Sculpting Your Butt

Most people don't have buns of steel, sad to say, and search far and wide for the best butt exercises that will firm up the old rear end. Do me a favor: stand up and take a look at your butt. Study it closely and tell me...are you happy with it? You probably said no. Like the rest of us, you probably think your butt is too small, too big, too saggy, or too flabby. If you're nodding your head, there is something you can do. The right cardio exercise and weight training activities (think squats and deadlifts) can make a difference.

Your Butt

Your butt is composed of 3 main muscles:

Gluteus maximus
Gluteus medius
Gluteus minimus

The gluteus maximus (see left) is the largest muscle in your butt, so that's where most of your focus will be. The other two (the gluteus medius and minimus) are important too, though--they lie under the gluteus maximus and hold your pelvis upright every time you take a step. Not only that, your butt muscles are in charge of all the movements of your hips, including:

• extension (moving the thigh backward)
• external rotation (turning the thigh or pelvis outward)
• transverse abduction (moving the thigh outward with hip bent)
• adduction (moving the thigh inward with hip straight).

Targeting your Gluteus Maximus
If you have a little butt-flab, you have to lose body fat to get rid of it. The quickest way to do that is with cardio exercise, weight training and a healthy diet. Cardio is a must if you're trying to drop fat, so choose activities that allow you to burn the most amount of calories in the least amount of time, like these:

• Interval training - try this treadmill workout!
• Doing something completely different than usual (if you're a runner, try swimming...a walker, try cycling)
• Increase your intensity - Going faster and harder burns more calories, but watch your heart rate
• Lift heavy weights regularly - forget the low weights and high reps. Challenge your muscles!
• Target your butt by trying these activities: hiking, stair-climbing, cycling, and step aerobics

Now that you know how to target your butt, get all your questions answered in the FAQ's About Your Butt, learn the Top Ten Butt Exercises and, of course, a Butt Workout to target your rear.