Booty Strength + Cardio Workout by Ellie Meuwissen
I am super excited to share with you a couple of my favourite workouts using the best booty bands I have come across, I hope you get a killer booty burn like I do! If you like these workouts I would loveeee for you to let me know please :)
Aight so a little bit about me...My life consists of sports bras, bikinis, food, friends and good times. I have worked as a PT for the past 3 years and absolutely love it! For me, there is no greater gift than being a positive influence on someone's life, no matter how big or small that influence may be. I want to not only change the way females view themselves as sadly there are so many issues in today’s society around body image and eating disorders; but also the way we view exercise. I believe exercise is the best medication for literally everything and I know from experience that if you have a smile on your face, you’re having fun, you’re sweating and moving your body than you are benefiting in more ways that one.
I am the type of person who gets bored easily so I try to make my training sessions as fun and challenging as I can. I am always researching fun new exercises and creating workouts based off that to keep myself and my clients motivated and positive towards training. When I was young I used to get so bored in the gym as I would just follow the same plan, slightly mixing it up here and there. It wasn’t until I started experimenting that I found my mind and body responding so much better to this type of training and I know that so many people can relate to this.
In today’s society with the internet and social media there is so much pressure to train and eat a certain way if you want to look a certain way. My personal favourite...if you want to lose weight then you have to absolutely smash yourself with cardio 5-6 days a week, weights will only make you bulky. Girls please let me tell you that the MOST IMPORTANT THING for your physical, mental, emotional and spiritual health is to move your body in whatever way works for you.
Alright so now onto some technical stuff before the fun begins:
Booty bands are great for so many reasons are not just solely used to “get a bigger booty”. One of my clients is a classic example of this...Neah's knees used to wobble and cave in whilst doing squats, lunges, leg press and especially any jumping exercise ie. plyo lunges, squat jumps etc. Neah uses her booty bands once a week during her lower body PT session with me and her knees have improved dramatically plus her booty has definitely grown!! Knee collapse or wobbly knees 9/10 times comes from improper activation of your glutes, using booty bands places resistance on your legs pulling them together, therefore you need to work twice as hard to keep your knees open which in turn is strengthening glute activation at a faster rate (⚠️ if done properly) and in a way that cannot be done without using bands.
If you can, perform the whole session with your booty bands on. If your glutes are SCREAMING and you are really struggling, take the bands off and next time you do this session, try to keep them on for a little longer. WARNING! If you have never used booty bands before, the feeling can be quite intense. I had used plenty of different booty bands in the past and I could always last the whole session. I remember the first time I used Aura Eve booty bands…I literally was nearly in tears!!! haha half way through my session I could barely walk, my whole butt was cramping and my legs were so sore. That was honestly so painful haha I promise you the more you use your bands, the stronger your glutes become and the pain isn’t quite as intense as the first few times.
I cannot stress enough how important correct technique is. The three main things that apply to nearly all exercises:
- Neutral spine position – chest out, shoulders down and back, core braced
- Squeeze glutes at the top of each movement
- Keep the hips, knees and toes in 1 line. Push against the bands to keep your knees from turning in
- Smile, remember you are beautiful and know that the current pain you are in is all worth it to grow that booty ;P
- If your lower back is hurting during an exercise that it isn’t supposed to…9 times out of 10 it is because you are not correctly engaging your core OR your core is super fatigued
- If you have never done any of the following exercises before or haven't done them in a while, start of using body weight or light weights were possible. You have to master the basics before progressing.
It’s time for the fun to begin….have fun girls and don’t forget to let me know what you think!
SESSION 1 – Booty Strength
- You should be able to use the same weight and set up for both of these exercises (1a + 1b) – you will just need to take the pad off to do the deadlifts
1a. 4 x 15 Barbell glute bridges
- Start by rolling the barbell over your legs until it sits over your hips
- Use your hands to steady the bar throughout the movement
- Switch your core on, keeping a neutral spine, squeeze your glutes and drive through your heels to lift your hips up until fully extended (avoid hyperextension of your lower back)
- Hold in the top position for 1-2 sec (this helps to ensure no jerky movements which often lead to injury), control the barbell back down to the start position
1b. 4 x 15 Sumo deadlifts
- Ensure neutral spine - chest out, shoulders down and back, core braced
- Drive the bar up with your legs and squeeze your glutes at the top of the movement
2a. 4 x 15 Smith machine sumo squats
- Yes this feels weird and unnatural but get your feet wide and turn your toes out
- Throughout movement keep your hips, knees and toes in 1 line (push your knees against the band, this will allow efficient glute activation)
2b. 4 x 20 Kettlebell swings
- It’s all in the hips - feet shoulder width apart, slightly bend knees, hinge forward from the hips, pull the kettlebell back between your legs to create momentum before driving your hips forwards, keeping a neutral spine and squeezing your glutes at the top of the movement.
- The bell should come to shoulder height or just below.
2c. 4 x 15 Dumbbell Romanian Deadlifts
- Keeping a neutral spine and braced core, slightly bend your knees and lower the dumbbells down, tracking over your toes, until you feel a good stretch in your hamstrings before standing up tall and squeezing your glutes
FINISHER – 15 min Treadmill Incline walk WITH booty bands (if your glutes can handle it)
SESSION 2 – Strength + Cardio for the ultimate booty burn!!
1a. 4 x 20 Barbell Curtsy lunges
- This movement is a little strange so if you haven't performed it before, I suggest trying without any weight
- Start with your feet shoulder width apart, bring one foot across and behind your body as you lunge downward (both knees should make right angles)
- The further you step your foot back and across, the more engagement the glutes and hamstrings will achieve
- Try to avoid the front knee going too far over your toes
1b. 4 x 1 min Treadmill crab jog (30 sec each direction)
- BE CAREFUL + Start with the treadmill speed around 3 km and slowly increase when you get the hang of it
2a. 3 x 20 Smith machine donkey kicks
- Can be performed on hands or elbows
- Keep a tight core, place one foot on the bar and raise your leg straight up focussing on squeezing your glute
- Make sure you are not arching your lower back as this may cause lower back pain
2b. 3 x 20 Plyo lunges
- Be as explosive as you can and aim to get as high off the ground as you can
- Look in the mirror to check your technique and make sure your knees tracking over your toes and not turning in (hips, knees, toes - 1 straight line)
3a. 3 x 40 Booty band + weighted crab walk
- Keep a neutral spine - chest out, shoulders down and back, core braced
- Hold a weight in front of your chest, sink down to a semi squat position, keep constant tension on your glutes by pushing your knees against the band
3b. 3 x 30 sec Squat pulses with overhead weight
- Ouch!!! This is the ultimate booty burn!!!
- Stay down as low as you can and keep that weight over your head! You got this girl!!
By Ellie Meuwissen