How To Fire Glutes?

[Uber]

I've tried dead rows, lunges, squats...all the regulars. Still, the back porch is jello.

On Cathe's videos, she mentions firing the glutes. Can anyone tell me how to do this? It's as if the legs are taking ALL the workout. I can see great advances in the quads & hams, but the glutes never change!

Thanx!

 

[nastsm0m]

Are you squezing the butt when you come up from the lunge and squat. I mean REALLY hard!

Terri

 

[Mariela]

Also, very slow, controlled speed, like in Slow & Heavy. Plie squats fire my glutes, when using a very heavy weight, a very wide stance, and USING ONLY my glutes to bring my bodyweight (excluding legs) up. Think of your torso and upper body as a giant dumbell you must lift with your glutes.

 

[materialsgirl]

You look at your glutes squarely in the face, and say "Glutes, you're fired. I'm sorry, but it's just not working out. You'll get your last paycheck on Friday."

Okay, I just couldn't resist that one!

I think the other posters are correct - just squeeze those glutes as hard as you can. Make sure you are pushing up through your heels when you do those excercises, rather than the ball of your foot. Now, if your "back porch" is jello because that's where you carry excess fat, then you need to work on fat loss before you will be able to see any muscle definition.

 

[Uber]

USING ONLY my glutes to bring my bodyweight (excluding legs) up. Think of your torso and upper body as a giant dumbell you must lift with your glutes.>>

Aye, there's the rub, Mariela! How to isolate only the glutes for the lifting. Hmmm. I'll try to visualize per your recommendation.

Thanx, every1!

 

[CatieFIT]

Also, the floor work using the ball etc. (ex. Pyramid Lower Body) does a fabulous job targeting the glute area. I swear by pelvic tucks etc for my glutes in addition to weight training legs with heavier weights. Even though there is really no additional resistance with exercises like these, unless you place dumbells across your pelvis, they really isolate that area. Also, these exercises are presented by cathe in a low/no weight, high rep manner which really shapes the muscle...at least in my experience. So don't slack on the floorwork she provides in the videos! If you really concentrate on form, I think you will be surprised by the results...i was!

Catie

 

[marianimal2000]

LOL!

I tried that. Sadly they kept showing up for work everyday like that guy on the cereal commercial that can't hear his boss fire him.

 

[Lynn M.]

Hi-

Also, don't forget the step ups.. where you step up onto a high step with a weight.. Those do great things for the butt too!!

Lynn M.

 

[smoogy]

Are you pushing up through the heel? Heel (singular for lunges) and heels (plural) for squats? That is very important. Note: you will feel other areas of the leg activate as well during any lower body workout.

Marla

 

[Alexandra]

Hello,

I've been lifting really heavy for lowerbody using PLB, GS Legs, & L&G, for a while and my lower body has definitely gotten firmer and stronger, but like you, I can't seem to really isolate my glutes and I never feel the "burn" in my glutes. Well, this morning I decided to pull out my Firm Scultped, Buns, Hips & Thighs (all floor work) and boy did I feel the "burn". I was able to really isolate my glutes. See my post in the Open Discussion forum under Firm Classics Revisited. If you don't have this video get it.

Alexandra


>I've tried dead rows, lunges, squats...all the regulars.
>Still, the back porch is jello.
>
>On Cathe's videos, she mentions firing the glutes. Can anyone
>tell me how to do this? It's as if the legs are taking ALL the
>workout. I can see great advances in the quads & hams, but the
>glutes never change!
>
>Thanx!

 

[Uber]

Thanx, everyone for your wonderful recommendations...Alexandra, I've only a dvd player these days, but you've made me recall how absolutely effective floor work is with ankle weights!

Doesn't Cathe have any dvd glute work on the floor? Body Blast Volume 3, maybe?

Anyone know?

Thanks again!

 

[luvtorun]

Emily, you are a riot!!!

Uber - my glutes were not only "fired" today, they were a raging inferno!!! I did PLB. Those static lunges and squats, OMG.... Squeeze those glutes as you rise, squeeze hard.... that stability ball work really this get in there and "fires" them up. After that w/o, you're lucky if you can walk.

 

[allwildgirl]

As someone else mentioned, the key to firing your glutes is to put your weight in your heel (lunges) or heels (squats). As soon as you do that, you'll feel it and understand what the whole firing thing means