Best Butt Workouts and Glute Exercises for Men

Expert-Approved Glute Training Tactics for Your Best Butt

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In recent years, there’s been a marked trend towards butt workouts and glute exercises, no doubt sparked by the popularity of Instagram models. But the infamous peach butt isn’t just a status symbol reserved for women. Men, too, can benefit from bigger glutes, not only for the athletic and strength advantages they provide, but because women appreciate a well-sculpted posterior just as much as men do. In addition, bigger, stronger glutes will help correct your posture, protect your spine and even help you run faster and jump higher.

RELATED: Best Leg Exercises

But don’t take it from us. We asked the experts: “Strengthening your glutes provides numerous functional and aesthetic benefits,” says Barry’s instructor Erick Wilson. “Your glutes help power your acceleration for running or sprinting, provide stability for your lower body, and create a strong foundation for proper posture. If you’re looking to up your fitness game, your glutes are a great place to start.”

Matt Sauerhoff, founder of The LIV Method, a New York City-based personal training service, adds that the average American’s sitting-centric lifestyle makes training the glutes all the more important, since sitting for too long can make hips and glutes tighter and weaker, leading to an increased risk of injury. “If you sit on one of your most valuable resources most of the day, [it leaves you] with what I like to call ‘dead ass,’” he says.

When it comes to working your glutes, “take your time, restore balance and move intelligently,” he adds. The next time you roll up to the gym for leg day – or even if you’re just looking for a lower-body workout that you can do at home – pull up this list of butt workouts and glute exercises for men.

Benefits of Strong Glutes

The glutes are the largest and strongest muscles in your body and are responsible for the extension, abduction, and external rotation of the hips, as well as posterior pelvic tilt. Bigger, stronger glutes can help improve posture, movement, and athletic performance – while reducing the risk for a wide array of injuries.

Improve posture and movement: Larger glute muscles are one of the main reasons that humans can stand upright. They help us walk, run, sprint, jump, change directions, and much more. They play an “important role in keeping the whole body functioning strongly throughout most daily activities and keeping us upright and balanced,” says iFit trainer Zac Marion.
Decrease injury risk: Glutes also play a key role in overall health, as strong glutes decrease the risk for injuries in the knees, lower back, hamstrings, groin, and hips. “Strengthening this area will help the hips and take pressure off the knees,” says Daniel Giordano, D.P.T., C.S.C.S., co-founder of Bespoke Treatments.

So not only is a nice set of glutes aesthetically pleasing, but it’s better for your body. Let’s take a look at the best exercises to improve glute strength, size, and function.

The Best Butt Exercises: Squats

It should come as no surprise that squats are the first on this list. You’d be hard-pressed to find a better exercise for building a great ass than squatting. The fact that you don’t necessarily need equipment or a lot of fitness experience to get started doesn’t hurt, too. “The classic squat is an essential move that strengthens your glutes,” says Wilson.

“The correct form of keeping your chest up and your abs braced puts your glutes in a great position for driving the hips forward and enabling your glutes to activate properly. Squats are an essential movement for the lower gluteal region. With proper form and activation, squats build the foundation for posture and lower back support.”

There are a ton of different squat variations to use to help sculpt the perfect posterior. Let’s take a look at each of them.

Barbell Back Squat

Few exercises allow you to hit the glutes and hamstrings with more volume than the barbell back squat. This is what makes it so effective for building a great ass.

A few notes on barbell back squats:

A common debate when it comes to squats is whether you should use a high or low bar position. A high bar allows you to squat deeper, which will hit the glutes harder, while a low bar position causes more forward lean, which also lets you hit the glutes and hamstrings more. So bar position is really a matter of personal preference.
Your stance also affects how much the glutes and hamstrings are worked. A wider stance (further than shoulder-width) will target them more.

Goblet Squat

The goblet squat is done with a dumbbell, kettlebell, or medicine ball held at your chest. While you can’t use real heavy loads with this variation, the goblet squat allows you to get a lot of depth, further targeting the glutes and hamstrings.

