Gluteus to the Maximus - Base Training - Nick Nilsson

8/14/2019 Gluteus to the Maximus - Base Training - Nick Nilsson

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Gluteus to the Maximus-

Base Training

Build a Bigger Butt NOW!

By Nick Nilsson





rior to beginning any exercise program, you must consult withour physician. You must also consult your physician beforencreasing the intensity of your training. The information in thisook is intended for healthy individuals. Any application of the

ecommended material in this book is at the sole risk of theeader, and at the reader’s discretion. Responsibility of anynjuries or other adverse effects resulting from the application of ny of the information provided within this book is expresslyisclaimed.

rice World Publishingwww.PriceWorldPublishing.com

opyright © 2012 by Nick Nilsson

ll rights reserved. Neither this book, nor any parts within it maye sold or reproduced in any form without permission.

ISBN: 9781619840850



Contents

rom the Author mportant!!

Your Four-Step Plan For Building a Bigger Butt

Nutrition

StretchingExercises

Programs and Workouts

Other Glute-Building Topics

Nutrition – Eating to Build a Bigger Butt

The Basics of Nutrition

Eating Tips and Recommendations

Pre, Peri and Post-Workout Nutrition

AQ’s and Troubleshooting

Weight Training for Beginners

Repetition Speed

Repetition Style

Repetition Ranges



When to End the Set

When to increase the Weight

About Muscle Soreness

What To Do When Your Thighs Take Over From Your Glutes

Strategy #1 – Pre-Exhaust Training

Strategy #2 – Body Positioning and MentalTricks

Strategy #3 - Changing How You STAND

How to Adapt Your Training Programs

Why Glutes Stay Small and What You Can Do About It

Women and Weights

How to KEEP Your Butt When You’re Losing Fat

The Anatomy of the Glute Muscles

Are You Doing Low Intensity Endurance-BasedCardio Training For Fat Loss?

elf Motivation

How to Work Your Glutes When You’ve Got BadKnees

Warming Up

Measuring Your Glute-Building Progress



How to Work Specific Aspects of Your Glutes

tretching for a Bigger Butt

upplements to Help Build a Bigger Butt

Multivitamins

Protein

“Greens” Supplements

Fish Oil/Essential Fatty Acids

Creatine MonohydrateGlutamine

Other Vitamins and Minerals

Pre and Post Workout Supplements

Glute Exercise Indexrograms and Workouts

Glute Workout Index

About the Programs

How to Use These ProgramsHow to Adapt Your Training Programs

0 Minute Workouts for Home – Beginner Level


0 Minute Workouts for the Gym – Beginner Level




0 Minute Workouts for Home – Intermediate Level


0 Minute Workouts for the Gym – Intermediate Level


0 Minute Workouts for Home – Advanced Level

0 Minute Workouts for Home – Advanced Level

0 Minute Workouts for the Gym – Advanced Level0 Minute Workouts for Home – Advanced Level



From the Author

irst off, congratulations! You’ve taken your first stepowards building larger, firmer, rounder glutes byetting this book. You’re going to be THRILLED withe results you get from it.

o I’ll give it to you straight, right from the start...uilding a bigger butt comes down to buildingmuscle. Muscle is what will give your butt the shapeou want. Everybody has got muscle and everybodyan build muscle. It’s

ust a matter of finding out what works for YOU.n this book, I’m going to show exactly how to growour rear end with a targeted plan. I will leave no stonenturned and, by the time you’re done, you will knowverything it takes to build the butt you’reooking for!

Nick Nilsson



IMPORTANT!!

want to make one thing perfectly clear before I tellou about this plan: what you put into it is exactly

what you’ll get out of it. If you work at this plan withedication and enthusiasm, I guarantee you will beery happy with the results.

f you are a beginning trainer and not used to physicalxertion, START LIGHT and work your way up in

weight gradually. Your body needs time to adapt tohe new stresses you are putting on it.

f you jump straight in and work too hard at therograms, you are going to experience a great dealf muscle soreness (you don’t want to have to walkround with a pillow strapped to your backside!). After hat initiation period is up, however, that’s the time to

eally dig in and work at it!!

Any exercise program contains an element of risk.The exercises in the book may not be familiar to yound, even though every attempt has been made to

nsure safe instruction, how and if you decide toxecute the exercises is ultimately your responsibility.





“Your Four-Step Plan For Building a Bigger Butt

Your targeted plan is a four-pronged attack:xercises, stretching, nutrition and programs.

Taken separately, these four facets are good. Put

ogether in a strategic program, these four items willuild a butt on even the most stubborn of backsides.

How to Use This Book:

recommend reading through each section inrder...get yourself familiar with the exercises so younow what they are and how they’re done and whatevel you’re comfortable with.

Next, read through the stretching section to see whyou HAVE to stretch the glutes if you want the bestesults possible and have a look at the varioustretches I’ve listed for you.

After that, check out the nutrition section for ideas on

ow to support your glute growth through proper ating, and then look at the programs and workouts,



where you’ll be putting it all together.

n the introduction to each section, I will give you amore detailed rundown of how to use that section tomaximize your glutebuilding results.



Exercises

n this book you will get6 of the most effective,lute-targeted exercisesou’ll ever use. Thesexercises focus onifferent aspects of thelute building process.ome exercises focusn maximum resistanceor building the glute muscles, some focus ontretching the glutes, and some focus on shaping thelutes.

ve got exercises that focus on the lower glutes, thepper glutes, the side glutes (gluteus medius and

minimus muscles), hamstrings where they tie into the

lutes and even several core/abdominal exercisesou can use that will tighten up your abs to make your





Stretching

This is one of the mostmportant keys to building aigger butt that is missingrom most glute trainingrograms. You can train your lutes til you’re blue in theace but if you don’tTRETCH properly to give

he glute muscles room torow (more on this in thetretching section), you will NOT get the results you’reapable of.

n this section, I will go into great detail as to WHY youeed to stretch, how it helps you to build a bigger buttnd how to stretch for maximum glutebuilding effect.

Targeted stretching is going to be incorporated into



very single workout that you do.



Nutrition

ating to feed your lute growth is criticalo your success. If youon’t provide your ody with the buildinglocks for growth,hen all your hard work on your exercises andtretching may be wasted! Your butt will WANT torow but it won’t be ABLE to unless you feed it well!

You may be thinking that eating is what got you in

ouble in the first place but, in truth, eating will be onef the keys to your success. I’ll tell you what foods toat and when you need to eat them.



Programs andWorkouts

veryone is different. Someeople are completeeginners while others aredvanced weight trainers.

ome people just want toocus totally on their backside

while others want toncorporate specialized gluteraining as part of a more

omprehensive program.This book addresses theeeds of every type of trainer nd every level of ommitment. In the Programsection you will find many



omplete butt-buildingrograms for the beginner to advanced trainer, from

minimal time requirements to more intensiverograms.

Choose the program that is most appropriate for your aining ability and time availability. And feel free to tryvery single program in this book! Variety is one of he most effective ways to make continuous progressnd you’ll never know what works best for you until youest it!



Other Glute-Building Topics

There is more to an effective glute-building plan thanust exercises, programs and nutrition. There arelenty of tricks, tweaks and techniques that will

magnify your results and help you get more out of verything you’re doing in this book.

n this section you will find a number of topics that willelp you make the most of this book to build the bestlutes you possibly can!

These topics include

basic weight training information for the novicetrainer

why glutes stay small

what to do when your thighs take over theexercises

how to keep your butt when you’re losing fat

working specific aspects and areas of theglutes

how to adapt the sample programs and



workouts for yourself

glute anatomy

building the glutes when you’ve got bad knees

how to measure progress

FAQ and troubleshooting



Nutrition - Eating toBuild a Bigger Butt

Nutrition plays an extremely important role in buildingp your butt. What you eat not only fuels your workoutsut provides your body with the raw materials

ecessary for increasing muscle mass. When itomes right down to it, you can work your butt as hards you want but if you don’t support that training

with proper nutrition, you won’t achieve theesults you’re capable of.

Rather than outline a detailed, meal-by-meal nutritionlan here, I am going to make suggestions andecommendations regarding your nutrition.

The reason for this

s simple: I don’tnow anythingbout you. I don’tnow what you like,

what you don’t like,

what you’re allergico, what foods you



ave access to, or anything like that. Any nutrition plangave you would be so far from being personalized aso be almost useless in the real world.

ve always found that the best way to get resultswith nutrition is to teach people how to do ithemselves, adapting it to their own particular needs,references and lifestyle. You’ll learn some of theasics about nutrition and how to apply thisnformation to your own eating habits.

Along with your daily nutrition, post-workout nutrition isn extremely important part of building up your muscle

mass. What you eat after your workout is goingo have the greatest effect on your results.

am also going to talk about supplements that may beseful to you in your quest to build a larger butt.upplements are not a necessity, but they can

efinitely help.



The Basics of Nutrition

Most people already have a general idea of whatonstitutes good nutrition. Here is a quick review of ome of the basics.

There are three major nutrients (known asmacronutrients) that are required by the body: protein,arbohydrates and fats.

rotein

It is the body’s main structural nutrient.

Your musclesand organsare made up,in large part,of protein.

Protein isalsoimportant inmany of the body’s systems, primarily theimmune system.

Protein can also be used by the body for energy



but this process is not very efficient.

Protein yields 4 kcal (this stands for kilocalories. This term is used interchangeablywith the regular term “calorie” per gram.

Protein Sources

Fish Beef Milk EggsBeans Cottage cheeseCheese ChickenSoy

Carbohydrates

These are commonly known as “carbs.” Thecarbohydrate is the your body’s preferredenergy nutrient.

Carbs are divided into Simple and Complexgroups. Simple carbs are basically sugar whilecomplex carbs, also known as starches are longstrings of simple carbs. Because the carbs are





Sugar RiceHoney Cereal grainsCorn syrup Potatoes

Fruits Legumes Pasta Vegetables

ats

Fat is the primary storage molecule of your body. This is not news to most people!

Fat can also be used for energy, though it isused secondary to carbohydrates in mostcases.

Though fats are often thought to be bad for you,not all fats are bad for you. In fact, there are

some fats that are very good for you, e.g. fishoil.



Saturated fats normally fall into the "bad"category, while unsaturated fats usually areplaced in the "good" category.Fats can be found in a wide variety of foods,including butter, meat, eggs, dairy, oil,vegetables, grains, etc.

One gram of fat yields 9 kilocalories.

Saturated Fats Unsaturated Fats

Dairy Flax Oil Animal Fats Soybean OilPalm Oil Fish OilCoconut Oil Sunflower Oil

Vitamins, Minerals, Water and Fiber

Vitamins and minerals are known as micronutrients.They are found in much smaller quantities in the bodyut are extremely important. Micronutrients aressential for practically every metabolic process in



he body.

They can also be structural (e.g. calcium),making up parts of your body’s tissues includingbones, organs, muscles and more.

Vitamins are categorized as fat soluble (can bedissolved in fat) or water soluble (can bedissolved in water).

The four fat soluble vitamins are A, D, E, and K.

The rest are water soluble.

Vitamins Minerals

A (including the carotenes) BoronC CalciumD ChromiumE Copper K IodineB1,2,3,5,6,12 IronBiotin ManganeseFolate Magnesium Sodium

Potassium



Zinc

Water:

Water is not often thought of as a nutrient but it isssential to all bodily functions and processes.Without water you would die. It is important to drinklenty of water throughout the day. The amount of

water you need will depend on your body size, bodyfat

ercentage, activity level, and climate among other actors.

iber:

iber is an essential part of your diet. It is anndigestible component of many natural-statearbohydrate foods such as grains. Fiber helps to

move food through your digestive system as well aseeping you regular and helping you feel full after

ating.



Eating Tips andRecommendations

. Keep it simple:

The most important thing you need to know aboututrition is that you don’t need to know everythingbout nutrition in order to eat well.

You now know what protein, carbohydrates andfats are, what function they perform in your bodyand what foods are good sources of them.

You can use this knowledge to make intelligentfood choices every time you sit down for a meal(not to mention the times you don’t have time tosit down for a meal!).

mproving your nutrition is not about going on a diet,osing weight quickly then putting it back on again

when you go back to your "normal" eating patterns. Its about slowly adapting your lifestyle to effect aermanent change in your eating habits.



. How to measure your intake:

The easiest way to measure food is to divide it intoortions. A portion is approximately the size of thealm of your hand.

Many people count calories all day long withoutunderstanding that the food they eat is notstandardized according to charts in a book.

All calorie measures in a book are simplyaverages.

Each meal you eat in a day should consist of one portion of a protein food and twoportions of a carbohydrate food.

Fat will find it’s way into a meal anyway and isnot counted. Feel free to add in healthy fatssuch as flax oil and olive oil occasionally.

Vegetables are free foods - you can eat asmuch as you want.

That’s it.

. Focus your eating on natural, unprocessed

oods as much as possible.



While I know it’s not always possible to get fresh fruitnd veggies and other unprocessed foodsverywhere you go, your body will always respondest when you feed it foods that are not alteredhrough processing. Your body has evolved over housands and thousands of years to process foodsn their natural state - it’s only relatively recently thatrocessed foods have appeared on the scene.

Your body has the digestive mechanisms for fficiently processing foods in their natural state.

When you add in the fats, salt, sugar, additives, etc.,our body starts having a hard time digesting andoping. Think of it like trying to put regular gas into aehicle that runs on diesel. It may run, but it’s notoing to be very efficient with the fuel and it couldause problems down the road (no pun intended!)our glutes more efficiently.

. Make healthy choices:

Most people already knowow to eat healthy but either on’t have time to prepareealthy foods or aren’t willingo decrease consumption of



ot-so-healthy food items.

Eating healthy doesn’tmean you have to giveup the foods you loveforever.

Moderation is the key tosatisfaction with your eating habits. Have thatchocolate ice cream - just don’t have it every

day. Use it as an occasional reward for eatingproperly or exercising consistently.

The moment you vow to yourself that you cannever eat any "naughty" foods again is themoment you doom yourself to failure.

The key is to make healthy choices the majorityof the time.

. Reduce junk food and empty calories in your iet while increasing unprocessed, natural-stateoods:

This simple thing is the easiest thing in the world to dontil you actually try and do it.

Processed foods are easy to prepare and taste



good.

They are also, unfortunately, generally high in fatand sugar and contain few, if any, vitamins,minerals or fiber.

Natural foods may take a little longer to preparebut, you may be surprised to find out, taste justas good, if not better, than heavily processedfoods.

Unprocessed foods retain far more of their nutritional value than processed foods.

. Do not change your diet all at once:

The more gradually you change your diet, the morekely you are to maintain your healthy eating patterns

hroughout your life.

Switching from fried cheese sticks to carrotsticks overnight is too much of a shock for mostpeople to take mentally.Slowly phase out certain foods that you knowyou shouldn’t be eating and include morehealthy selections to replace them.

f you can start with changing only one meal a day, you



re on your way to success. All it takes is for you touild on every small success and you can completelyhange your eating patterns painlessly and easily.

. Get plenty of good quality, lean proteinources in your diet

When you’re training, your bodyhas a much greater need for protein. During weight trainingand endurance trainingespecially, your body isconstantly breaking downmuscle tissue. Protein isrequired to rebuild it. Byregularly feeding your bodygood protein sources, you’ll beable to hold onto and buildmuscle mass easier.

Good sources of lean protein include meats (look for eaner cuts like sirloin), poultry, eggs (while not lean,ggs will not shoot up your cholesterol as many

worry), fish, low-fat dairy, soybeans, and variousegumes (beans).

As far as how much protein your body needs, this will



ary according to how much you weigh and your ctivity level. A level of around 1 gram per pound of ean bodyweight is a good guideline (we don’t countotal bodyweight because fat is not metabolicallyctive and doesn’t require protein to sustain it).

. Start with protein:

f you are able to, I would recommend including aigh-protein food, such as eggs or a small proteinrink, as one of the first things you do to start your ay.

Your metabolism is at it’s slowest at the timeimmediately after waking and getting somefood into your body as quickly as possibleshould be a priority.

You will find it will help jump-start your metabolism for the rest of the day.

The added bonus of eating protein right away isthat you’ll find you’ll be more alert in themorning.

When protein digests, one of the effects it has is

to help boost the levels of excitatory chemicalsin your brain, which in turn makes you more



alert.

Carbohydrates, on the other hand, tend to boostthe levels of relaxing chemicals in the brain,which can slow you down.

. Taper your caloric intake:

f you can, taper your caloric intake throughout the

ay. Breakfast should be your largest meal of the day,with all other meals gradually decreasing in size fromhere.

Contrary to popular practice, dinner shouldactually be one of your smallest meals.

The reason for this is simple: your body doesn’tneed as many calories later in the day.

You’ve been eating during the day and haveaccumulated enough calories to fuel your body.

Calories eaten later in the day or at night willhave a much greater chance of being stored asfat.

0. Don’t be afraid of “good” fats



ats can be extremely beneficial, even when you’reying to lose weight! Fats are important in aemendous variety of bodily processes includingormone production, immunity, joint and organrotection, and even burning bodyfat. Without thegood" fats, your body will not function as well as itould.

Good" fats include sources such as fish, nuts, flax oil,orage oil, and olive oil (there are many other goodources as well). Increasing your intake of these goodats can help keep you feeling good and burning your wn bodyfat more efficiently.

Your total fat intake should be around 30% of your

aily calories. A good way to go about getting this iso try and keep your focus primarily on low-fat foods

while purposefully adding the "good" fats into your iet (like eating a few almonds every day or takingsh oil or flax oil capsules).



Pre, Peri and Post-Workout Nutrition

re-Workout Nutrition

How you perform in your training sessions is going toe determined a fair bit by what you eat in the timeeading up to it. In general, if you’re plenty of proteinnd good quality calories, you’ll perform just fine.

How about RIGHT BEFORE your glute trainingessions, though? What should you eat (or should you

at at all?) before you train in order to perform at your est during the workout and get the most from your lute training?

A study done on this question has shown that taking in

combination of simple carbs and protein in a ratiof approximately 5 to 1 (carbs to essential aminocids) immediately before exercise can shift the bodyrom catabolism (muscle breakdown) during a

workout to anabolism (muscle-building).

The study was done using a fairly small dose - 35



rams of sucrose and 6 grams of essential aminocids (aminos that your body must take in because itan’t manufacture them itself - 6 g works out to about0 grams of a "complete" protein source like whey)nd the results actually showed a greater positiveffect on muscle anabolism than the same formulaaken AFTER training.

o this means pre-workout nutrition is definitelymportant stuff and can help you get BETTEResults in your glute training!

What I would recommendwould be a half scoop of anilla whey protein (which

s generally about 20rams of protein, so a half coop would be 10 grams)

mixed with about 35 gramsf a sugary drink mix like

Tang. There areupplements specificallyesigned for pre-workoutut, to be honest, a lot of hem are just filled with

xtra stuff you don’t needhat hasn’t been proven to do anything for muscle



rowth (e.g. Nitric Oxide).

ronically enough, taking in TOO MUCH protein in pre-nd post workout shakes can set you back byeducing insulin secretion.

o don’t overload on protein either before or after -’s the insulin release along with the presence of aecent amount of protein that will do the trick for you.

Branched-Chain Amino Acids can be an excellenthoice for your pre-and post workoutupplementation, especially Leucine. Research haslso shown that just taking BCAA’s gives you

omparable muscle-building effects to completeroteins.

And if you’re not wanting to use supplements, evenomething as simple as a glass of chocolate milk will

et the job done (as long as you’re not lactosentolerant!).

Now here’s the "commonsense" part of thenformation...if you find you do better when you don’take in anything before training, no problem. It’s notoing to totally make or break your results if you don’t



ake in a pre-workout supplement!

Yes, it CAN give you a muscle-building boost, but if ou can’t do it, don’t worry about it!

eri-Workout Nutrition

eri-workout nutrition, in this case, means what youake in DURING your workout. Sipping a similar drinko what you took in pre-workout can continue to helpuel the muscles while training.

ersonally, I prefer to just drink water while training. If ou’re taking in a pre-workout supplement, you’llretty much have your bases well covered so I don’t

eel the need to recommend taking in somethinguring training.

mmediate Post-Workout Nutrition

When you exercise, your body burns fats andarbohydrates for energy and breaks down your

muscle tissue. Immediately after a workout, the bodyas an enhanced ability to utilize nutrients such aslucose and protein in order to rebuild and recover

rom your exercise.



What this essentially means is that your body isurbocharged and ready to grow! This period of ower lasts for approximately four hours after a

workout, hence the name "Four-Hour Window of Opportunity."

Taking in nutrients immediately after exercise helpsou to recover faster and feel better after a workout.

This can help you to not only gain muscle faster, butlso keep your metabolism fueled so that you lose fatt a faster rate too!

But what happens if you don’t eat immediatelyollowing a workout? Let me put it this way: it’sefinitely a situation you want to avoid.

irst, your body starts breaking down muscle tissue inndamaged areas of your body in order to get raw

materials to help repair the areas you just worked.Over time, this will result in a loss of muscle from your whole body and definitely WON’T help you build your lutes in any way, shape or form.

tress hormones in the body (primarily a hormonealled cortisol) speed this process along. The stressormones are produced because working out is atress on the body - it’s a totally natural but results-



topping reaction.

How do you control the effects of cortisol? You eat asoon as you can.

But what do you eat after a workout to maximize your esults? Both protein and carbohydrates aremportant for fast recovery.

Protein

mmediately following a workout (within a few minutesf completion) take in some protein. The easiest andest way to do this is in the form of a protein powder whey is an excellent choice and is digested quickly),hough a food source such as milk will do if you don’tave any supplement options.

Taking protein gives your body something to rebuildwith instead of tearing down its own muscle tissue for aw materials. Try to get at least 20 to 40 grams of

rotein in as soon as you can after you’re done (themount depends on your bodyweight - the lower end if ou’re lighter, the higher end if you’re heavier).

Carbohydrates

Take in about 40 to 80 grams of simple





ost-Workout Meal

About one hour after our workout, take in

high quality sourcef protein (like fish,ean meat, chicken,tc.) and a goodupply of

arbohydrates suchs rice, other grains,otatoes, cereals, etc. At this time, the body hasettled down from the stress of the workout and isooking to rebuild.

f you’re looking to get as much from your gluteworkouts as you possibly can, you can see that post-workout nutrition is critical. By supplying an amplemount of raw materials right after you’re done, you

will be preventing the body from breaking itself downn order to recover. This means more butt-buildingesults from the effort you put into your workouts!



FAQ’s and Troubleshooting

Got any questions or problems? This is the section toook at. I’ve got a list of frequently asked questions as

well as advice on how to fix things when you run intoroblems or plateaus.

Q. I’m a total beginner...how do I use this bookand get started?

A.

Since you’re completely new to training, your firststep is to learn HOW to perform resistancetraining and what it’s all about. Go to the WeightTraining For Beginners section and read throughthat to learn the terms and basics of training.

Once you’ve got a good idea of the basics of training, go to the Beginner Exercises sectionand have a look through all the exercises inthere. This will give you an idea of whatexercises you’re going to be doing in theprograms.



When you’ve finished checking out theexercises, go to the Stretching section to see thestretches you’ll be doing along with your glutetraining. Stretching the glutes between sets iswhat’s going to help give your muscles room togrow.

Next, I would suggest going to the section onNutrition Basics to get an idea of how whatyou’re eating will play a role in your results. TheNutrition Tips section will also give you someexcellent information that you can put to workright away to help with your glute building.

Finally, go to the Programs area and look for thesection for Beginners. These are the programsyou’ll be picking from to start your glute-building. Iwould suggest starting with either the 10 minuteat-home or 10 minute at-gym program so thatyou ease yourself into glute training gently.

Then all you need to do is start training andseeing the results!

Q. How do I work on specific areas of my butt?



A.

The exercises in the book cover EVERY aspectof the glutes. And some exercises naturallytarget different areas and aspects of the glutes.I’ve got a full section devoted to this topic: How

to Work Specific AspectsOf Your Glutes.

This section will tell you exactly which exerciseswork on which areas of the butt.

Q. Can I build a big butt training at home withno equipment?

A.

You can absolutely build a bigger butt than

you’ve got right now training at home with noequipment! You can ALWAYS improve on whatyou’ve got with good training.

That being said, adding some simple equipment

like Dumbbells to your home exercise routine isgoing to help open a LOT more possibilities toyour training.

Muscles grow when they worked with resistance

and having the ability to add resistance is goingto be very helpful for building larger glutes. Even



something as simple as filling up a couple of milk jugs with water or sand and using those for resistance will be good.

You can also fill a backpack with heavy objectslike books or rocks and wear that for extraresistance. You don’t necessarily need "real"weights to add resistance and get better results.

Q.How do I work these glute programs in withmy other training? I want to work the rest of my body as well.

A.

There are a number of ways to incorporate these

programs in with your other training. That beingsaid, if your focus is building the glutes, makesure these glute training programs take priorityover your other training. You’ll get MUCH better results that way!

First, they can very easily be substituted in for whatever leg training your regular program hasyou doing. The best glute-building exercisesgenerally work your legs quite well, too, and youcan just do one of these programs instead of your regular leg workout.



Second, you can use a Daily Specializationprogram (where you work the glutes with one setof of one exercise, twice a day every day). Thisprogram works quite well in addition to whatever other training you’re doing.

Finally, the best way to go is to focus on trainingthe glutes with one of these programs thenarranging the rest of your workouts around

THAT. For example, if you’re doing a 20 minuteglute training program 3 times a week, do theglute training first, then work your upper body

AFTER the glute training in those workouts.

Another option is to do your glute/leg training byitself on their own training day then do all your upper body training on the other training days,e.g. Monday, Wednesday, Friday train glutesand on Tuesday and Thursday work your upper

body.

Q. Once I’ve hit my size goal for my butt, do Ihave to keep training as much?

The nice thing about muscle is that it’s mucheasier to maintain it at a certain size than it is to



A. build it more. Once you’ve hit your goal for your glutes, then you can scale back one or twice aweek training with just a few sets and exercisesto keep that size.

It IS a case of it "use it or lose it" though...youcan’t just completely stop training the glutes andexpect them to stay larger. It’ll be important tokeep up with some level of maintenance trainingin order to keep what you’ve earned.

Q. Are there any specific foods or supplementsI can eat or take that will help build my butt?

A. There aren’t any specific foods that go right toyour butt...anybody that claims there are is justmaking it up to try and sell you something.

The ONLY thing that would work are protein-rich

foods (like meat, chicken, eggs, fish, etc.) thatwill support the muscle growth that you’re gettingfrom the training you’re doing. There are nofoods or supplements that will directly give you abigger butt, especially without effort.

Can I use more than one program at a time



. to get even faster results?

A.In very specific circumstances, yes. There areprograms you can do at the same to get evenfaster results.

Any of the 10 or 20 minute programs will workwell when combined with the Daily Specializationprograms. The daily program is done for just oneset twice a day every day, so it doesn’t make biginroads into your ability to recover and grow fromthe regular programs you’re doing.

That being said, if you’re a beginner, DO NOTdo this. It’s going to be too much workload all atonce. You’re going to get results from just theregular programs and adding in too much couldset you back and even STOP your results.

The only time I recommend combining programsis if you’re an intermediate to advanced trainer and you know what you’re doing in terms of nutrition. You have to give your body goodnutritional support to recover from this doubled-up training.



Q. Do my glutes need to be sore in order to getresults?

A.

Muscle soreness is NOT necessary in order to

build a bigger butt. Soreness is often anindicator but it’s not something you absolutelyHAVE to feel in order to build muscle.

And honestly, training with the specific goal to

get sore is not productive. All it means is that it’sgoing to take you longer to recover and it’llprevent you from training your glutes asfrequently, and the more often you can train them(and recover from that training), the better theresults you’ll get.

So basically, don’t worry if you don’t get soreevery time you work your butt. Soreness doesn’tequal progress!

Q. Will running or other long-duration cardiotraining hurt my glute-building results?

A.

To be honest, yes. When you’re trying to build

muscle, long-duration training is the directopposite stimulus and will work against your



efforts.

Long-distance running especially iscounterproductive as the impact of every stepcauses muscle damage. This muscle damagewill break down the glute and contribute to thembeing small.

To maintain your cardio conditioning, I wouldHIGHLY recommend switching over to High-Intensity Interval Training. It can actually HELPyour glute-building efforts and won’t actively workagainst you like the long distance training will.

Q.Should I do my interval training before or after the resistance training for my glutes?

A.I would recommend doing it after. Do theresistance training first, while you’ve got the mostenergy to put into it.

If you’re doing cardio for fat loss, it’ll be moreeffective when done after the weight traininganyway, because your body will already be in fat-burning mode and will be more efficient at usingfat for energy. It’s a win-win.





Day 5 - #4

Next week

Day 1 - #5Day 3 - #4Day 5 - #1

So basically, you’re doing that workout morefrequently but still getting good variety in thetraining.



Weight Training For Beginners

What Are Sets and Reps?

ps

e basic unit of the workout is the repetition or repshort.

This is simply one complete cycle of theexercise.

It consists of up, change of direction, and down(though not necessarily in that order - someexercises start with a down phase then an upphase, e.g. squats).

ts

set is a series of repetitions done one after other.

If you do 8 reps and stop, you just did 1 set of 8reps.



Sets and reps are often listed together as 1 x 8,using the previous example.

If a workout program calls for 3 x 12, you woulddo 3 sets of 12 reps.

orkout

workout consists of a group of sets and exercises.

An example would be 3 x 12 bench press then 3x 8 leg press then 3 x 12 of bicep curls.

at is the basic structure of a workout. We will nowin-depth on the repetition, the basic building blockthe workout.

epetition Speed

petition speed is a factor that is often overlooked. Itvery important to be aware of repetition speed ande it to your advantage.

a beginning trainer, you should strive to do your ps in the medium tempo between fast and slow.

This means the phases of the reps should takebetween 2 to 4 seconds (the negative or downphase is generally longer).

You are basically moving the weight through therange of motion fairly quickly but not so quicklyas to be using momentum to move the weight.

ow to tell if your speed is right:



ote: Lifting too fast may be a result of using too littleight while lifting too slow may be a result of using

o much weight. Adjust the weight you are usingcordingly.

epetition Style

eathing:

eathing during a set should be as natural asssible.

Generally speaking, you should exhale on thepositive phase and inhale on the negative

phase, e.g. on the squat, breathe out when youpush up and breathe in as you lower.

In many exercises, it is not advisable to hold



your breath (trying to exhale without allowing anyair to be expelled). This is called the Valsalvamaneuver.

While it does increase the stability of your bodyby increasing pressure in your abdominal area,it causes large increases in blood pressure andcan make you pass out. It is often done when

very heavy weights or extreme effort is involved.Do not hold your breath during a set, especiallyas a beginning trainer. There are moreadvanced exercises where it can be useful butit’s best to stay away from it when starting out.

epetition Ranges

ere are specific rep ranges that will target differentults. These ranges should only be used as aneral guideline. Your personal goals will indicatehich rep ranges you should use.

ese definitions are not written in stone. You canrease your muscle mass by doing reps in the onethree range (it will take longer) and you will

obably get somewhat stronger when doing reps in 13+ range (not as strong as if you were doing

wer reps). This is simply a guide to show whatining effects are generally associated with what rep

nges.

e programs in this book will tell you what repnges to train with.





Rep numbers are a just guideline, not a target.Do not view them as written in stone.

When To Increase The Weight

ere will come a time when the weight you usuallye becomes too light. This is what we’re looking for it means you’re getting stronger and building those

utes!

at’s where progressive resistance comes in.

This simply means that as you get stronger, youmust increase the resistance on the muscle(overload) in order to keep getting stronger.

