Achieving a rounded, toned butt requires hard work, but adding a few simple exercises to your workout routine can help reshape, lift and tone your buttocks. Whether you're hoping to add curves to a flat butt or tone up a flabby one, the basic butt workout moves are the same and take only a few minutes a few times a week to reshape your glutes.
Significance
To lift and tone your butt, you need to work not only the glutes, but also the hamstrings and the hip flexor muscles that support your butt. While many types of cardiovascular exercise such as walking, treadmills and elliptical trainers work these muscles, you may want to add specific targeted toning moves to your daily workout. Toning exercises, including those for the butt, meet recommendations for strength training set out by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Types
Many of the exercises used to tone the butt are classic calisthenic moves, or variations on those. Lunges, plies, and squats form the basis of a butt lifting workout. While you can work your glutes, hamstrings and hip flexors without additional equipment, you can add a challenge to your workout or vary it with the addition of an exercise step or large stability ball.
Time Frame
Toning your tush should only take a few minutes a few times a week. "Fitness" recommends a five-minute butt-lifting workout, but you can opt for longer targeted exercise routines or use a DVD geared toward working lower body muscle groups twice a week. You can also simply integrate these butt toning moves into your usual strength training and toning routine.
Function
Proper form is key to effective toning exercises. Focus your attention on your butt muscles as you lunge by moving straight up and down. If your knee is extended over your toes, step out further. Maintain good posture in squats and plies, while focusing on holding these positions or pulsing downward into a deeper squat or plie. Intensify these exercises by varying the position of your feet, jumping into the exercise, or holding weights as you work.
Warning
Toning exercises for the hips and butt can be difficult if you have joint issues involving your hips or knees. Consult your health care provider before beginning a new toning routine if you have concerns. Be sure that your knees do not extend past your toes in squats or lunges and stop if you feel pain in your joints.
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