My bum is rather flat. Will squats actually work?

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I'm trying to get my stomach down but I notice as I lose weight my bum is vanishing even more. I don't want to end up with a butt like Chloe Sims (or her teeth - but thats for another thread) yet I already feel like I'm there:

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Are squats going to work for me or should I accept my big boob flat bum status?
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Replies

  • DoreenCC
    DoreenCC Posts: 9 Member
    SQUATS WORK! Do your squats and you WILL notice a difference!
  • Don't even question it, just do it!!! I used to have a pancake butt, now muchhh better. I'll post more recent progress pictures soon, but yes yes yessssss

    and deadlifts, glute bridges, lunge squats!
  • krispy1982
    krispy1982 Posts: 47 Member
    I have the same problem! Well sort of, I have flat boobs too lol. Unfortunately there's not really an exercise for that.

    I've had really great results with squats and deadlifts. I think anything that works your whole backside helps. not just your glutes but your hamstrings and lower back, the whole shebang.

    I've heard a lot of people talk about a Brazillion butt workout but I've never tried it.

    Genetics will decide where your fat lives but you can have a say in the size of you muscles, even your butt!
  • SuperSvelteLana
    SuperSvelteLana Posts: 10 Member
    My thinking is that the squats will help you get the definition - a clear delineation between your thighs and your buttocks. I don't think they will give you a firm bubble butt (make it unflattened).
  • The_Enginerd
    The_Enginerd Posts: 3,982 Member
    Don't even question it, just do it!!! I used to have a pancake butt, now muchhh better. I'll post more recent progress pictures soon, but yes yes yessssss

    and deadlifts, glute bridges, lunge squats!
    ^This, especially the second line. Those hit the glutes more specifically than squats.
  • Don't even question it, just do it!!! I used to have a pancake butt, now muchhh better. I'll post more recent progress pictures soon, but yes yes yessssss

    and deadlifts, glute bridges, lunge squats!
    ^This, especially the second line. Those hit the glutes more specifically than squats.

    and for anyone willing to actually look them up, specifically:

    sumo squats, romanian deadlifts, stiff-legged deadlifts, donkey kicks

    Also make sure the squats are parallel ones, so you're using mostly the glutes.

    You can also scoot forward on the hip abductor machine and arch back to target them, as well as do the angled leg press but only one leg at a time.
  • randomtai
    randomtai Posts: 9,003 Member
    Yup.. squats, bridges and deadlifts work. :D
  • laurelboynton
    laurelboynton Posts: 104 Member
    I never feel like I'm truely working my butt... more just my quads. I have a flattish bum too! I WANT BOOTY
  • quilasoul
    quilasoul Posts: 17 Member
    I never feel like I'm truely working my butt... more just my quads. I have a flattish bum too! I WANT BOOTY


    don't we all. *sigh* lol
  • Squat everyday!!! In the shower, brushing your teeth. As many as you can through out the day makes it easy. Spread your feet wide apart and go to a 90 degree angle. It's good to make it even harder by pulsing before coming back up when you are at the lowest point. Also lunges are very under rated. Squat and lunge everyday.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    I never feel like I'm truely working my butt... more just my quads. I have a flattish bum too! I WANT BOOTY

    You're not going low enough
  • Oh and make sure you are really sticking your butt out and "sitting" in to your squats. That way you wont just work your quads.
  • HeidiMightyRawr
    HeidiMightyRawr Posts: 3,343 Member
    Yes, squats and other exercises that target your glutes (lunges...deadlifts etc) will work.

    Make sure you're working in a way where you actually see progression with the resistance though. If at first, all you can manage is bodyweight squats then fine. However, over time that's going to get less worthwhile and you're going to need some weight. I see so many people (I've lost count) just do more and more squats with bodyweight, 100's a day sometimes and it's really not necessary and is more for endurance training anyway. Once it gets easy, add some resistance. Even if you don't have access to a gym/squat rack/barbell, there's stuff you can buy for the home to hold while you squat (dumbbells/kettlebells etc) that will make the world of difference.

    Also, make sure you're eating enough. Your glutes are muscles, just like other muscles in your body (quads/biceps etc) You can't expect them to grow in a significant calorie deficit. Ideally, you'd be in a surplus to notice big changes, but if you don't want to be for the sake of other goals, just make sure it's not too large a deficit.
  • LankyYankee
    LankyYankee Posts: 260 Member
    There's a reason they call it the "squat booty"! Squats, lunges, and deadlifts. Your butt, and any one walking behind you, will thank you :smile:
  • leannems
    leannems Posts: 516 Member
    In addition to all the other tips on here (squats, lunges, deadlifts - yes, do them all), I've also found that I can work my butt pretty well walking on a very steep incline, with a very wide stride (it's essentially the equivalent of lunges on an incline). Nice way to combine muscle with cardio (I prefer to use a bridge as an incline; I can't get a wide enough stride on a treadmill without feeling like I am going to fall off).

