10 tips for buns of steel

Most magazines know pretty much how to catch your attention. Titles such as ‘’3 EASY steps for a bubble butt’’, ‘’Regain the butt of your 20’s’’ or ‘’Get a Kardashian butt in two weeks with this simple program’’.

Those articles, as simple and as easy as they seem to be, forget to explain why, when and how you should train and eat to get a legendary buttock. The truth behind a great bum is a mixture of 3 principle ingredients: nutrition, strength training and posture.

Basically, everyone already tried the simplest solutions as if they were the answer. Floor exercises, 10 weeks to a better butt program, Tracy Anderson’s workout programs, Jillian Michaels killer buns and thighs CD’s, etc. All of which are basically fine by general standards, but they all have one thing in common: missing the major principle of individualization, which states that everyone is different and requires a personalized approach when designing workout programs and nutrition plans. The same exercises will elicit good results for some and nothing at all for others. So, the program that your friend is going through might not do a thing for you. That same friend who would try the same program in a few months probably won’t have the same results either.

Unfortunately, it will take a little more than 15 minutes a day to get yourself a rounder behind. Without further ado, here are my 10 steps to buns of steel.

1. More proteins

Proteins and working out goes hand in hand. Not eating enough proteins, or at least the minimum amount required, during the day will most often result in weakness, cramping and soreness. If this goes on for prolonged periods, it causes muscle atrophy. Usually, it shows in the bigger muscle groups, such as the buttocks. The ‘’flat butt syndrome’’.

2. Structural balance

Posture or the harmony and balance between different tonic muscular groups of the human body make the glutes, stronger or weaker. This can make a big difference between a round and a flat butt. I’m not talking about selfies in the mirror of the gym with a pronounced (read forced) lordosis in order to put the rear end in full view.

The prescription of exercises and appropriate techniques is essential. You can do all variations of squats, but if your vastis medialis (small tear drop shaped muscle on the inside of your knee) or your hamstrings are not properly trained, you will never get the expected results.

3. Perception

You think you are doing all you can to get the results you want. You get up early, breakfast and off to the gym. Train two hours a day, mostly glutes exercises, but your legs are getting bigger.

Results are multifactorial. Many principles are involved and interact together. Nutrition, habits, exercises and genetics must be taken into consideration.

4. Fighting accommodation

Once the new eating habits are well implemented, training and posture are well underway, I begin to incorporate more specific exercises such as split squats and mainly unilateral movements, for two reasons. Because they are extremely demanding and because they continue to restore the difference in strength between left and right, which is, for the most part, the reason for postural issues.

5. Complex principles

Supersets, giant sets, German Body Composition, drop sets, metabolic training are all great choices of training principles to keep progressing. However, you can’t reap the rewards of these principles if your technique is limited. Doing half squats will not be recruiting the glutes as desired. Do not be fooled by the myth of knee problems and full squats. Knee problems begin when you are only doing half squats and split squats, or when you limit the amount of knee flexion. If you think you have knee problems, make an appointment right now. Go back and read point #2.

6. There is no such thing as the perfect program.

The program that gave your friend buns of steel may not have any effect on you. Even if it did work, it doesn’t guarantee you infinite results. According to the principle of accommodation, a program loses its effectiveness after 3 to 5 weeks, so it is important to change your plan at the same frequency to ensure your progress.

7. Balance

Not as weighing yourself, but a balance between quad, hamstrings, low back and glutes training is of the utmost importance. Only doing glute exercises can create structural issues, such as knee or low back problems.

8. Go read #1 again.

9. Metabolic cost

Choose exercises according to the metabolic cost. It’s much easier to work on an adductor/abductor machine (very popular with women) than to do 4 sets of 50 on the leg press, only because everyone prefers to do what requires the least energy possible. Unfortunately, no one achieves exceptional results by staying in their comfort zone.

10. Strength

Do not be afraid to put weight on the bar. Yes ladies, I'm talking to you. Forget the myth that women are gaining mass quickly by training with heavy loads. Weights don’t make woman bulky, cupcakes and mocaccinos do.

Having a pair of memorable buttocks is the result of a well-prepared plan. Shortcuts do not work in this case. Keep your eyes on the prize, change your programs regularly and support it all with an outstanding diet and some specific supplements tailored to your needs and results will appear quickly.

Coach Eric