This is the foundation of weight training, which isoften called progressive resistance training.

re is an example.

Say you can squat 50 pounds for 8 reps. As yout stronger, you are able to squat that 50 pounds for reps without resorting to sloppy form.

Increase the weight by five pounds. You may onlyable to get 6 reps.Work back up to 12 reps then increase the weightain.

a nutshell, if you can do it this time, try a little morext time, be it weight or reps.

You don’t get anywhere by using the sameweights on the same exercises for the samereps day in and day out.

There will be times, however, when you areunable to increase weight or reps for a period of time.

This is called a plateau and it happens toeverybody.

The simple solution to a plateau is to changewhat you are doing. The body adapts to



whatever you give it. To force it to adapt, youmust change the what you do to it periodically.

bout Muscle Soreness

you are a beginning trainer, you are going toperience muscle soreness (you may evenperience it as an advanced trainer with some of se glute exercises). It is not a cause for alarm!

uscle soreness essentially means that there hasen damage to the muscle fibers. Now your bodyust go through the process of rebuilding thoseuscle fibers bigger and stronger than they werefore. This normally takes a few days, depending on

w severe the damage was.hen you are first starting out in your training, DOOT push yourself to muscular failure! Take the first 23 weeks to learn the movements otherwise you willperience so much muscle soreness that you’ll havetake extra time off to recover.

u always want to keep at least a rep or two in your k. It’s going to get you better results in the long run

d make your glute training more enjoyable.



What To Do When Your Thighs Take Over From

Your Glutes

Here’s the scenario...you’ve got the best glute trainingrogram picked out...your nutrition is perfect, eatinghe right stuff at the right times...you know whatxercises to do and exactly how to do them.

There’s only one problem...your THIGHS always takever no matter what glute exercise you do! You squat

nd you get big quads. You do lunges and your amstrings get sore but your glutes don’t get a thing.

ound familiar? If it does, you’re not alone! It’s one of THE biggest problems people run into when trying to

uild a bigger butt.And if you push things and push things without fixinghe root of the problem (glute activation), you’re goingo end up with big thighs and a small butt, which is

NOT what you’re looking for!

o let’s fix it...



Strategy #1 - Pre-Exhaust Training

When it comes to glute training, you’ve got two basicptions when it comes to exercises... isolation andompound.

solation exercises generally involve movement in aingle joint...for the glutes, this means movementrimarily at the hips (extension, which is bringing thehigh backwards). Isolation exercises allow you toEEL the glute muscles working because the

movement is occurring only where the glute canerform it.

The only hitch is, isolation exercises aren’t great for BUILDING the glutes.

That’s where compound exercises comen...exercises like squats, lunges, split squats, step-ps, etc. and variations of these. Compoundxercises involve movement at several joints...in thease of the glutes, the hip, knee, lower back andnkles.

Compound exercises are much better for building thelutes but because there are more muscles involved



here is more opportunity for those other muscles (thehighs) to take over the movement and leave thelutes out in the cold.

That’s where Pre-Exhaust Training comes in...

re-Exhaust Training is a sneaky way to get the bestf BOTH worlds. You’re going to start with an isolationxercise (like Glute Push-Ups, for example) toctivate the glutes and "pre-exhaust" them, so that

hey’re already fatigued when you go directly to theompound exercise (like Dumbbell Split Squats).

When you do the compound exercise, because your lutes are fatigued, they’re going to be the weak link

f the exercise and are going to be worked HARDven if the thighs are trying to take over themovement!

Do as many reps of this exercise as it takes to reachmuscular fatigue (it could be 8, 15 or even more,epending on the resistance and your strength). Theeal muscle-building work gets done on the secondxercise. When you’ve completed your set,mmediately (and I mean IMMEDIATELY - no resteriods here) move into the compound exercise for he glutes.



You’re basically tricking your body into working thelutes even when it doesn’t want to.

This type of training is VERY effective for givingtubborn glutes a kick in the butt... (couldn’t resisthat).

ve included Pre-Exhaust programs for all trainingevels in the book and if you have trouble feeling your lutes doing the work, DEFINITELY give these

rograms a try.

Strategy #2 - Body Positioning andMental Tricks

ve got a number of tips and tricks you can try for etting those glutes to activate - try them one at a timeo you know which one is doing the trick for you (or ot doing the trick for you!).

. Consciously squeeze your glutes HARD whileoing your exercises

Are you sitting in a chair? Clench your glutes as hards you can. Feel the squeeze? This is what you needo strive for while doing glute exercises.



When you do a lunge, squeeze the glute hard whileou’re pushing up. This will help to activate the glute

muscle. It’s all about getting your mind into the musclend forcing it to contract rather than just going through

he motions of an exercise. By concentrating onqueezing the glutes hard during your sets, you’ll bectivating the muscle fibers of the glutes and makinghem WORK.

. Push With Your Heels

This is a trick of the feet...the transmission of forcend tension from your foot through your leg and glutean be altered by where you put the tension on your oot. If you push with the balls of your feet (the forefoot

rea), more tension will be placed on the frontal thighhe quadriceps). If you focus on pushing more withour heels, more tension will go through the back of he thighs and to your glutes.

By pushing with your heels, you can take FULLdvantage of this. For example, when you’re doingunges, try to raise the toes of your front foot off theround. This removes tension from the front andocuses more on the heel. This will, in turn, send more

ension to the glutes, making them work harder.



You can even force the issue by setting ONLY your eel down and pushing like that!

. Visualize "Sitting Back"

This idea is similar to the concept of pushing with your eels above. When you "sit back," more tension wille sent through the back of the thighs and the glutes.f you lean forward (the opposite of the "sitting back”,ou will tend to throw more tension on the quadriceps

he front of the thighs).We can use both the lunge as an example of this.When doing the lunge, don’t let your torso angleorward while you’re performing the movement. This

will throw more tension on the quads. Visualizeourself "sitting back" into the movement. Your body

won’t let you lean back far enough to fall over but thislean-back" will put more tension on the glutesmmediately. This is something you can try at homeght now and feel the difference right away.

A trick I like to use to force people into the proper osition is to do lunges or split squats in front of aailing or bar set to about hip height. Stand about aoot or two away from the railing THEN do the lunge. If ou lean forward, the railing hits you in the chest andorces ou to sit back. If ou don’t have a railin ust



icture one in front of you when you do split squatsnd lunges.

. Crack a Nut Between Your Cheeks

When you’re doing exercises with your feet set outwide (like Sumo Stance Deadlifts, for example), try tomagine you’ve got a walnut between your cheeks andou’re trying to crack it open by squeezing themogether.

may sound a bit nuts (pun intended), but it’s a VERYffective way to visualize the exact action we want toet from wide-stance exercises.

. Stick Your Butt Out

Here’s the thing...we live in a society where it’senerally not polite to stick your butt out. So inveryday life and movement, you get used to NOTticking your butt out and tucking it in under your

elvis. This becomes automatic and it’s KILLING your hances of building a bigger butt.

By tucking your butt under your hips, you’re basicallyeactivating your glutes. Your thighs take over

ecause they HAVE to in order to provide the day-to-ay movements we all do. And this can tend to lead to



ack problems as the muscles that support the spinelter their movement patterns to make up for thessues with the glutes.

o essentially, all of life’s problems can be solved byticking your butt out...

What I want you to do, next time you do ANY glutexercise, is consciously stick your butt out and archour lower back as much as you can. It’s harder to do

t the bottom of an exercise because of the angle of our thighs at the hip, but ABSOLUTELY do this asou come up towards the top. You’re going to noticehe difference on the first rep.

. Practice Activating Your Glutes

This is something you’re going to want to do whenobody is around... :) but it’s an important assignmentnd can really help you develop the neural pathwaysor activating the glutes effectively when training.

When you’re sitting in a chair, I want you try and raiseourself up as high as you can by ONLY clenchingour glutes. Take your feet off the floor so your thighsave absolutely NOTHING to do and hold yourself up

n your clenched glutes for at least 5 seconds,queezing them the whole time. Repeat this for 5



eps.

Once you’ve got that down, you’re doing to do it onelute at a time, alternating left and right, squeezing for to 5 seconds on each side. Do this 5 times on each

ide.

Next set your feet out wide to the sides with your nees out as wide as possible and set just your heelsn the floor. Now raise yourself up on clenched glutes

nd try and crack that nut between your cheeks. Pushown on your heels to force the issue. Again, squeezeard for 5 seconds and do this 5 times.

inally, set your feet together on the floor right in frontf your chair with your knees splayed out to the sidesnd the soles of your feet pressed together (imagineke you’re trying to "clap" your feet together likeou’re clapping your hands). Your pinky toes andutside edges of your feet will be on the ground for his one.

Now clench the glutes and try and use them to pushourself high up again. As you’re doing this, try toush your knees OUT and DOWN at the same timeou’re squeezing. This is going to activate the gluteus

medius and minimus muscles that develop the sides ect of the lutes.



And now you see why it’s better to do this whenobody is around...

. Make a Footprint

Whenever you’re doing a glute exercise, I want you tomagine as though you’re making as BIG of a footprints possible onto either the floor, wall or ceilingdepending on what exercise you’re doing).

f you’re doing a split squat, try and push your footown as hard as you can, as though you’re trying pushour foot through the floor. If you’re doing a cable glutextension, visualize a wall behind you that you’reying to make a footprint on.

This type of active pushing is what the glutes are allbout. The thighs extend the knee joint but the HIPSre where the real power is. By trying to really pushour feet against and through the floor (or wall or

eiling) hard, you activate the main function of thelutes, which is hip extension and it minimize thighnvolvement.

Strategy #3 - Changing How YouSTAND



o how can your posture and how you STANDossibly impact this big muscle and how it works androws?

Well, I’ll tell you!

irst, you’ll need to do an easy visual test on yourself n the mirror. This is going to help determine if your osture is causing your glutes to shrink up and notespond well to training.

Go to a long mirror and stand beside it so that your ide is towards it (you’re not facing it right now). Don’took in the mirror yet. Now stand like you’re waiting for

bus or you’re in line at the movies - "normally."Make sure you’re standing on both feet with your weight evenly distributed (not on one foot or thether). Relax and don’t try and do anything differentlyhan you do in everyday life (if you try and fix yourself

ow, you’ll mess up the test).NOW keeping that exact same body position, turnUST YOUR HEAD and look in the mirror. We’reoing to look at where your hips are in relation to

where your shoulders are.

deall ou want our hi s to be in a direct u -and-



own line with your shoulders so you’re standing uptraight.

But what we’ll often see (especially in the cases of hose who have trouble building their glutes andeeling them working when training glute exercises) ishat the hips are FORWARD of the shoulders and theutt is kind of "tucked" under the hips.

o instead of a vertical line like this: |

The body forms a forward angle kind of like this:

When the hips shift forward like this, the glutes areaken almost completely out of the postural chain -hey become relaxed and little work is required of hem.

The immediate problem with THIS is that the gluteshen get weaker and smaller. But the REAL problem

and the one that affects your glute-building) are theTRUCTURAL changes that take place in your bodyn the long term.

Over the course of YEARS of this "hips-forward"

osture, your body will strengthen OTHER musclesnd tendons to take over the loads and functions that



he glutes were supposed to be in charge of. It canlso lead to back pain and overstretching of thebdominals, which makes your stomach LOOKigger than it actually is!

ventually, these structural changes in your body willarry over to walking and exercising! Your body willot properly recruit the glute muscles when it comesme to do squatting and lunging movements even if itOOKS like you’re doing them correctly.

The thighs will tend to take over the movement toompensate for the reduction in glute function. Theody, quite simply, isn’t USED to using the glutesnymore and has a hard time activating them.

This means even when you do direct exerciseso work the glutes, your body is unable toroperly USE the glutes to perform thexercises!

And when you walk, instead of using the glutes toctively PUSH yourself forward with each step, you’llave a short stride and a more "shuffling" gait (thisappens because your leg isn’t coming back far nough behind you).

You’re using your hip flexors (the muscles on the front



f your hips) to bring your leg forward with each steput you’re using GRAVITY and momentum (in a way,ou’re almost falling forward with each step) to keep

moving, NOT pushing with your glutes!

O HOW DO WE FIX IT?

Well, the first BIG step is to be mindful of your posturend how you stand. It’s going to be strange at first -ou’re going to forget yourself and have to constantly

e your own "posture police" to keep yourself straightnd upright. You might have even to recruit friendsnd family members to "keep you honest" and remindou when your hips start drifting forward.

We’re basically going to be looking to reverseYEARS of "glute-reducing" posture here, so it’something that will take time. The upside is, you will

most likely start feeling more confident and lookingetter almost immediately when you make the effort totand up straight!

The extra work your glutes are going to get simply byoing what they’re supposed to should start helpingou increase glute size and firmness rapidly as well.

Abdominal exercises can also help here, byghtening up abs that have gotten overstretched from



his "hips-forward" posture.

Keeping your abs tight and "in" will help you keepour hips back and in the right position.

inally, when you’re walking, you should focus onctively PUSHING yourself forward with the glutes withach step you take.

You’ll end up taking longer strides and getting placesooner, which is not a bad thing either.

Bottom line (no pun intended!), we have to RETRAINour body to use the glutes properly. Now I know it’sot a quick fix but it IS an effective fix and can beone with relatively little effort.

Because once your body starts learning how to usehe glutes again, you’ll have a MUCH easier timeeveloping the glutes that you’re looking for!

Changing how you stand won’t give you a bigger buttvernight but it WILL set the stage so that the workou ARE doing to improve your glutes will be moreffective!

Conclusion:



These three major strategies (and the tips and tricksncluded in them) are going to have a HUGE impactn how your glutes look and they’re going to make allhe training you do in this book exponentially moreffective!

f you have a hard time feeling your glutes and your highs take over the exercises you’re doing, put theseechniques to work NOW. You’re going to see a

ifference FAST.



How to Adapt Your Training Programs

Having preset workouts and programs is great but theeal power of the program comes in when you havehe knowledge to adapt the program yourself. You

now yourself better than anyone else. You know whatworks for you and what doesn’t. So why follow arogram that isn’t tailored to your exact needs?

The workouts in the book are sample workouts. Theyre not set in stone. They are meant to be guidelinesnd are essentially springboards for you to craft your wn workouts with. I can’t see you or know what youeed so it is up to you to determine what works for ou. Don’t worry! It’s not that hard!

Themainhing to



emember is this: change should be the only

onstant in your program. Your body will adapt towhatever stress you put on it. If you give it the sametress constantly, it will have no reason to adapt.

Be creative in how you go at adapting theserograms. Nothing you do is necessarily wrong.ome crazy idea you have may just lead you tonding something that works better for you! I know this

or a fact because I do this every single time I train.

f you do come up with some amazing, be sure to letme know. I love hearing about how people adapt myrograms into something new!

Here is a short list of a few of the things you canhange in the sample workouts:

. The number of reps you do

f the program calls for 12 to 15 reps, try doing sets inhe 5-7 rep range. The body responds differently toifferent rep ranges. Lower rep ranges build strength,



moderate rep ranges build muscle, higher rep rangesuild endurance (these are generalizations, of ourse). Rep ranges can go from one extreme to thether, e.g. 3 to 5 reps all the way 100+ reps. Everyange has it’s value and a simple change like this cane very effective.

ome exercises lend themselves better to certain repanges. For instance, glute push-ups are moreppropriate for high reps because you can’t use muchesistance. Bench step one legged squats, on thether hand, lend themselves to lower reps because of he greater resistance.

. The number of sets you do

ncrease or decrease the number of sets you areoing for an exercise/bodypart. You may find that your ody responds better to more sets. You may find thatou get your best results with fewer sets.

. Change your training split/workout frequencyYou may find that you get better results with 4essions per week at 10 minutes per session rather han 3. You may find you do better with only 2 per week at 20 minutes per session. You may even wanto do two 20 minute sessions and one 10 minuteession. You can mix and match however ou like!



. Increase or decrease your rest time

horter rest times are more demanding and morentense. Longer rest times will help with recovery in

etween sets and maximize your strength. The restmes that you use can vary anywhere from 20econds all the way up to about 3 minutes.

Rest time will often depend on the exercise you are

oing. Squats involve more muscles and use moreweight, therefore they generally require a longer resteriod than an exercise such as glute push-ups. Don’te afraid to push yourself, however. I have gottenreat results from doing sets of squats with only 30

econds rest between sets. Sure it’s hard but theesults are there!

. Change your exercises

earn some new exercises. This is one of the most

opular methods of changing things. You can changexercises on a daily or weekly basis continually asou train. If you’ve gone through all the beginner xercises and want more, start using the intermediatenes. When you’ve used those, learn a few of the

dvanced ones. Keep mixing them all into your workouts for variety.



Take the sample workouts in this book and trade outxercises that maybe work better for you than thenes that are listed.

. Increase or decrease your workout timef you’ve been getting good results with 10 minuteessions but your gains have slowed down, move tohe 20 minute sessions. If you’ve been doing 20

minute sessions for awhile, why not try 10 minutes?To really shake things up, you may even wish to try a0 minute session once in a while!

. Incorporate intensity techniques

You’ll notice, as you go through the programs, thathere are techniques such as supersetting, pre-xhaust, post-exhuast, etc. Mix these techniques intoour workouts from time to time for an added intensityoost.

When it comes right down to it, the sky’s thelimit.

When you do something different and it works for you,write it down so you know exactly what to do again.As you go along, you’ll build up a collection of greatworkouts that work reat for ou!





Why Glutes Stay Small andWhat You Can Do About It

The answer to the question of why butts stay small iss old as time itself. Well, not really, but it is alwaysood to know why something is happening when you

re looking for a way to change it.There are quite a number of reasons why butts staymall. Unfortunately, there are some things you can’teally do anything about but for the majority of theeasons, there is plenty you can do.

The most important thing for you to realize is thathere is hope for everybody!! There is not one singleerson out there who won’t see results when theseeasons are properly addressed.

. Genetics

This is the major reasonnd, coincidentally, the

major excuse for rear endstaying small.



Your genetic blueprintetermines what color hair nd eyes you will have,

what size your feet are,nd, most important for our purposes, how much

muscle you start with on your backside.

say "start with" because everyone, whether they wanto believe me or not, has the potential to gain muscle.

Granted, some people have a lot more potential thanthers but the fact remains.

What can you do about it?

Unfortunately, nothing. You would have to go back inme and pick new parents and that just isn’t going toappen (yet...;). What you can do, however, is train.

. Inactivity

f you do nothing for increasing your butt size exceptit on it, it will only grow larger in the wrong way.Targeted exercise is the absolute best way to shapend build your glute muscles.


Get off that butt and put it to work! The exercises and



rograms in this book are going to do the trick for ou.

. Improper Exercise

The glute muscles are just like any other muscle in theody. With proper training, they will grow. However,

with improper training, it is more likely that nothing willappen. This single point has probably caused moreeople to give up on building a bigger butt than

nything else I’ve encountered.omeone once came up to me and said "My butt just

won’t grow. I’ve tried everything."

What have you tried?" I asked.

Well, I did one set of lunges every other day, holdingnto a pair of soup cans. Then I tried some step-ups aouple of times. The only time my glutes got sore is

when I sat on my Thighmaster by mistake."


earn proper exercises and proper exerciseechnique. By reading this book, you are taking a

HUGE step in the right direction.

. Poor or inadequate nutrition



You can’t build alog cabin out of matchsticks, nor can you build abig, muscular rear end out of carrot sticks or French fries. Youmust supply your

ody with proper nutrition in adequate amounts toupport muscle growth.


earn about proper nutrition for supporting musclerowth.

. Insufficient training intensity or resistance

or many people, it is not the exercise technique or he nutrition that is the problem. It is lack of trainingntensity or insufficient resistance. Your body wants toe lazy. It wants to do as little as possible. If you give ithe same training stimulus every time, e.g. lunges with

pound Dumbbells, it is going stay exactly as it is.You must give it a reason to improve and that means



ncreasing intensity and resistance.


Don’t be afraid of weights! Ladies, touching a

Dumbbell will not turn you into a man. I promise you.All it will do is help you to quickly transform your

hysique into the physique of your dreams!

. Tight Muscle Pillowcases

What the heck am I talking about?

What I am talking about is what is called "fascia."ascia is the "pillowcase" or sheath of connectivessue that surrounds each of your muscles like a,

well...a pillowcase. It is what holds your muscles inlace on your body, keeping them from floppinground when they contract or when they are relaxed.

Without fascia, you couldn’t move.

The problem with fascia is that it can also restrictmuscle growth. Because fascia is so tough, it’s hardo force it to expand to allow the muscles room torow.

To illustrate this, say we take a large pillowcase andut a pillow in it that is moderately-sized and fits in



nugly. The pillowcase is full and appears to be as bigs it can be. This is like the normal condition of ntrained muscles. Now we stuff a larger pillow intohe same pillowcase. The pillowcase is tighter and

may be slightly larger but that pillow inside is strainingt the seams because the tough pillowcase/fasciaas remained exactly the same size as it always was.

magine if you could make that pillowcase out of amaterial that could expand with a little help. You couldive that large pillow inside more room to grow.

Where an ordinary pillowcase doesn’t, the fasciaurrounding your muscles has this potential toxpand.

What can you do about it?tretch your fascia. With properly timed stretching,s explained in the stretching chapter, you canctually slowly-but-steadily expand your fascia, givingour glute muscles room to grow. And the best part is,his stretching is permanent. Once you’ve expandedhe fascia, it won’t go back to it’s original size, it’ll stayxactly as it is at it’s largest size.



Women and Weights

The main thing I want you to take away from this topics the following: women do not need to be afraid of

weights!

Contrary to popular belief, the simple act of touching a

Dumbbell or barbell will not instantly endow you witharge, masculine muscles. Unless you are extremelyenetically gifted or chemically-assisted, this simply

will not happen. What will happen is that your body willet leaner, your muscles will build up, tighten up and

et stronger, and you will feel more confident andetter about yourself!

The bottom line is, women simply do not have theormonal equipment (i.e. testosterone) that willllow them to build massive muscles. What this

means from a physiological standpoint is that your ody chemistry won’t let you build large, masculine

muscles so don’t even worry about it!

always say, I WISH I could gain muscle as fast as

most women worry that they WILL when they touch aweight.



f youre a

womannd you

want tomakeerious

rogress in building up not only your glutes buthaping and sculpting your whole body, weights areour answer. And I am not talking about 2-pound

eoprene Dumbbells either.While small Dumbbells like these are appropriate for otal beginners or rehabilitation work, their usefulnessecomes very limited very rapidly. In order to continue

making progress, you will need to challenge your muscles with heavier weights.

When it comes right down to it, this book is a bookbout building muscle, or more accurately, building a

pecific muscle.





How To KEEP Your ButtWhen You’re Losing Fat

at loss... it can be your butt’s greatest friend andreatest enemy at the very same time!

riend: when you lose fat around your waist, it willmmediately make your butt LOOK bigger, even if itoesn’t actually GET bigger. This is a very good thing,owever...

nemy: when you lose fat from your butt, it will make

our butt SMALLER, especially if you haven’t got verymuch muscle mass on your glutes!

THIS is the problem a lot of people run into with thelutes. When they’re carrying extra bodyfat, they have

butt because they’ve been storing fat in the buttrea. When this fat starts coming off, the lack of muscle mass in the glutes really shows up.

Another issue is when people focus on endurance-ased cardio training for fat-loss (like the treadmill or

ogging, etc.). Endurance-based training not only



oesn’t build the glute muscles, it can actively causeour body to want to REDUCE the glute muscles.

Here’s the thing...when you’re jogging, it’s a stress onour body, causing it to burn calories. And what’s your ody’s best way to reduce the stress? Dropodymass somehow.

MUSCLE is easier to drop than fat and your body willet rid of it so it doesn’t have to carry so much weight

round when doing this long-duration exercise andour glutes are a big muscle and therefore a bigarget.

Couple this with losing the fat from your butt and manyeople’s trouble activating the glute muscles in therst place, it’s no wonder so many butts disappear

with fat loss!

All is not lost, though! Not only can you KEEP your utt while you’re losing fat, you can actually BUILDour butt at the same time. As your waist gets smaller nd you actively build the glutes up bigger with proper aining, they’re going to look even LARGER than if ou just worked on building them without the fat loss.

And now you’re going to learn my tricks for doing it...



Method #1 - Integration

This is the easiest way to start. Whatever leg trainings included in your current fat-loss program, directlyubstitute one of the glute training programs from thisook. The majority of the best glute-building exerciseslso work the legs very effectively, so you won’t beosing out on anything there, but the focus on thelutes is going to give you that preferential butt workhat you need to keep your butt there while you loseat.

Method #2 - Prioritization

This goes hand-in-hand with Method #1. The ideaere is to prioritize your glute training FIRST in

whatever fat-loss training you’re currently doing. Itmight mean shuffling around the exercise order inour workouts, but make sure and always work your lutes FIRST.

When you’re losing fat, you’re in a caloric deficit...thismeans you’ll less energy available for training and thatmeans whatever you work first is what you’re going toe able to put the most energy into. And that means

GLUTES.

o prioritize your glutes, substituting specific glute



aining for leg training and doing it first in your fat-lossworkouts.

Method #3 - Daily Specialization Training

You’ll find versions of this Daily Specializationrogram in the book for every training level.ssentially, you’re going to be picking one glute-pecific exercise and working it for one set donewice a day, EVERY day...and I do mean EVERY

ay...for as many reps as you can get. You’ll take noays off on this one.

By training your glutes in this fashion, you’re notemanding a lot of them in each single workout youo but you ARE demanding more of them morerequently. Your body responds to this stimulus byreferentially building the glute muscles, even when it

might be decreasing muscle mass in other places of our body.

You’re basically teaching your body that in order tourvive, it needs to build the glute muscles, sincehat’s what is being most frequently demanded of it.

works like a charm and will actually even HELP your

at-loss efforts by giving your metabolism an extraoost twice a day.



Method #4 - Incorporation

What you’re going to do here is force your glutes too more overall work by doing extra glute training

nserted in between every upper body exercise youo.

or example, if you’ve just finished working your chestwith bench press and you’re about to move to pullowns for your back, do a single set of a glutexercise, THEN move onto the pull downs.

Do this every time you switch from one upper bodyxercise to the next. One single set for a glutexercise won’t take long and won’t dramatically

xtend your workout but it will, overall, increase theworkload your glutes are getting.

Don’t do it between lower-body exercises, though,ecause glute exercises already work the lower body!

Method #5 - Starting It Off

This is another way of prioritizing the glutes. At theeginning of EVERY training session you do, choose

whatever glute exercise works best for you and do

ne single set with moderate weight for as many repss you can get.



Again, we want to give your body the idea that glutesre a priority and it needs to build them to cope withhe specific demands being placed on them.

Method #6 - Eat ’Em When You Earn ’Emn this case I’m talking about carbohydrates and someasic nutrient manipulation designed to boost the

muscle-building effects of your glute training. Thisechnique won’t work for all fat-loss nutrition plans asome of them require you eat in a very specificattern, but if you’re doing just a general reduced-alorie diet, it’ll work just fine.

irst, follow your fat-loss nutrition plan as you normallywould.

Then, you’re going to eat more carbs AFTER youarn them with glute training. This increase in calories

will help fuel muscle growth.

at-loss training requires a caloric deficit overall inrder to be successful - you have to burn morealories than you’re taking in in order to lose fat. Theroblem is, your body needs MORE calories to build

muscle (which is what we’re trying to do with buildingbigger butt).



o by tying your increased food intake to immediatelyAFTER you’ve earned it with your glute training,

ou’re going to preferentially get more nutrients andmore muscle growth to your glutes specifically while

till maintaining that overall reduced calorie intake soou keep up with the fat loss.

The Bottom Line:

As you’ve probably gathered from these tricks, the

BEST way to keep your butt while losing fat is toctually WORK it!

t’s going to be a case of use it or lose it and weefinitely want to use and NOT lose it. So put the

rograms and exercises in this book to work andwatch that butt GROW while you pull that extra fat off!



The Anatomy of theGlute Muscles

Although it is not necessary to know the anatomy of he glutes in order to grow a bigger butt, it is alwaysseful to learn the basics where things are, what they

re called and how they work. It will help you tonderstand how and why the exercises work.

The GluteusMaximus

The GluteusMaximus is oneof the largestand strongestmuscles in the

body. Everyoneknows wherethis one islocated!

The GluteusMaximus



originates along the pelvic (hip) bone crests andattaches to the rear of the femur (the large boneof the thigh).

The primary function of the Gluteus Maximus is

hip extension (moving the thigh towards therear). When you walk and propel your bodyforward, bringing the thigh backwards, this is(hopefully!) using the gluteus maximus muscles.

The Iliotibial Band, located along the outside of the thigh, is made only of connective tissue. Thisband serves to transfer the force of abduction(moving the leg away from the centerline of thebody) from the abducting muscles to the leg.

The Gluteus Medius and Minimus

The Gluteus Medius and Minimus are smaller muscles which lie directly underneath theGluteus Maximus. These are the lesser knownglute muscles and are only developed withside/lateral-based movements. A goodexample of this is the side lunge, where squatdown directly to the side on one leg, then pushback up from that side squat position.



The Gluteus Medius and Minimus originate inthe same spot as the Maximus (on the pelvic/hipbone crests) but attach to the SIDE of the femur rather than the rear of the femur where theGluteus Maximus attaches.

Attaching on the side of the femur means thatthese two muscles serve to abduct or move thethigh away from the centerline of the body.



Are You Doing LowIntensity Endurance-Based

Cardio Training For FatLoss?

Stop! You may be sabotaging your glute development!

How can this possibly be? Everywhere you look, it’s

lways said that long-duration, low-intensity training isest for fat loss. All high-intensity work does is burnarbohydrates, right?

Wrong.

After reading this information, I guarantee you’llevelop a new respect for high-intensity cardioaining for fat loss (and for building your glutes!).

ow-intensity exercise is defined as working at a

eart rate of about 60% to 65% of your maximumeart rate (which is equal to 220 - your age =



maximum heart rate, thus if you are 20 years old, 22020 = 200 max HR). High-intensity exercise is

efined as working at about 75 to 85% or more of our maximum heart rate.

Using the previous example for maximum heart ratemax HR=200), working at 60% of your max HR woulde 120 beats per minute and 80% of that would be60 beats per minute.

There are several reasons low-intensity exercises normally recommended for fat loss.

. It’s easy - In many cases people who are trying toose fat don’t always feel energetic enough to do hardaining due to the caloric deficit (a.k.a. diet) that theyre on. In these cases, just sticking to an exerciserogram can be hard enough, never mind making thexercise itself challenging.

. It’s low risk - A personal trainer generally can’t gowrong by recommending low-intensity exercise tolients. Even the most out of shape person can usuallyo low-intensity cardio training safely. While this isertainly appropriate advice for novice trainers, itoes not necessarily apply to the more experiencedainer when it comes to effective training.



. It burns a higher percentage of calories fromat - this is very true: exercising at a lower intensityoes burn a higher percentage of calories from fathan high-intensity exercise. But, as I will explain, this

oes not necessarily mean you’re going to burn moreat.

et’s crunch some numbers to show you exactly what Imean when I say high-intensity exercise burns more

at.ow-intensity training burns about 50% fat for energy

while high-intensity training burns about 40% fat for nergy. This is not a huge difference.

ay, for example, walking for 20 minutes burns 100alories. Then 50% of 100 calories is 50 fat-caloriesurned.

Now say 10 minutes of interval training at a high

ntensity burns 160 calories. Well, 40% of 160alories is 64 fat-calories burned.

By doing the high-intensity work, you’ve just burned 14more fat calories in half the time. Starting to sound

ood? There’s more...



