I jokingly refer to the glutes or butt as a peach. Back in the day I got called “apple a$$” and I actually grew up really self-conscious of my bigger butt. Not until later in life did I embrace the fruit of my genes and appreciate everything that Sir Mix-A-Lot raps about.
A strong butt is more than just aesthetics and fitting in your jeans. Think of your hips as the powerhouse of your whole body. Muscles of our glutes improve our stability, power, and performance. Strong glutes also reduce our risk of injury, especially low back pain.
The new KPOW Booty Bands are ideal for activating the glutes and the entire lower body. These hip sling Booty Bands can help strengthen your hip abductors and external rotators, while training better form and alignment for your squats and deadlifts. For example, during a squat if you place the band above your knees it will help keep your knees properly pushed out and reduce potential injury risks. During bridges, donkey kicks, clam shells, and fire hydrants the bands will help activate your glutes. We all want our glutes to turn on fire during our workouts. Sleepy glutes are common, but it’s time to wake them up!
Here’s a sample Booty Training Workout:
Warm-up for 4-5 minutes by completing a circuit of 30 second drills. Include jogs, jacks, squats, side lunges, rear lunges, inchworms, leg kicks, and hip openers. Spend some time warming up your body properly before jumping into any program.
Perform the following Giant Set starting with move one through move five with only 10 seconds to transition between moves. This will keep your heart rate up and will help intensify the training effect.
Lateral Squat Walk – This exercise counts 3 walks to each side. Do 10 repetitions (reps.) if you’re counting right and left (R/L) as 1 move. Or you can do a total of 20 reps. Hold one heavy dumbbell midline and sit your butt down and back into a squat. Drive your knees out over your toes putting resistance on the band. Drive out against the band to complete each lateral walk. Focus on “feeling” the glutes doing the work. If you don’t feel your glutes, squat lower.
Curtsy to Abduction Leg Raise – This move will count for 15 reps. on each side and is a compound movement. Use a heavy weight in the hand opposite the side you will be raising. First complete a full curtsy lunge. Keep your hip bones pointing forward the whole time. Cross your back leg behind the front and lower your knees into a lunge. Raise up and kick the back leg to the side. Focus on squeezing your butt and turning your big toe down into the floor. When your hip starts to side bend, or your toe opens to the ceiling, you are lifting too high. Keep your body low and tight.
Bridge with 3 Pulse Abduction at The Top – This exercise calls for 15 reps. and will also work core stabilization. When you lift your hips, push through the ground with your heels. Form a straight line from your shoulders to knees at the top of the move. Try not to overextend and roll your hips back. Hips are neutral and glutes are squeezing a penny. Hold the top range and do 3 abduction pulses pushing against the band, driving it open with your knees.
Tabletop Hip Extension with Knee at 90 – This move will take 15 reps. on each side. On all fours keep the working leg bent and lift it to a parallel height to the floor. This is your starting position. Flex your foot and squeeze your glutes to push a ceiling tile. The direction is up and it’s small! When you start to round your back, you have raised up too high. It’s all about activating your glute to lift your leg. The higher is not better here.
Tabletop Fire Hydrant Abduction – Do this exercise for 15 reps. on each side. On all fours lift one leg up to the side. Think about your shoulders and hips in a square. When you lift your hip bone out of the square, your motion has gone too far. Keep your back and core neutral and not arched. Long lines will activate the glutes. Focus on the outer thigh and butt and squeeze during each rep.
Rest for 2 minutes after the full Giant Set. Repeat 2 more times for 3 total sets!
This Booty Training Workout can be a good foundation to add to your training 2x a week. Stay consistent and really feel your glutes burn with each move. Building your glutes is based on progressive overload, so keep challenging yourself by lifting heavier weights or increasing your reps.
Now grab your bands and go work that peach! If you found this helpful, please share!
