Oversized hips and buttocks can make your figure look disproportionate, which makes it difficult to fit into regularly sized pants and jeans. This area is especially difficult for women, who tend to store fat in their hips and buttocks more readily than men. Exercise that produces weight loss can help you trim the size of these two areas while also improving your health and fitness.
Stair Stepping
One of the easiest ways to tone your hips and buttocks and burn calories is to utilize stairs in your workout. Running stairs burns a tremendous amount of calories while requiring your glutes and quadriceps to contract to propel your body upward and to absorb impact on the way back down. Taking stairs instead of using an elevator is also an effective way of adding more physical activity to your life. This increase in physical activity can help you lose weight.
Hill Exercise
Another exercise that can help produce weight loss while toning up your butt and hips is hill running. Like stair stepping, hill running requires your glutes and quadriceps to fire while you propel yourself up the graded hill. The key difference between hill running and stair stepping is that hill running is significantly easier to perform because you do not need the precision of landing successfully on each step. Hill running also has a much lower impact on the joints than stair stepping. This makes hill running a great alternative to individuals who struggle with stair work but still want a butt-working, calorie-burning workout.
Spot Reducing
Unfortunately, there are no ways to spot reduce the fat located in your hip and buttocks area; however, improving the musculature of the area with resistance-training exercises can improve the appearance and contribute to a shapelier look. One exercise you can use to improve the shape of your glutes is a hip bridge. You just lie flat on your back with your feet flat on the floor and then lift and hold your hips off of the ground. To shape up the side of your hips, lie on your side and lift your leg upward.
Considerations
Although aerobic exercise and resistance training can help you reduce the size of your hips and buttocks, you must also be eating properly and reduce your caloric intake. Consult with your nutritionist or doctor before making any exercise or dietary changes. Also remember that each person stores fat differently and that it may take longer for some individuals to see changes in the appearance and size of their hips and buttocks even after a significant amount of weight loss.
References
- Mayo Clinic; Belly Fat in Women -- Taking and Keeping It Off; April 2011
- Core Performance; Q&A: Running Stairs; Mark Verstegen; March 2009
- "The New York Times"; Great Workout, Forget the View; Liz Robbins; February 2009
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: StairWELL to Better Health
- American College of Sports Medicine; ACSM Releases New Position Stand On Losing Weight, Keeping It Off; December 2001
- INSape Indiana: Ask the Trainer
Member Comments