movement should be in such a way that the right arm moves towards the left knee and vise versa.
"This workout tones your legs and makes them stronger, but also sculpts your butt,” Busingye says.
“Make sure that while you are in the lunge, you hold at the bottom and count to five before pushing yourself up again,” he adds.
Bridge with leg extension
To do this exercise, lie on your back, bend your knees in such a way that the heels are directly under the knees. Feet must be comfortably flat on the floor. Tighten the muscles in your belly to raise your hips off the floor until the hip bones line up with your knees and shoulders. Stretch one leg so that it aligns with the rest of the body. Straighten one leg, keeping the straight line that connects your shoulders, your hips, your knees and your heel. Hold for three long breaths.
Drop back to starting position and change to the other leg. This exercise, Busigye says, works on the glute and improves stability.
“Because you are using your glute to hold the raised leg in position, the muscles receive a workout and grow if your do this regularly. This exercise also works on your thigh muscles and makes them toned in the long run,” he says.
Helpful
Having strong glutes further protects the body from injury and pain as its main job is to support and stabilize your hips, which control knee and ankle movement, as well as your entire trunk from neck to pelvis.
Toning your glutes contribute to your overall strength, and they help you sit, stand, run, walk, jump, and hike. “Working the glutes
realigns the body out of the flexed position and can help with imbalances that may have been caused from working at home.”
womenshealthmag.com
