These Moves Won't Give You a Butt Like J.Lo's, but They Will Tone Your Glutes

No matter what the state of your—err—ass-ets, we can all agree that better booty is a commonly coveted thing. Of course, “better” is a relative word, but for the sake of this article, we consider it to mean two things: strong and sculpted.

In the spirit of our #MyNextThirty challenge, we asked THE/THIRTY contributor and celebrity trainer Claire Fountain to create us a thirty-day bum-perfecting workout plan. Read on to learn how to transform your booty in one month.

Booty Building Background

“When most people see a 30-day butt workout, it’s some 30 days of squats nonsense. With nothing but body weight exercises. Squats are an incredible full body movement, and body weight can be beneficial for toning and activating muscles. However, when the goal is to really tone and shape the lower body, including the buns, we have to do a combination of exercises and, for the best results, lift weights,” Fountain says. Below is an excerpt from her e-book Built and Bendy to further explain:

Some Thoughts on Booty Building

So many of you are here because you want to build a better butt. Good! The glutes and lower body are some of the largest muscles in the body, and they are our power source. Strong glutes and hips can also protect the body, as they are a major source of stability. I encourage you to see what the muscles of the body actually look like, especially the glutes. Knowledge is power.

The gluteus maximus is the largest muscle, which makes up the bulk of your booty, followed by the underlying gluteus medius, and finally the smallest and deepest gluteus minimus muscle. To hit all of these muscles, we perform multiple exercises to efficiently shape the glute muscles. Squats alone will not build your butt! Even if your focus is strictly on shaping your glutes, you can’t help but also shape and strengthen your thighs (quads) and hamstrings (back of the leg).

In addition, I was also able to create a different shape with my own body, not only by lifting weights but also by putting on weight. You have to eat to feed muscle. Lifting weights shapes the body, but to grow in size you have to be willing to fuel your workouts and body properly. This does not mean eat anything but plan a diet that will support your goals.

Bottom line (no pun intended): Great glutes are made by a variety of lower body workouts, which hit all of the muscles, as well, attention to diet and adequate rest.

The Bum-Sculpting Workout Plan

“Below you will see three workouts. Yep. Three. Not 30. These are not to be done every day,” Fountain says. Here’s her suggested flow:

Day 1: Workout A

Day 2: Rest or do another activity like yoga or light cardio

Day 3: Workout B

Day 4: Rest

Day 5: Workout C.

Days 6 and 7: Up to you. Rest. Yoga. Pilates. Practice your push-ups. Take a hike. Go power shopping. “Doesn’t matter to me, but balance things out. Resting is just as important,” Fountain says.

“Below I list ‘bodyweight’ or ‘weighted,’ which means with weights. If you are doing this at home, you can certainly do all of these with bodyweight, and I suggest newbies who are not fully comfortable with form start with bodyweight for the first one to two weeks. Once the form is intact, add weight to the movements,” Fountain explains.

Another safety tip: “Side lunges and curtsy lunges can be tough for those with knee issues, and can be used with just bodyweight indefinitely to keep your body safe.”

Workout A

• Glute Bridges (bodyweight, 3 sets of 20 reps)
• Back Squats (bodyweight or weighted, 3 sets of 8 to 12 reps)
• Deadlifts (weighted, 3 sets of 8 to 12 reps)
• Bonus: Seated band abduction (3 sets of 20 reps)

Workout B

• Deadlifts (weighted, 3 sets of 8 to 12 reps)
• Walking Lunges (bodyweight or weighted, 3 sets of 20 steps)
• Hip Thrusts (weighted, 3 sets of 10 to 15 reps)
• Bonus: Jump squats (3 sets of 10 to 15 jumps)

Workout C

• Glute Bridges or Hip Thrusts (weighted, 3 sets of 10 to 15 reps)
• Back Squats (weighted, 3 sets of 8 to 12 reps)
• Side Lunges into curtsey lunges (bodyweight, 3 sets of 6 to 10 reps per leg)
• Bonus: Sumo Squats (bodyweight or weighted, 3 sets of 8 to 12 reps)

Also, keep in mind: “In addition to these exercises and the schedule I list above, if you’d like to see the best results, I encourage you to eat a healthy diet, of clean, whole foods. Also, make sure you’re eating enough. When we diet too heavily, we do not have the fuel needed to build muscle,” Fountain says.

Want to take your workout beyond 30 days? Claire Fountain’s book is available as a whole or in parts on her website. THE/THIRTY readers are welcome to use the code BYRDIE15 for 15% off through August 31, 2017.