Who hates to spot a firm, perfect and well toned derrière that sways tantalizingly like a love-struck Cupid’s behind?

Thing is, every woman loves to have a sweat butt,  and would do anything just to have it.

But, the bitter truth is: Developing a perky, well-rounded butt shape naturally can be tricky, especially when you don’t know where to begin.

Or, what works best for your body.

The load of information on the internet today, and the scarcity of reliable sources make it even harder to get just that helpful information you need.

That’s quite frustrating.

But the bottom line is: Great bums are made, not born.

So, when it comes to enhancing your backside, or lifting your butt, the secret is to build your gluteus muscles.

Gluteus muscles (also known as glutes) are the largest and strongest group of muscles in your body – whether by length, volume or cross-sectional area – that work together to rotate, extend or abduct the hip.

And, butt workouts not only help you in building these muscles but also  develop a backside with a natural well-rounded shape.

Now, did you know that the difference between saggy, flat buns that seem to drop with every passing decade and well, million dollar derrieres are these top 5 bum-blasting exercises?

Workout #1: Body Weight Squats

When it comes to training your lower body (or, working out your butts), squats takes the crown. Squats not only engage the leg muscles but also the muscles in your hips and the lower back. Besides, squats are effective in improving your body balance and coordination.

Now, if you want to perform body weight squats, here is how you go:

1.       Stand up with your feet a little wider than your shoulder-width.

2.      Roll your shoulders back and down from your ears to maintain a straight back.

3.      Stretch your arms out parallel to the ground with palms facing down.

4.      Start the squat by sending your hips backwards and your knees will begin to bend.

5.      Make sure your chest and shoulders stay upright so that your back remains straight. Also ensure you are looking directly ahead.

6.      Make the squat deeper by sinking your hips below your knees and then bringing yourself back up to stand straight. Do this only if you are comfortable. You can start at knee length and progress to deeper squats when you get stronger.

7.      Explode back up to standing position and engage every muscle as you do the squat.

 There are many variations to this work out depending on whether you are incorporating dumbbells or not.

Workout 2: Lunges

Lunges are great for strengthening glutes, quadriceps and hamstrings. It is one of the great butt workouts that help in sculpting and building muscles in this area.

Here is how lunges are done:

1.       Stand straight while holding dumbbells by your side.

2.      Take a step forward with one leg then lower your upper body as you maintain your balance. Ensure that your knee is at 90-degrees and above your ankle. Allowing your knee to go beyond your toes may result to a strain to your knee.

3.      Using the heel of our foot, push yourself back to starting position.

4.      Repeat this step for a number of times. Repeat the same procedure for the other leg too.

In case you do not have dumbbells, you can choose to do explosive lunges. Here is how it goes:

1.       Stand straight with your hands on your hips.

2.      Do a lunge as described previously with your right leg.

3.      Jump up and switch legs midair. You will land with your left leg in a forward lunge. Keep alternating sides and take intervals of rest.

4.      As you jump, keep your fists in front of your chin. Also ensure your knees are at 90 degrees.

Workout 3: Hip Thrust

The hip thrust workout builds the gluteus medius( also known as the upper glutes). Hip thrusts are said to be more effective than squats for building this muscle.  To perform the workout, here is how you go:

1.       Lie on your back and put your knees at 90 degree angle. Put your feet firmly flat on the ground and with a distance of your hip-width.

2.      Make sure your lower back is flat on the floor by crunching your abs and tilting your pelvis back.

3.      Raise your hips as high as you can without bending your lower back. Use your feet to raise you up and hold this position for a few seconds. In this position, you’re a straight line should be formed from your shoulders to your knees.

4.      Slowly lower yourself to the ground as you squeeze your glutes.

5.      Repeat these movements severally.

Hip thrusts come in different variations:

·         Back elevated glute bridge

·         Hip thrust with chains

·         Hip thrust with bands

·         Barbell hip thrust

Butt workouts help in strengthening your glutes and improving your overall performance.

Just like squats, hip thrust target gluts. However, both are quite different in biomechanics and to achieve good results, you need to combine the two workouts.

Workout 4: Hip Lift Progression

This type of butt workout targets the glutes and helps to relieve lower back tensions. It is similar to the hip thrust, but with a twist. Here is how to do it’s done:

1.       Lie on your back and put your knees at 90 degrees.  Keep your feet firmly flat on the ground and at a distance of your hip-width.

2.      Make sure your lower back sits flat on the floor. To achieve this, you need to crunch your abs and tilt your pelvis backwards.

3.      Straighten one leg and keep it parallel to your body.

4.      Raise your hips as high as you can without bending your lower back. Use your feet to raise you up and hold this position for a few seconds. While in this position, ensure that you have formed a straight line from your shoulders to your knees.

5.      Then slowly lower yourself to the ground as you squeeze your glutes.

6.      Do this work out for 30 seconds for each leg with shorter breaks in between.

Workout 5: Kettlebell Swing

Kettlebells exercises serve as a great way to shock your muscles into growth. These exercises also power your muscles and help spur explosiveness from the ground up.  Specifically this is kind of butt workout targets your hamstrings and the gluts. A survey of scientific literature conducted by Bill Campbell found that Kettlebells workouts are both effective and safe in improving power and strength performance.

How can you perform this butt workout?

1.       Stand with your back straight.

1.       Hold the kettlebell at arm’s length with both hands.

2.      Lower your upper body and swing the kettlebell between your legs. Also, make sure you squeeze your gluteus muscles as you go.

3.      Thrust your hips forward as you bring the kettlebell to the front. Swing the weight to shoulder height and repeat the motion again.

Summing it Up…

Glutes are important in maintaining balance and posture in our bodies. But, there is no shortcut to achieving that tantalizing butt you have always desired. You have to exercise. These exercises helps fire your gluts, giving you rounder, firmer and good looking butts.