--

ow-intensity exercise only burns calories while youre actually exercising. That means the moment youtop exercising, your caloric expenditure goes backown to nearly baseline levels. Within minutes, you’reot burning many more calories than if you hadn’tone anything at all.

High-intensity exercise, on the other hand, continues

o boost your metabolism long after you’re done (oftenp to 24 hours after, depending on the length andntensity of the training session). This means you’reontinuing to burn many more calories all day long!

--

ow-intensity exercise does nothing to build or upport muscle mass. Maintaining muscle mass isritical to an effective fat-loss strategy as muscleurns fat just sitting there. Want to keep your

metabolism working to burn fat? Do whatever you cano build or keep your muscle tissue.

n fact, excessive low intensity cardio exercise canctually lead to decreased muscle mass. The muscle

ets broken down from the exercise but doesn’t get atimulus to rebuild itself bigger and stronger, therefore



stays small.

When you do endurance training, your body doesn’twant to haul around any extra weight and MUSCLE isasiest to get rid of, which is NOT going to help youuild your glutes!

High-intensity exercise, on the other hand, has theotential to increase muscle mass.

Compare the body of a top sprinter to a top marathonunner. The sprinter carries far more muscle mass.

You won’t get big bulky muscles from high intensityaining but you will get shapely and more defined

muscles! This is exactly what we are looking for in

ur glute training.o if you’re serious about building a bigger butt, it’sme to DROP the long-distance cardio training,specially running (the impact from running causes

more muscle damage to the glutes, making it easier or your body to just reduce the glute muscle size).

--

How To Do High Intensity Interval Training

Now that you’ve seen how effective high intensity





ery effective.

High-intensity training can be applied to any form of ardiovascular exercise. Anything from

walking/sprinting to swimming to bike riding will workerfectly. I would recommend doing this type of raining 2 to 3 times per week for best results.

Though the examples I will go through below use times a measure for intervals, you can also very easily

se distance as your guide. For example, you canprint between two telephone poles then walk to theext one. You can sprint the length of a football fieldhen walk the width. You can even run up a flight of tairs then walk back down. The variations you can do

re truly endless!Here are a number of different types of interval

aining you can use:

. Aerobic Interval Training

Aerobic Interval Training is very beneficial for rapidlymproving your aerobic conditioning as well asurning fat. It will even help you build up your ndurance faster than long-duration cardio! It is also a

ery good introductory format for starting intervalaining. If you are new to interval training, I highly



ecommend beginning with Aerobic Intervals.

This type of interval training involves relatively longwork periods and shorter rest periods. Work periodsre generally 2 to 5 minutes long in this type of aining. The idea is not to take it easy for that workme but to work at a speed that challenges you to beble to make it to the end of that work interval. Your 2

minute interval pace is, therefore, going to beignificantly faster than your 5 minute interval pace.

The rest interval for this type of training is between 30econds to a minute. Naturally, the shorter the resteriod, the tougher the training will be. Too much rest

will allow your body to recover too much, lessening the

verall training effect of the exercise.Here are some examples of a number of differentntervals you can use in your training:

Work Rest

2 min. 30 sec.

5 min. 1 min.

3 min. 45 sec.

2 min. 1 min.5 min. 30 sec.





or fat-burning.

Maximal Intervals are much shorter than Aerobicntervals. Generally, the longest you’ll be able toerform a maximal effort is around 30 seconds so allhe work intervals are 30 seconds or less.

Rest periods can be short or long, depending howood of shape a person is in and/or how much they

want to recover in-between intervals. Shorter rest

eriods make the work intervals more challenging buthe speed of the work will also drop quickly after a fewntervals. Longer rest periods will allow the body toecover a little more, allowing faster speeds on morentervals. Rest periods should always be at least as

ong as the work periods. This is to allow enoughecovery to be able to perform well on the next workeriod.

Here are some examples of Maximal work and restntervals you can use in your training. As I mentionedbove, you can stick with one time period through the

whole session, or vary your intervals you go throughhe workout.

Work Rest

30 sec. 30 sec.



30 sec. 1 min.

20 sec. 1 min.

10 sec. 30 sec.

30 sec. 2 min.

ince Maximal Intervals are so challenging, a personhould not expect or try to be able to jump right in at aigh level for a large number of intervals. It is verymportant to build yourself up gradually.

tart by performing five Maximal Intervals the first twoessions you do the training. The next two sessions,o six Maximal Intervals. Continue adding intervals inhis step-up fashion until you are doing intervals for a

maximum of 15 minutes straight. The exact number of ntervals you do in a session will depend on the timesou’re using in your work and rest intervals.

Because Maximal Intervals are so challenging, you

may find yourself getting too fatigued to perform at aast pace as you get towards the end. When thisappens, try doing Reverse Pyramid intervals. Insteadf keeping your work interval the same, reduce it by 5econds every couple of intervals.

Here’s a sample of how to do it:



nterval 1 - 30 seconds hard, 30 seconds rest.nterval 2 - 30 seconds hard, 30 seconds rest.nterval 3 - 25 seconds hard, 30 seconds rest.nterval 4 - 25 seconds hard, 30 seconds rest.

nterval 5 - 20 seconds hard, 30 seconds rest.nterval 6 - 20 seconds hard, 30 seconds rest.nterval 7 - 15 seconds hard, 30 seconds rest.nterval 7 - 15 seconds hard, 30 seconds rest.

. Sub-Maximal High Intensity Intervals

ub-Maximal intervals are excellent for burning fatnd for building up your cardiovascular conditioning.

This type of training will do each of these fat better han continuous-tempo, lower-intensity training.

This type of interval training is very similar in conceptnd execution to the Maximal interval style. Theifference is, instead of pushing yourself as hard asou can on each work interval, you work at a pace that

s somewhat below your max. This allows you to domore total work intervals during the session while stilleeping your intensity levels high.

Most Interval programs on cardio machines follow thisrinciple. The resistance/speed is increased to aigher level for a set period of time then reduced for a



et period of time. The level is not so high that youmust put your maximum effort into each work interval,ut it is at a level you could not keep up for longeriods.

This type of training is also very effective for fat lossnd increasing the metabolism.

ntervals in this style can be longer, since you’re notworking at maximum speed, but not much longer.

Work periods of 30 seconds to a minute and resteriods of 30 seconds to a minute work well for it.Here are some sample intervals you can use in your

aining:

Work Rest30 sec. 30 sec.

30 sec. 1 min.

1 min. 1 min.

1 min. 30 sec.45 sec. 45 sec.

This type of training can be done for about 15 to 30minutes, depending on the intensity level of the work.

. Near-Maximal Aerobic Intervals



This is a unique form of interval training that I’ve beenworking with that basically combines Aerobic IntervalTraining with Maximal Interval Training to allow you towork at near-peak levels for long periods of time. Thisas the benefit of burning a tremendous amount of alories for longer periods of work time than isossible with normal intervals.

The work intervals themselves are short but the rest

eriods are much shorter! Instead of pushing yourself o the max on every interval, you work at a paceomewhat short of your max. This type of trainingllows you to perform near your max for longer eriods of time. It is a very challenging and unique

orm of interval training.Here’s how it works:

tart with a work interval of 20 seconds and a restnterval of 5 seconds. Your pace should be one thatou would only be able to keep up steady for about 1o 2 minutes before having to stop. Do that pace for 0 seconds then go very slow for 5 seconds. Jumpght back in and do that same pace for another 20econds then very slow for 5 seconds. Keep this cycleepeating for a designated period of time, e.g. 5

minutes 10 minutes or 15 minutes.



Here are some sample intervals you can use with thisaining style:

Work Rest

20 sec. 5 sec.

25 sec. 5 sec.

30 sec. 10 sec.

15 sec. 7 sec.

40 sec. 10 sec.

This type of training works very well with cardiomachines that allow you to switch resistance instantly

r very quickly (stationary bikes, stair machines or lliptical trainers often allow this). Machines that mustycle slowly through their speeds as they change doot work well for this (treadmills fall into this category).can also be done with running then walking, cycling

hen pedaling slowly, or even swimming hard thentroking lazily. You’ll find it very challenging to beaving to constantly restart your momentum fromlmost scratch on every interval!

lease note: it’s very important that you don’t stopompletely when you take your short rest period.



Keep yourself moving during this time even if you’reust moving very slowly!

. Fartlek Training

No discussion of Interval Training would be completewith a reference to Fartlek Training. Translated from

wedish, "Fartlek" literally means "speed play." Whats it? It’s simple - Fartlek training is every type of nterval rolled into one workout!

You can start by jogging for 5 minutes then walk for 30econds then sprint for 30 seconds then walk againhen run fast for 2 minutes and so on. The idea is torain at a wide variety of speeds, distances and timesn order to hit the widest variety of trainingarameters.

This type of training is an excellent way to keep your ardio interesting. You never have to do the samehing twice! This workout can last anywhere from 15 to0 minutes, depending on the intensity at which youre working.

--

Remember, what you get out of exercise isirectly proportional to what you put in.



Work at high-intensity training for awhile and see justow much better your fat-loss (and butt-building)fforts go. If you’ve been doing a lot of low-intensityardio for a long time, you may find that your glutes

will immediately start responding to your weightaining like never before!





somewhere that you will see it regularly (manypeople find putting it on the fridge to be helpful).

Reward yourself with something you enjoyafter completing your workout. It’s best to stay

away from food rewards as those tend toundermine the effectiveness of the workout if done regularly.

Tell trusted people about your goals. Thaway you’ll not only be holding yourself accountable but other people will know whatyou’re trying to accomplish as well. Theexpectations of others can be powerfulmotivation.

The reason I say "trusted" people is thatbuilding a bigger butt is not probably somethingyou want to advertise to the general public :).Make sure you’re confident that the people youtrust with this goal are SUPPORTIVE and aren’tthe type to just immediately try and bring youdown and give you reasons why you can’t dosomething.

Make it fun. Do programs and exercises you

enjoy. People who dislike exercise tend to viewit as a necessary evil; something they must do



in order to look good and feel healthy. If you canget into the mindset that you really like toexercise and look forward to it then you’vemade a big step towards effective self-motivation.

Discredit your negative self-talk. One thingthat I like to do that sounds kind of crazy butworks is this: when the little negative voice inyour head tells you that you shouldn’t or don’t

have to exercise, imagine it sounding likeDonald Duck or Porky Pig. That little negativevoice will lose all it’s credibility! Then think of how good you’ll feel when you’re done!



How to Work Your GlutesWhen You’ve Got Bad

Knees

Having bad knees doesn’t mean you have to give upn your dreams of getting bigger, better glutes! I wille honest with you, though... it’s going to make itougher. It just means we have to get more creative.

he reason it’s going to be tougher is because,enerally speaking, the best glute-building exercises

nvolve deep bending of the knees, using exerciseske one-leg bench squats or lunges with your front leglevated.

f you’ve got bad knees, a lot of these exercisesre going to be unavailable to you.

o basically, the approach you’re going to have toake with your glute building is to test out exercisesnd see which ones you’re able to do without pain inour knees. I’m going to give you a list of the

xercises included in this book that I’ve found to beasiest on the knees...try these and see which ones



work for YOU.

And PLEASE, don’t try and push through and doxercises that are painful. You really do need to letain be your guide here. If it hurts, don’t do it. You’reot going to get a bigger butt in a wheelchair or onrutches.

f you have a specific injury you’re working around, Iwould absolutely recommend you also check with your

octor to make sure, first, that you’re cleared toxercise, and second, that the exercises you’re goingo try and safe for you to do.

hat all being said, there are plenty of options to workwith here.

Knee-Friendly Exercises

Here is a list of the exercises I consider reasonablynee-friendly. Some are isolation exercises. Some

nvolve a degree of knee bending and should bettempted with no weight to test and see how theyeel.

As I mentioned above, when training with a kneessue, you’ll need to take responsibility for your aining and be sure and use appropriate exercisesnd et doctor a roval.



Isolation Exercises

Glute Push-Ups Cable GluteExtensions

Glute Extensions onLeg Extension

Barbell End DonkeyKickbacks

Kneeling DumbbellGlute Extensions

Rotary Hip Machine

Barbell GluteExtensions

Barbell GluteExtensions on Bench

Compound Exercises

Dumbbell Split Squats Incline Dumbbell

LungesStep-Back Lunges Sideways Treadmill

WalkingBar Gripping SplitSquats

Sumo Deadlifts

Toes-Up SumoDeadlifts

Stiff-Legged Deadlifts

Sumo Stiff-LeggedDeadlifts

Your next step, once you’ve tested these exercises for



afety and know which ones you can do, is to plughem into the programs in the book. Look at thexercises listed in the programs and determine if hey’re an Isolation Exercise or a Compoundxercise.

hen you can directly substitute an exercise you CANo for an exercise you CAN’T and have full access toll the training styles I talk about in the book.

raining the glutes with bum knees isn’t going tolways be easy but it IS definitely doable and therere plenty of options available for you to work with.

ust remember, always err on the side of caution andet pain be your guide.



Warming Up

There are a variety of ways to warm up, ranging fromn extended cardio session to almost none at all.ach has its drawbacks and merits. Do whichever ne you feel comfortable with or gives you the bestesults. You want to be sure that the warm-up you’re

oing prepares you for the workout you’re about to don order to prevent injury and be stronger during the

workout.

ve listed two basic types of warm-ups for you here.

. Full Warm-Ups

This usually involves doing some low-intensity cardiowork for five to ten minutes until you break a sweat.

It gets blood flowing and prepares the body for work to come.

Some light stretching follows this then a few lightsets of whatever exercises are going to bedone. If you feel you need this much warm-up,

go ahead.



Keep in mind, however, not to do too much or will affect your energy levels for the actualworkout.

This type of warm up is particularly appropriate

for novice, injured, or older trainers, thoughanyone can use it.

It can be simple things like walking around,some bodyweight squatting, stair stepping,cardio machines, then a few glute and lower-body specific exercises to get the jointswarmed up.

. Light Set Warm-Ups

This prepares the specific muscle group for thework sets. Don’t do too much here or your worksets will suffer.

These light sets are often done before each

new exercise, particularly if you are moving onto a different bodypart.

If you are doing a different exercise for thesame bodypart, a warm-up for that exercise isusually not necessary, though some people like

to do a few quick, light reps to get a feel for themovement.



Your first exercise will require a bit morethorough warm-up, though, especially if you’retraining with a heavy exercise like deadlifts. Inthat case, you’ll want to do a few sets,

increasing the weight on each successive setuntil you approach your working weight. DONOT push hard on any of these warm-up sets!



Measuring Your Glute-Building Progress

There are many tools you can use to keep track of our progress. Which one or ones you use largelyepends on your personal goals. Some are more

ppropriate and useful than others.The Mirror

The mirror can give you a visual impression of how you’ve gained on your glutes but it’s toughto really track accurate over long periods of timeas you’ll generally see small changes on ashort-term basis.

It is not a very accurate measure, beingextremely subjective.

Different mirror, different lighting, distance, etc.,all are factors in how you look in the mirror.

And if you look in the mirror and your butt looksbigger... well, you know you’re doing something

right!!





The Log Book

This is a written record of workouts and other things related to your working out.

This includes, but is not limited to, sets, reps,exercises, rest periods, poundages used,tempo, personal bests, diet, supplementation,subjective feelings, etc.

It allows you to look back and seewhat worked and what didn’twithout having to rely on memory

These can be very useful for tracking your progress and attaining your glute-building goals.

What to Do If a Program Isn’t Working For You...

An important thing to remember with your glutetraining is that if you do fail, fail quickly.

This means if one of these programs isn’tworking and you don’t see any results after yougive it a fair chance (3 to 4 weeks), move on tosomething else.

Too many people plug away at a program thatis not giving them results in hopes that it will



someday magically work.

It won’t. Fail and move on. There are plentyof other programs in the book for you to tryand not every approach is going to work

equally well for every person!



How to Work SpecificAspects Of Your Glutes

Beyond just having a small butt in general, you maylso find you have a specific aspect of the glutes you

want to work on...maybe you want more in the upper

rea of the glutes. . .maybe your lower glutes needmore "lift" to them. It could be you want more width tohe glutes (i.e. wider hips).

ve put together lists of which exercises will tend toarget which aspect of the glutes below here but ineneral, exercises that involve deep knee bendingnd/or putting a big stretch on the glutes will target theower aspect of the glutes. Exercises that focus on theeak contracted position of the glutes with thighehind you as much as possible will hit the top aspectf the glutes and exercises that move to the sides willit the side aspect of the glutes.

ach exercise is going to still work the glutes as awhole...they’ll just tend to focus more on specific

spects of the glutes a bit more than others. And thisst isn’t exhaustive...it’s meant to give you an idea of



which type of exercises work which aspect of thelutes.

ower Glutes - Stretch-Focused Exercises

Goblet Lunges LungesDumbbell Split Squats Step-Back Lunges

Two Bench Split Squats One-Leg BenchSquats

One-Leg BenchDumbbell Squats Toes-Up SumoDeadliftsWide Stance FrontSquats

Wide Stance Toes-Up Squats

Upper Glutes - Contraction-Focused ExercisesCable Glute Extensions Glute Push-UpsKneeling DumbbellGlute Extensions


Barbell GluteExtensions

Barbell GluteExtensions on Bench

ide Glutes and Hips - Lateral-Focusedxercises

Over-and-Back Bench



- - Step-UpsSideways TreadmillWalking

Goblet Side Lunges

Leaning One-Leg

SquatsSide Lunges

Sideways Barbell EndLunges

Wide Stance Toes-UpSquats

Now that you have this information, if you’ve got

pecific areas of the glutes you want to work on, youan focus your efforts on those exercises that targethat aspect of the glutes!

ve got programs in the book that do target specific

reas, but feel free to make your own combinationsased on these programs and the exercises that yound work best for YOU.



Stretching For a Bigger Butt

tretching is an extremely important but oftenverlooked aspect of building the glutes. Asxplained in the "Why Butts Stay Small and What Youan Do About It" section, the fascia (connectivessue) surrounding the muscle can hold back the

evelopment (and size) of the muscle. Stretching ise key to expanding this fascia and, therefore, givinge glutes room to grow.

ow to Stretch

hough there

e three major pes of retching, onlyne type isally useful for ur purposes.

he three typese Statictretching, Ballistic Stretching, and PNF Stretching.

We will be focusing entirely on Static Stretching asis is the type of stretching that is most useful for

xpanding your fascia (ballistic stretching involvesst movements while PNF Stretching requires a



artner to assist).

The first step is to assume the stretch positionas instructed in the stretch description.

Sink into the stretch until you reach the furthestpoint into the stretch that you can go. Youshould feel some level of discomfort but itshouldn’t be a sharp, painful sensation.

Now, hold this position for 20 to 30 seconds.

Do not bounce!!

You should feel a strong pulling sensation in thetarget muscle but not so much that you feel asthough you might tear the muscle or get injured.

After 20 to 30 seconds of steady stretching,slowly ease up on the stretch then relax the

muscle. You can even shake it out a little if youlike. If it was a single-limb stretch, repeat withthe other limb.

WHEN to Stretch

here is one particular time that stretching is mostfective for expanding the fascia and that is whene muscle is pumped up full of blood. How doese muscle get pumped up full of blood? Through

xercise.

or example, say you have a favorite pair of jeans that

ou’ve just pulled out of the dryer. You put them on andey are pretty snug so you would like a little more





e fascia.

his is not to say that stretching at other times is aaste of time. Stretching is never a waste of time. For e purpose of increasing glute size, however,retching immediately after a good set of a glutexercise is by far the most effective time.

Stretching Index

n this index, I’ve included my favorite glute stretcheshe first 6) along with other lower body stretches (theher 6) that can be useful for the rest of the lower ody and back. Give all these stretches a try,specially the glute stretches and find out which onesve you the best feel.

ying Cross-Leg Glutetretch

Seated Cross-Leg Stretch

Deep Lunge Stretch Dancer Stretchying Side Glutetretch

Pigeon Stretch

eated Hurdlerstretch Standing Leg-On-BenchHamstring StretchAdductor/Groin Stretch Seated Lower Back StretchHip Flexor andQuadriceps Stretch

Seated Hamstring and GluteStretch



Cross-Legged Stretch

Lay flat on your back with one leg crossed over

the knee of the other one.To begin the stretch, move the leg that is on thebottom up towards your head. This can be donewith leg power alone or by pulling the leg up withyour hand behind your knee.

This will push against the glute of the leg that isacross the top, stretching it out.

Another trick I like to use to push the glutestretch even further is to push down on thecrossed knee to rotate the hip even more, whichstretches the glute even more.



sing a towel for help

To get better leverage on theleg, you can loopa towel aroundthe back of your

bottom leg.Pull up on thetowel with bothhands to get a stronger stretch on the glute.

he Standing Version



Hold onto something solid at about waist level infront of you.

Cross one leg over the top of the other thigh.

Now slowly squat down, holding on tight for balance.

This is very similar to the previous lying version,however instead of pulling with your hands, youare using your bodyweight to push down.



Cross-Over Stretch

Sit on the floor with your legs straight out in front

of you together.Bend one leg andcross it over the other leg.

Now take the opposing

arm and place it on theoutside of the crossedleg, e.g. if your left legis crossed over, placethe elbow of your rightarm on the outside of it.

It will look like you aretwisting, however, DO NOT twist.

Push down against your leg with your arm that iscrossed over as though trying to force the legfurther across your body.





he Deep Lunge stretch is also useful when done on

e floor, though the range of motion and the stretchn’t as great.





Dancer Stretch

his stretch is a favorite of dancers, hence the name.

First, start by sitting on the ground with one legbent and laying flat on the ground.

Now rotate your body and cross the other legover that knee that’s on the ground.

Bring your torso down to stretch the glute. Holdfor 20 to 30 seconds then repeat on the other side.





Lying Side Glute Stretch

his stretch is done lying on your back on the floor.

Set your arms out to the sides and bend your right leg.

Next, bring that right knee over and across your body, as though trying to touch it to the floor onthe other side, all while trying to keep your upper back flat on the floor. Keeping your upper backon the floor is what brings out the stretch in theglute when you bring your leg around and over.

Use your left hand to push down on the rightknee to get more stretch on the glute.

Then switch to the other side and repeat.







Pigeon Stretch

his one is actually a yoga pose, also called the

Pigeon Pose".

Start by kneeling on one knee with your other leg stretched out behind you.

Now rotate your front leg so that your shincomes across in front of you and you are restingon the side of your thigh.Use your hands to support your body and holdthe stretch.

Ideally, you want your other leg fairly straight outbehind you.

This one targets the glute of the front leg and thehip flexors of the back leg.







Hurdlers Stretch

Sit on a flat bench

with one legstretched straight outin front of you and theother one down onthe floor angledback.

Lean forward, feelinga stretch in your hamstrings, glute and lower back.

For an extra stretch, keep an arch in your lower back.

Another good technique is to pull your toes backas though trying to point them towards your face. This will increase the stretch on thehamstrings.

This is a stretchthat hits thehamstrings andglutes in a similar fashion.

Lay flat on your

back on the floor and loop a towel



around your ankle.

Keeping your knee somewhat bent but stiff, usethe towel to pull your leg up towards your head.

The towel gives you better leverage on your leg.



Hamstring Bench Stretch

Stand in front of a

bench or chair andset one foot on top of it.

Bend forward at thewaist.

You should feel astrong stretch in your hamstrings.

Keeping an arch in your lower back willincrease the stretch on your hamstrings.

Pulling your toes back towards your head willincrease the stretch on the calves.

hanging foot position

As an alternative, youmay wish to placeyour foot flat on thebench or chair rather than angled up withonly your heel on (asin the previouspicture).This will chan e the stretch sli htl reducin the



amount of stretch placed on the calves.





Lower Back Stretch

Sit on a chair or

bench.Lean forwardand grab your ankles.

Pull your torso

down into your knees.

This stretch can also be done with your kneesapart so that you can pull your torso downfurther.



Hip Flexor and QuadStretch

Get in the bottomof a lungeposition.

You way wish tohold onto

something for balance with thisone.

Shift your front leg forward a little so that your rear thigh is angled back.

This stretch the hip flexors and quadriceps.etting Into Position

ere is a good technique for getting into position for is stretch:

Start in the top position of a lunge.Place your feet a little further apart than normal.

Lower yourself down slowly into the bottomposition.

Near the bottom, you should notice that your

front shin is angled slightly back.This is what you want because at this point, you



are going to move your body forward, stretchingout your back leg behind you.

Be sure you DO NOT allow your knee to gofurther forward past your toes.

This is why your front shin should be angledslightly back - so you can move into that finalposition safely.

sing a Bench or Chair

This variation issimilar to above onlyyou will have your backleg up on a bench.

Just like in a lunge, besure your knee doesn’tgo forward past your



toes.

The more your sitdown into this stretchthe greater the effecton your quadriceps.

If you lean your upper body back, you will put agreater stretch on your hip flexors.

This type of stretch is far better than the stretchwhere you grab your ankle behind your bodyand pull your heel up to your butt. That one isdangerous for your knees.



Seated Glute andHamstring Stretch

Start by sitting flat on the floor with one legstraight out and one knee bent.

Simply lean forward and try and touch the toesof your straight leg.

You can also stretch forward directly out in frontof yourself.You can also stretch over top of your bent leg.

For an even greater stretch, try to keep an archin your lower back. This may limit your range of motion if you are not so flexible, however.





Supplements to Help Builda Bigger Butt

pplements can absolutely help you build a bigger

tt...they’re NOT necessary but the can help.re’s the thing, though...

u don’t need anything fancy and you WON’Te any exotic herbs or any other supplementsat claim to specifically increase the butt...theree NO supplements that’ll do that.

pplements should not be viewed as an alternativegood nutrition. What you eat on a regular basis andw you train are far more important that anypplements you could be taking.

e supplements in this section are recommendedcause they help support muscle growth (gluteowth!) and overall health. NONE of thesepplements will directly cause you to get a bigger tt.

ease note, I am not a nutritionist or doctor and youould always consult with your health professionalfore adding any supplements into your diet. Thisge is presented for informational purposes only. Mypplement recommendations are all very safe for theneral healthy population but I don’t know your exactuation.

re’s the list:

Multivitamins

Protein

"Greens" Supplements

Fish Oil/EFA’sCreatine Monohydrate



Glutamine


Pre and Post-Workout Supplements

Multivitamins

st on the list are multivitamins. Food simply doest have enough nutrients in it these days to allowen the healthiest eater to get optimal amounts of amins and minerals, even when eating regular eals and even when eating a surplus of calories.ink of a multivitamin as an insurance policy. It helpsprotect you from any deficiencies you could get andt even know about that could be stopping or wing down your muscle growth and limiting your ergy and strength levels.

Don’t take generic, low-quality multivitamins.You may as well be swallowing little rocks for allthe nutrients you will get out of them.

Most vitamins (including popular brand names)that come in tablet form are so compressed thatthey can’t be broken down even by stomachacid.

hen To Take It:

multivitamin should be taken EVERY day. If your ultivitamin serving calls for multiple doses, you canparate them over the course of the day for optimum

sorption, e.g. morning and evening.

Protein

otein is the building block of muscle tissue.ithout enough protein, your body won’t havee raw materials to recover and build that butt

gger!

otein is readily available in food, true, but protein-



ntaining foods are not always the most convenientprepare or eat. When was the last time you packedme scrambled eggs into your backpack for aack?

hen To Take Protein:

otein can and should be taken during every day

hile training to build the glutes. It’s not so critical onn-training days, since protein turnover will be lower,t it can definitely help with overall growth andovery.

re is a list of the when, why and how of effectiveotein supplementation, ranked in order of portance.

Immediately After A Workout

you only take protein once per day, this is thesolute best time to take it. Immediately after youish your workouts (for glutes or any other dyparts), your body needs raw materials to rebuildd recover with. If you don’t supply the raw materialsough eating, your body will break down muscle

m elsewhere in your body in order to rebuild themaged areas. This is very counterproductive asu can well imagine.

taking in some protein (20 to 40 grams or so,pending on bodyweight) within minutes after ercise, you provide your body with the rawaterials it needs to recover and build the glutes

thout breaking down it’s own muscle tissue.Immediately Before A Workout

ght before you train, taking in a small amount of otein can help turn in-workout catabolism intoabolism. A small 10 gram dose of protein alongth a 20 gram dose of sugar can promote better owth and recovery - it’s well worth taking. You canad more on how to take protein before and after orkouts in the Pre, Peri and Post-Workout Nutrition



ction.

First Thing In The Morning

mediately upon waking, or as soon after that as youn manage, take a scoop of protein powder. Your dy has just been through an 8+ hour fast and isngry for nutrients. Feed your body!

otein powder is more quickly assimilated than solidod and gets into your muscles faster. This proteinot gives your metabolism a boost, which can helpth fat loss. Be sure to follow it with a goodeakfast, of course.

Last Thing At Night

epare your body for the long overnight fast by givinga little something to work with. A good combination

this purpose is to mix a scoop of whey protein inth a small glass of milk.

hey is what’s known as a "fast" protein, meaningat it’s digested quickly, while milk protein (casein) ishat’s known as a "slow" protein, meaning it’s

gested relatively slowly. At night, you want your otein to be metabolized slowly so that your bodyts a more even supply over the course of the night.

mixing "fast" and "slow" proteins, you get thenefits of the higher-quality whey with the slower gestion time of the milk.

In Between Meals

quick protein shake can be a great snack intween meals. It helps keep your body supplied withotein all day long. This is especially useful if yound to have long periods of time in-between meals. Ituld mean the difference between losing muscle andilding or keeping muscle!

With Meals

king a protein supplement with meals is a handyy to increase the protein content of a meal. This is



rfect for when you make a meal that is somewhatw in protein.

"Greens" Supplements

e reality is that probably 99% of us don’t get

ough veggies in our diets. So unless you’re gettingservings of fruits and veggies per day, greensoducts should make up the difference. Like aultivitamin, these helps supply the nutrients the your dy isn’t getting in the food that you’re eating.

ese "greens" products contain powderedncentrates of a huge variety of healthy fruits,getables and other plants, giving you a niceectrum of a variety of nutrients.

u can pick up "greens" supplements at most healthod stores. Greens+ is an excellent brand. I’ve alsoed Barley Green in the past, with excellent resultsd stores like Trader Joes and Whole Foods willve their own store brands as well.

hen To Take It:"greens" supplement can be taken every day. It’stritional insurance that can really make a differenceyour results and your health.

Fish Oil/Essential Fatty Acids

sential Fatty Acids are so-named because it’sential to get some in your diet. Without them,

alth and body composition will suffer. Unfortunately typical North American diet is low in Linoleic Acid

n omega 6 fat) and in Alpha Linolenic Acid (anmega 3 fat); therefore we typically have to seekditional supplementation.

re’s the other thing...even if the EFA content of theet SEEMS fine, the all-important ratio of omega 3



s to omega 6 fats is often wrong, with far too muchmega 6 and far too few omega 3s.

hile the omega 3 fat Alpha Linolenic Acid isportant in the diet, the downstream metabolicoducts of ALA (DHA and EPA) are powerful fatsponsible for things like: increased metabolic rate,proved fat burning, increased carbohydrate storagemuscle, better glucose and insulin tolerance,

duced blood lipids, reduced risk of plateletgregation, cardiovascular disease, cancer, andabetes.

get your DHA and EPA, you’ve gotta go with fishor krill oil. There are lots of fish oils and krill oils on market to choose from and manufacturers make it

nfusing to decide which is best. Quality makes aUGE difference with fish oil and krill oil, though, so Ifinitely don’t recommend the cheap Sam’s Clublk bin types of fish oil.