Bottoms-Up Squat

This variation goes by a few different names, including the Anderson Squat. Basically, you’re only doing the second half of a squat.

To do this variation, set the bar up in a rack on the pins, equal to where it would be at the bottom of your squat. Position yourself under the bar, and explode up. Lower the bar back onto the pins, and reset. No bouncing.

This variation is great because it eliminates the stretch-shortening cycle between the eccentric and concentric portions of the squat and isolates the glutes and hamstrings.

Split Squat

Also known as the rear-foot elevated split squat, the split squat targets the glutes, as well as the quads. This variation can be done with your bodyweight alone, or you can add in dumbbells, a kettlebell, or a barbell.

The Best Butt Exercises: Deadlifts

Like the squat, there are a number of deadlift variations that allow you to really hammer the glutes. “Deadlifts are the ideal movement for strength and power gains specifically for the hips,” says Marion. “By eliminating some of the lower body joints involved in a traditional squat, less muscle group compensation takes place and more focus is shifted back into the butt muscles.”

Just remember this isn’t a functional movement. “They require an advanced form that might need to be learned in order to prevent injuries.”

Conventional Deadlift

Research shows that conventional and sumo deadlifts are both equally effective for training the glutes. The important thing to remember when deadlifting is to really squeeze the glutes hard at the top part of the movement.

Single-Leg Deadlift

There’s no better way to build strength and stability than with unilateral movements. The single-leg RDL will really set the glutes and hammies on fire by providing a ton of isolation.

Dumbbell Romanian Deadlift

This option is similar to the conventional deadlift above however it has a different range of motion, which will likely involve lighter weights than the conventional.

Kettlebell Swings

Similar to the deadlift in movement terms, the kettlebell swing is great for hitting the glutes, as well as the entire posterior chain, and teaching the hip hinge.

The Best Butt Exercises: Hip Thrusts

Despite its somewhat sexual nature, the hip thrust is a fantastic exercise for butt-building, and should not be left out of your training program. “If I had to choose one butt exercise to perform for the rest of my life, I would choose the hip thrust,” says Wilson.

“They target the larger muscles of the glutes: the gluteus maximus and gluteus medius. Build strength and size to your glutes in ways that many other exercises may not and they can help stabilize your core, pelvis, and complete lower body.” Just remember to squeeze.

Barbell Hip Thrust

While you can do hip thrusts without weight. For extra resistance, you can hold the barbell around your waist area, moving it with you as you thrust. “Hip thrusts are very dynamic in their range of weight loads so they can target power, strength, or endurance,” says Marion.

Single-Leg Hip Thrust

Like the barbell hip thrust, with a single-leg hip thrust, your shoulders are placed on a bench, with your feet planted firmly on the ground. Extend one leg straight out and thrust your hips into the air, driving your one planted foot into the ground, and squeezing your glutes at the top.

The Best Butt Exercises: Lunges

While lunges are primarily thought of as a quad-dominant exercise, the glutes are heavily involved in helping you return to the standing position. “I love lunges for so many reasons. They do not isolate the glutes, but they provide ancillary support and proprioceptive qualities that are key to daily functions,” says Marion.

Lunges can be done forward, or in reverse, with bodyweight alone or with kettlebells, a barbell, or dumbbells in the mix. Marion recommends to “make sure to focus on bodyweight only until you’re able to gain an appreciation for the form and then work weight-load up appropriately.”

Dumbbell Lunge

The basic version of the lunge targets the quads more than the glutes, but this exercise is still a great addition to any solid glutes workout because it trains single-leg stability.

Reverse Lunge

Performing reverse lunges will emphasize your glutes, and put your knees in a safer position, so if you have a history of knee injuries or are just dealing with some knee soreness, opt for this glute-building variation. Wilson adds “reverse lunges are just as effective and less prone to putting tension on the knee when performed correctly.”

Best Activation Exercises to Target the Glutes

“Activation exercises aren’t only good, they’re necessary in order to fully engage the glutes and gain the most muscle recruitment possible for each rep,” says Marion. He adds that these exercises are particularly great for those starting to work out or warming up.

