by Chris DeLeon
This week I decided to ask several female students what body part they would like to develop the most. The answer was almost unanimous: the butt.
It would be a lie to say I was remotely surprised. Today a well-rounded backside is a status symbol and something quick to catch the eye. It’s a small wonder that most women and even many men desire to develop a nice posterior.
Your friendly neighborhood personal trainer is happy to help. I have two wonderful exercises that will do wonders for your ability to fill out a pair of jeans in all the right ways.
Before I highlight these exercises, I will point out a couple of things to keep in mind. The first is that genetics do play a role. Some people are just going to be more gifted at developing rounded glutes than others. That just means more work is required if you didn’t win the booty lottery.
The second thing is that squats are the undisputed champion of developing a big and muscular butt. Everybody knows that, so I am not going to mention them other than to acknowledge that anybody wanting to build their bum should definitely be doing squats.
That being said, squats alone are unlikely to be enough to reach your goals unless you are one of the previously mentioned lucky ones. That is where these two upcoming exercises fill an important role in filling the seat of your pants.
The first exercise is the straight-leg deadlift. When done correctly, this lift excels at pumping up both the glutes and the hamstrings.
To perform this lift, choose a close-stance and use either a barbell or dumbbells and start from a standing position. Keep the weight as close to your body as you can and maintain a straight spine. Push your hips back as far as you can while you lower the weight until you feel a deep stretch in your hamstrings. Lower the weight as far as you can without rounding your back, and then squeeze your glutes to lift the weight back up to the start position.
The next exercise is the Bulgarian split-squat. Once again these can be done with either a barbell or dumbbells. If balance is an issue, dumbbells are probably a wiser option.
With this move, positioning is key. The farther apart your front leg is from your back leg, the more emphasis will be placed on the glutes.
To perform this exercise, stand with one foot forward and the back foot in an elevated position on a bench or box. Keeping your chest high, drop your back knee towards the floor as far as you can go. Focus on squeezing your glute muscles to return to the start position. When you have completed the desired number of repetitions, change legs and repeat.
When it comes to building size, heavy weight is key. For both exercises, use enough weight that you can only perform eight reps. If you can lift it more than 12 times, the weight is too light and won’t do much for lean muscle gain.
As with all exercises, it’s a good idea to have a personal trainer examine your form to make sure you aren’t putting yourself at risk of injury.