A’s are EXCELLENT anti-inflammatories and with hard glute training you’re doing on this program,

at can make a BIG difference in how you feel after

ur workout sessions. This is a highly recommendedpplement.

hen To Take It:

u can take EFA’s every day. This is a supplementt is constantly useful.

ike to recommend people "load up" on fish oil

pplements, taking about 6 to 10 grams a day for thest week, in order to saturate their body with theA’s. After that, you can back to half or less of thata maintenance dose, in order to maintain levels in

ur body.

Creatine Monohydrate

eatine Monohydrate is an excellent muscle-buildingpplement. It is completely safe to use for both





ersonally take regular, plain creatine monohydrate. It excellent results with the no-frills version. There a number of supplements on the market that claimtake creatine supplementation to the next level. Myggestion is to try regular creatine the first timeough so you have a basis to compare to. Then tryfancier stuff. If you find you get enough results to

tify the higher cost, go for it!

Glutamine

utamine is a nonessential amino acid in the bodyt it is also the most abundant amino acid in thedy. Around 50% of your free amino acid pool (howuch protein is circulating around in your oodstream and the rest of your body at any oneme) consists of glutamine.

king extra glutamine has a variety of beneficialects on your body.

A dosage of 2 grams on an empty stomach has

been shown to increase the level of circulatingGrowth Hormone in the body. This is goodbecause Growth Hormone promotes musclegrowth and fat loss.

Another effect is that the body does not have tobreak down other amino acids to makeglutamine. Glutamine is a popular amino in thebody and if glutamine levels are low, the bodywill break down muscle protein to synthesize it.The extra glutamine you take in supplementform helps support muscle growth if taken indoses of 5 grams or more at a time (this largeamount is necessary to get enough past thedigestive system to be of value - the gut sucksup glutamine like a sponge).

Other effects of glutamine include immunesystem boosting, improved recovery, cellvolumization and enhancement of glycogen



replenishment.

e best times to take glutamine are first thing in theorning, right after a workout and right before sleep.

Dosages can vary from 2 grams (minimum) toabout 10 to 15 grams or more. The larger doses should be used immediately after aworkout to promote anabolism and minimizecatabolism (muscle breakdown).

hen To Take It:

utamine should be taken after every workout. It willp your body recover quickly from the hard trainingu are putting yourself through.

Also, glutamine works ina similar fashion tocreatine by carryingwater into the musclecells as it getsabsorbed. This cellvolumizing effectdramatically enhancesmuscle cell growth.

side benefit to taking plenty of glutamine is thesitive effects it has on strengthening the immunestems. Your body will be pushed with theseograms and this will tend to reduce immune systemnctioning. Glutamine can help keep you from gettingk during this time. Very effective!

utamine is easiest to take in powder form.psules are available but you need to take so manythem to get a decent effect, it’s not really worth it.gular glutamine powder should work perfectly.


tell you right now, there is nothing glamorous about



king minerals and vitamins. You will NEVER see al-page ad in a magazine for these :)

t simple, basic nutrients like minerals and vitaminsvery important for EVERYBODY who trains with

ights. I’m going to give you a few of the major onesu need to be aware of and be sure you’re gettingough of. A full discussion of all the major mineralsd vitamins you need is well beyond on the scope of s book but the ones I’m going to mention can make

BIG difference in your training and FAST.

u can get pretty much any of these things at anyalth food store or GNC (General Nutritionnter)...even local drugstores and grocery stores. I

efer to buy online and eliminate the middleman. It

eps prices down quite a lot.Calcium

lcium makes up theajority of the mineraleight in your body (your nes). It’s VERY importanttake supplemental calciumyour body simply doesn’tsorb it well from mostods. You may drink a lot of lk, but not much of thatcium is actually gettingsorbed by your body.

eally, you should take in about 1000 mg to 1500 mgcalcium per day. This will support bone health and

host of other processes that calcium is required for cluding blood clotting, nerve function and musclentraction). Without enough calcium, you will bempromising your long-term health. If you don’tovide enough in your diet, your body will PULL ITUT OF YOUR BONES to get it.

lcium excretion is actually INCREASED whenu’re eating a high-protein diet, making it doublyportant for those looking to increase muscle mass





e easiest way to go with magnesium is to justrchase it in a formula combined with Calcium. Thaty, you can just take one pill instead of doubling up.e citrate form of magnesium is one of the better sorbed versions.

Zinc

nc is another critical mineral in the body that, likeagnesium, is required for many of the chemicalactions and processes in your body. Zinc acts as aalyst in many of these reactions. Zinc also plays atical role in the structure of proteins and cellembranes as well as being important for immunestem function and anabolic hormone productiong. testosterone).

ost multivitamins have some level of zinc in them butu may benefit from taking a 25 mg to 50 mg zincpplement on it’s own. DO NOT go above 150 mgr day for more than a few days. Zinc is one mineralhere it is possible to get adverse reactions at aatively low dose. More is NOT better in this case.

Vitamin Ctamin C is another totally unglamorous supplementt can have tremendous effects on your training and

alth and is a MUST HAVE, in my opinion. Themount necessary to stave off deficiency is about 60g per day. The amount for optimal health andrformance is MUCH greater than that, especiallyhen you’re training your muscles hard.

Vitamin C is an essentialcomponent in the synthesisof collagen, which basicallyis what connective tissue ismade of!

Without enough Vitamin C,

collagen formation will slowdown. Personally, I take about3,000 to 5,000 mg per day of it.



The good part about Vitamin Cis that it’s water-soluble. Thismeans excess levels are easily

d quickly flushed out of the body.

ne of the other important functions of Vit. C is as antioxidant. It’s very effective at quashing freedicals, which is a BIG concern when training hard.prevent cell damage, antioxidant intake is vital.

d then we can’t forgot the effects of Vit. Cpplementation on cortisol levels. Cortisol is theess hormone associated with stress and muscleeakdown. Three 1000 mg doses of Vitamin Cring the day can decrease cortisol levels veryectively, which will help a LOT with building the

utes.

stly, Vit. C taken before a workout (500 mg to00 mg) can actually help reduce musclereness.

Pre and Post Workoutupplements

e-workout and post-workout supplementation canake a BIG difference in your recovery and your ults. Good pre-workout nutrition can give your bodyupply of nutrients to prevent the catabolic state thatu normally get into during training. Post-workout

trition helps with faster recovery.nically enough, research has demonstrated that theios of carbs to protein in pre and post-workoutdings should be the SAME for optimum results.

A Summary of How To TakeAll These Supplements

ving all these supplements is one thing - taking all



them properly is another! Here’s a quick guide top you get it right.

turally, you don’t NEED to take ALL of thesepplements to get results with the program. I would

the very least suggest a good multivitamind a protein supplement. These are the basics,my opinion.

nce you’ve got your basics taken care of, you canrt try some of the other supplements to see howy work for you and add to your results.

ttom line, you’ll get better results from your trainingd nutrition if you focus your supplementation on

UPPORTING the process rather than on havingpplements trying to BE the driving force behind your ults.

pplements won’t lift that barbell for you. And liftingt barbell is what REALLY drives your resultsward to build the glutes!



Glute Exercise Index

oper xercisechniquen save

ou literallyears of asted timendustration.y efficientlyrgeting your glute muscles, you will get greater sults for the effort you put in. This means a bigger

utt, faster!

hese exercises are divided into three main

tegories, divided by training level: beginner,termediate, and advanced. I’ve also included a fewdominal/core training exercises as well...the tighter

our midsection, the bigger your butt will look and theronger you’ll be in your glute exercises!

any of the beginner exercises are done with justour bodyweight for resistance. The intermediate anddvanced exercises incorporate greater addedsistance and difficulty.

his section contains only exercises. For instructionsn how to incorporate these exercises into targetedute training programs, visit the Program Index.



Beginner ExercisesBodyweight Squats Lunges

Cable Glute Extensions DumbbellDeadlifts/Squats

Step-Ups Glute Push-UpsGoblet Lunges Goblet Side-to-Sides

Incline Dumbbell Lunges Kneeling DumbbellGlute Extensions

Dumbbell Split Squats One Dumbbell SplitSquats

Step-Back Lunges Over and BackBench Step-Ups

Squat Machine Step-Backs

Sideways TreadmillWalking

Glute Extensions on LegExtension Machine

Side Dumbbell Hip Abductions

Intermediate ExercisesWalking Lunges Barbell SquatsOne Leg BenchSquats

Hack Lunges

Side Lunges Towel Step-BackLunges/Squats

Bar Gripping SplitSquats


Barbell GluteExtensions on theFloor

Barbell Glute Extensions

on a Bench



- -Legged Squats

Dolly Lunges

Incline BarbellLunges

Goblet Side Lunges

One Arm GrippingDumbbell Squats

Leg Press Glute Kickbacks

Towel Pistols Step-Ups to Step BackLunges

Leaning One-Legged Squats

Leaning One-LeggedSquats on a CableMachine

Advanced ExercisesBench/Ball BulgarianSplit Squats

One Legged Squats

One DumbbellBulgarian SplitSquats

Deadlifts

Stiff LeggedDeadlifts

Sumo Deadlifts

Two Bench SplitSquats

Barbell Split Squats

Deficit Incline BenchLunges

One Leg Bench BalancingDumbbell Squats

Sideways BarbellEnd Lunges

Wide Stance FrontSquats

Sumo Stiff-LeggedDeadlifts

Toes-Up Sumo Deadlifts

Wide Stance Toes-

Up Barbell Squats

Wide Stance Dumbbell

Stiff-Legged Deadlifts



Core ExercisesTrunk Twists With a Twist Curl SquatsLower Ab Flattener Leg Raises



Bodyweight Squats

he squat is one of the most basic movements for uilding the glutes. There are many variations to theuat. This version is done without any added weightsbuild a basic level of strength and get a feel for theuatting movement.

you are first starting out with Squats, do themolding onto something solid that won’t move like ailing or chair back (not a light chair with wheels).on’t use any weight until you can do full rangepetitions.

Place your feet aboutshoulder width apart.

Hold onto something in front

of you for support if youneed it.

Keeping your torso verticaland a slight arch in your lower back, start themovement by bending theknees.

Go only as far down as youfeel comfortable when firststarting out. If you can godown until your thighs are

just below parallel, do so.This is the full range goal.



Using leg power, pushyourself back up to thestart position. Use your hands for balance onlyunless you absolutely need to pull yourself up.

Contrary to some people’s belief, Squats donewith proper form are not bad for your knees.They can, in fact, strengthen them.

The pictures tothe leftdemonstrate how

to do theexercise withoutholding ontoanything for support.

Notice how her arms are held straight out in front at the bottomof the movement.This helps with balance at the bottom.

umbbell Squats

This variation is known as the Dumbbell Squat.

Hold one dumbbell in front of you and squatdown.

Be sure to keep looking straight forward andkeep your lower back arched.

Instead of a dumbbell, you can use nearly anyform of resistance, including filled-up milk jugsor a bag filled with heavy objects.



ommon Errors:

Leaning too far forward

ways strive to maintain aasonably vertical torso. This willke pressure off your lower back.eep looking up during the

xercise and maintain an arch inur lower back.

Bouncing out of the bottom

ever bounce out of the bottom as this can damageour knees. The lower you get, the slower you shouldo.

Letting the knees bow in or out

your knees are not tracking straight during thexercise, there is potential for injury. There are ways

remedy these problems.

The first is to squat in frontof a mirror and look at your knees while ou are doin



it.

If your knees bow in, tie atowel or belt around your thighs when your legs arestraight in the start position.

Push outward against the towel to keep it therethroughout the movement.

If your knees bow in, the belt will drop.

To fix the bowing out problem, squat with asoccer ball or volleyball between your knees (itdoesn’t necessarily have to be a ball - it couldbe a bag of dirty laundry as long as the distanceis right).

Keep it pinned there.

If your knees bow out, the ball drops.

ricks:

Look up

ook slightly up while doing squats. This will helpep your torso vertical. If you look down, your headill go forward. Your lower back area mimics your

ck area. If your neck is flexed (as when lookingown), your lumbar (lower back) area will try to flex (itould be extended in an arched position).

Stretch the calves

you find yourself leaning over too far forward when

ou are squatting, calf flexibility may be a problem.Work on that before each squat session and stretchhen workin calves. A ood wa to stretch our calf



to stand on the edge of a stair with only the balls of ur feet resting on it and let your heels drop down.

Adding resistance

As you get stronger with squats, don’t use thesupport anymore. When you can do good, full-range reps without the support, you can startusing weight.

For weight, use two duffel bags (evenly loaded)or two milk jugs or another form of resistance.Hold them at your sides and squat.

You may also choose to use a backpack filledwith heavy things such as books. Be aware thatthis will throw your center of gravity backwardsand affect your balance.

Squatting with weight calls for different balancethan squatting without weight. Work your wayinto it slowly.

Plié/Frog squats

nother good way to hit the glutes when doing theee squat is the Plié squat, also known as a Frogquat. Set your feet out side to the sides with your es angled fairly far out. Squat down as you normallyould, squeezing your glutes hard.





Lunges

he Lunge is one of the best glute-building exercisesexistence. It is simple to do and can be done

ytime, anyplace.

involves balance and coordination, which is veryeful for sports as well as muscle development. The

umbbell version of the Lunge is the easiest to startith. You may be using other forms of resistancether than dumbbells like two milk jugs or something.

old two dumbbells in your hands by your sides (youn also do this exercise without any weight the first

me you try it - in fact, I recommend it).

ep forward with one leg about 2 to 3 feet or so, withour heel down first...you’ll have to determine the stepstance that feels comfortable to you. It should be aedium step... not way far out but not close in.





ush up and back to a full standing position with bothet together and repeat with the other leg or do all theps with one leg then switch.



here are several other variations of the basic lungeou can try. This next one has you stepping out to thede at an angle then lunging. This hits the gluteusedius and minimus (the smaller muscles on thedes of the butt).

When you do this, make sure and keep your torso



cing forward as you step to the side. If you turn your rso to the same angle then you’re just doing agular lunge but turning your body to do it.



hen step down to the other side.



he next version is a cross-over lunge. You’re goingstep forward across your body and into the lunge

osition.



nally, if you would like to get a bit more range of otion when doing Lunges, you can do these on aep platform or other elevated surface (that’s solid

nd stable).

he movement is exactly the same only you’ll beepping forward onto that elevated surface. This



ves you a few inches more range of motion beforeur back knee touches the ground and stops you.

he Split Squat:

ou can also do a variation of this exercise withoutming up to a full standing position each time - this



called a Split Squat. Not only is this more efficientr keeping tension on the muscles, stepping forwardn stress your knee if you step forward too heavily.mply do all your reps on one leg then switch legs

nd do all your reps on the other leg.

ommon Errors:

Leaning forward on theay down

his can cause you to lose your alance and placesnnecessary stress on your ack.

Always strive to keep your upper body vertical.

Do lunges in a mirror or in front of a bar or tableas indicated above and be sure to focus onsitting back during the descent.

Not placing the feet slightly apart

aving your feet in a straight line invites balanceoblems. Keep them a little apart (separated

orizontally so that they’re not directly in line with eachher) to widen your base of support.

Dropping down too quickly

Dropping quickly not only takestension off the legs, it can createbalance problems when you tryto reverse direction. It can also



increase the stress on your knees.

4. Letting the forward kneedrift too far forward

our front knee should not go far beyond the toes of our foot. A little is just fine but try not to go too far yond it.

Hitting your back knee on the floor

his takes the tension off the muscles, reducing thefectiveness of the exercise. Touching the ground

ith it is ok, just don’t bang it against the floor.

ricks:

Separate your feet horizontally

on’t place both your feet in araight line. Keep them horizontallyparated by about six inches toep your balance. Doing thiscreases your base of support andakes your body more stable.

o get into position try thischnique.

Stand with both feet side-by-side.

Now take a small step of about six inches toone side.

This is horizontal separation.Step forward maintaining that horizontal



separation.

Blocking your upper body

you have a problem with your upper ody drifting too far forward duringe movement, use a bar or table toop your forward progress. Put your ont foot heel directly under the bar

table edge and a lunge in thatosition. The edge of the bar or tableill prevent you from leaning forwardy blocking your body–your stomach will run into it

fore you can lean forward.Hang on

When first starting Lunges, hang onto something solidhelp your balance.

Use no weight.

Gradually work your way up to holding on withonly one hand then hold a dumbbell whileholding on with one hand then do freestanding.

If you use only one dumbbell, alternate the sideyou hold it on to stress the muscles differently.

Flat shoesWear flat-soled shoes when doing Lunges (such as

nnis or other court shoes).

This will help with your balance.

With running shoes, you have half an inch or more of cushioning upon which to destabilizeyourself.



Also, be aware if you perform lunges on thickcarpet that this will greatly increase theinstability of the exercise. A solid surface is your best bet.



Cable Glute Extensions

he Cable Glute Extension focuses on getting a hardntraction in the glute muscles. It is an easyovement to learn and does not require greatrength to get started.

he cable glute extension is an good isolation (singleint) exercise. It allows you to get a good squeeze onour glute muscles at the top of the movement.

his exercise is done using the low pulley machinend an ankle strap.

Start by attaching an ankle strap onto your ankle. The metal loop should be on the front of your ankle because you’ll be exertingbackwards force.

If you have two ankle straps (recommended) putone on each leg. This makes things a lot moreefficient because you then don’t have toconstantly switch the one ankle strap from oneleg to the other. If you do only have one anklestrap, get ready to do a lot of switching.

Set the weight fairly light to start. Reach downand clip the hook onto the low pulley cable.

Take a step back so that your leg is forward of your body.

Now, keeping your leg stiff but slightly bent,extend your leg behind you using glute power.

You should feel a strong squeezing in your gluteas you push your leg behind your body.



Squeeze it hard for a moment or two then lower the weight slowly back to the start position.Don’t let the weight plates touch at the bottomand repeat the movement.

bduction...Hitting the Gluteus Medius andMinimus

he major function of the gluteus medius and minimususcles is abduction. This means moving the leg

way from the centerline of the body. Adduction is the

t of bringing the leg in towards the centerline of theody (you can perform adduction with the cable setupwell).

he leg harness and low pulley can be used tofectively work the abduction function of the glutes.

With the leg harness attached to the low pulley,stand sideways to the machine.



If you have the harness attached to your rightleg, stand with your left side towards the pulley.

The cable should cross in front of your supportleg.

Take a step to the right to get tension on thecable.

Let your right leg cross over in front of your rightleg a little then move it back out towards theright as far as possible.

Lower it slowly and repeat.

ou can also perform this abduction exercise with theble running behind your support leg. This will hit theutes from a bit a different angle as you’ll need to beaning forward a bit while doing it.



so, you won’t be able to bring it up quite as highcause of the less favorable leverage the glutesve in this position.

ommon Errors:

Moving too quickly

s with any movement that focuses on the contractionthe muscle, moving the weight too quickly can

ffuse the tension you put on the muscle. This results

less effective work for the muscle. If you don’tueeze the glutes on purpose with this exercise, youon’t get nearly as much out of it.

ou have probably noticed people doing this exercisey simply swinging their leg backwards and forwardsry quickly and with little weight. This is just simply

ot effective and can place unnecessary stress on thewer back at the bottom of the movement.



ricks:

Squeeze the glutes

the top of the movement, when you’ve brought your g back as far you can, hold it there for a fewconds and squeeze hard. The best part of this

xercise is the squeeze at the top. By holding thatere for a few seconds, you’re glute will get a lotore work.

Bend over at the hips

you bend over at the hips while doing this exercise,ou will increase the useful range of motion of thexercise and put a greater stretch on the glutes at theottom of the movement.

e sure to keep your lower back arched and tight and

at you bend over at the hips, not the waist. It is amall but important difference. Bending at the hips ishat puts a greater stretch on your glutes because of ow they attach to your hip bones. Imagine as thoughe pivot point for your bend is in the center of your ute muscles rather than in your waist.

Stand on a weight plateou will notice, if you do this exercise with your pport leg on the floor, that your working foot keepstting the ground. To avoid this problem, set a 25

ound weight plate on the ground to stand on (flatde up). This will elevate your body a little, keeping

our working leg off the ground. You can also use aep riser or any other stable block.



DumbbellDeadlifts/Squats

he deadlift is a great exercise...the squat is a greatxercise...this one is an exercise that goes equally byese two different names. I’ve seen it called a

umbbell deadlift and a dumbbell squat. And to beonest, it can be used in both cases with equalcuracy.

s a VERY simple one to do and using dumbbellske this gives you a couple of advantages over arbell squats.

You can go all the way down without having to worryout the bar on your back. Since dumbbells arelatively small in size, you CAN go down far and get

big range of motion.Because you’re using dumbbells, you’ll never get

uck under a bar so you can really push your legsARD. Just set the dumbbells down when you’reasted and you’re set.

Because you’re using dumbbells, the optimumosition for the feet is going to be right beside eachher...and I recommend placing your feet nice andose - maybe an inch or two apart, to keep your nees tracking properly.

o without further ado, the dumbbell squat/deadlift -

ll it a squeadlift (or don’t).ere’s the start position - dumbbells beside your feet





epeat.

hat’s the exercise! To maximize the effect of thisxercise on the glutes, try to focus on sitting back a bit

d pushing with your heels. This will help fire up theutes.

art with a moderate weight but don’t be shy to work to some heavy dumbbells for this exercise.



Step-Ups

he Step-Up can be done on anything ranging fromairs to chairs to benches or even boxes. Basically,nything that is solid, has a flat top and will hold your eight will work provided the height is reasonablerom six inches to around 2 feet). The lower the step,e easier the exercise will be, obviously.

art doing this exercise without any resistance. Asou progress and get stronger, you can move tolding onto 2 dumbbells as you step up.

and in front of your stepping box/bench.

ace one foot on top of it then step all the way up onp of it. Try to focus on pushing with your heel to

tivate the glutes more. As you step up, help withour bottom leg to push off the ground...this isn’t ane-le ed s uat and ou want to use both le s to



complish the step up.

ace your other foot down on top of the box/benchhen you come to the top (you can also keep it up ine air to keep tension on the working leg, but it’s notrong to step completely up to keep your balance).

ow ste back down and switch le s.



dding Resistance:

he step-up above was shown without holdingeights. You can also hold a pair of dumbbells whileoing the step-up exercise in order to increase

sistance. The performance of the exercise is exactlye same, only now you’re heavier :)





ush off some with your bottom leg, pushing off tooard will decrease the amount of tension you place onour glutes. Your working leg is the one that is on thench, not the one that is on the floor.

Using a platform that is too high

too lowOptimal platform heightdepends greatly on your level of fitness.

For some people, a six-inchhigh platform is the perfectplace to start. Others may need somethinghigher in order to benefit from the exercise.

If you use a bench that is too high or too low, youmay either not get much out of the exercise or itmay be too difficult for you to do properly.

The picture to the right demonstrates the start

position using the cross rail of a power rack.The height is approximately 8 inches.

Generally speaking, the higher you can step upto, the greater the effect it will have on the glutes- they thrive on a good stretch and greater rangeof motion.

ricks:

Keep your push-off leg off the bench

When you come to the top of the step-up, instead of acing your push-off foot on the bench, keep it up ine air. This will kee the tension on the workin le



ore.

Keep your push-off leg off the bench

you get ambitious, you can try holding onto 2umbbells and climbing a flight of stairs. Try to focusn pushing up with your heels as you step up. Tryimbing 2 stairs at a time as you get stronger.

Balance yourself

If you have trouble doing thisexercise freestanding, you canvery easily place the benchbeside a wall or other solidsupport object.

Just place one hand on theobject and use it to keep your balance.

This will help you to get more out of the exerciseif your balance is not the greatest.

Also, it is useful for those who have goodbalance but get wobbly towards the end of aset.



Glute/Hip Extensions, a.k.a.Glute Push-Ups

he Glute Push-Up is a very simple exercise to do. Ita good introduction to direct glute work and has the

dvantage of being a bodyweight exercise you cano anywhere you go!

Lie down flat on the floor with your knees bentand your feet flat on the floor, placed fairly closeto your glutes. You can have your arms at your sides or up beside your head.

To execute, simply push your pelvis directlyupwards towards the ceiling making your bodystraight from your knees to your shoulders.

Squeeze your glutes hard then lower yourself

back down. Don’t rest your glutes on the floor atthe bottom. Lightly graze the floor then continueback up with the next rep.

ommon Errors:

Movin too uickl or too forcefull



s with most glute movement, doing them too quicklyill recruit other muscles or simply dissipate thension in the glutes. This exercise is no exception. Inct, if you use any momentum with this exercise at all,ou will probably hardly feel a thing. So make sure

nd use a controlled movement and squeeze theutes hard on each rep.

Resting between reps

nless you absolutely need to, don’t rest your glutesn the floor between reps. This will remove thentinuous tension that is critical to feeling this

xercise. Keep that butt off the floor!

ricks:

Push with your heels

s you push your hips up, try to push more with your els. You may even go so far as to have only your els on the floor. Pushing with your heels helps torect more tension through the glutes.

Set your knees out

ideefore you start thexercise, splay your kneesut wide to the sides. Thisanges the angle of pull on the glute muscles. It alsocreases the work done by the gluteus minimus and

edius muscles. They are primarily abductorsmuscle that move the thighs away from your body)nd lacin our knees out wide like this an les the



ighs so that there is an abduction component to thexercise rather than simply extension (bringing theighs straight back).

Set your knees together

ace your knees very close together at the start of e movement. This will also change the angle of pulln the glute muscles. It will also increase the activity of e adductor muscles of the inner thighs.

Alternate knees in and knees out

his is an excellent method for keeping tension on theutes. Do one rep with your knees in then do one repith your knees out. Keep the legs moving through oute set.

he real trick to getting this one burning is to onlyme down a few inches from the top. This is knowna partial movement. This will really keep tension on

e glute muscles.

One leg at a time

s you get stronger and more advanced with thexercise, you can try doing them one leg at a time.

et your one foot about even with the midline of your ody so that you are balanced. Either cross the other g over top of your working leg or hold it out straightarder). Push yourself up as you normally would.

Weighted Glute Push-ps

When you find you need



ore weight for thisxercise, you can holdeight on top of your pelvis. This increasedsistance can be in the form of a weight plate, a

umbbell, books, or pretty much anything that can beld in that position!

Exercise Ball Glute Push-Ups

s alternative, you can also do Glute Push-Ups withur feet on an exercise ball. To do this, simply lie one floor and place the soles of your feet directly onp of the ball.

o the Glute Push-Up movement in this position.

he instability of the ball will dramatically increase thetensity of the exercise as you must not only do theovement but balance yourself on the ball as well.



Goblet Lunges andStep-Back Lunges

he Lunge and it’s cousin the Step-Back Lunge are auple of great lower body exercises...very simple to

o and very effective. The lunge itself is a very basicuman movement and it’s one you should definitely beaining.

his version of the lunge has you holding a single

umbbell in a "goblet" position...dumbbell heldrtically at your chest with your hands underneath thep set of plates like you’re cradling a big goblet in

our hands.

his position makes the exercise more challenging bycluding more core and upper body musculature in

e movement. Not only are you doing the lunge, butou’re supporting the dumbbell rather than letting itst hang.

he beauty of the goblet lunge is that it literallyORCES you to sit back into the lunge. Sometimesere is a tendency for people to lean forward with this

xercise...when you’re holding a dumbbell at your est, if you lean forward, you fall over. When you’re

olding it at your chest, you have to actively leanACK to counterbalance the weight, making thexercise that much more effective for hitting the glutesnd thighs and taking stress off the knees.

he first step is to get the dumbbell in position on your hest. I generally just pick it up with hand then set it on



y thigh on end to get my hands under it, but feel freeexperiment with your own methods.

ow, holding the dumbbell just under your chin, begin

e lunge by stepping one leg forward.



ome all the way down until your knee touches theoor.

hen push back up to a standing position, then do the



me with the other leg. Step forward.

nd come all the way down until your knee touchese floor.



When you’ve done your reps, set the dumbbell downn the floor and you’re done.

o that’s the "regular" lunge. Here’s the step-backrsion. This one is actually easier on the knees if you

o have knee issues because instead of steppingrward (which can put some pressure on the

neecap), you step backwards.

o same position with the dumbbell and in a standingosition.

ake a big step back and start to lower yourself down.



ome all the way down until you knee touches theound.

hen push back up to a standing position.



ow do the same with the other leg.

gain, this goblet positioning helps force you to keepour torso upright, which can be extremely valuable,



pecially for beginning trainers who are new tonging (good for everybody to remember, though).



Goblet Side-to-Sides

his exercise is very similar to a Side Lunge in thatou’re moving in a lateral fashion, which hits not onlye gluteus maximus muscles but the smaller gluteusedius and minimus muscles that give added widththe glute area.

his version is easier than the Side Lunge becauseou’re not actually stepping out to the sides...you’reaying in that wide-leg position and just moving your pper body back and forth from side to side. This issier on the knees and an easier exercise to start

ut with in working the lateral movement pattern.

o start with your hands cradled under the plates of aumbbell, as in the picture. It’s called a "goblet"osition because how the dumbbell resembles aoblet being held under the plates. Set your feet outide to the sides.



ow squat down to one side, bringing your torso over at leg.

ush yourself back up to almost standing then comeown over the other leg. Your feet stay in the same

osition while you’re doing this.



o back and forth like this for the set.

ou can also perform a variation of this exercisehere you don’t come up to a standing position butay down in the squat and move your torso

orizontally from side to side. This keeps tension one glutes and legs and makes the exercise more





Incline Dumbbell Lunges

he Lunge is a great exercise for working the thighsnd glutes but it has one major problem. Every timeou step forward with the dumbbells in your hands,me of the force of the weights and your bodyifting forward goes into your front knee.

s not so bad if you’re using lighter weights, but it canfect your knees even then. If you’re using heavyeights, this force increases quite a bit. The force of ch step forward gives you potentially damagingress without any additional benefits over a splituat type of movement.

What this variation of the Dumbbell Lunge does for ou is take the forward shearing force off the knee ate bottom and keeps it on the thighs and glutes,here it belongs.

ecause instead of stepping forward onto the flatound, you’re going to plant your front foot on thece of a decline bench (it appears to be an inclinehen you’re doing the exercise, which is why I called itat) so that you get a direct push back instead of an

ngled push back.

his difference means the force to the knee isREATLY reduced.

o basically, grab a couple of dumbbells and stand inont of a decline bench (I call this exercise an Incline

ench Lunge because even though bench is on acline, your foot is on an incline). Make sure the



nch isn’t going to slide forward if you put anyessure on it. Set your front foot on the face of thench, about halfway up, dumbbell or dumbbells

anging at your sides.

hat’s your start position. Now move forward into thenge position:

ecause the bench is elevated, you can go nice andep into the lunge position (more so than if your frontot was flat on the ground).

his allows you to really get down and work theute on that side - the greater the stretch, the



eater the glutes will be involved.

ush yourself back up to the start position, keepingur front foot on the bench still - it’s better for balancekeep the front foot on.

nce you’ve done your reps on the one leg, switch toe other leg and do your reps.

When you do the next set, start with the leg you didn’tart with on the first set. This will help to keep thingsven in terms of strength.

ne thing to note, when you’re setting yourself up for e exercise, if you place your left foot on the bench,

our right foot should be about 4 to 6 inches to the

ght of the centerline of the bench. Basically, don’t setour right foot directly in line behind the left - you needkeep some horizontal separation between the two

et so you don’t fall over.



