The best Pilates moves for your glutes

From Cosmopolitan

Strengthening and growing your glutes can often feel like a thankless task: no matter how many squats or lunges you do, your legs feel like they're getting more powerful and ache for days after a workout, but the same cannot be said for your bum.

But why?

The Pilates PT Hollie Grant says it's all down to our lack of glute activation, squatting with the wrong form, and sitting down at a desk all day - and while in most jobs, the latter can't be helped, there are definitely things you can be doing to strengthen your bum muscles in your workout.

"When you sit down, you stretch the muscle out and it switches off", Hollie told Cosmopolitan at our Self Made Summit. "It’s almost like an elastic band - if you kept pulling it it would eventually go baggy, which is what happens to your glutes - you stretch them when you sit down. This makes them really hard to recruit, which is why your quads take over."

Which is why activating your glutes before a workout with a warm-up is imperative - and Hollie suggests stretching out your hip flexors (the group of muscles that attach your thigh bone to your pelvis and lumbar spine) to engage your bum muscles.

"If your hip flexes are tight, it stops your glutes being able to shorten, so it limits your range of movement", the personal trainer and PT says. "To stretch your hip flexors, kneel on the floor and step one step forward, almost like a lunge on your knees, and then push your hips forward. It’s important to tuck your bum under, not arch your back, and really push your hips out."

During your workout, Hollie advises making sure your form is perfect before you concentrate on carrying heavy weight or trying to get loads of reps in, in order to target your glutes.

"When you’re doing squats and lunges, make sure you push into the heel of your foot. So when you’re doing a squat, you want to sit into the squat because when you put your body weight into your toes, you switch on your squads. When you put the weight into your heels, you put it into your glutes.

"Sit back on your heels - don’t feel like you’re trying to touch the floor, but imagine you’re trying to sit on the toilet. Also, make sure when you’re doing squats and lunges that your technique is perfect, don’t just go for super heavy weights. Your form is more important than loads of repetitions."

Is this the answer to a Kim Kardashian butt?

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