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By: Marc Laverdure, B. Sc., CSCS

I get approached all the time from people looking to slim, trim, and shape their butt! Whether they have lost it over the years or feel as though they landed on the wrong side of the gene pool, tightening and toning the glute muscles can be achieved by including these most important exercises into your workout routine:

1. Squats
Squats are a no-brainer and as they are clearly one of the best exercises for the legs, hips, butt, and thighs. This involves the simple motion of standing up and sitting down over and over again. With each movement, all of the muscles of your but are fully engaged and making sure you get a nice soft landing with each descent. The deeper you go, the higher the intensity and the more you will feel the muscles tighten up!

2. Lunges Lunges are another great addition to any butt-wrenching workout as they help to isolate each individual leg. Start by taking a massive step forward with one foot and then stop there. Slowly bend both knees thereby lowering your back leg towards the floor and then right before your back knee touches, push yourself back up to the top and then repeat. I would recommend you did 10 repetitions per leg 3 times each switching in between. The only draw back to this one is that it can have an effect on the knees if this is a weak area for you so if you experience any pain while performing this one I suggest you skip it.

3. Glutes One of my all-time favorites! Glute extensions are very effective at isolating the muscles in the butt region and helping to shape and form the area quite nicely. Simply get down on all fours, take one leg and kick it back behind you over and over breathing out as you kick back. Make sure to keep your head down and think about pushing something away from you with the heel of your foot! For this one, I would recommend a repetition range of about 20 done consecutively for 3 sets.

4. Hip Extensions This one will surely get your butt working! Start by lying down on your back with your knees bent. With your hands down on either side of you, lift the butt as high as you can towards the ceiling!!!! Hold it there for 2-3 seconds and then lower it back down to the starting position. The higher you go the more you will feel it and make sure to squeeze the butt real tight at the top and then slowly drop it back down to the floor. Repeat this 20 times squeezing it hard for 2-3 seconds at the top each rep and you will be one step closer to fitting into those nice form fitting jeans ;-)

5. Stiff-legged Deadlifts This one is a little more difficult and more on the advanced side but once you can master it, the results will be worth it! To start, stand up straight feet together. Slowly bend over making sure to keep your knees absolutely straight! Go as low as you can while keeping the back straight and arched, once you feel a pull behind the knees, make your way back to the starting position and then repeat.

To add resistance, hold a small weight in each hand and let your arms hang down as you bend forward. Remember, it is crucial that you keep the back straight to feel this in the right spot. If you feel it in the lower back, you've gone too far. Do about 15 repetitions for 3 sets stretching the hamstrings between each set in order to prevent and cure a saggy butt!

Don't forget that on top of all this, to really add the finishing touches to a nicely shaped butt, I would strongly recommend you make an effort to also include about 2-3 hours of cardiovascular activity each week. Whether on the bike, treadmill, elliptical or simply walking outdoors or playing your favorite sport, if you can work that into your program you will decrease the amount of fat in the surrounding butt area so as to really see your results pay off!

Marc Laverdure is a virtual personal trainer and the founder of www.doctorworkout.com. He totally understands how we feel about striving for a nice bum, and is happy to help make that happen in whatever way he can.