“Activation exercises and corrective movements that isolate muscles used in the workout are key to engaging the neuro-muscular (brain to body) connection that determines what muscles are engaged the most and how strong they’re able to contract during the workout. This also improves form and reduces injury opportunity.”

Good Mornings

Good mornings are great as part of a warm-up to really prime the glutes and hammies for work.

Banded X-Walk

Banded X-walks will help activate your gluteus medius, which has a tendency to go dormant from too much sitting. This can be done with or without a weight in the hands.

Quadruped Hip Extension

A simple exercise to get your glutes, hamstrings, and spinal erectors firing in the correct pattern.

Quadruped Fire Hydrant

Picture a dog about to urinate (hence this exercise’s name), and you’ll get in the right position to open up your hips.

Bird-dogs

This exercise serves a double purpose, both strengthening your core and activating your glutes and spinal erectors.

YouTube clips from Functional Bodybuilding

Sample Glute-Building Workout

Perform the following glutes workout three times per week for four to eight weeks, resting at least one day in between workouts.

Glute Workout A

Barbell Back Squat: 4 sets, 4-6 reps, 120 seconds rest
Barbell Hip Thrust: 4 sets, 8 reps, 90 seconds rest
Barbell Deadlift: 3 sets, 12 to 15 reps, 45 seconds rest
Dumbbell Split Squat: 3 sets, 10 to 12 reps per leg, 60 seconds rest
Kettlebell Swings: 3 sets, 20 reps, 30 seconds rest

Glute Workout B

Barbell Deadlift: 4 sets, 4 reps, 3 minutes rest
Goblet Squat: 3 sets, 12 reps, 45 seconds rest
Single-Leg Dumbbell Deadlift: 3 sets, 8 reps per leg, 60 seconds rest
Barbell Hip Thrust: 3 sets, 10 reps, 30 seconds rest
Barbell Lunges: 3 sets, 12 reps per leg, 60 seconds rest

Glute Workout C

Bottoms-Up Squat: 3 sets, 6 reps, 90 to 120 seconds rest
Barbell Hip Thrust: 4 sets, 12 reps, 60 seconds rest
Barbell Split Squat: 4 sets, 8 reps per leg, 60 seconds rest
Dumbbell Deadlift: 3 sets, 15 reps, 30 seconds rest
Dumbbell Reverse Lunge: 3 sets, 10 reps per leg, 60 seconds rest

Glute Workout D

Single-Leg Hip Thrust: 12 reps per leg
Quadruped Fire Hydrants: 8 reps per leg
Quadruped Hip Extension: 8 reps per leg
Birddogs: 6 reps per side
Banded X Walk: 8 reps per side
Barbell Good Morning: 12 to 15 slow reps

Essential Gear to Build Up Your Glutes

Get There Company Resistance Bands

Bang out the banded butt exercises shown above with a high-quality resistance band that travels better than arguably any other piece of fitness gear. Why not sneak in a few biceps curls while you’re at it? The band will force your muscles to spend more time under tension, engaging your biceps more effectively than a dumbbell.
$24.99 at Amazon.com

Cap Barbell Medicine Ball

This is your classic medicine ball, made for developing strength and coordination. It is a great tool to have on hand for goblet squats, but can also be used in the place of a kettlebell or dumbbells if you don’t have other weights on hand.

$36.45 at Amazon.com

Sporzon! Rubber Encased Hex Dumbbell in Pairs or Single

Dumbbells are a versatile tool that come into play in a number of the exercises shared above. This set starts at 10 lbs and ends at 50 lbs, so you can find a weight that suits your fitness level.

Starting at $45 at Amazon.com

Kettle Gryp

Whether you can’t find the specific kettlebell you’re looking for or you only have access to dumbbells, use this attachment to turn any dumbbell (up to 55 pounds) into a fully functional kettlebell. Barely tipping the scales at less than one pound, it won’t weigh you down if you’re taking your workout on the road.
$34.95 at Amazon.com

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