KneelingDumbbell

Glute Extensions

his exercise is essentially hip extension (which isinging your leg up and backwards). The movementelf is similar to the Butt Blaster machine only youill be using a dumbbell for resistance instead andon’t be pushing with your foot on a plate. Kneel

own on the ground or on a mat or carpet and set aumbbell in the hook behind your knee.

ring your upper body down forward, placing bothur hands on the ground.



eeping the dumbbell clenched firmly in place behindour knee by keeping your leg bent, raise your leg upnd back, squeezing your glute hard.

aise your thigh up as high as you can. Be sure you

ep the dumbbell firmly gripped behind your knee byeping your knee bent as much as you can and



cked into position. If you feel it start to slip, lower ur thigh down immediately.

o all your reps on one leg then switch to the other g.

o make this exercise a bit more comfortable, youn wrap a towel around the dumbbell handle or put it



n the back of your knee or wear long pants whileaining.

ommon Errors:

Using momentum

you turn this exercise into a fast, pumpingovement, you won’t get nearly as much out of it. Youay even lose control of the dumbbell. As in most

xercises, a controlled movement is always best.

Not pinching the dumbbell hard enoughorder to keep the dumbbell from falling, you must

nch it fairly solidly behind your knee. You definitelyon’t want the dumbbell slipping out as you bring it up.eep your leg bent as much as possible. You will feelslipping before it falls out so stay aware.

ricks:

Adjusting your bodyngle

ou can change the stressou put on your glutesmewhat by changing the

ngle of your upper body.

For instance, if you set your hands on a chair or table, your upper body will be more vertical.

This will make the exercise somewhat easier.



You can also set your elbows on the floor tomake your upper body decline more.

This will increase the range of motion of theexercise.

Squeeze at the top

he most useful part of this exercise is the contractionthe muscle at the top. Hold that position for a few

conds, squeeze hard, then lower slowly.



Dumbbell SplitSquats

y VERY favorite leg exercise for really hitting theutes and thighs HARD is not a new exercise...it may

ot even seem to you to be all that great of anxercise at first glance. But when I tell you how to do itOR REAL, you’re going to LOVE the results you getith it.

he Dumbbell Split Squat looks almost exactly like ancomplete dumbbell lunge. In fact, you may have

ven done it before thinking itWAS a Dumbbell Lunge.

he big difference is this...when you do a regular umbbell lunge, you start in a standing position

olding two dumbbells in your hands. You take a steprward with one leg then drop down into a lunge

osition. From there, you push yourself all the wayack up to the standing position then repeat with theher leg (stepping forward then pushing all the wayack up).

When you do a Dumbbell Split Squat, youTART in the split position (which looks like theottom of the lunge) and STAY there. You justove your body up and down, keeping your feet

xactly where they are on the floor. No standingp, no stepping forward.

his is a key difference. It takes away many of thealance problems you find with lunges...it also takes





eep your abs and lower back tight and make sureou keep an arch in your lower back here. Leanrward and reach down and grasp the two

umbbells. Bring your torso back to vertical, pickingp the dumbbells off the ground.

ow straighten your back and push yourself up withour left thigh. You’re now in the start position of thexercise.



ow come down in the lunge position (only without thenging, since you’re already in the split leg position).

hen push back up to the top position.

s important to keep your upper body VERTICAL asou do this exercise. DO NOT allow your body to leanrward as you do the exercise. Imagine it as a



raight up and down movement and that you’re sittingack as you do it. This visualization will help keep youom leaning forward.

so, to maximize work on the glutes, try to focus onushing with your HEEL as you do the exercise. Thisill activate the glutes more effectively. If you pushith the balls of your feet, the quads will get moreork.

e sure you don’t utilize a forward and back, lungingpe of movement, as may be the tendency if you’reed to doing regular lunges. This is very much an upd down type of movement.

erform your target number of reps with your left legrward. Push yourself hard! If you have to bail out one exercise, all you need to do is set the dumbbells

n the ground at the bottom.

this point, you can either take a rest period or mmediately switch to the other leg in front - I prefer too right to the other leg in front with no break. Do asany reps as you can with the other leg now.



ote that you most likely will not get as many reps withe other leg... no matter which leg is in front, the rear g is also doing a lot of work. So if you start with theft leg in front, the right leg is still doing work. Whenou switch legs, the right leg will already be tired frome previous set.



ecause of this, it’s important to always switch whichg you start with on alternating sets. Start with your ft foot forward on your first set, then on your next set,art with your right foot forward. This will ensure aalanced workload.

his exercise allows you to basically "leave it on theoor." Because you can just set the dumbbells on theoor, you can push your glutes and legs to the pointhere they can hardly keep you standing.



One Dumbbell Split Squats

he dumbbell split squat is one of my favorite legercises. You can push your legs to the maximum

nd never have to worry about re-racking the weightske you do with barbell leg exercises.

the two dumbbell version, you carry two dumbbellsmakes good sense!). In this version, you have two

oices - carry the dumbbell on the INSIDE of your orking leg (e.g. right leg forward, hold the dumbbellyour LEFT hand) or carry the dumbbell OUTSIDEur working leg (hold the dumbbell in the right hand).

ere’s what the versions look like:

ight leg forward - hold dumbbell in left hand.





eft leg forward - hold dumbbell in left hand.



he value of this exercise is twofold (always wanted toe that word in a sentence).

rst, you put more tension on either the inside or utside aspect of the glutes and thighs, depending onhether you’re holding the dumbbell on the inside or utside of the legs.

econd, the uneven weight load puts torque on your re, which works to strengthen your core in a veryactical fashion, i.e. picking up something up in an

neven load. VERY practical for sure.

hird (and that makes it threefold, I guess), it reallyorks your balance as well - even more so than the

wo dumbbell version and especially when you holde dumbbell outside your thigh. This places it outside

our center of balance and forces your body to reallyxert some pressure to keep your body upright andot tip over.

his is a very valuable exercise! Start light with thisne - I’m using an 85 lb dumbbell in the demo and thatas ROUGH after a few sets.



Step Back Lunges

he Step Back Lunge, also known as the Reverseunge is a simple variation of the basic lungeovement.

his exercise can be done either with a pair of umbbells or with a barbell. Practice the movementithout weights until you are comfortable with it.umbbells are the next easiest version, while barbellse the hardest due to a greater balancingquirement.

he movement itself is fairly straightforward. If you aremiliar with regular lunges you should have nooblem picking up this one. You’re just going to beepping back instead of stepping forward.

art in a standing position.



ow, instead of stepping forward into the lungeosition, step one foot backwards a few feet.

rop down as you would a regular lunge then push off ith your back leg back up to the original standingosition.

epeat this movement with your other leg, switching



ack and forth between legs.

o add difficulty to this exercise, beyond simplydding more resistance, you can increase the range

motion by standing on a block or Stepatform...really, anything solid that puts you further off

e ground.

he exercise is done exactly the same...you’ll just bele to come down further before your back knee hitse ground, stopping the movement. This puts aeater stretch on the glute, which is VERY importantr maximum growth.



air Step-Back Lunges:

nother option, if you don’t have platform or block toand on is a stair...just your ordinary, everyday stairs

your house will work just fine.and with both feet on the bottom stair, making sure



ou have room behind you to step back. Now stepack and come down until your back knee touchese ground.

ome up then repeat on the other leg.

s you can see, it’s the same movement, only using aair instead of a block. Very simple and very





gular lunge. However, if you do find yourself leaningrward, especially on the way back up, correct

ourself and strive to keep your torso as vertical asossible. Leaning forward places unnecessary stressn the lower back.

ricks:

Set your feet apart

ne of the main reasons people have problemsalancing when doing lunges is that they place their et too close together, horizontally speaking, e.g.ey place one foot almost directly behind the other ot so that their feet are almost in a straight line.here should be about 6 inches of horizontalparation in your foot placement. This makes your

ase of support greater and your body more stableuring the exercise.

Explode up from the bottom

his is one exercise where an explosive push out of e bottom can be beneficial. The glutes are built for

ower and you can take advantage of that power.When you start the push to return back up to the toposition, try to push off as explosively as possible.his type of rep is best done on the first set of thisxercise, when your glutes are still somewhat fresh.eturn to the more continuous-tension, non-explosiveps as you do successive sets.



Over-And-Back BenchStep-Ups

his is a great variation of the Step-Up exercise thatrgets the lateral aspect of the glutes (medius andinimus) in addition to the full gluteus maximususcle. Because you’re stepping up, over andross, you’re getting that valuable lateral movementat is missed with most squatting and lunging

xercises that are done in a forward-to-backwardane.

he glutes function in a variety of ways and should beained in a variety of ways!

or this one, you’ll just need a bench or a solid, stableair...when you first do this one, use just your

odyweight. As you get stronger, you can hold auple of dumbbells in your hands.

and with your left side to the bench. Set your left footver on the LEFT half of the bench, NOT the right half

the bench. You want to set it over on the left half cause when you step up, your right foot is going to

ve to go on the right half of the bench... if your leftot is there, you won’t have room for it.



ep up so you’re standing on the bench with bothet. You can use the right leg to push off the groundcomplete the step-up. It’s not done completely by

e left leg. Using the right leg to help push off willlow you to use more weight, which means more

ute stimulation.



ow step down to the left side of the bench, keepingur right foot on the bench. You CAN do this exerciseeping a foot on the bench at all times, or you can

ep down to the floor with both feet, if you want. It’sot going to make much difference to the effect on theutes either way. I like to keep the foot on the bench

cause it makes the exercise go faster...if you stepown, it’s not accomplishing anything for the glutes.

ush off and step back up on top of the bench.



eep going back and forth over and back until you’vempleted your reps!

ne thing to focus on is when you’re stepping up, tryfocus on pushing a lot with the heel of the foot that’s

n the bench. There will be a lot of tendency to pushmuch as possible with the leg that’s on the floor

cause it has better leverage. The more you canght that tendency and try and push with the leg on thench, the more glute work you’ll get out of it.

We’re doing this to hit the glutes not to practice theost efficient way to step onto a bench!



Squat Machine Glute Step-Backs

his exercise is a GREAT one for hitting the glutesard. It’s like doing a one-legged squat...witheight...and with almost ALL the tension going right toe glutes because of how your body is beingabilized by the machine.

or this one, you’ll need a squat machine or standing

lf machine that allows for a good range of motion.etup in the squat machine as you normally would butand on one foot (you’ll need to use a lighter weightan you’d squat with, obviously).

ow, start squatting down on the one leg whileinging your other leg back and down. Try to focuse tension on the HEEL of your working leg. That’soing to send tension in the through the glutes.



ome down until your your knee is just about a 90gree angle (don’t need to go too deep on this one).

the bottom of the movement, you can tap your back

ot on the ground and give a little push off. I find thisoesn’t take tension off the glutes but DOES helpke stress off the knee when you’re coming back up.ecause it’s a machine exercise, there WILL beme stress in the knee joint - if you have bad knees,is probably isn’t a good exercise for you but you canrtainly do a rep or two with an empty machine to

e how it feels. Let pain and discomfort be your uide.



o after you’ve done one rep on one side and haveme back up, switch feet and come down on theTHER leg. Going back and forth will help you getore overall reps with heavier weight - the non-orking leg gets a bit of a break

ive this exercise a try in your next leg/glute workoutnd, believe me, you WILL have a hard time sittingown the next day...



Sideways TreadmillWalking

he treadmill can be used for many differentchniques other than just straight ahead walking or nning. Walking sideways is a great technique for

uickly tightening up the inner and outer thighs andps and the outer aspect of the glutes. In fact, itrectly targets those areas!

his can be done with the treadmill grade set flat buts best done on a bit of incline to give you greater sistance and faster results.

o the walking version first in order to get a feel for e exercise. Set the treadmill to a slow speed (like5 or 2.0) and do it flat the first time you try it. Stand

n the side of the treadmill, facing left. Grip the sideil in front of you and the front rail to your right. Thisill stabilize you in 2 planes and allow you to geturself off the treads if you stumble.

When facing left, step on first with your right foot, thenmmediately cross over it with your left foot to get

arted. Watch your feet and stay on the middle of theead. Go for about a minute facing that way then stepf, take a short rest, e.g. 30 seconds, then do ainute facing the other direction. Repeat this for 5 to

0 minutes. To use this technique to get a greatretch, exaggerate the length of your step and keep ary slow speed on the treadmill. You’ll get a strong

uter thigh and glute stretch.



his technique hits the hip area very differently andry effectively.

Getting set on the treadmill - grip the front bar then grip the side rail



on’t think of this one as a cardio exercise evenough it’s done on a treadmill...it shouldn’t be done

uickly. It should be done very deliberately and with ag stretch on the hip every time you cross your leg

ver.

you don’t have access to a treadmill, you can alsoo this exercise on a hill. Just do cross-over stepsdeways up a hill, exaggerating the stretch when youke that cross-step over.



Glute Extensions on theLeg Extension Machine

his is a nice glute exercise that is quite effective atolating the glute muscles (you can never truly andlly isolate anything!).

his type of exercise will help your body achievetter glute activation, which can help you not only getbetter butt, but also improve your squatting and

hletic performance. The glutes are extremelymportant for most sports and not everybody hasarned how to properly activate them in activity.

he exercise is a version of the Glute Push-Up.. .it’sn easy way to add resistance to the movement.

ou can also perform this exercise with a a barbellross the hips but if you don’t want to do that and youave a leg extension machine similar to the one in themo (that has one padded arm attached only at oned), you can use THIS version instead.



asically, you’re going to set the ankle pad a bitrward so that you can slide your body in between it

nd the front edge of the seat.



hen you’re going to get the ankle pad across your p bones/lower abdominal area and your backainst the seat with your feet a little out in front. Geturself into a "seated" position.

ow, pushing from your glutes, push your hipswards the ceiling. This is a glute extension againste resistance of the leg extension machine.



his is a great way to do the glute extension exerciseainst resistance with minimal setup. It’s veryfective, too! Just prepare to have people tell you

ou’re using the machine wrong, though :) Explain toem it’s a glute exercise and encourage them to try itemselves!



Side Dumbbell HipAbductions

or this one, we’re NOT going to be using anyachines. This is a dumbbell exercise all the way. It’ssy to set up, though!

l you need is a single dumbbell - start with a light tooderate-weight dumbbell to get an idea of how to

o the exercise before you move up in weight.

standing position, hold the dumbbell in your leftand and hold onto something solid with your right.he left dumbbell should be resting on the side of your per thigh.

ow just explode up with your left leg directly out toe side as high as possible and hold it there for acond or two! You should feel a strong squeeze inur outer hip area.



With this exercise, use a POWERFUL movement andon’t be afraid to start building up to heavier weights.his isn’t a "squeezytoney" type of exercise. We’reoing for an explosive push up and out to the side.

erform your reps on one side then switch to the other de.







fore using this exercise.

ake a step forward then come down into the lungeosition.



ow step forward on that lead foot, bringing the other ne and stepping forward with THAT one.

epeat! Go for distance or for time.



my enclosed area in my gym, I turn around andep going a few times back and forth. You can alsoke this one outside and go for a longer distance (Io this out on the street or in a field sometimes).

fter a few rounds of that, I start throwing in someACKWARDS walking lunges. . . instead of steppingrward, you guessed it...do step back lunges and

ush yourself up and back. Hard to show that in stillcs but I’ll give it a try.



ext is the lateral walking lunge...take a step widend out to the side at a 45 degree angle with everyep. This involves more of the adductors andductors during the movement.







his is a great variations for athletes who moveterally a lot, i.e. sports like football, soccer,nnis...that kind of thing. It really develops lateralovement power, stability and strength.

his side-to-side movement targets the gluteusedius and minimus muscles, which help add widththe glutes and hips.



Squats

he squat is one of the most basic movements for uilding the glutes and legs.

he Squat is called "The King of Exercises" for a veryood reason. Squatting affects all the major muscleoups in the entire body, even though it primarilyorks the legs and glutes. Doing heavy squats is one

the most effective ways to build strength anduscle mass in the glutes.

Set up the pins in a squat rack at a position afew inches below shoulder level. This allows youto get the bar on and off without catching it onthe rack.

Set the safety pins at the bottom just slightly

lower than the lowest you go down in case youaren’t able to come out of the bottom of thesquat.

Rest the bar across the back of your shoulderslike a yoke so it is supported across thetrapezius muscle.

It should be across the ridges of your scapulae.Find your own groove for this as everybody isdifferent when it comes to bar placement.

Step back from the pins. Hold the bar with amedium grip (not too close in but not so far apart that you compromise control of the bar)

and make sure you grip the bar hard for stability.



Foot placement can vary according to the goalof the exercise. For our purposes for glutes, setyour feet a bit outside shoulder width with your toes angled out about 30 degrees.

Keeping your feet shoulder width apart, toespointed ahead is thought to be better for overallthigh development and is the squat styleemployed by most bodybuilders.

our feet are placed and you’re ready to squat.

As you start the squat, lead it by sticking your butt back and out, NOT by bending the knees.By sitting back, you’re going to better activatethe glutes during the squat exercise and your overall form will be better.



Look straight forward or a little up in order tokeep your upper body more vertical.

Go down until the tops of your thighs are parallelto the ground. You can go lower if you want butbe sure not to bounce at the bottom.



Now come back up. Focus on pushing up fromyour heels until you are standing straight then godown for another rep.

Be sure your knees are tracking straight up anddown and that your knees are not bowing or splaying out during the movement.

ere’s a side view of what the Barbell Squat lookske:

ommon Errors:

Heels rise as you come down

eep your eyes up, chest up, leanck slightly. You may also need to

ork on calf flexibility.Rounded back



his can occur if your lower back ise weak link in your squat.

You must strengthen your lower back and striveto keep the arch in your lower back during themovement.

Other tips you can try include lifting your toes upin your shoes as you squat down and grippingthe bar closer to your shoulders.

Lack of depth

pen your stance by turning your toes out up to 30grees (remember to keep your knees tracking

raight over your toes).

Excessive leaning over

you find you lean forward excessively when you areuatting, you may have a problem with calf flexibility.

o remedy this stretch your calves thoroughly or tryuatting with your heels raised (use a woodenedge or ten-pound plates on the floor).

is better to stretch, though, as squatting on blocks isot the best way to squat. Hold the stretches for three

five sets of 15 seconds using the standing calf

ise or seated calf machines or any other good calf retch. Work on improving your calf flexibility in theng-term as well, stretching them a lot when you worklves.

Using too much weight or not enough weight

sing too much weight will limit your range of motionnd force you to concentrate on not getting crushed



ther than doing the exercise properly.

ot using enough weight can also be a problem. If youon’t have enough weight on your back, your heelsay have a tendency to come up as there is not

nough resistance to force them down.

Knees buckle in or splay out

o remedy this, wrap a weight belt around your thighsnd press out against the belt as you come up.

If your knees buckle in then the belt will drop tothe floor.

If your legs tend to splay out,hold something, e.g. avolleyball, between your legsand keep it pinched thereduring the set.


s in all exercises, this almost never a desirableabit. The change of direction should deliberate andmooth.

Leaning forward when racking the weight

his can be a very dangerous position for your lower ack. Walk forward over the racking pins far enoughat all you have to do is drop straight down ontoem, not lean forward and push the bar onto them.

magine your spine as the Leaning Tower of Pisa withdump-truck on top. Something is going to give.

Squatting with heels on a boardWhile this is not necessaril an error, it is not the most



atural way to squat. Squatting with your heels raisednds to throw your knees over your feet. For someople, squatting with elevated heels is the only wayey can do squats. Before you resort to thischnique, work on stretching your calves andrfecting your form.

aising your heels will also tend to put more of thefect of the exercise onto the quads rather than theutes, which is not what we’re looking for.

0. Using the Smith Machine for squats

With this version you can place your feet farther rward and squat with your upper body vertical. This

xercise places a great deal of stress on your kneesnd is not recommended. Pushing against the bar at

angle and up is not a natural movement for your nees. Stick with the free weight version.

ricks:

Without a belt

y squatting without a belt. This will force you to use

rfect form when squatting. Suck in your abs andold them tight. You will find your form will improve if ou work at it. Using a belt teaches your abs to pushut in order to stabilize the spine, which can weakenour midsection and lower back in the long run.eeing yourself from the weight belt will greatly

mprove your lower back and ab strength.

the start, suck in your gut, activating the transversebdominus, ivin ou a natural wei ht belt. This will



crease intraabdominal pressure. A weight beltuses dysfunction of the transverse abdominus andn lead to injury. The belt inhibits the body’s ability toe the muscle when needed.

Ditching the bar

you are free-squatting (not in a power rack) and youave to ditch the bar, quickly push it back and let it rollf your back, while stepping forward quickly. This islast-ditch maneuver. Always use a spotter if youe doing free-squats with maximal weights. If you

ver are free-squatting, I highly recommend staying

ell away from muscular failure so you never have totch the bar.

Wear boots

y wearing solid-heeled work boots when squatting.hey give a natural heel elevation and allow the power om your legs to be transferred better than whenearing soft-heeled running shoes. You can loseower at the bottom when wearing soft shoescause the sole will squish in when you push.

you don’t have work boots, try squatting bare foot.ou will not lose any power at the bottom that way.oing bare foot will also eliminate any heel elevationou may get from footwear. It will also force you toush with your heels.

When you squat barefoot, set the racking collars atle lower to make up for the lack of soles. If neither is

n option, use court shoes or very flat, thin-soledoes. They have the most solid sole of any type of oe.



The Manta Ray

plastic molded device callede Manta Ray is an excellentol for squatting. There is no

ain from the bar. I’m a big fan of

e Mantra Ray for doing squatsmfortably.. .the bar shouldn’t bemething that holds you bar.

towel wrapped around the bar or a foamy pad canso help ease the pain of the bar but be aware thatese things can slip or roll.

Click here to learn more about the MantaRay and to get one for yourself!

Stretch your calves

you find yourself leaning over too far during theovement, calf flexibility may be a problem. Work onat before each squat session and stretch whenorking calves.

Squeeze elbows behind back

o help get the proper position at the bottom of theuat, try to squeeze your elbows together behind

our back, arch and look up slightly. This will forceour back into the proper position as well as givingur rear delts and back a good workout.

Keep the elbows pointed down

old your hands on the bar fairly close in to your oulders and keep your elbows pointed down the



ntire time.

If you hold the bar too wide, this will force your shoulders to rotate internally.

Your elbows will start to point back which willcause the bar to rotate forward as you come

down which will cause you to lean over excessively, increasing the pressure on L4 andL5 vertebrae of the lumbar area.

Keeping your elbows pointed down activatesyour external rotators which will keep the bar from rolling forward.

Rotate the bar backwards

you feel yourself leaning over and pushing from therefoot too much, use your hands to attempt to rotatee bar backwards.

his will force the weight back over your heels,mproving your balance and posture while working theutes better and preventing injury.

Look up and forward

ook slightly up and forward. If you look down, your ad will go forward. Your lumbar area mimics your

rvical area. If your neck is flexed (as when lookingown), your lumber will try to flex (it should bextended in an arched position).

0. Heavier = slower

o this exercise slower the heavier the weight youe - a good way to blow a squat is by dropping

uickly to the bottom. It is much harder to pushourself back out of the hole when you drop quickly





One-Legged Bench Squats

his exercise works the glute from almost the fullestretch you can get on them. This position is veryfective for building the glutes rapidly. This exerciseone of the absolute best glute-building exercises Ive ever encountered.

combines an effective bodyweight movement with aeat stretch at the bottom. This is an almost magicalmbination that can do wonders for your glutes in ary short period of time.

You will need a solid chair or bench for thisxercise. This is to increase the useful range of otion of the exercise, which is important for aximizing it’s effects. You will also need to havemething solid that you can grab onto. This can be ailing or a door frame or a pole, etc. Place the

hair/bench immediately in front of this solid object.

Stand on the chair on one leg facing the solidbject and hold onto it at about waist or abdomenvel directly in front of you (after a few reps, you willt a feel for where to place your hands). Your heelould be close to the back edge of the chair.



Lower your body as far down as you can go into ane-legged squat. Your other leg will drop downlow the level of the chair seat behind you. Youould feel a great stretch in your glute. Make sure

ou continue to keep a firm grip on whatever you are

lding on to.



Push yourself back up using your glute as much asossible. This is most easily accomplished bycusing on pushing with your heel. Also, you can stick

our butt out while pushing back up to really maximizee effect. This simple idea of sticking your butt out as

ou come up is almost magical with how well it works.

Use your grip on the solid object only as much as iscessary to keep the movement going. If you pull toouch with your arms, you will take tension off theutes and legs and defeat the purpose of the

xercise.

erform all your reps on one leg, then switch to theher leg.



sing a Towel:

his version is performed almost exactly the same asove.. .the difference here is that instead of holding

nto the solid object directly, you’ll be holding thends of a towel.

Why a towel? The benefit of using the towel is that itoves up and down with your body, giving you a more

atural pivot point to grip onto while also removingme of your tendency to use your hands to pull

urself up.also allows you to sit back more on the heel while

oing the exercise, which helps activate the glutesore effectively.



ow the other leg.



dding Resistance:

ou can also perform this exercise with addedsistance, holding a dumbbell or other weighted

bject in one hand. To do this, hold a dumbbell in oneand and hold onto the solid object you’re workingith at about stomach level.



ow lower yourself down into a deep squat. Don’tuch your other foot down at the bottom - keep it off e ground.



ush yourself back up. That’s the movement! Onceou’ve done your reps on one side, switch to the other g.



his version is performed exactly the same as theodyweight version only, of course, you’re holdingnto a dumbbell to get more resistance!

ommon Errors:


o this movement slowly and under control. If youop down too quickly, not only do you risk injury to the

nee, you diffuse much of the tension that should be

aced on the glute.Do not bounce out of the bottom

ause at the bottom of the movement. Feel a goodretch on the glute then reverse the direction withoutouncing. Bouncing out of the bottom could lead tonee injury. It also reduces the tension you are placingn the glutes.

Don’t pull yourself up too much with your arm

iving yourself too much assistance with your arm willffuse the tension on your glute. Strive to use your m to balance yourself rather than to pull yourself up

much as possible. Only use your arm to pullourself up when you have to.

ricks:

Stick your butt out



o focus the exercise more on your glutes rather thane thighs, stick your butt out as you push yourself up,pecially once you pass the halfway point on the way

p. This will help optimize the biomechanics of thexercise to focus on the glutes.

Adding resistance - methods

ou may find, after doing this exercise for awhile, thating only your bodyweight is not enough. When yout to this point, you have a few options for sistance.

*If you are working out at home, try loading abackpack up with heavy books. Add books slowly,increasing as you get accustomed to theresistance. This allows you to add resistancewhile keeping both your hands available for balance and assistance.

* Another option is to hold onto a dumbbell with onehand. You should be quite strong with this exercisebefore attempting this version. Also, you should becomfortable balancing yourself while using onlyone hand (practice this balancing before usingextra weight).

*If you go to a gym, you may have access to a calf raise machine or squat machine. If you do, slide aflat bench underneath the shoulder pads. Use avery light weight to start with until you get used tothe movement. You will be standing on the benchwith your shoulders under the pads just like younormally would have them during the calf raise or



squat movement. Because you are on a bench,your body will be higher and you will get resistanceduring the one-leg squat movement. You will alsobe able to balance yourself by holding onto theshoulder pads. The machine will do the balancingfor you.

Pause at the bottom

maximize the stretch you put on the glutes, hold theretch at the bottom of the movement for a 2 count.old it there until you totally diffuse all the elasticnsion you’ve built up on the way down. This will

crease the work that your glute must do to geturself back up.

Pulling yourself up

s you begin to tire, you can use your arm to pullourself up as necessary. This allows you to keepoing far longer than if you were working on leg power one. You can use that pull to basically give yourself rced reps.



Hack Lunges

he Hack Lunge hits the glutes and hamstrings veryfectively. It is a variation on a common exercise thatves uncommon results.

also has an advantage over regular barbell lunges -ou can set the weight down on the floor when you’reone. There is no weight racking involved. Thiseans you can push yourself hard without worryingout the barbell.

his exercise is done using a barbell and done verymilar to regular Barbell Lunges only you will hold thearbell between your legs instead of on your oulders.

o get into position for this one, simply step over a

aded barbell and get yourself into the usual lungeottom position. The barbell will be directly under your ody. Grasp with an overhand (palm facing back)ip.



and up with the barbell, keeping it against your ack thigh as much as possible. Bring the barbell upntil it gets squeezed by your thighs and you can’t gop any further.

o all your reps on one side then switch to the other g.



you use a very heavy weight, go to the mixed gripne hand facing forward, one hand facing back). Thisill help you to be able to grip the bar longer.

his exercise has the advantage of forcing you toep continuous tension on the muscles of the lower

ody. You can only go up as far as the bar will go,hich is short of full leg lockout.





s you lower yourself down in the squat, you can letour anchor foot roll onto its side (not keeping the sole

your foot down) or you can keep it flat on the floor,hichever you find more comfortable or effective.

quat down as far as you can and feel for the theretch in the glute.



ush off explosively from the bottom position andand up then step to the other side.





and upright holding two dumbbells in your hands.

ake a wide step to the left and squat down on oneg, keeping your left leg out to the side (and fairlyraight). One dumbbell should be held in front of your

ody and one dumbbell behind your body, so that theyon’t bump into your legs.



ush back up explosively to the standing position.

ow take a bit step out to the right and come downto a "squat" on the right leg while keeping the left leg

ut.

ere’s a side view of the exercise.



he step to the left.

he step to the right.



hat’s the exercise! Same basic idea as the barbellde lunge but with dumbbells.

ther of these options is great for Side Lunges. Youn also do another version called Goblet Side

unges that set the dumbbell up near your chest,eping it out of the way of your legs.



Towel Step-Back Lunge/One-Leg Squats

his is a nice bodyweight exercise that uses verymple equipment to get the job done.. .and that is awel and a pole or post (or anything you can loop thewel around that is solid).

y using a towel, you can keep your body in morepright position and adjust the movement to put

ORE tension on the glutes than a regular step-backnge because you can use your upper body to controle descent, keeping your back leg off the ground for nger during the movement.

o first, loop the towel around the pole and set your ft foot back about a foot away from it.

and on one leg with your other leg bent 90grees.. .you’re going to hold it there while doing theovement.



ome down into the bottom position of the lunge. They difference with this exercise over a regular step-

ack lunge is that you’re not setting your foot downck behind you then lowering yourself down into thenge (which does take some tension off the glute as

u do that).



With THIS exercise, you use the towel and your upper ody to control and angle your descent and your other g is already in that bottom lunge position. You’re justwering it into position, not stepping back into it,hich makes it more like a one-legged squat in thatspect, which is why I included in the title of it.. .it

oks like a step-back lunge but functions like a one-g squat.

ou can do all your reps on one leg then switch to theher or you can alternate reps. Here’s the other leg.



or the next level, stand on a Step platform or other lid block and perform the movement. This willcrease the range of motion and get more stretch

nto the glutes.





ow we go to the next level above that and addsistance. Hold the towel ends with one hand and a

umbbell in the other.

nally, I’ve got an even more unique way to add

sistance to the exercise that’s going to put theeight further back on your back, forcing more



essure onto the heel, which puts more tension one glute.

neel down and set a dumbbell in the crook of your nee.

ow you’re going to do the exercise as usual.





hen, you can add in the Step platform to increase thenge of motion.





his is one of my favorite all-purpose glute exercises.sing the towel in this fashion really improves thefects on the glutes.



Bar Gripping Split Squats

his exercise is going to test your one-leg strength byaving you hold onto a bar (or other solid object) inont of you to move your body in a more optimalovement pattern for hitting the glutes.

straight up and down free squat uses a lot of quads.when you can sit back more, you involve the glutes

nd hamstrings more, making it more effective for our urposes.

o start by finding something to hold onto - I’ve got aar set on the safety rails of a squat rack at aboutpper chest height. I found that to be the best positiongrab.

ck up a single dumbbell and hold it at your side

hile grabbing the bar. Stand on one leg.



ow lower yourself down into a split squat/lungeosition. When you’re doing this one, move your pper body away from the bar a bit so you’re keepingat front shin vertical. Your grip on the bar is going tolow you sit and move backwards like this.

little trick you can use here.. .try and keep your backot OFF the ground and touch your KNEE to theound first. What this does is keep all the tension onat front leg glute and remove any assistance frome back leg. This makes it a lot harder and morefective for glute training.