    You will know when you've worked your butt. It's hurts :smile:
  • Sunbrooke
    Sunbrooke Posts: 632 Member
    Squats work. And choose the elliptical over the treadmill if you can. It works the top part of your booty really well if you push it.
  • gmoneycole
    gmoneycole Posts: 813 Member
    Squats work. Do it! You'll be glad you did.
  • ItsCasey
    ItsCasey Posts: 4,021 Member
    Well, you're not going to build muscle unless you're eating at a surplus, and even then, it's going to take a long time. But a calorie deficit will get rid of the fat on top of whatever muscle you currently have, and that will give you more shape. It won't actually be bigger, but it will be more clearly defined.
  • chrisrc131
    chrisrc131 Posts: 45 Member
    I never feel like I'm truely working my butt... more just my quads. I have a flattish bum too! I WANT BOOTY

    Make sure you're going deep enough and not caving your knees or leaning forward. You want to drive upward with your hips and butt, not lean up. It might help to widen your stance a bit and play with the angle of your feet a bit too.

    That said, squats are definitely going to work your quads (and damn near everything else). If you want to target your glutes, work some hip thrusts and glute bridges after you've tired the rest of your posterior chain doing squats, deadlifts, etc.
  • exm7
    exm7 Posts: 3
    Elliptical going backwards. I had a flat butt all my life, until I started doing the elliptical 3 min forward alternating with 3 min backward. One day I looked in the mirror, and I noticed I finally had a butt! It was a great surprise. I fixed one of my pet peeves without knowing it would happen
  • Cranquistador
    Cranquistador Posts: 39,744 Member
    Elliptical going backwards. I had a flat butt all my life, until I started doing the elliptical 3 min forward alternating with 3 min backward. One day I looked in the mirror, and I noticed I finally had a butt! It was a great surprise. I fixed one of my pet peeves without knowing it would happen
    NO
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,993 Member
    Flat butts are due to a couple of things: genetics and lack of gluteal muscle. Squats can help with increasing gluteal muscle size and thereby increase butt size. But how it's shaped is dependent entirely on genetics.

    A.C.E. Certified Personal/Group FitnessTrainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
  • Citrislazer
    Citrislazer Posts: 312 Member
    I agree with ninerbuff. I use to focus on my bum. I've done all the "bum exercises" in the past without much results. Granted, it was toned and strong, but it wasn't that nice "Brazilian" bum shape. So I just accepted I have a "cute little bum" and altered my pants to avoid saggy bum pants. It's an easy fix on pants. My mom has the exact same problem. Genetics is the biggest factor for me.
  • wolfsbayne
    wolfsbayne Posts: 3,116 Member
    I've never really had a flat butt, but as I've aged and stopped working out, it got kinda saggy :grumble: I've been doing Stronglifts for almost 3 months now and the sag is disappearing. DO THOSE SQUATS! and deadlifts :love:
  • wolfsbayne
    wolfsbayne Posts: 3,116 Member
    Elliptical going backwards. I had a flat butt all my life, until I started doing the elliptical 3 min forward alternating with 3 min backward. One day I looked in the mirror, and I noticed I finally had a butt! It was a great surprise. I fixed one of my pet peeves without knowing it would happen
    NO

    why no? I go backwards just because I like the burn it gives me.
  • mtnstar
    mtnstar Posts: 125 Member
    I think pregnancy stole my butt and redistributed it as a muffin top. Now that I've lost the weight and the muffin top, I still have no butt. I do squats with weights but have been considering the Brazil Butt Lift workout. I'm desperate- my pants won't stay up, even with a belt.
  • BusyRaeNOTBusty
    BusyRaeNOTBusty Posts: 7,166 Member
    Stronglifts 5x5. Make sure your squats are to parallel. Also, lunges and barbell hip thrusts.

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  • freddi11e
    freddi11e Posts: 317 Member
    my butt got sooooo flat when i lost a bunch of weight. i have my booty back cuz i gained the weight back, but now i'm losing again and i'm gonna do it with squats cuz i dont want my booty gone ! i bought a 20 lb barbell yesterday, but i could only do 2 sets of 10 squats... and i can't go all the way down cuz it's soooo hard. but progress not perfection.. yet.
  • ummommyme
    ummommyme Posts: 362 Member
    Please for the love of the booty look up BRET CONTREREAS. He's the glute guy with all the info you will need to get the backside you are looking for. https://www.facebook.com/pages/Bret-Contreras-Fitness-Page/196219527140228. Here's his facebook page, you can find his blog from here I think. He wrote Strong Curves.
  • eazy_
    eazy_ Posts: 516 Member
    .