4Want to get your rear in gear? Well IFBB Pro and BSN athlete Amanda Latona, who is known for her love of booty building, is here to help. “To me, curves are sexy. And you have to build the booty with weights to create those sexy curves,” says Amanda.
That being said, building a better butt is about more than just boring squats and lunges— but you also don’t need to spend hours in the gym. You just need the right combination of exercises to get the job done. It requires hard work, but it’s worth it. No matter what point you are starting from, you can make it happen! So let’s get ready to kick butt in 2015!
THE KICK BUTT WORKOUT
The glutes are comprised of three separate muscles: the gluteus maximus, gluteus medius and gluteus minimus. For this reason, an effective glute workout should contain a variety of bilateral and unilateral exercises. This workout is made up of just five exercises, but these are some of the best lower body exercises to work your glutes from every angle.
• Finish all sets for one exercise before moving onto the next.
• For unilateral movements, do not rest between each leg.
• For bilateral movements, rest 60 seconds between sets.
GLUTE STRETCHES
Seated Crossover Stretch
From a seated position, extend your right leg with your left foot bent but crossed over it with the foot flat on the floor. With your right hand, grab the outside of your left knee and twist your torso and look behind. Your left hand may rest on the ground behind your buttocks for support and extra stretch.
Lying Glute Stretch
Lying on your back with knees bent, cross the right leg over the left. Grab the back of your left knee with both hands and pull your legs toward your chest. You should feel the stretch in your right hip and glute. Switch legs and repeat on the other side. Use a towel or stretching rope to assist you if you can’t reach behind your knee.
Seated Glute Stretch
Sitting on a bench, cross your right leg over your left. Draw your chest toward your leg and feel the stretch in your right hip and glute. Switch legs and repeat on the other side.
Standing Glute Stretch
This exercise is similar to the seated glute stretch, except it’s done standing. Stand with the outside of your left ankle placed just above your right kneecap. Bend forward until you feel a stretch in your butt muscles. This exercise will also strengthen your lower body muscles.
AMANDA’S FAVORITE SUPPLEMENTS
BSN SYNTHA-6 ISOLATE PROTEIN
“I also adore the new Isoburn protein from BSN. Isoburn is a fat-burning protein and it’s stimulatant free, so I have it post-workout and right before bed and it tastes absolutely amazing. It has carnitine and CLA to burn fat while you build muscle.”
BSN’S AMINO X
“It’s our flavored BCAAs. BCAAs are an amazing product to help build muscle and maintain muscle while dieting. I sip on this during my cardio sessions because I want to burn fat while preserving my muscle.”
BSN’S N.O.-XPLODE
“This is my go-to pre-workout and has been since 2006, many years before I was even signed to BSN. It gives me focus, energy, strength and a pump that I love and crave.”
EXERCISE DESCRIPTIONS
Kneeling Cable Kickbacks
When done on the knees, there is great range of motion so great effort is needed. Place a flat bench in front of the cable machine and attach a cuff to your ankle. Kneel on the bench with your free leg. Your hands should be under your shoulders. Bring your working leg forward, then slowing back and high as possible.
Barbell Hip Thrust
Sit on the floor with a barbell positioned over your shins and align your upper back across a secure padded bench or step, feet approximately shoulder-width apart. Roll the barbell over your thighs so it rests at your hips (if the bar causes discomfort, consider using a pad or towel around the bar). Brace your core and forcefully extend the hips until the torso is parallel with the ground and a hip-neutral position is reached. Hold the contracted position for a moment then return to the start position.
Bulgarian Split Squat
Stand with your back toward the bench. Take a few steps forward and stretch one leg back to place your foot on top of the bench. You should be in a lunge position. Holding dumbbells at your sides, slowly lower your back knee down as you bend the front leg. Then straighten your legs to complete the rep.
Barbell Walking Lunge
Place a light barbell comfortably on your upper back as if you were ready to do a squat. With your torso straight, take a long step forward with one leg. The knee of the forward leg will bend to about 90 degrees as you lunge forward. Keep your torso in an upright position and do not lean forward from your waist during the lunge. The knee of the rear leg should almost come in contact with the floor. Stand on the forward leg with assistance from the back leg. Alternate lunge with opposite legs.
Plie Squat
Grab a single dumbbell. Taking a wide stance, squat down with the weight dangling between your legs. Lower yourself as far as your flexibility and balance allows, and then drive back up, using your heels, to just short of locking your knees.
For more training tips, check out’s Amanda weekly video series KNOw Ifs, Ands or Butts.
KEEP UP WITH AMANDA
Website: www.amanda-latona.com
Facebook: OfficialAmandaLatona
Twitter:@Amandalatona
Instagram: @Amandalatona
Amanda can be contacted for appearances through www.fmg-fitnessmanagementgroup.com.