When you come back up, pick your toes up on theottom leg keeping only knee on the ground, thenush up. Use your grip on the bar to assist if you need

ou can do all your reps on one leg then switch to theher, or you can alternate reps (easier to have two

umbbells ready to go for this so you don’t have towitch it to the other side each time).



he movement is exactly the same.

ow for some extra stretch on the glutes, you can dois exercise on a Step platform or other solid blockriser. This will hit the glutes even harder.



his is a very challenging glute exercise and veryfective! Using your grip on the bar to help keep your ody in the optimal movement pattern for targeting theutes is a powerful concept that is used veryfectively here.



Barbell-End DonkeyKickbacks

he weighted Donkey Kickback is a good isolationxercise for the glutes. I have a dumbbell version of e Donkey exercise as well. This is the barbellrsion of the same exact movement.

sing a barbell allows you to load the exercise more,ithout worrying about the dumbbell slipping out of the

ook of your knee.et one end of a dumbbell in the corner of either auple of walls or a machine (it’s a good idea to wraptowel around the end to keep it from scratching

aint when you do the exercise). I’ve got a piece of uipment that locks the bar and allows a pivot.

oad a plate onto the other end of the bar then wrap awel around the end of the bar for padding.



ext, slide your leg under the bar and hook the end of behind your knee, while on your hands and knees.

ow do the kickback movement, raising the barbelld up off the ground. Try to imagine you’re putting aotprint on the ceiling when doing this one. Squeezee glute hard at the top for a few seconds then lower



e bar.

o all your reps on one side then switch to the other de.



s easiest to get the bar into position with larger ates but definitely doable with smaller plates. You’llst need to turn around and lift the bar end up thent your leg under it then get it into position.

his exercise is a nice peak contraction exercise for e glutes that requires very little equipment.





Barbell Glute Extensions

aining your glutes goes beyond just what your buttoks like, even though this exercise is a GREAT oner developing glutes size and shape.

he glutes are a CRITICAL muscle group for prettyuch all athletic performance and most strengthorts. Without strong glutes, you’re simply not goingperform as well as you could.

HAT is where this exercise comes in. It goes beyonduats and lunges and directly targets ONLY theimary function of the glutes, which is hip extension.

ou’re going to reduce other muscle involvement andcrease glute involvement tremendously, which isry useful if you have a hard time feeling your glutes

ork.he exercise is simple... it’s a Glute Push-Up doneith a barbell across your hips for added resistance.

nd you can add a LOT of resistance as you build uprength with this exercise.

rst, load a barbell up on the floor - ideally, you’ll wantuse at least the 45 lb weight plates on it because

ou’re going to have to get your legs under the bar. If ou can’t use this much, then you’ll need a spotter tot the weight on you or figure out a way to get the bar

p your legs and onto your hips.

definitely recommend using a barbell pad or a rolled- towel for cushioning.



t in the floor in front of the barbell with your feetnder the bar.

ow shift yourself under the bar until it’s on your upper ighs/hips.



ow lay back flat on the floor. The bar should acrossour hip bones so it’s supported by your skeletonhat’s where the pad comes in handy).



ow, keeping your shoulders on the floor, push your ps towards the ceiling and squeeze the glutes.

ower and repeat.

hat’s the exercise! Once you’ve got the setup, it’sry simple to do but VERY effective for directly

aining the glutes. Definitely feel free to work your ay up in weight fairly quickly so you can learn your mits. The glutes are strong muscles.



Barbell GluteExtensions...Upper Body on

a Bench

his is another version of the Barbell Glute Extension..nstead of having your shoulders on the floor, you’reoing to have your upper body supported on a flatnch, allowing you to hit the glutes from a different

ngle and get a greater range of motion under

nsion.he Glute Extension exercise is an isolation exerciser the glutes that allows you to use a LOT of weight.on’t be shy to push yourself with this version of the

xercise.

highly recommend using a barbell pad for where thear rests across your hips on this exercise to helpshion things. It’s especially important when you starttting into heavier weights.

his one is done in the power rack with a flat bencht just outside it, parallel to the bar. The safety rails

ould be set at about the same height as the bench.



ep over the bar and sit down on the floor betweene bar and the bench. Roll the bar towards your torsoen get your upper back on the bench.

he bar should be across your hips, right where theynd.



ow push the hips up towards the ceiling. The bar ross the hips provides direct resistance against theutes. Keep your core TIGHT! It’s also supporting theeight.

ere’s an alternate view of the exercise from the bar.ou’ll notice I’ve got a few more plates on the bar :) - a



tal of 405 lbs. That’s what I’m talking about when Iy don’t be shy to push yourself on this exercise.

this one, I’ve actually got TWO barbell pads on thear for extra padding.

ush the hips up towards the ceiling.



his is a great exercise that while technically anolation exercise, allows you to really hit the glutesith some substantial weight.

will take a bit of tinkering to get the setup right, bute results are worth it!



Cross-Leg One-LeggedSquats

his is a simple bodyweight exercise that gives your utes a great stretch at the same as you’re workingem.

or this, you’ll need a towel and a solid object to wraparound. Grab the ends of the towel then stand on

ne leg with the other crossed at the knee. Then squat

own as low as you can go. As you squat down, you’llel a great stretch in the glute of the leg that’sossed over.

ou can alternate legs or do all your reps on one sideen switch to the other (then just start with the other

g the next set to keep it even).



his exercise helps you do double-duty by getting thatg stretch on the glute while doing a one-leg squatovement.



Dolly Lunges

ow THIS is a great lower-body exercise, inventediginally by the Dolly Lama.. .ok, maybe not.

ou’re basically going to be doing what amounts to aep-back lunges but instead of stepping back, your ot will be on a dolly and you’ll ROLL that leg backstead, so technically, it could be called a "rollbacknge."

bviously, for this one you’re going to need a dollyhough, to be honest, a skateboard will work just asell, if you’ve got one). I got mine at ACE Hardwarer 20 bucks. It’s basically just a plant dolly (a dolly youll houseplants around on). El cheapo, especiallympared to equipment that’s designed for trainingke the Ab Dolly, which is about 70 bucks).

et one of these - you won’t regret it - there is TONSstuff you can do with it besides glute training (it

orks great for doing ab roll-outs).

ack to business...

ou can do this one with or without weight - I’m usingcouple of dumbbells here. Stand beside the dolly



nd put your left foot on top of it.

ow start sliding the dolly directly backwards.

oll it as far back as you can and stretch your backg as far back as you can. This gives you a greatretch on the hamstrings and glutes.



ow come up.. .when you come up, it’s going to beming from not only your front leg but your BACK legwell - some quads, some hip flexors.

o all your reps on one leg then switch.



he nice thing about using the dolly is that it reallylps you keep your upper body vertical whilerforming the movement.. .which is useful for eping the tension of the exercise where you want it.

you’ve got a dolly or a skateboard, give this a try. If ou don’t have one, get one then give this a try.



Incline Barbell Lunges

his is a variation of the Lunge exercise very similar concept to the Incline Dumbbell Lunge. The main

fference is.. .you guessed it! You’re using a barbellstead of dumbbells.

o why do a whole different exercise if the inclineumbbell lunge is good? With the barbell, it present afferent stimulus to the body in a couple of differentays.

It allows you to use heavier weight - instead of olding the dumbbells in your hands, you’re carryinge weight on your back. No grip issues.

It changes the balance of the exercise - becausee weight is up on your back instead of being carried

own low, it’s tougher to balance and is a morehallenging exercise to perform.

prefer to do this exercise in a power rack because of e potential balance issues. If you’re not in a rackd you start to fall over, you’ve got nowhere to goith the barbell on your back. With the rack, you just

op down and set the weight on the rails and you’reood.

o bring a decline bench over to the power rack andt it in the rack. You’ll be facing outwards towardse bench. If you’re going to be doing your left legrward first, set the bench a little to the left of center

the rack. When you do the right leg, you’ll shift thench a little over to the right. This helps with balance



the rack so your body stays in the center whileu’re doing the exercise.

o this exercise once with just the bar so you get ael for it and where you need to set the safety railsd the bench.

asically, you’re going to set the bar on your oulders, just like with a barbell lunge or squat, thenep forward and place on foot on the face of thench (about halfway up).

ow, you’ll lunge forward.



hen push back up, straightening your front leg.mple as that!

otice in the pictures how the safety rails are set justlow the bottom point of the range of the exercise. If Iere to lose my balance at that point, all I would havedo is drop down a couple of inches and I’m safe.

When you’re read to do the other leg, here’s the bestay to go... set the bar back on the racks then movee bench over to the right a little.

When you perform this exercise, make sure your nch is NOT prone to sliding. When you step



rward, there is some forward-pushing force. If your nch slips, you slide forward with it. Another goodason to do this exercise in the rack!

you do need to brace your bench, lay a couple of 45plates in front of the forward bench feet to keep it

om moving.



Goblet Side Lunges

he Side Lunge exercise works the gluteus mediusnd minimus muscles of the hip area directly.. .theseuscles are responsible for adduction, which isinging the leg away from the midline of the body andey contribute strongly to lateral movement.

While you can do Side Lunges with dumbbells or aarbell, I prefer this style, holding the dumbbell under e plates like a big goblet. So stand with the

umbbell held under the plates and at your chest.

ake a big step out to the left.



hen squat down over that leg.

XPLODE up back to the start position - you wantis to be a powerful movement to get yourself back.



ow take a big step to the other side.



nd squat down over that leg.

he explode back up to the start position.



ere’s the side view of the exercise in action.







One Arm GrippingDumbbell

Squats

his is a great way to get a HUGE range of motion onsquat exercise while keeping your torso in a very

pright and neutral position.

ost squat exercises have you freestanding, which

eans you have to compensate for the position of theeight by basically being less vertical, which putsnsion onto the back and takes it off the glutes.

hat’s not necessarily a bad thing, but it can be anbstacle for some people, especially if you want tot FULL range of motion and want to really focus

ore of the tension on the glutes.his version is a one dumbbell squat using theTHER hand to grip on a bar. You can use this grip toot yourself but primarily to brace your body, whichill allow you to keep your torso more upright whileoing DEEP squats.

s a nice exercise that will let you hit your quads andutes HARD.

m using a 125 lb dumbbell and I’ve got the bar set one rails of a power rack about 4 feet off the ground.ou can see how even

the bottom of the movement, my torso is verticalnd I’m sitting back. THAT is what this exercise does



r you. This sitting back is important for targeting theutes.

ow just stand up. One note of caution, it is easy for e thighs to take over on this exercise so be VERYre to sit back on your heels (throw your weight

ackwards - your grip on the bar will support you) andueeze the glutes hard as you come out of the

ottom.



our torso stays vertical the whole time.

ike to do half the reps on one side then immediatelywitch to the other for balanced effects on the corend legs.

n the bottom of each rep, don’t take tension off the



gs but touch one end of the dumbbell down on theound to make sure you’re getting full range of otion. Just keep that tension on and keep squeezinge glutes!



eing able to sit back like this is also going to helpou keep your knees from going beyond your toes (if ou’re worried about stuff like that - me, I’m notorried because the knee is designed to performovements like that).

nd unless you have knee issues, deep squats areOT bad for your knees, as many people worry about.mith machine squats and leg extensions are MUCHorse for your knees.

or a GREATER Range of Motion:

o add even more of a challenge to this exercise, youn increase the range of motion by standing on aep platform or other solid, flat object. This gives youfew more inches before the dumbbell touches theound and allows you to put even more of a stretch

n the glutes at the bottom, while using your other and to keep your hips in the right position.

aise the bar that you’re gripping on accordingly.



hen switch hands.



his variation gives you that extra few inches that canally add some serious intensity to the exercise.



Leg Press Glute Kickbacks,a.k.a. Butt Blasters

you’re interested in working thelutes directly, the Butt Blaster is aame you’ll probably recognize. It’stype of machine that looks a lot

ke a backwards donkey kick.

Now, squats and lunges (andariations of those) will generally beour best bet for really building thelutes. But there are times whenhose just don’t get the job done,nd you need a few more tools inour toolbox to really get at thelutes and activate them, e.g. if youeel those exercises in your thighs

more than your glutes.

hat’s when the Butt Blaster canome in very handy as it does focusn the glutes quite well. But what doou do if you don’t have a piece of

quipment like this?



Well, you can use a leg pressmachine to mimic the Butt Blaster machine fairly well (I say fairly well,ecause it’s not a perfect cross-ver but still quite effective).

Move the seat forward on the legress as much as you can. Standeside the seat facing away from theoot plate.

Now you brace your shoulder gainst the seat and put your footn the foot plate.

Here’s what it looks like:

Now it’s a simple matter of pushing

irectly back!



here are some limitations of this

ersion, though.When you’ve got the seat movedp, you may not be able to reach fullxtension of the leg behind you.hat’s easy to fix, though. When youo your next set on that side, youst move the seat further away. Youart at less of a stretch but you’re

hen able to reach full extension of he leg.

Now, make sure you don’t set theweights down at the bottom of themovement. You want to keep

nsion on the glutes in that

maximum stretch position - it’s themost effective point of the exercise



or glute building.

he nice thing about this variationn the leg press is that you’re notmited in how much weight you can

se. It’s very possible to max outhe weight stack on the Butt Blaster

machine if you’re really working hardn strengthening the glutes. Not onhe leg press!

o when you’re done with the oneg, go around to the other side and

work the other glute.



o if you want to hit the glutes hard

r have maxed out the Butt Blaster or if you don’t have a Butt Blaster),ive this one a shot!



Towel Pistols

his is a variation of a one-legged squat exercise,one with a towel wrapped around a pole to helpabilize your body as you’re doing it and to allow tou work in a more effective for the glutes.

he "Pistol" exercise is normally done freestanding..when done like that, it’s more of a quad exercise.

When you use the towel in this fashion, you are better le to control the movement and focus it on theutes.

o for this, you’ll need a towel and a pole to loop itound. Grasp the ends of the towel and stand on ong a few feet away (you’ll have to experiment with

ot distance to get what works for you). Now squatLL the way down, bring your other leg straight out inont.



ush yourself back and repeat. This one is actuallyoing to require some upper body strength as welld a key note.. .as you push up, try and stick your

utt out and get an arch in your back as soon asossible on the way up. That will help put more focus

n the glutes.nce you’ve done your reps on one leg, switch to theher, or you can just alternate legs.



his is a challenging exercise that’s going to hit notnly the glutes but the rest of your legs as well. Ande beauty of it is, you can do it just about anywhereu throw a towel around.



Bench Step-Ups toStep Back Lunges

his is a great lower body combo that will seriouslyess up your walking ability.. .in a good way :)

or this one, you’ll need a bench (or a Step platform)nd some form of resistance - I’m using dumbbellsut a sandbag across the shoulders works just fine asell (I’ve got pics of that, too).

With this one, you’re combining two lower bodyxercises - first you’re going to do a step up onto thench then when you step back down, you’ll

mmediately drop back into a step-back lunge.

s a challenging exercise both from a strength and

rdio perspective.o grab a couple of dumbbells and stand in front of e bench.



et your left foot up on the bench.

ow step up onto the bench.



O NOT set the other foot on the bench at the top -u want to just stay on the left foot.

ow step your right foot back down onto the floor.



ow you’re going to put your LEFT foot back into theep-back lunge.

ome all the way back down until your knee is on or



ar the ground then go all the way back up to settingour left leg on the bench. Then repeat!

o your reps with your left leg on the bench then

witch and lead with your right leg on the bench. Youn do this on alternating sets (with rest period intween) or go straight to the right leg right after.





ame deal - different legs.

mentioned using a sandbag for resistance as well -st heave it over your head and rest it across your

oulders.





Leaning One-LegSquats/Step Back

Lunges...a.k.a. Speedskater Squats

like to also call these "Speedskater Squats"cause of the position your body is in when youuat down.. .and you probably know how large the

utes of a speedskater can get!echnically, the version of the exercise I’m going toow you with the towel wrapped around a solid posta step-back lunge because you’ll touch your back

g to the ground.

ve also got another version (that I show using theble machine) that keeps that back leg OFF theound to make the exercise harder.

o first, loop your towel around the pole or other solidbject and grasp the ends of it. Stand on one leg andan away from the post.



ow drop down into a split squat position.

hen push yourself back up - that’s it! It’s a simplexercise and because you’re leaning to the side, this

going target the gluteus medius and minimus

uscles and their lateral-movement function (a.k.a.duction - moving the thigh away from the midline of



e body).

o do all your reps on one leg then switch to the other g.

ou can very easily add resistance to this exercise bylding a dumbbell in your free hand. The execution is



actly the same.



hen get even MORE stretch on the glute, set your ot up on a Step platform or other solid flat block and

o the exercise. This means your back leg will haverther to go before it hits the ground and stops theovement, increasing the stretch on the glutes at the

ottom.





hat’s the exercise! As you can see, this is a goodne that you can perform pretty much anwhere. . .allou need is something solid to loop a towel aroundd a towel and you’ve got yourself an excellentteral-tension exercise.



Leaning One-Leg Squats,a.k.a. Speedskater Squats

refer to these as "Speedskater Squats" because of e position your body is in when you squat down..nd you probably know how large the glutes of aeedskater can get!

his version uses the cable machine, but you can alsoe just about anything you can get a grip on. I have

nother version with a towel looped around a pole.ike this version with the cable because the handle isuch easier to hold onto, allowing you to focus onrforming the exercise rather than worrying aboutip.

you have an adjustable-height pulley, set it about hipvel and attach a single handle. Set the heaviesteight you can on the stack - you’re not lifting theeight, you’re using it as an anchor!

rip the handle and stand on one leg. Your leg shouldunderneath the handle with your body leaning away

om the weight stack.



ow come down ALL the way.. .and when I say all theay, I mean it. Here’s the trick... keep your other legFF the ground. It’ll come close but don’t let it touch..

we want to keep tension on the working leg.

o all your reps on one leg then switch to the other.



ame deal - come down but don’t let that back leguch the ground.

When you push yourself back up at an angle like this,works the lateral aspect of the hips and glutes

xtremely well, in addition to the gluteus maximus.



Bench or Ball BulgarianSplit Squats

he regular split squat is a mainstay of glute-building.y placing your back leg on either a bench or a Swissll, however, you greatly increase the balancequired. You also decrease the help given by your

ack leg during the push off phase, increasing theress on the glutes. This version of the dumbbell splituat will challenge your balance and increaseuscle activation.

ve got two different versions of it for you here.

n The Bench:

art by standing about two feet in front of a flat bench

chair. Bring one leg back and rest the top of your ot on the bench/chair.



eeping your torso upright, lower yourself down intoe lunge position as deep as you can go then pushurself back up.

o all your reps on one leg then switch to the other

g.



s you can see in this last picture, you want to sinkown into the stretch as much as you can.. .you shouldel a good stretch on the hip flexors and quads of

our back leg and a strong stretch on the glute of theont leg. Don’t be shy with that stretch at the bottom -

s the best part of the exercise for the glutes.n The Ball:

erforming this exercise on the ball is going to be at more challenging as balance is a BIG part of this

ne. The ball is obviously round and going to goingove around on you while you’re doing the exercise.

old two dumbbells in your hands by your sides. Theall should be a little bit behind you. Reach back withne leg and set the top of your foot on the ball.



When you are first starting out with this exercise Iight actually recommend using only one dumbbell

nd holding onto something stable until you get a feelr it.

ower yourself down slowly and be prepared to fightr your balance.



is important to note that your back leg should only beed for balance and not to rest much of your

odyweight on.

you rest your weight on it, it will dramaticallycrease the instability of the exercise and you’ll stand

much greater chance of losing your balance.o remember, use the back leg as a guide rather an a rest or pivot point.



ay away from failure on this version of the exercisecause balance is such an issue. The constantifting around will work the smaller stabilizinguscles of the hips and legs and can really contributeoverall glute growth.



One-Legged Squats

he One-Legged Squat has the advantage of beingn exercise that is always available to you.. .all youed is your bodyweight! It’s an effective glute and legorkout.

At first glance the One-Legged Squat soundspretty simple: squat on one leg. This exercise ismore complicated than it sounds, however.

You can do this with just bodyweight or you canhold a dumbbell or two dumbbells for resistanceand balance (I’ll show you that below). You mayneed to hold onto something stable when firststarting out. In this case, hold onto only onedumbbell and grasp the solid object with theother hand.

recommend starting this exercise by holding onto alid object for balance. Stand a couple of feet awayom it and balance on one leg.



quat down on that one leg, bringing your other freeg in behind you a bit. Come down until that other nee is almost on the ground - DO NOT let it touch theound.

ome back up. You can do all your reps on one leg or u can alternate legs.



ere’s a side view of the exercise.

LOOKS like my leg is on the ground in the piclow, but it’s just about an inch above :)

nce you’re comfortable with the stabilized version,ou can try the freestanding version. It’s done exactlye same.. .you will have to lean forward a bit more in



der to keep balanced, though.

se your arms for balance.

Keep looking directly forward as you come to

the bottom. Feel the stretch in your glutes,hamstrings and quads. Go slowly to keep your



balance.

˜ This is a very functional exercise for any sportthat uses the legs and requires dynamic legstability. Your calves will get a lot of stabilizationwork with this one.

The thicker the sole of your shoes, the morestabilizing work your calves are going to have todo. Doing the one-legged squat without shoesprovides the most control and the best feel for the balance of the exercise.

dding Resistance:ou can add resistance to the One-Legged Squat byolding dumbbells in your hands as well. This istually easier for keeping your balance and gettingwer in the squat because you can bring the

umbbells out in front of you to counterbalance your

ody, like a tightrope walker.



de view of the exercise... note how I’m bringing theumbbells out in front as I’m coming down.

ommon Errors:



Leaning too far forward

his will unbalance you and cause you to tip forward.alance is the major problem trainers have with thisxercise. Work into it slowly by holding ontomething when you start doing this exercise. As you

t better with your balance, release your hold but beady to grab if necessary.

Descending too quickly

ropping down to the bottom too quickly is a sureay to lose your balance. It will also reduce thension you get in your muscles during the negativeart of the movement and will decrease the amounteight you are able to use. You may also find if youop down too quickly, that you have a hard timeming back up.

Using too much weight

his exercise does not require heavy weight to befective. Using dumbbells will actually help youaintain balance, just don’t use heavy dumbbells

nless you are ready to squat down and not comeack up. Using heavy weights like this is actually aood technique for doing negative-only, one-leggeduats. Pick up heavy dumbbells, stand on one legen lower yourself slowly down until your knee or theumbbells touch the floor. Set the weights down, putoth feet down then pick up the weights and stand upnd do it again.

ricks:



Freestanding vs. holding on

o these freestanding for greater balance work or ang onto something to work the muscle harder withore stability.

When first starting the freestanding version,work your way into it by starting freestandingand holding on only when you need to.

If you are using only one dumbbell, it is better for your balance to hold it on the same side as theworking leg as a counterbalance to your bodyweight. If you hold it in the opposing hand

you will have to lean really far over in order tokeep your balance.

Holding two dumbbells will make it easier tokeep your balance.

Adjusting the ankle

here is a spot near the bottom of the movement asou drop down where you will feel (due to tension ine ankle) that you can’t go any lower.

At that point try to relax your tibialis anterior muscle (the muscle on the front of your shin). Itwill feel like you are readjusting the tension inyour ankle.

You should be able to drop a little lower downafter you do this. ? This trick requires practice inorder to be able to develop a feel for how to doit.

Bring the dumbbells up in fronto maintain a better body position, bring the



umbbells out and up in front of you like a front raiseyou squat down.

This will help counterbalance you, allowing youto stay more upright.

Bring them together in front of you for better

holding power (keep your elbows bent).Try to sit back somewhat and not let your kneesdrift forward over your toes.



One DumbbellBulgarian

Split Squats

you’re familiar with the Dumbbell Split Squatxercise, basically it looks like a lunge only you don’tep yourself back up to the full standing position..ou keep your legs in the lunge position and justove your body up and down in that position. It’s a

eat thigh and glute exercise.ow to Bulgarian-ize it, you just put your back leg upn a bench.

nd in this version, you’re going to do it with just oneumbbell instead of two.. .that’s the exercise!

sounds very simple.. .and it is.. .but the actualecution of it when you have a dumbbell in your handa bit more challenging... So now that I’ve given thehole exercise away, here’s the mechanics of it.

rst, get your yourself a flat bench and a singleumbbell. Set the dumbbell on the floor in front of thench, set your back foot on the bench (the toe of your oe should be about in the centerline of the bench).

nce your feet are in position, reach down and grabe dumbbell. In the demo here, I’m holding theumbbell in the same side hand as the leg forwardeft hand, left leg forward). You can also perform thisxercise holding the dumbbell in the opposing hand.hat option is actually a bit easier for balancing.





ush yourself back up to the vertical position.

hat’s it!

f course, balance is going to be an issue with thisxercise.. .you should be comfortable doing splituats and lunges just on the floor before you thinkout throwing the bench into the mix.

nce you’ve done your reps on one leg, switch ando the other leg.



ne of the advantages of this version of the splituat over the floor version (aside from working your

alance) is the fact that the back leg doesn’t help veryuch in the movement.

When you’re on the floor, the back leg actuallyntributes a fair bit to pushing you up. When you’ one bench, there’s not nearly as much help.

his means when you switch to the other leg (your on-working" leg, as it were), it’ll be fresher and you’ll

able to get almost as many reps as on the first leg.hat rarely happens on the dumbbell split squat (when



ou push yourself on it, at least).

his is a GREAT exercise for athletes because itvelops balance but also works each leg individuallyot too many sports require you to push with bothgs at the same time).

so, because you’re holding the dumbbell in oneand, there will be torque across the body, givingme great core work at the same time, especially asu get to heavier dumbbells.

s tough one but a good one!



Dead lifts

he Deadlift is one of the most powerful exercisesou can do. It involves most of the muscle groups inur body, with a strong emphasis on the glutes. Also,cause it allows you to use heavier weights, itoduces more of an overall growth stimulus for your utes.

he Deadlift is one of my favorite exercises and,hen done right, is extremely beneficial for your wholeody!

ep up to a loaded barbell. Place your feet slightlyss than shoulder-width apart with does pointingrectly forward and crouch down with the bar uching your shins. You want to keep the bar asose to your legs as possible while you’re doing thet.

rasp the bar with either a palms-down gripverhand) or a mixed grip (one hand palm-up, theher palm down) just outside your legs.



he amount of bend in your legs will vary dependingn how long your legs and arms are.. .for me, it’sout 60 degree bend, as you can see in the pictures.

our lower back should have an arch in it (do notunch over), core tight, your head should be up and

our eyes should be looking straight forward or slightly.

egin the movement by straightening your legs andqueezing" the bar off the ground. You don’t want toy and pop the bar off the ground fast.. .try to imagineat it’s resting on something sticky on the floor and

u have to peel it off.When you’re starting this pull, really focus on

tivating and squeezing the glutes to help get theeight off the floor.



eep the bar close to your legs, basically dragging itp the front of your legs (it’s good to wear longer cks or sweatpants when deadlifting for this reason).nce the bar clears your knees, it’s time to straightenut and come to an upright position. Keep that arch in

our lower back and keep that core tight.



his phase of the movement really engages theutes, too. As you straighten up, focus on squeezinge glutes together like you’re trying to crack a nut.

ere are a few key points to remember as you’readlifting.

Squeeze the bar off the floor - don’t try and popit off the floor.

Keep looking straight forward as you lift. It is notnecessary to look way up nor is it a good ideato look down.

Consciously lead with your head and shouldersto maintain a flat back.

Keep off your toes.. .try to sit back as you’redoing the exercise to engage the strongmuscles of the back of the body (the glutes,lower back and hamstrings).

When you try the deadlift for the first time, here’sow I would recommend you go about it.



Since you won’t be using much weight, if you liftthe bar off the floor, it will be very

to round your back over in an attempt to get lowenough to the ground to lift it.

Go to the squat rack and set the safety rails to apoint about a foot off the ground.Set the bar on top of the rails.

Practice the movement of the deadlift with the just the bar for a few reps to get the

Now add some weight onto the bar, e.g. 10 or

25 pound plates.Do a few more reps to get the feel for how theexercise works with weight.

Since the bar is resting on the rails which areset higher up, you won’t have to bend and youwill learn better form (not to mention spare your back a lot of pain).

As you gradually increase in weight, you canalso set the rails a little lower.

If and when you get to the point where you canuse 45 pound plates in the deadlift, you nolonger need to do them on the rails in the rack.

ommon Errors:

Allowing the back to roundver

ways try to keep an arch in your wer back. It is natural for a little



unding to occur after the bar haseared your knees but if you doe entire exercise with a rounded

ack, you are going to get hurt.

Lifting unevenly

one side of the bar comes up higher or if the bar arts rotating as you are lifting, then you are liftingnevenly. To remedy this, make sure your grip is evenn the bar. Using a mixed grip can cause rotation asou lift so be sure to pull up evenly.

Holding your breath too long

on’t hold your breath during the entire movement asat can increase blood pressure to dangerous levels.is good to hold your breath for the first half of theovement until the bar clears your knees, then exhalerough pursed lips as you lift the barbell off the round.s during this first phase that you need the increasedre stability to protect your back.

Dropping the weight

on’t forget the negative portion of this movement.on’t just drop the weight. Lower it under control. Thegative is an extremely valuable part of the deadlift.

ou don’t have to lower it really slowly, just don’t droplike a hot potato.

ricks:

Falling backwards



st before you start to lift the barbell, visualize lettingour center of gravity fall backwards as though youere going to fall over backwards.

As you fall backwards, start to lift.

The momentum of your mass moving

backwards will help get the weight started.

The mixed grip

he mixed grip (one hand facing forward, one handcing back) is better for a stronger grip as it preventse bar from rolling.

Alternate which hand grips which way to preventstrength and muscle imbalances.

Be sure you grip evenly if you do use a mixedgrip.

If you find the weight swinging to one side

excessively, adjust your grip spacingaccordingly.

The side it is rotating to is usually closer to thecenter of the bar though this could also dependon which way you are gripping.

The bar usually has a tendency to rotate

towards the hand that has a pronated grip(palms back).



Increasing the range of motion

order to improve power off the start, can deadlifthile standing on a riser or a block. Another way is toain with smaller plates, e.g. instead of always using5’s, use 35’s or even 25’s. Starting from a deeper

uat is going put additional workload on the glutes.Keeping the bar close to your shins

you have trouble keeping the bar close to your shins,retch out your calves thoroughly as poor calf exibility may cause this.

Wear pants or long socksWear pants or pull your socks up so you don’t scrapep your shins while lifting. It is also a good idea toear solid-soled shoes or boots while you areadlifting. This prevents your force off the ground

om being dissipated in soft shoe soles.



Stiff Legged Dead lifts

he Stiff Legged Deadlift is an excellent movementr the glutes and the hamstrings. It attacks the hiptension function of the glutes from the other rection. Instead of moving your legs to extend your ps, you move your torso.

his exercise targets the stretched range of motion of e hamstrings, which is not effectively hit when doinge standard Leg Curl. Your lower back contributes tois movement and you should be very careful not toace yourself in a position where you can damage it.

Stand in front of a barbell. Bend over at thewaist and grip the barbell with an overhand(pronated) grip.

