Using Your Butt...

The butt is made up of 3 muscles:

Gluteus Maximus Gluteus Medius
Gluteus Minimus

All 3 help to stabilize your pelvis when you walk, and when weak, they can cause lower back pain or a number of other problems. The gluteus maximus is the main fleshy part of your butt, and the gluteus medius and minimus are both on the side of your hips, right behind your hipbones.

Your main focus should be on the “Glute Max”. As you can tell, it is the largest butt muscle. It makes up much of what you consider to be your butt. Isolating the glute max can be hard, so knowing when it’s doing its thing is important.

The glute max has 2 main functions: to stabilize the pelvis when you’re moving around and to move the thigh backward. Anytime you bring your leg behind your body (hip extension), you should be using your gluteus maximus. To ensure that you’re working the glute max as much as possible when doing Pilates, don’t arch your back as your leg goes behind you. This advice applies to exercises you do while lying on your belly and to exercises you do while lying on your side.

If your back arches when you extend your hip, you’re using your back muscles and aren’t effectively stabilizing with your butt. Your butt works only when the leg is no more than 15 degrees behind your body. If you move your leg back any more than that, you’re arching your back and using your back muscles. So if you want to isolate the glute max, you must limit how far you kick your leg behind you.

Always think of squeezing the butt and using your abdominal scoop to help you stabilize your back and pelvis and to stop you from arching your back while extending your leg behind you. You can apply this thought to every step you take, literally. When you walk, think of walking from your hips rather than from your knees – you’ll use your butt more. Imagine that someone’s hands are on your butt pushing you forward as you stride.