100 Days of Healthy Living

Health

100 Days of Healthy Living

Think you can't make a difference in 100 days? It's easy with our guide full of FITNESS, NUTRITION and MOTIVATION tips.

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The Weight Conscious Kitchen

Nutrition

The Weight Conscious Kitchen: What To Stock

This month, Diet.com shows you which healthy foods will help you reach your fitness goals.

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Anything Butt

Workout

Anything Butt

Derriere, bottom, fanny or caboose: Whatever you call it, Gold's Gym personal trainer Yaw Kwame Poku's killer routine will tighten it up.

It's easy to forget about the biggest muscle in your body when you're sitting on it all day. Out of sight, out of mind, right? Wrong. The hours-long pressure put on your buttocks each day — whether sitting at the office, in the car or in front of the TV — can cause the glutes to atrophy and sag.

But it's important to keep your rear toned for reasons beyond filling out that new pair of designer jeans.

"Your glutes are the biggest muscle in your body for a reason — they provide the stabilization and power required to perform any upright motion," says James Batey, an ACE-certified personal trainer. "They are essentially the powerhouse of your lower body."

Running, swimming, lifting, cycling and even yoga all rely on the glutes for support. And studies on rehabilitating lower back injuries suggest that tight buns equal a stronger back.

Here, Yaw Kwame Poku, a personal trainer at Gold's Gym in Dallas, walks us through five exercises to refine the behind.

For the best results, do this routine three times per week. Start with 10 minutes of cardio at a slow pace, followed by five minutes of moderate stretching. Paired with a healthy diet, this workout should yield results in about two weeks.

Hamstring Curl (machine)
Do 3 sets of 15 reps
Hamstring curl

Set the machine to a challenging but doable weight. "Simple trial and error will get you to the correct weight," Poku says. "Find a weight that you are comfortable with, and then go one step further."

Lay on your stomach on the bench part of the machine and hook your ankles behind the padded leg rests. Draw your ankles toward your buttocks until your legs form a 90-degree angle. Slowly return to the starting position.

Standing dead lifts
Do 3 sets of 15 reps
Standing dead lifts

"Three sets of these and you will feel a burn," Poku says.

Stand with feet shoulder-width apart with a dumbbell on the floor in between your legs. Choose a dumbbell weight that is challenging but doable. Squat down and, with both hands, grab the dumbbell from the floor. Move from the squat position to a standing position, and then return to the squat and touch the dumbbell to the floor. After 15 reps, hold the squat position for 30 seconds, keeping the dumbbell two inches off the floor.

Glute Isolator (machine)
Glute isolator
Do 3 sets of 15 reps for each leg

Standing at the glute isolator, rest your chest on the pad in front of you. With one foot on the floor, place the other foot against the pedal behind you. Push back on the pedal with your leg, then slowly return to the starting position. For the best results, find a weight that is just above your comfort level. After 15 reps, switch legs and repeat.

Jump Squats
Do 3 sets of 15 reps

Start in a squat position with feet shoulder-width apart. Jump into the air and come down with knees bent like you are going to sit in a chair. Jump again without any rest time.

Squat Thrust
Do 3 sets of 10 reps

Begin in a standing position with feet apart. Squat and place your palms on the floor in front of you. Kick your feet back like you are going to do a push-up. Quickly return to the squat position and then stand up. Repeat.