Your knees should be slightly bent but notlocked, feet hip to shoulder width apart.

Use very light weight when you start doing thisexercise in order to ease your back into it andtry to feel your hamstrings working.

The first time you do this, if you are unable to

use 45 lb plates, you can do this in the rack soyou can start from the rails with the bar a bit off the ground, or can you can first regular deadliftthe bar off the ground, come to the top, thenlower the bar down for the stiff-legged deadlift.One of the biggest mistakes people make isrounding the lower back at the bottom and using

small plates right off the bat can force you to dothat, if you’re not flexible enough.



Lift your upper body, contracting your hamstrings, keeping the bar close to your legsand your knees stiff but slightly bent.

Keep your head up and looking forward,shoulders back, chest out.



It is important not to let the bar move away fromyour legs, especially at the bottom as thisincreases the pressure on your lower back.

The bar should move straight up and down -your body should bend and your butt stick out toaccommodate that vertical movement pattern.

You should attempt to maintain an arch in your lower back throughout the entire exercise.

here is a temptation at the stretch position to rounde back to increase the stretch. This does increasee stretch slightly but puts your lower back into aunded position. Keeping your lower back archedill focus on the hams and glutes while rounding your ack slightly will work your lower back.

Inhale on the way down, hold at the bottom, thenexhale on the way up, after you pass the mostdifficult portion of the up phase.

You should actually hold your breath during the



down and the first part of the up phase in order to maintain proper spinal position and intra-abdominal pressure to protect your back.

When performing this exercise, I prefer to set theeight down on the ground at the bottom of each rep,

ke you would with a regular deadlift. This allows youreset your back into the proper arched position ate bottom of each rep and also allows you to useore weight in the exercise, which will increase thefectiveness of the exercise.

ometimes, you’ll see people doing continuous-

nsion reps, not setting the weight on the floor onch rep. This is not wrong but it does make itugher to do. I also find it easier to make the mind-in-uscle connection setting the bar down on the floor,pecially for the glutes and how they contribute to the

xercise.

o maximize the effects on the glutes, consciouslyueeze them hard at the beginning of each rep andy to keep on squeezing them as you come up. Whenou get near the top of the movement, you’ll find itsier to mentally contract the glutes musclescause they’re getting closer to their peakntracted position.

ommon Errors:

Lifting from a raised surface

While this allows for a greater nge of motion it is not



commended.

It can result in excessiverounding of the back andbalance problems.

In fact, in order to get the

extra stretch from being on the bench, youMUST round the back.

This is a dangerous position for the back to bein, especially with weight and it is notnecessary.

Getting a greater range of motion is more easily

accomplished by using smaller plates.Increasing the stretch on the hamstrings usingthe "toes up" trick as detailed below is muchbetter.


his is extremely dangerous with this exercise due toe vulnerable position your lower back is in. Theoser you get to the bottom, the slower you shouldo.

Rounding the back

ever round the back with this exercise. Not only ise arched position safer for your back it is far morefective for putting a stretch on the hamstrings.

Looking down

his will result in rounding of the back. The lumbar rtebrae tend to mimic the cervical vertebrae. If youok up and forward, your back will want to stayched. If you look down, your back will want to round



ver. Bottom line, try to look straight forward all theay up and down through the exercise.

ricks:

Toes up

his technique increases the stretch on theamstrings without increasing the range of motionnd does not put your back into a compromisedosition.

Place two 25 pound plates(Olympic size) on theground in front you so theyare touching.

Set your feet on the platesso that your heels are on the ground, your toesare in the air, and the edges of the plates are inthe middle of your feet.

The plates are there to dorsiflex your feet (raisetoes).

What this does is increase the stretch in thehamstrings by stretching the calves.

If you have trouble feeling your hamstrings workon stiff-legged deadlifts, this trick will force themto work.

If the 25 pound plates are too big, try 10’s.

I also use high-density foam wedges for this,though those aren’t common in most gyms.

Stick your butt out



s you come down, stick your butt back and try toise your toes up in your shoes.

Put more pressure on your heels as well.

You should feel as though you are trying to forma triangle with your arms, legs and torso at thebottom stretch position of this movement.

Your arms will be vertical, your torso almosthorizontal and your legs back at an angle.

This is different than the conventional techniquebut is more effective.

Never lose the arch in your back and keep your abs sucked in and tight.

Don’t fixate on one spot

on’t fix on one spot with your vision. This will makeour head and neck move. Look straight ahead.

Increasing glute involvement

o increase glute involvement in this exercise, tightenour glutes at the bottom of the exercise. Consciouslyench them as you begin to pull the bar up again.

Paw the ground

s you return down to the stretch position, imagineawing" the ground with your feet (like a bull gettingady to charge). This will give you a better nnection to your hamstrings.



Sumo Deadlifts

he Deadlift is one of the most powerful exercisesou can do. It involves most of the muscle groups inur body, with a strong emphasis on the glutes. Also,cause it allows you to use heavier weights, itoduces more of a growth stimulus for your glutes.

uses more active muscle mass than any other xercise, including squats. The focus of the Deadlift isually considered the lower back, however, itrongly works the gluteus maximus muscles as well.he Deadlift is extremely useful for building muscleass and total body strength because of the great

mount of muscle mass it uses.

his version of the deadlift is called the "sumo"adlift because of how your feet are positioned..

wide to the sides like a Sumo wrestler. You’ll beipping the bar inside your thighs rather than outsider this one.

his position hits the adductor muscles a bit morend changes how the glutes are activated in theadlift, which makes it a nice variation. It also allows

ou to stay a bit more upright in the torso, which can easier on the lower back. Because the feet are outide, you don’t have to pull around your knees quitemuch.

ow to Do It:

ep up to a loaded barbell. Place your feet wide,most near the barbell plates and squat down with



e bar touching your shins. You want to keep the bar close to your legs as possible while you’re doing

e lift.

rasp the bar with either a palms-down gripverhand) or a mixed grip (one hand palm-up, theher palm down) inside your thighs and shoulder-idth apart.

our lower back should have an arch in it (do notunch over), your head should be up and your eyesould be looking straight forward or slightly up.

egin the movement by straightening your legs andqueezing" the bar off the ground. You don’t want toy and pop the bar off the ground fast.. .try to imagineat it’s resting on something sticky on the floor andu have to peel it off.

When you’re starting this pull, really focus on

tivating the glutes to help get the weight off the floor y squeezing them hard.





ere’s the side view of the exercise.

ere are a few key points to remember as you’readlifting.

Squeeze the bar off the floor - don’t try and popit off the floor.



Keep looking straight forward as you lift. It is notnecessary to look way up nor is it a good ideato look down.

Consciously lead with your head and shouldersto maintain a flat back.

Keep off your toes…try to sit back as you’redoing the exercise to engage the strongmuscles of the back of the body (the glutes,lower back and hamstrings).

When you try the deadlift for the first time, here’sow I would recommend you go about it.

Since you won’t be using much weight, if you liftthe bar off the floor, it will be very to round your back over in an attempt to get low enough to theground to lift it.

Go to the squat rack and set the safety rails to apoint about a foot off the ground.

Set the bar on top of the rails.

Practice the movement of the deadlift with the just the bar for a few reps to get the

Now add some weight onto the bar, e.g. 10 or 25 pound plates.

Do a few more reps to get the feel for how theexercise works with weight.

Since the bar is resting on the rails which areset higher up, you won’t have to bend and youwill learn better form (not to mention spare your back a lot of pain).

As you gradually increase in weight, you canalso set the rails a little lower.



If and when you get to the point where you canuse 45 pound plates in the deadlift, you nolonger need to do them on the rails in the rack.

ommon Errors:

Allowing the back tound over

ways try to keep an arch inour lower back. It is natural for

little rounding to occur after e bar has cleared your kneesut if you do the entirexercise with a rounded back,u are going to get hurt.

Lifting unevenly

one side of the bar comes up higher or if the bar arts rotating as you are lifting, then you are liftingnevenly. To remedy this, make sure your grip is evenn the bar. Using a mixed grip can cause rotation asou lift so be sure to pull up evenly. This is more likely

happen with the Sumo deadlift than the regular

adlift because your hands are closer together soep an eye out for it.

Holding your breath

on’t hold your breath during the entire movement asat can increase blood pressure to dangerous levels.

he first phase of the movement you should hold your eath.. .once the bar clears your knees then exhalerou h ursed li s.



Dropping the weight

on’t forget the negative portion of this movement.on’t just drop the weight. Lower it under control. Thegative is an extremely valuable part of the deadlift.

ricks:

Falling backwards

st before you start to lift the barbell, let your center gravity fall backwards as though you were going to

ll over backwards.

As you fall backwards, start to lift.

The momentum of your mass movingbackwards will help get the weight started.

The mixed grip

he mixed gripne hand facingrward, one handcing back) is

tter for aronger grip as itevents the bar om rolling.

Alternate which hand grips which way to preventstrength and muscle imbalances.

Be sure you grip evenly if you do use a mixedgrip.



If you find the weight swinging to one sideexcessively, adjust your grip spacingaccordingly.

The side it is rotating to is usually closer to thecenter of the bar though this could also dependon which way you are gripping.

The bar usually has a tendency to rotatetowards the hand that has a pronated grip(palms back).

Continuous style

y doing deadlifts continuous style.

Do not allow the weight to touch the floor inbetween reps.

This is difficult but is a very effective technique.

It is also useful in gyms that will throw you out for dropping weights heavily on the floor.

The most stressful part of the lift is when youreverse the direction of the barbell and lift itback up again. This is also the most vulnerableposition for your lower back. Use perfect formfor this technique.

Increasing the range of motion

order to improve power off the start, deadlift off aock. Another way is to train with smaller plates, e.g.stead of always using 45’s, use 35’s or even 25’s.

Starting slowly

you are just starting out with the deadlift and need toe smaller plates, try setting the bar in the rack or on



e bench so you don’t have to lean over excessively.

Keeping the bar close to your shins

you have trouble keeping the bar close to your shins,retch out your calves thoroughly as poor calf exibility may cause this.

Wear pants or long socks

Wear pants or pull your socks up so you don’t scrapep your shins while lifting. It is also a good idea toear solid-soled shoes or boots while you areadlifting. This prevents your force off the ground

om being dissipated in soft shoe soles.



Two Bench Split Squats

ne of the shortcomings of the regular lunge is thatour range of motion is limited by your back kneetting the ground. By standing on two benches, your nee will not hit the ground and you will be free to gettremendous stretch on the glutes.

his exercise allows you to lower yourself down further an with conventional lunges on the floor. With this

xercise your back knee does not hit the ground,hich limits your range of motion. The only real issuewith balance. Be sure you have good balance ande experienced with lunges and split squats before

oing this exercise and that you have two SOLIDnches or chairs to do this one on and that they’re

n non-slip surfaces (for obvious reasons).

*Set up two benches about two feet apart (you canexperiment with distance to where you are mostcomfortable - it will vary from person to person)parallel to each other. Make sure they are stable.

*If you have access to two Step platforms, this willwork just as well. The idea is basically to elevateyourself off the ground so that your back kneedoesn’t hit the floor.

*Hold two dumbbells in your hands by your sidesand stand on the back bench.



*Step forward with one foot onto the bench in frontof you.

*Make sure your entire foot is on the bench. Thisexercise is much more effective for the gluteswhen you push with your heel so your heel must beon the bench.





*Pushing primarily with your heel, push yourself back up to the start position.

*Do a full set of this exercise with one leg thenswitch and do a full set with the other leg.

*Be careful getting into position after you’ve starteddoing this exercise. Your legs are bound to be alittle wobbly!



ommon Errors:

Leaning forward on the way down

his can cause you to lose your balance and placesnnecessary stress on your back.

Always strive to keep your upper body vertical.

Do lunges in a mirror so you can see what youare doing and be sure to focus on sitting back

during the descent.


ropping quickly not only takes tension off the legs, itn create balance problems when you try to reverserection. It can also increase the stress on your

nees. You really don’t want to fall off the bencheshen doing this exercise.



ricks:

Hang on

When first starting Two Bench Lunges, hang ontomething solid to help your balance.

Place your benches inside a power rack or nextto something solid that you can easily grab onto.

Use no weight or hold onto one dumbbell only.

As you get accustomed to the movement, try aset without holding any weight and see how do.

Then progress to holding two dumbbells.

Flat shoes

Wear flat-soled shoes when doing Lunges (such as

nnis or other court shoes).This will help with your balance.

With running shoes, you have half an inch or more of cushioning upon which to destabilizeyourself.

Get a full stretch

nce you are able to go further down without theound getting in the way, be sure to fully exploit theretch that is available to you. Drop down as far asou can and hold the bottom position for a fewconds before coming back up.

What do to if you don’t have two benches



you only have one bench, this exercise can easily bemprovised using another raised surface. For stance, instead of placing either of your legs on

nother bench, you can use stairs, a chair, Stepatforms, etc. Pretty much anything that is solid thatu can get another bench close to will work.



Barbell Split Squats

his exercise is the barbell version of the Split Squatence the name). The reason I have this one in thedvanced section is that using a barbell for this is at more tricky in terms of balance and execution. You

ave to be comfortable with a barbell on your back inder to do the exercise and know how to balance

nd move with it.

won’t go into the full explanation of how the splituat exercise works the glutes as you should alreadyfamiliar with it before trying this exercise anyway.

o first, get the rack set up to same setup as youould normally use for squats. Get the bar on your ack, unrack it and step back.

ep your right leg back about 2 feet. Make sure youon’t ste directl back from our lead foot - ou



ould have a little bit of horizontal separation so thatu have a wider base of support to work with.

ow come down into the split squat.

hen come back up.s not a complicated exercise but that balance can



a bit tricky with the bar on your back, so start lightnd be careful. DO NOT push to failure on this oneith the bar on your back.

nce you’ve done your reps on one leg, you canther stop the set and rest before hitting the other leggo right into the other leg. If you go right into the

her leg, you’ll get fewer reps with it, because thearting leg will be fatigued and that leg does provideme assistance in the movement.

ou can get around this unbalanced approach by justarting with different legs on each set.

o put the other leg back and do the movement asfore.



When you’re done, just rerack the bar.

his one has the advantage over dumbbells in thatou don’t have to worry about gripping the dumbbells.so, having the bar on your back changes the feel of e exercise, too.







ecause the bench is elevated, you can go nice andep into the lunge position (more so than if your frontot was flat on the ground).

his allows you to really get down and work the

ute on that side - the greater the stretch, theeater the glutes will be involved.





art with on the first set. This will help to keep thingsven in terms of strength.

ne thing to note, when you’re setting yourself up for e exercise, if you place your left foot on the bench,

our right foot should be about 4 to 6 inches to theght of the centerline of the bench. Basically, don’t setour right foot directly in line behind the left - you need

keep some horizontal separation between the twoet so you don’t fall over.



On-Bench One-LegDumbbell

Bench Squats

When you think leg and glute training, generally thest thing that pops into your head is probablyquats."

HIS version of the squat is going to add

nother dimension to your squat training bycreasing the range of motion, having you do itne leg, AND challenging your balance.

ou may not be using as much weight, but you’ll betting the glutes legs in a very different way fromrmal squats.

or this, you’ll need a flat bench and a couple of umbbells - I’m just using a pair of 25 lb dumbbellsre - you don’t need much weight at all when doingese. You’re going to make up for it with range of otion and the balance requirement (it’s thelancing on the bench on one foot that works the

abilizing muscles of the calves and hips extremelyell).

o grab your dumbbells and stand up on the bench.ow stand on one foot, holding the dumbbells to thede. Your other leg should be a little behind you.



ow squat down.

ere’s the key.. .as you squat down, bring theumbbells out in FRONT of you, counterbalancingour body so you can comfortably go WAY down..asically until your chest hits your thigh.

ON’T set your other foot down on the ground unlessou lose your balance (and that might happen the firstw sets of this you do. If you do lose your balance or art to, just lightly touch or tap your other foot on theound to regain it then keep going.

s the constant tension on the working leg through aIG range of motion that really does the job on thisne.



ow push yourself back up to the standing positionnd repeat. When pushing up, to focus more on theutes, try to focus on pushing with your heel. You cano all your reps on one leg then switch to the other,ou can alternate legs, or you can do a couple of repsn each leg alternating back and forth.



his is not an easy exercise to do, especially if you’vet done a whole lot of one-leg training before, but I’veund it to be extremely effective for hitting the legsith tension while still training relatively light.

st remember, the key is to bring the dumbbellsrward in a bit of a front raise as you come down tounterbalance your body, allowing you to keep better

alance.

generally keep this one to about 5 to 6 reps per leg,cause of the balance component.

you’re interested in some challenging leg work,ou’re going to love this one!



Sideways Barbell-EndLunges

his is an excellent one for developing the lateralpect of the hips and thighs. It’s basically a lunge (or ore accurately, a step-back lunge) movement. Butstead of holding dumbbells in your hands or aeight across your back, you’re going to be using ahole NEW type of setup...

nd that setup is a barbell with one end down (either edged in a corner or using a piece of equipmentat locks it in place and pivots) and the other endaded.

he piece of equipment that I’m using to anchor thear is a T-Bar Bracket from New York Barbells.hey’re not expensive (40 bucks) and definitely worthe price. The number of exercises you can do with

e pivot like this is HUGE. All you do is slide it under e "foot" of a machine and screw it on and you’re set.



use mine all the time.

nyway, for this particular exercise, you can also justt the end of the bar in a corner or two walls or aachine (I’d recommend putting a towel in the corner

st THEN the bar so as you’re lifting, it doesn’t rubaint off the wall or damage anything).

ou don’t need to load both ends because you’ll beorking on the other side of the weights plates - they’llep the bar down.

o stand beside the loaded end of the bar and grab itith both hands.



ow lift it up so you’re carrying it it front of your oulders and leaning into the bar at an angle, like ine pics.



ow squat down on one leg (or call it a step-backnge).



eep leaning into the bar then push back up. Try toe just the front leg as much as possible - it’s okay toe some of the back leg, too.

nce you’ve done all your reps on one side, hold thear at the top then switch around to the other side.

epeat on the other leg, leaning into the bar andoing a step-back lunge type of movement.

his picture shows how to hold the bar quite nicely.



ower yourself down



ush back up and keep going until you’re toasted!

his exercise is great in several ways...

Because you’re leaning to the side as you’re doingis exercise, you’re really hitting the entire lateralpect of your lower body from the hips down throughe ankles. Not too many sports where lateral power

nd stability aren’t critical!

The bar can still move pretty freely so it’s not likeing locked into a machine, though it does haveore stability than a regular free weight exercise so itrt of resembles a machine in that way. You’re stillle to move around quite a lot.

Holding the bar out in front makes this exercisemilar to a front squat in terms of how it hits the core.nice bonus!

You can work your legs until you’re fall-down

ashed because all you have to do is set the bar own - no need to rerack anything or get stuck at theottom of a squat.

his is a powerful glute exercise that will really build the lateral aspect of the hips and butt.



Wide Stance Front Squats

his is a variation of the basic wide stance squat. Inis one, you’re doing it in Front Squat style with the

ar racked across the front of your shoulders. Thislows you to squat in a more upright position.

you’ve never done Front Squats before, you’reoing to be in for a treat... it’s not only great for thewer body, it works the core VERY strongly as well. Icommend starting with a very light with this one until

ou get comfortable with the exercise and setup.

o set the rack up just as you would for a regular uat.

ep up to the bar set your chest against it. Reach upnd grip your right hand on the bar across and over to

e left side then grab it across with your left hand one right side, crossing over in front.



he bar should be cradled in the groove of your frontlts. Once you’ve got the bar in place, step out intoe middle of the rack, then get your feet out wide toe sides. Get them wide enough that your toes areise up on the side bottom rails of the rack, as in thecture. Having your toes up puts more tension on theutes, hamstrings and adductors and takes it off the







Sumo Stance Stiff-LeggedDead lifts

he Stiff-Legged Deadlift is a classic hamstring andosterior chain exercise (the posterior chain isasically all the muscles running down the back of ur body).

here are a TON of variations of this exercise and thisariation is another very good one - it’s different from

e regular one simply in where you set your feet.you’re familiar with the Sumo Stance Deadlift, it’s

e same deal here. Basically, your feet are out veryide and pointed outwards.

he idea in the deadlift is that this reduces the range

motion you have to pull and changes your legosition so that you don’t have to lift around your nees as much.

the SLDL, it does the same thing but that’s not theason I do it. I use this version in order to work the

dductors in addition to the hamstrings and glutes.

he wide leg position puts good tension on thosedductor (inner thigh) muscles and really forces theutes to do a lot of the work. Adductor strength isitical for athletics and for squatting and can help with

our overall leg and butt development.

his version is also a bit easier on the lower back, if

u find you have issues with the regular SLDL.oad a bar and set your feet out wide, until they’re just



few inches from the weight plates and point the outout 45 degrees. Naturally, you’ll want to be carefulw you set the bar down in between reps...

end forward at the waist, keeping a slight bend inour knees. You’ll keep them there (and stiff)roughout the movement. Grip the bar with anverhand grip and make sure your lower back isched and tight.

ow lift, using glute and ham power to squeeze the

ar off the floor.



ower the bar down slowly then go again. You can sete bar on the floor between reps or keep it off theound between reps. Either way will work.

his one will help you build excellent adductor strengthithout having to sit on of those machines that lookke they’re going to "make-a-wish" with your legs.

nd be very sure to squeeze those glutes hard to

ake sure they contribute to the movement!



Toes Raised in RackSumo Deadlifts

his is a great exercise for targeting the glutes andwer back more in a deadlift movement. How you set

our feet is going to really take a lot of the thighvolvement out of the deadlift.

ve also thrown in a little twist with an isometric optionhelp with lockouts at the top, too.

he best place to do this is in a rack.. .you could usecouple of blocks to elevate your toes but with a rack,ou won’t risk those sliding out on you (you’ll see whatmean).

o load up a bar with a lighter weight than you

ormally would use and set it in the rack like in thecture. Set your feet on the SIDE bottom rails of theck so your toes are elevated and only your heels are

n the floor.

our feet will be angled out to the sides. This positionknown as a Sumo Deadlift - your arms will be

side your thighs instead of outside your thighs, withfairly close grip on the bar.



ow you’re going to just perform a deadlift.



ecause of the "sumo" position and how your toese elevated and only your heels are down, your utes will be activated MUCH more so than your uads.



o really activate the glutes, squeeze them hard asou lift the bar off the floor.

s you can see, it’s best to do this in the rack whereothing is going to slide out sideways from under your et.

hat other isometric option I mentioned? This one youO need the rack for. Set the rails of the rack to aoint just below the full lockout position of thexercise.

When you lift the bar, pull it right up against the safetyils and hold, continuing to pull against the rails. Youn actually use this technique with ANY deadlift

ariation, so don’t think you have to just keep it to thene. When you’re pulling against the rails THAT is theme to really clench those glutes hard!



hat’s the exercise! It’s a great way to really focus one glutes, the rest of the posterior chain as well ase adductors. That wide stance really forces the

dductors to work hard, without having to resort totting in one of those "make a wish" adductor achines.



Wide-Stance Toes-UpSquats

his is a very simple variation of the regular barbelluat that’s going to put even more focus on theutes and the adductors by taking a very wide stanceND by raising the toes up to get the quadsinimized in the movement.

et the squat rack up exactly as you would for regular

uats.et under the bar and get it resting on your upper ack and traps, just above your shoulder blades. Stepack in the rack then set your feet out wide to thedes so that your heels are on the ground and your es are up on the side bottom rails of the rack.

ow squat down as low as you can go. The further



ou squat down, the more stretch you’ll put on theutes and the more effective the exercise will be for em.

ow, focusing on pushing with your heels andueezing the glutes, push yourself back up to the top

osition.

his wide toes-up stance is going to really force theutes to do a lot of work in the squat where normally,ith a narrower stance, they don’t contribute quite asuch.



Wide Stance DumbbellStiff- Legged Dead lifts

his is a variation of the classic Stiff-Legged Deadliftovement. As the name describes, instead of keep

our feet shoulder-width apart, you’ll be taking a wideance, also known as a Sumo stance (named, of urse, after Sumo wrestlers).

his puts a different tension on the hamstrings, glutes

nd adductor muscles. It’s a very good one! Also,cause we’re using a dumbbell, you won’t need toorry about the barbell contacting your legs as you doe exercise.

find the dumbbells give a better stretch when doingis wide-stance position because dumbbells are

maller and you can reach down further.et the dumbbell on the floor between your feet. Setour feet out fairly wide - not full splits or anything but air distance (toes pointing out slightly).



ow, keeping your lower back arched and your coreght, lean forward and grab the dumbbell (overlappingnds on one dumbbell).

ow, keeping your legs stiff, do the deadliftovement. Squeeze the glutes and hamstrings as

ou’re doing it. With the legs apart, you’ll also feel thedductors getting involved, too.

hat’s pretty much it! It’s a straightforward exercise -e only difference from the normal version of the Stiff-egged Deadlift is leg position and using a singleumbbell instead of a bar.





Trunk Twists With a Twist -Tighten Your Love HandlesTo Make Your Glutes LOOK

Bigger...

ou’re probablyondering why I’vecluded an AB exercise

a glute training book.nd the reason ismple.

his is the SINGLE mostfective exercise for ghtening up the waist

ithout having to losetra fat.. .and the smaller our waist is, theIGGER your butt willok.

nd when you work to decrease waist size while

so increasing glute size, the difference inppearance will give you DOUBLE the visualmpact!

o.. .the "love handles" are the areas just above your ps on your sides. But I don’t know many people whouly love theirs, which is why one of THE most

mmon training goals around is getting rid of thoseings!



ut here’s the problem.. .sometimes, even fat lossoesn’t always cut it when it comes to reducing theve handle area! Sure, you can peel off a lot of thet, but even LEAN people sometimes find that thisea STILL pokes out more than it should for the

mount of bodyfat they carry.

can be a VERY frustrating thing, knowing that you’reoing all you can to lose fat and your love handles arell there.

ut there IS hope (and it’s NOT surgery)! I’ve got anxercise for you that will help to tighten up the muscleshe obliques) that lie directly UNDERNEATH the loveandle area.

While this won’t burn any of the fat that sits there (NOexercises will do THAT), it WILL help reduce the

pearance and bulge of the area, giving you theore streamlined waist you want.

o what is this magical exercise? I call it the "Trunkwist With a Twist." This technique was a favorite of gendary bodybuilder Serge Nubret for achieving theasp-thin waist he was famous for.

n the surface, this exercise looks a lot like thegular broomstick twist you see people doing toarm up sometimes. Here’s the difference... insteadjust mindlessly rotating your torso from side to side,

ou’re going to focus on SQUEEZING the obliquesard while keeping your head LOCKED in a forwardosition.

his squeezing technique will dramatically tighten thebliques and help you diminish those love handlesnce and for all!



How To Do It:

he setup for this exercise is simple! Put a bar or ck across your shoulders with your hands over the

p and arms stretched out to the sides. Stand withour feet about a foot apart.

ow begin to twist your upper body around to the leftde.

ere is the key.. .while you are twisting, keep your ad facing STRAIGHT FORWARD instead of turning



our head along with your torso as you normallyould. This is extremely important! If you turn your ad, the exercise will be useless!

s a good idea to do this exercise in front of a mirror you have one available), so you can see exactly

hat is going on. Look straight at yourself in the mirror d DO NOT move your head while you twist your rso (in fact, for a little extra squeeze, you can try took as much as you can the OPPOSITE way).

eep twisting all the way around until you’ve turned asr as you can. When doing this twist, I like to try to tilte bar down a bit towards the side I’m twisting to.his helps to increase the activation of the obliquesy bending the torso over to the side a bit.

the height of the twist, squeeze the oblique areaght where your love handles are), contracting it ASARD AS YOU POSSIBLY CAN and holding it for 35 seconds. This is the "money" part of the exercise.

he actual twist only serves to get you into thatosition!

When you’ve squeezed everything out of the left side,tate around to the right side and do the same thing.





ricks:

Raising the knee

help increase the squeeze on the obliques, as you

wist to one side, come up on your toes to raise your nee up towards your opposing hand as it comesound, e.g. if you’re twisting to the left, raise your left

nee to try and meet your right hand. This increasese contraction on the obliques by helping to shortene muscle from the other end (below), basically the

pposing action to tilting the bar down that Ientioned prior.

Breathe in and out

old the contraction for a few seconds and breathe innd out, squeezing out all the air you can on eachxhalation. This will help get an even tighter

ntraction in the area.Pull with one hand, push with the other

s you do the twist, push with the far hand and pullith the other for a greater contraction. For example,you’re twisting to the left, pull on the bar with your leftnd and push it forward with your right.

Suck in your gut

s you come towards the full turn, suck in your gut.his places an even greater contraction on theblique muscle, tightening it up even further.



ONCLUSION:

his exercise requires some practice to really get theaximum squeeze out of the muscles, but once you

now how to do it, you’ll love it! To get the best resultsut of this exercise, perform it at the end of everyngle workout you do. Do just one or two sets of tween 15 and 30 reps.

his is not a power or resistance-based exercise. It’sl about the squeeze and the contraction, which ishy we’re doing the higher reps here.



Barbell Curl Squats - TheToughest (and Most

Effective!) Core StrengthExercise You Will EVER Do

his is my very favorite core exercise and, trust me,ou will feel why from the VERY FIRST REP. It’s auat, but how you DO that squat forces the

dominal area to do almost ALL the work! If youant strong abs, it doesn’t matter if you’re a totalginner or an advanced trainer, TRY THIS

XERCISE.

his is one of THE best overall abdominal/corexercises I’ve EVER found. If you want a stronger

re and you want it fast, THIS is the exercise to focusn. It’s tough, but VERY effective.

his exercise is actually found in one of my other ooks “The Best Ab Exercises You’ve Never Heardf” - so you’re getting another sneak peek here!

he Curl Squat exercise is deceptively simple...asically, you’re going to do a squat while holding thearbell in the top of the barbell curl position. That’s it!

o what makes this exercise different from a frontuat (where you support the weight across the front

your shoulders)? And what makes is soXTREMELY effective for training the core (which ise REAL reason for doing this particular exercise,OT for working the legs)?



l tell you!

olding the resistance in front of your body in the toprl position takes away the shoulder support that youould normally get with a front squat. ALL thepporting tension goes directly onto the muscles of

e core, instead of having much of it being taken upy the shoulders. ALL your core muscles will have tontract HARD throughout the entire movement inder to keep the barbell from falling forward.

he difference in position may seem subtle, but it’snsion that you have to experience to believe!

his exercise also helps you to get a feel for how tooperly use the abs during a squat, which isXTREMELY important for maximizing your squatrength. Using the abs while squatting (especially ate bottom of the lift) is something that does not cometurally and is very rarely taught or explained to

ainers. And believe me, it has the potential to addounds to your squat FAST.

nother great benefit to this exercise is that your eathing muscles (the intercostals) NEVER get a

hance to relax during this movement. From top toottom and back up (even while you’re "resting" at the

p), your breathing muscles are being challengedcause of the weight they’re being forced to support.

his can build up great breathing strength (the termreathing strength" may sound strange but watch arongman explode a hot water bottle just by inflating itith lung power and you’ll know what I’m talking

out!) and carries directly over to your work capacitythe regular barbell squat as well as most other



manding exercises and sports!

ow To Do It:

o do this exercise, all you really need is a barbell, but

you have access to a power rack, even better. Theck will make it easier to get into position for thexercise and will serve to "catch" the bar when you’reone.

et the rack up so that the racking pins are one notchlow where you would normally set them for squats.

he reason you want to set those pins one notchlow is that by the time you’re done with thexercise, it may be very hard to get the bar up to theight where you would normally rack the bar! Withe racks a little lower, you’ll have an easier timetting the bar back onto them.

et the safety rails just above where you normally setem for regular squats the first time you try this. Whenou develop a better feel for how it’s done, you canwer them a little to get the full range of motion.

he weight should be about the same as what youould use for barbell curls for about 8 to 10 reps. This

a starting point - you can add weight as you getronger with the exercise.

ep in front of the bar and hold it in the top position of e barbell curl. Now stand up, unracking the bar.on’t allow your elbows to brace against your idsection. This will take away from the supporting

nsion on the abs. Take a step back and get your et set.



ow, holding the bar in that top curl position throughe entire movement, squat down as far as you canen come back up. You don’t actually curl the bar hile doing the squat, you just hold it in the top curlosition.

o increase abdominal stability, you will be holdingour breath during parts of this movement. As you

art to lower yourself down, inhale. Begin holdingour breath just below the halfway point of the squatyou come down to the bottom position. Continue told it until you’re about 1/4 to 1/2 of the way back up.

you don’t want to or are unable to hold your breath,xhale through pursed lips (as though you’re blowing

p a balloon). Keeping the breath held towards theottom will maximize core stability and allow your absfunction more effectively during the movement.

nce this exercise uses relatively light weightmpared to a regular squat, holding your breath ist nearly as potentially dangerous.

hat being said, if you DO feel lightheaded at anyoint in the exercise, rack the bar and rest. Always



e your best judgment here. The idea is to workurself in a SAFE manner.

