Sagging Booty: Save It With Squats

by Sarah Brown Jul 7th 2010 3:05AM

Categories: Advice, Fitness, Ask a Fitness Expert

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Sagging Booty: Save It With Squats">
Girl looking at her buttDear Sarah,

I pulled out my summer clothes last week and they just don't fit the way they used to, especially in the 'booty' area. I'm not overweight or anything -- but there's a definite 'sag' factor that wasn't there before. Is there a way to get my butt in shape -- literally? Deirdre

Dear Deirdre,

Keeping your butt in shape requires one very simple exercise: squats. There is no quick fix as building muscle tone takes time; however, motivation is the key to success.

The truth is, your bones stop growing by the time you reach your 20s, and your body also starts to lose muscle then unless you take action.



In fact, The American Council on Exercise states that "muscle mass declines with age, resulting in decreased muscular strength and endurance ... For each decade after the age of 25, three to five percent of muscle mass is lost." This is due mostly to lifestyle changes and a decreased use of the neuromuscular system. Depressed yet?

The good news is that you can change this -- your body has the ability to increase muscle mass any time you provide the correct stimulus. And building muscle is the best way to keep your metabolic furnace (the rate at which you burn calories) going, which will help you stay a lean machine over time.

Squats are quite simply the best way to tone your buttocks, as well as your quadriceps and hamstrings. Performing squats not only effectively works your muscles, it raises your heart rate, which makes it a great workout that can be done virtually anywhere. There are endless variations that can be done in just minutes a day. Here's my suggestion:

The 100 Booty Squat Workout

Goal: to perform 100 squats every other day

The basic move:
  • Stand with your feet hip-width apart -- Imaging you're standing on a clock with 12 right ahead, stand with your toes pointed out to 11 and one.
  • Bend your knees and lower your body as though you were sitting down into a chair until your thighs are parallel to the ground
  • Press into your heel squeeze your buttocks and return to the top
The workout:
  • First 20 squats -- go at an easy pace to warm up
  • Next 20 squats -- down for a count of two and up for a count of two
  • Next 20 squats -- down for a count of three and up for a count of one
  • Next 20 squats -- down for one count hold and push up for a count of three
  • Next 10 squats -- drop to the bottom of your squat and pulse for a count of four before returning to standing -- then repeat nine times.
  • Last 10 squats -- down for one count and up for one count with as much power as you can muster


Recovery:
Do a quad stretch -- bend your right knee and catch your foot in your hand behind you to stretch out your quads; hold for 30 seconds and repeat with left knee.

To stretch your back, stand hip width apart, soften your knees and fold forward hold for 1 minute.

To stretch your buttocks, lie down on your back with your knees bent so that both feet are on the floor. Place your right ankle onto your left knee, and pulling your toes back towards your right knee, take hold of your left hamstring with your hands and lift your left foot off the floor while drawing your legs towards your chest. Keep your head, back and shoulders flat on the floor. Then, repeat on the left side.

After approximately 6 weeks, your body adapts to the exercises you are performing; therefore, you must increase the challenge in order to continue to see results.

Options:
  • Increase each group of squats from 20 to 22 or even 25 (10s to 12 or 15)
  • Increase resistance -- hold dumbbells in your hands or a bar on the fleshy part of your shoulders.
  • Instead of squats, perform the 100 squat workout using lunges.
Sarah Brown is a very healthy woman. She is not only a fitness instructor at GoodLife where she teaches Body Pump, Body Flow and yoga but she is also a registered holistic nutritionist. If you have a question for Sarah, leave a comment below and she will try and help, but note that not all questions will be answered.

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