When doing the exercise for the first time, it’s a goodea to start with just the bar, no matter how strong

ou are. This will help you get a feel for how theovement is done, where to set the safety rails and

ow far down you can comfortably go.

When you’re comfortable, work your way up slowlyom there as fatigue will come quickly. It’s aovement your body will be totally unused to, noatter how many abdominal exercises you’ve done in

our training career before this. The muscles of there will tire before your legs do. Be sure to keep your wer back arched and tight while performing thisovement.

you’re able to, go all the way down until your elbowsuch your knees. This will give you the fullest range of otion. Tense the abs hard, especially at the bottom

you’re coming back up. For extra resistance,ause at the bottom for a few seconds. This will giveu the best feel for how the abs should be used whenuatting.

With this exercise, having the resistance in front of theody (similar to when you’re doing a front squat)lows you to keep a more vertical body position. Theajority of the tension WILL go onto the abs, but be

ware that there will also be some tension going toe lower back.

ecause you’re holding the weight out in front of you,e lower back must also contract to help stabilize theine. As you keep up with the exercise, your lower

ack will get stronger.



OMMON ERRORS

Doing this exercise after a bicep workout

s you can imagine, performing this exercise is notoing be as effective if you’ve just finished a biceporkout. The biceps will already be fatigued and you’llmit the amount of weight you can use and how longou can hold it for. Use this exercise on nonbicepaining days, if possible.

Going too fast

ropping down quickly in the squat will put extraress on the biceps as you come up and reduce thension on the abs. This exercise should be done veryliberately with no bouncing or fast movements. If

ou have a tendency to do this, pause at the bottomr a few seconds to stop the bouncing.

Using too much weight

nce the legs are so much stronger, it’s tempting toe too much weight for this exercise. Remember, our

oal here is NOT to work the legs or the biceps but toork the abs. The legs and the biceps are only herehelp push the abs. If your biceps fatigue before your s get a good workout, you need to reduce theeight.

Leaning forward

y to keep your upper body as vertical as possible

ith this one. It’s very similar to a front squat - havinge weight in front of you allows you to stay vertical



ore easily. Leaning forward will cause the barbell toift forward, which will put more tension on theceps, causing them to fatigue prematurely. As youart to fatigue, you will notice you have a tendency toan forward. This is because the supporting abs areeakening. Do your best to keep vertical. Once you

art to move too far forward, end the set.Bar too close to chin

the bar gets too close to the collarbones, you willse some of the tension in the abs. Keep it at least aw inches away to maximize the supporting tension

nd torque demanded of the abs. If it comes tooose, it may be tempting to rest the bar on your llarbones, which will turn it into an uncomfortable

ont squat.

Letting the elbows brace strongly against theidsection

you let the elbows press strongly into theidsection, it will take away some of the tension one abs. A little contact is fine, especially as you geted, but don’t rely on using this technique or it willake the exercise less effective.

etting the elbows sink in like this will also tend tounch your back over, putting pressure on the lower ck. This will in turn pull your torso and center of

alance forward, putting more tension on the biceps,aking you dig the elbows in more! Keep the elbows

ut front, away from your body and you’ll keep a better ody position and do a more effective set.

RICKS



Look forward and slightly up

When you squat, keeping looking forward and slightlyp. This will help you to keep an arch in your lower ack and keep you from leaning forward. We want tovoid forward lean as it causes the biceps to fatigueematurely.

Don’t breathe too deeply in or out as you’reoming down or pushing back up

reathing too much during this exercise reduces coreability and can compromise your form. For bestre stabilization, keep your breath carefullyntrolled. At the bottom, you can hold your breath for few moments to get the most solid stability. As youme up, you can exhale through pursed lips after

ou’ve come about 1/4 to 1/2 of the way. Thischnique shouldn’t be used if you have bloodessure issues, however, as it does cause ancrease in blood pressure. Keep a careful eye on

ow you feel if you do choose to do this - and if youel any dizziness, end the set and then don’t use thischnique the next set.

Pause at the bottom

o really maximize the tension on the abs, pause for aw seconds at the bottom and focus on reallyueezing and tightening your abs hard. As you startcome back up, try to push with your abs as well.

his will help you to feel what it’s like to use the abs tolp push out of the bottom when doing regular

arbell squats.

ONCLUSION:





Programs and Workouts

The programs andworkouts are where it allcomes together. It’swhere you takeeverything (the

exercises, the stretchingand the nutrition) andapply it in a completeoverall strategy.

This is where the magic happens!

Start with the program that best suits your currentability level, goals and time availability. As youprogress in your training, you may wish to continueat the same level but with a different program or move to a higher level and try a program from there.

n this book there IS a program that will work for you.More than likely, there will be MANY programs that willwork really well for you. It’s up to you to determine

which programs are effective for you and work hard athem, so definitely try many different programs that



ppeal to you! If you use a program for 3 to 4 weeksnd aren’t seeing the results you want, then changep and try a different one!

Be sure to select a program that is appropriateor your training ability and don’t be afraid toush hard because THAT is where the realesults are!!



Glute Workout Index

n this section, you’re going to find a HUGE variety of workout options for building your glutes.

ve divided up the workouts into training levels, howong they take to complete and where you’ll be doing

hem (home or gym) so you know exactly whichworkouts you should use.

These workouts can be plugged right in to ANY basicrogram structure and can be used with many of thenique programs below. I’ll tell you how to create arogram with them (it’s simple to do) and you can veryasily work them into just about any other programou’re currently using, making them an ideal place totart your butt-building.

Definitely play around with these and work through asmany of them as you can! Once you learn how they’reut together and how

hey go, you can very easily create your OWNworkouts based on these ones, putting in thexercises you find work best for YOU.



And THAT is where the real power of the Gluteuso the Maximus program comes intolay ...TEACHING you what works for glute trainingnd letting you take the reins and OWN your

workouts!Think of it as a "butt construction set" where you havehe tools (the exercises and the workouts) and youave control over how everything gets put together,etting you customize the process to how YOU like toain.

t’s About Time...

These workouts are divided into 10 minute and 20

minute workouts. If you feel you want or need moreaining for the glutes, you can also very easily mixnd match workouts.

or example, if you have 20 minutes available, youan do two 10-minute workouts back-to-back. Or youan do one of the 20 minute programs. If you have 30

minutes available, you can do a 20 minute programnd a 10 minute program.

Beginner Workouts

This level is most appropriate for people who are just



tarting out with resistance training (0 to 3 months).

f you’re a beginner, I highly recommend readinghrough the Weight Training for Beginners section for nformation about basic weight training principles,.g. sets, reps, intensity, etc. It’ll help you get a lot

more out of these workouts because you’ll knowxactly what I’m talking about!

10 minute workouts for home

20 minute workouts for home10 minute workouts for gym

20 minute workouts for gym

ntermediate WorkoutsThis level is most appropriate for people who alreadyave a moderate level of experience with resistanceaining (3 months to 1 year or more).

10 minute workouts for home20 minute workouts for home



Advanced Workouts



This level is appropriate for trainers who have beenerforming resistance training steadily for at least 1ear or more.

10 minute workouts for home20 minute workouts for home





About the Programs

verybody isifferent...everybodyas a different skillevel and strengthevel. Some people

ave more timevailable to exercise,ome people haveess. Many people

want to focus all of

heir efforts entirely onheir glutes while other

want to focus on their lutes in the context of

more

omprehensive program to work their whole body.

For example, you may choose to do the 10minute program completely on its own as astandalone workout. You may also choose to do

the 10 minute program during your regular workout, including it in with other body parts.



There are many options when it comes toincorporating these programs into your routine.

You will notice that many of the program titlesare identical across different levels. The names

of the programs and the concepts behind themare indeed identical. The difference is in theexercises performed and the intensity level of the program.

In each program, you will get a detaileddescription of the structure of the program.You’ll find out the exercises to be done, thenumber of reps and sets of each exercise, theamount of rest to take in between sets, etc.

This information will be provided in theorm of sample workouts for each

program. There is enough variety in theample workouts to keep you goingand growing!) for a long, long time!!

And you can very easily adapt andubstitute other exercises in for the

ones listed in the program.



Going through the motions in any exerciseprogram will not yield results and theseprograms are no different. In order to reallymake progress you’re going to have to

work hard at these programs. The results will

be worth it!!

You’ll also notice that I did not include anycardiovascular activities in any of the programs.This is because cardio activities generally are

not very effective for building muscle and this isa book dedicated to building the glute muscles!

n fact, too much cardio can actuallyburn off so many calories that your body doesn’t have enough energy leftover to build muscle! I’m not going toell you to stop doing cardio, just reduce

t.That being said, there are forms of cardio thatCAN help promote muscle growth instead of working against it. High intensity interval training

can actually help you build muscle.



How To Use These Programs:

Each program can be used on its own to targetonly the glutes or can be added into the contextof a more complete workout program. If you doadd these workouts into another workoutprogram, be sure to start with your glute trainingFIRST. If you want to build your glutes as fast aspossible, you will need to prioritize them byworking them first while your energy is highest.

Keep a close eye on your rest periods. You maywish to use a stopwatch with a countdown

feature that beeps when your rest time is done(the beeping will keep you honest!). Resting toomuch can diminish the intensity of your workoutwhile resting too little may decrease your strength for the next set. Many of the programs

rely on strategic rest periods to be effective!Follow the workouts closely when you first start.

As you gain experience with the programs, feelfree to try out variations that you come up withyourself. You may discover something thatworks even better for you!



There are many, many more combinations of exercises, sets, and reps that you can use.These workouts will help you to get an idea of what your workouts should consist of.

Use the workouts from the Index in any order you like. For instance, you may do Workout #1on Monday, then do Workout #5 onWednesday, then Workout #3 on Friday. It is upto you.

Keep track of which workouts feel the best toyou and focus on those in your training.

If you feel you need to structure your programs,simply go through the programs in order, e.g. 1,2, 3, 4, etc. until you are done then repeat. Theprograms will give you a good balance of exercises, rep ranges and variety.

Remember to stretch in between sets and after your workout!

A Note About Training at Home:

Training at home without any equipment is definitely

ossible though it will limit the exercises you are ableo do. Also, the more resistance you’re able to add to



he exercises, the better your glute growth is going toe. The glutes are strong muscles and will thrive ondded resistance!

I would recommend investing in a set of dumbbells, if you can. You can either getadjustable dumbbells (if you don’t mindswitching weights now and again) or a set of pre-made dumbbells.

Adjustable dumbbells will be more economicalbut pre-made dumbbells will be moreconvenient to use. The choice is totally your preference as a 10 pound adjustable dumbbellweighs exactly the same as a 10 pound pre-

made dumbbell.How large of weights you need will depend onyour strength level. If you are just beginning, youcan stick to weights of 5, 10, 15, and 20pounds. If the store offers increments such as 7

1/2 pounds and 12 1/2 pounds, those are goodto get as well. Smaller increments will mean itwon’t be such a big jump when you increase theweight you are using.

For more advanced trainers, I wouldrecommend you also get 25, 30, and 35 pound



dumbbells. As you get stronger, you may evenwish to go higher than this!

You can purchase dumbbells at most sportinggoods stores. Garage or yard sales often have

dumbbells that have never even been used. Becareful if you plan on buying dumbbells online,thought...stores charge for shipping by weight.Be sure you find out what the shipping costs willb e before your order. Your great deal may be

eaten up by shipping costs.You can also fill milk jugs with water or sand tomake your own "dumbbells" or even load up abackpack with books or rocks as another wayto add resistance.

A Note About Home Programs vs.Gym Programs:

f you are working out in a gym, you can also use anyf the programs that are designed for use at home.

This gives you a greater range of possibilities. Gymrograms will also include exercises that are found inhe home programs.



Your Legs Will Get Worked, Too...

Any program that effectively builds up your glutes willlso build up your legs. There is simply no way aroundhis. The exercises that are most effective for buildingp your glutes are also very effective for working theegs.

There are methods in these exercises for focusing on

he glutes specifically, e.g. foot placement on the legress, and there are exercises incorporated into therograms that target only the glutes. By utilizing these

methods and exercises in targeted programs, we canmaximize the effects on the glutes compared to the

est of the legs.just wanted to be sure that you’re aware going in thatis quite likely that you’re also going to develop some

mazing legs after using these programs for awhile!!

ve also included a section on How to Work Your Glutes When Your Thighs Take Over to help youocus more of the work on the glutes if your thighsend to get more work when you do this training.



How to Adapt Your TrainingPrograms

Having preset workouts and programs is great but theeal power of the program comes in when you havehe knowledge to adapt the program yourself. You

now yourself better than anyone else. You know whatworks for you and what doesn’t. So why follow arogram that isn’t tailored to your exact needs?

The workouts in the book are sample workouts. Theyre not set in stone. They are meant to be guidelinesnd are essentially springboards for you to craft your wn workouts with. I can’t see you or know what youeed so it is up to you to determine what works for ou. Don’t worry! It’s not that hard!

The main thing to remember is this: changeshould be the only constant in your program.Your body will adapt to whatever stress you put onit. If you give it the same stress constantly, it willhave no reason to adapt.

Be creative in how you go at adapting these



programs. Nothing you do is necessarily wrong.Some crazy idea you have may just lead you tofinding something that works better for you! I knowthis for a fact because I do this every single time Itrain.

If you do come up with some amazing, be sure tolet me know. I love hearing about how peopleadapt my programs into something new!

Here is a short list of a few of thehings you can change in theample workouts:

. The number of reps you do

f the program calls for 12 to 15 reps, try doing sets inhe 5-7 rep range. The body responds differently toifferent rep ranges. Lower rep ranges build strength,

moderate rep ranges build muscle, higher rep rangesuild endurance (these are generalizations, of ourse). Rep ranges can go from one extreme to thether, e.g. 3 to 5 reps all the way 100+ reps. Everyange has its value and a simple change like this cane very effective.



ome exercises lend themselves better to certain repanges. For instance, glute push-ups are moreppropriate for high reps because you can’t use muchesistance. Bench step one legged squats, on the

ther hand, lend themselves to lower reps because of he greater resistance.

. The number of sets you do

ncrease or decrease the number of sets you are

oing for an exercise/body part. You may find thatour body responds better to more sets. You may findhat you get your best results with fewer sets.

. Change your training split/workout frequency

You may find that you get better results with 4essions per week at 10 minutes per session rather han 3. You may find you do better with only 2 per week at 20 minutes per session. You may even wanto do two 20 minute sessions and one 10 minuteession. You can mix and match however you like!

. Increase or decrease your rest time

horter rest times are more demanding and more

ntense. Longer rest times will help with recovery inetween sets and maximize your strength. The rest



mes that you use can vary anywhere from 20econds all the way up to about 3 minutes.

Rest time will often depend on the exercise you areoing. Squats involve more muscles and use more

weight, therefore they generally require a longer resteriod than an exercise such as glute push-ups. Don’te afraid to push yourself, however. I have gottenreat results from doing sets of squats with only 30econds rest between sets. Sure it’s hard but theesults are there!

. Change your exercises

earn some new exercises. This is one of the mostopular methods of changing things. You can changexercises on a daily or weekly basis continually asou train. If you’ve gone through all the beginner xercises and want more, start using the intermediatenes. When you’ve used those, learn a few of thedvanced ones. Keep mixing them all into your

workouts for variety.

Take the sample workouts in this book and trade outxercises that maybe work better for you than thenes that are listed.

. Increase or decrease your workout time



f you’ve been getting good results with 10 minuteessions but your gains have slowed down, move tohe 20 minute sessions. If you’ve been doing 20

minute sessions for awhile, why not try 10 minutes?

To really shake things up, you may even wish to try a0 minute session once in a while!

. Incorporate intensity techniques

You’ll notice, as you go through the programs, thathere are techniques such as supersetting, pre-xhaust, post-exhuast, etc. Mix these techniques intoour workouts from time to time for an added intensityoost.

When it comes right down to it, the sky’s thelimit.

When you do something different and it works for you,write it down so you know exactly what to do again.

As you go along, you’ll build up a collection of greatworkouts that work great for you!

And if you haven’t already picked it up, be sure andet your copy of the Gluteus to the Maximus –dvanced Accelerator book.

This package gives you 23 MORE exercises and 4



omplete programs designed to push the advancedlute-builder to a whole new level.



10 Minute WorkoutsFor Home

Beginner Level

is program is based on a training schedule whereu have 10 minutes a day in which to exercise your utes. Each workout should take you approximately

minutes to get through, not including a brief warm-and cool-down. They may take less time than this

t they may also take a little more. The time listed

re is basically just a rough guideline as everyorkout will be different.

ing These Workouts In a Glutes-Onlyogram:

hen using these workouts, I recommend working theutes 3 times a week taking at least one day off intween sessions, e.g. go Monday, Wednesday,day or Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday.

ere’s what it would look like in a program schedule:

hoose ONE of these workouts to do eachssion (don’t try and do them all at once!) Youn go through and try all the workouts to see howey feel, then pick the ones you feel worked your utes the best and focus on those.

would also encourage you to create your OWNorkouts based on these ones! I’ve included someggested exercise substitutions that you can try out.



ad through the Exercise Index to find other similar ercises to put into these sample workouts.

Remember to stretch in betweensets and after your workout!

Workout #1

Workout #2

Workout #3

Workout #4



Workout #5

Workout #6 - Introduction toupersetting

Superset is basically two exercises done withouty rest in between. It is an excellent way to push theuscles further, especially when both exercises worke same muscles but in different ways.

sure to experiment with different exercise andpetition combinations using the principles in thisample.



Workout #7 - Introduction to Pre-xhaust Training

e-Exhaust Training is a form of Supersetting. It ispically targeted for more advanced trainers but itn have great deal of value for beginners who are

oking to get the most efficient workout possible.e theory behind it is simple: start with an exercise

at works only the target muscle (known as anolation exercise , e.g. Glute Cable Extensions,ute Push-Ups, Kneeling Dumbbell Glutetensions) then do an exercise that works the target

uscle along with some assisting muscles (known as

compound exercise , e.g. Lunges, Squats, Legess, Step-Ups). Your target muscle (the glutes) will

pre-exhausted for the next exercise, therebyowing your assisting muscles to push your targetuscle further than it could go on its own.

sure to experiment with different exercise andpetition combinations using the principles in this

ample.

Workout #8 - Introduction to Post-xhaust Training

is type of training is basically just a switch aroundm Pre-Exhaust training. Instead of doing thelation exercise first, you will do the isolation



ercise second. This allows you to work the glutesong with the assisting muscles then, when thesisting muscles are done, work only the glutes toally finish them off.


Workout #9 - Two Exercises In One

is technique is very similar to a Superset, however tead of completing a set with one exercise thening directly into another one, you will do one rep of e exercise then go directly into one rep of the other ercise. One rep of each exercise counts as one repyour target total, e.g. 1 rep of the first exercise thenep of the second exercise is counted as 1 total rep.

Workout #10 - Everything

this workout you will be doing one set of each of me of the exercises I’ve mentioned above. You can



bstitute other exercises in for any of the exercisested here.

Workout #11 - One Thing




Beginner Level

is program is based on a training schedule whereu have 20 minutes a day in which to exercise your utes. Each sample workout should take youproximately 20 minutes to get through, not includingbrief warm-up and cool-down. They may take lessme than this but they may also take a little more. The

me listed here is basically just a rough guideline asery workout will be different.










Workout #1

Workout #2

Workout #3





e theory behind it is simple: start with an exerciseat works only the target muscle (known as anolation exercise , e.g. Glute Cable Extensions,ute Push-Ups, Kneeling Dumbbell Glutetensions) then do an exercise that works the target

uscle along with some assisting muscles (known ascompound exercise , e.g. Lunges, Squats, Leg

ess, Step-Ups). Your target muscle (the glutes) willpre-exhausted for the next exercise, thereby

owing your assisting muscles to push your targetuscle further than it could go on its own.



is type of training is basically just a switch aroundm Pre-Exhaust training. Instead of doing thelation exercise first, you will do the isolationercise second. This allows you to work the glutesong with the assisting muscles then, when thesisting muscles are done, work only the glutes toally finish them off.




ample.



is workout won’t take 20 minutes, so you can alsoork in one of the 10 minute programs in addition tos one to hit the glutes harder.


this workout you will be doing two sets each of

me of the exercises I’ve mentioned above. You canbstitute other exercises in for any of the exercisested here.






10 Minute WorkoutsFor The Gym

Beginner Level



ese sample workouts are designed for people whove access to a gym or gym equipment (such as ame gym).







would also encourage you to create your OWNorkouts based on these ones! I’ve included someggested exercise substitutions that you can try out.ad through the Exercise Index to find other similar ercises to put into these sample workouts.

Remember to stretch in between

sets and after your workout!

Workout #1

Workout #2

Workout #3



Workout #4

Workout #5







e-Exhaust Training is a form of Supersetting. It ispically targeted for more advanced trainers but itn have great deal of value for beginners who areoking to get the most efficient workout possible.







is type of training is basically just a switch aroundm Pre-Exhaust training. Instead of doing the

olation exercise first ou will do the isolation





ample.


is technique is very similar to a Superset, however tead of completing a set with one exercise then

ing directly into another one, you will do one rep of e exercise then go directly into one rep of the other ercise. One rep of each exercise counts as one repyour target total, e.g. 1 rep of the first exercise thenep of the second exercise is counted as 1 total rep.


this workout you will be doing one set of each of me of the exercises I’ve mentioned above. You can







20 Minute WorkoutsFor the Home

Beginner Level

is program is based on a training schedule whereu have 20 minutes a day in which to exercise your utes. Each sample workout should take youproximately 20 minutes to get through, not includingbrief warm-up and cool-down. They may take less

me than this but they may also take a little more. The


ese sample workouts are designed for people whove access to a gym or gym equipment (such as ame gym).







would also encourage you to create your OWNorkouts based on these ones! I’ve included someggested exercise substitutions that you can try out.ad through the Exercise Index to find other similar ercises to put into these sample workouts.

Remember to stretch in between sets and after your workout!

Workout #1

Workout #2



Workout #3

Workout #4

Workout #5
















is type of training is basically just a switch aroundm Pre-Exhaust trainin . Instead of doin the



lation exercise first, you will do the isolationercise second. This allows you to work the glutesong with the assisting muscles then, when thesisting muscles are done, work only the glutes toally finish them off.

sure to experiment with different exercise and

petition combinations using the principles in thisample.



is workout won’t take 20 minutes, so you can alsoork in one of the 10 minute programs in addition tos one to hit the glutes harder.




this workout you will be doing two sets each of me of the exercises I’ve mentioned above. You canbstitute other exercises in for any of the exercisested here.





Intermediate Level



el free to make use of any of the beginner ograms as well.





would also encourage you to create your OWN



orkouts based on these ones! I’ve included someggested exercise substitutions that you can try out.ad through the Exercise Index to find other similar ercises to put into these sample workouts.


Workout #1

Workout #2

Workout #3

Workout #4



Workout #5

Workout #6

Workout #7

Workout #8 - Supersetting

Superset is basically two exercises done without



y rest in between. It is an excellent way to push theuscles further, especially when both exercises worke same muscles but in different ways.


Workout #9 - Pre-Exhaust Training









Workout #10 - Post-Exhaustraining

is type of training is basically just a switch around

m Pre-Exhaust training. Instead of doing thelation exercise first, you will do the isolationercise second. This allows you to work the glutesong with the assisting muscles then, when thesisting muscles are done, work only the glutes toally finish them off.




is technique is very similar to a Superset, however

tead of completing a set with one exercise thening directly into another one, you will do one rep of e exercise then go directly into one rep of the other



ercise. One rep of each exercise counts as one repyour target total, e.g. 1 rep of the first exercise thenep of the second exercise is counted as 1 total rep.r added intensity, don’t stop when you’vehausted yourself on the harder exercise, continueth the easier exercise.

Workout #12 - Alternating Exercises


this workout you will be doing one set of each of

me of the exercises I’ve mentioned above. You canbstitute other exercises in for any of the exercisested here.







Intermediate Level

is program is based on a training schedule where

u have 20 minutes a day in which to exercise your utes. Each sample workout should take youproximately 20 minutes to get through, not includingbrief warm-up and cool-down. They may take lessme than this but they may also take a little more. Theme listed here is basically just a rough guideline asery workout will be different.

el free to make use of any of the beginner ograms as well.










Workout #1

Workout #2

Workout #3



Workout #4

Workout #5

Workout #6

Workout #7









e theory behind it is simple: start with an exercise

at works only the target muscle (known as anolation exercise , e.g. Glute Cable Extensions,ute Push-Ups, Kneeling Dumbbell Glute



tensions) then do an exercise that works the targetuscle along with some assisting muscles (known ascompound exercise , e.g. Lunges, Squats, Leg





is type of training is basically just a switch aroundm Pre-Exhaust training. Instead of doing thelation exercise first, you will do the isolationercise second. This allows you to work the glutesong with the assisting muscles then, when the

sisting muscles are done, work only the glutes toally finish them off.





is technique is very similar to a Superset, however tead of completing a set with one exercise thening directly into another one, you will do one rep of e exercise then go directly into one rep of the other ercise. One rep of each exercise counts as one repyour target total, e.g. 1 rep of the first exercise thenep of the second exercise is counted as 1 total rep.r added intensity, don’t stop when you’vehausted yourself on the harder exercise, continueth the easier exercise.





this workout you will be doing two sets each of me of the exercises I’ve mentioned above. You can







10 Minute WorkoutsFor the Gym

Intermediate Level



el free to make use of any of the beginner andme programs as well.










Workout #1

Workout #2



Workout #3

Workout #4

Workout #5



Workout #6

Workout #7




perset #1



perset #2


e-Exhaust Training is a form of Supersetting.


uscle along with some assisting muscles (known ascompound exercise , e.g. Lunges, Squats, Legess, Step-Ups).

ur target muscle (the glutes) will be pre-exhaustedr the next exercise, thereby allowing your assistinguscles to push your target muscle further than ituld go on its own.




ample.





is technique is very similar to a Superset, however tead of completing a set with one exercise then



ing directly into another one, you will do one rep of e exercise then go directly into one rep of the other ercise. One rep of each exercise counts as one repyour target total, e.g. 1 rep of the first exercise thenep of the second exercise is counted as 1 total rep.r added intensity, don’t stop when you’vehausted yourself on the harder exercise, continue

th the easier exercise.



this workout you will be doing one set of each of me of the exercises I’ve mentioned above. You canbstitute other exercises in for any of the exercisested here.






20 Minute WorkoutsFor the Home

Intermediate Level



el free to make use of any of the beginner andme programs as well.










Workout #1

Workout #2

Workout #3



Workout #4

Workout #5

Workout #6



Workout #7


Superset is basically two exercises done withouty rest in between. It is an excellent way to push the

uscles further, especially when both exercises worke same muscles but in different ways.


perset #1



perset #2



e theory behind it is simple: start with an exerciseat works only the target muscle (known as anolation exercise , e.g. Glute Cable Extensions,ute Push-Ups, Kneeling Dumbbell Glutetensions, Hip Extension Machine) then do anercise that works the target muscle along withme assisting muscles (known as a compoundercise , e.g. Lunges, Squats, Leg Press, Step-ps).

ur target muscle (the glutes) will be pre-exhaustedr the next exercise, thereby allowing your assisting



uscles to push your target muscle further than ituld go on its own.



is type of training is basically just a switch aroundm Pre-Exhaust training. Instead of doing the

lation exercise first, you will do the isolationercise second. This allows you to work the glutesong with the assisting muscles then, when thesisting muscles are done, work only the glutes toally finish them off.


ample.








Workout #13 - Everythingthis workout you will be doing two sets of some of

e exercises I’ve mentioned above. You canbstitute other exercises in for any of the exercisested here.







Advanced Level

is program is based on a training schedule whereu have 10 minutes a day in which to exercise your utes. Each sample workout should take youproximately 10 minutes to get through, not includingbrief warm-up and cool-down. They may take less

me than this but they may also take a little more. The


el free to make use of any of the beginner andermediate programs as well.










Workout #5

Workout #6

Workout #7









e theory behind it is simple: start with an exerciseat works only the target muscle (known as an

olation exercise , e.g. Gluteble Extensions, Glute Push-Ups, Kneeling

umbbell Glute Extensions) then do an exercise thatorks the target muscle along with some assistinguscles (known as a compound exercise , e.g.nges, Squats, Leg Press, Step-Ups). Your target

uscle (the glutes) will be pre-exhausted for the next

ercise, thereby allowing your assisting muscles tosh your target muscle further than it could go on itswn.





is type of training is basically just a switch around

m Pre-Exhaust training. Instead of doing thelation exercise first, you will do the isolationercise second. This allows you to work the glutesong with the assisting muscles then, when thesisting muscles are done, work only the glutes toally finish them off.











this workout you will be doing one set of each of me of the exercises I’ve mentioned above. You canbstitute other exercises in for any of the exercises

ted here.







Advanced Level



el free to make use of any of the beginner andermediate programs as well.










Workout #1

Workout #2

Workout #3



Workout #4

Workout #5

Workout #6



Workout #7




ample.

perset #1

perset #2























this workout you will be doing two sets each of me of the exercises I’ve mentioned above. You canbstitute other exercises in for any of the exercises

ted here.










Workout #1

Workout #2

Workout #3

Workout #4



Workout #5

Workout #6

Workout #7






perset #1

perset #2



e theory behind it is simple: start with an exerciseat works only the target muscle (known as anolation exercise , e.g. Glute Cable Extensions,



ute Push-Ups, Kneeling Dumbbell Glutetensions) then do an exercise that works the target





is type of training is basically just a switch aroundm Pre-Exhaust training. Instead of doing thelation exercise first, you will do the isolation











this workout you will be doing one set of each of me of the exercises I’ve mentioned above. You canbstitute other exercises in for any of the exercisested here.






20 Minute WorkoutsFor the Gym

Advanced Level



el free to make use of any of the beginner,ermediate and home programs as well.










Workout #1

Workout #2

Workout #3



Workout #4

Workout #5

Workout #6



Workout #7





perset #1



perset #2









ample.









this workout you will be doing two sets each of me of the exercises I’ve mentioned above. You canbstitute other exercises in for any of the exercisested here.




Documents

Gluteus to the Maximus - Base Training - Nick Nilsson