When excess layers of fat accumulate along the hips, you may feel like nothing you do will be able to get rid of them. Not only do you need to do adequate cardio exercise to burn fat, you also need to do targeted strength-building exercises for the hips to tone and tighten the muscles and create a slimmer, more defined silhouette.

There are so many names for the gluteus maximus because it is such a wonderful muscle. As the powerhouse of the body, it’s no wonder that athletes worldwide focus a lot of attention on training their glutes.

Here you’ll learn moves to tone, strengthen and activate the body’s largest muscle. As an added benefit, these moves will also help you fill out those jeans in all the right places.

Squats

The squat is a key movement in developing your derriere. And for variation you can do this move with or without weight by either adding a barbell across your back or holding dumbbells in your hands.

HOW TO DO IT:

• Start with your feet a little wider than shoulder-width apart and slightly turned out.
• Take a big breath in to brace the core, then send your butt back as you bend at the hips and knees.
• Keep your chest elevated.
• Stop when your thighs are parallel to the floor, or you can squat below parallel if your mobility allows.
• As you drive up through your heels, you should think of screwing your feet out and into the ground. This cue will fire your glutes so you can get the most strength out of your movement.

Front Squats

This move should be performed with dumbbells in your hand or a barbell across the front of your chest.

HOW TO DO IT:

• Start with your feet a little more than hip-width apart.
• With your core tight and your weight focused on your heels, slowly lower yourself with your glutes driving back and down.
• Depending on your mobility, you can go to or below parallel.
• Screwing your feet into the ground and squeezing your glutes, drive your knees slightly out and your elbows up as you stand up.

Lunges

Lunges are a wonderful move for the glutes because there are so many variations.

HOW TO DO IT:

• To start, stand with both feet underneath your shoulders.
• Step forward with one leg and bend both knees so that your back knee touches the floor and your front shin is completely perpendicular to the floor.
• Your front knee should be directly over your ankle and never track over your foot.
• You can alternate doing lunges in place, walk forward while doing lunges, walk backwards while doing lunges or do side lunges.

Banded Side Lunges

Building off the basic lunge, add resistance bands around your upper thighs to amp up the difficulty.

HOW TO DO IT:

• Wrap a band around your knees with your feet shoulder-width apart.
• Squat down a quarter of the way and send your butt back so that you feel your glutes engage.
• Then step to the side while staying in a semi-squat position.
• Repeat this movement on the other side and feel the burn!

Banded Front & Back Walks

Another wonderful banded movement that builds strength in your hips and glutes, you can place one band around the knees with your feet shoulder-width apart.

HOW TO DO IT:

• Squat down into an athletic stance.
• Then, with control, step forward while keeping your feet facing forward, imagining that your feet have to stay parallel like train tracks.
• Walk forward for a few steps before repeating this movement and walking backwards.

Banded Clamshells

The clamshell is one of the best moves for the glutes, whether as part of your warm-up or your regular strength-training workouts.

HOW TO DO IT:

• Start by wrapping a resistance band around the outside of your knees.
• Then lay down on one side, stacking your knees on top of one another, with your hand on your hip.
• Keep your bottom leg on the floor with your knee at a 90-degree angle.
• Externally rotate your top knee open while keeping your top foot on top of your bottom foot the entire time.
• With control, continue opening and closing your knees.

Stability Ball Hamstring Curl

This is a challenging move that works not only your glutes, but also your entire posterior chain.

HOW TO DO IT:

• Lie on the ground on your back.
• Place your ankles on top of a stability ball.
• Bridge your butt up to the sky with your arms and hands placed firmly on the floor.
• With control, roll your feet in toward your butt and back out again, all while keeping your hips thrusting to the sky.

After you finish a particularly strenuous exercise session, it’s not uncommon to experience a feeling of dizziness. Symptoms may include feeling as if you’re about to faint, weakness or a perception that the room is spinning. Although this condition is not always cause for concern, a light head can make you feel unstable and unsteady on your feet.

You can take steps to eliminate exercise-related dizziness by increasing the amount of oxygen to your tissues.

Lack of Fuel

When you exercise, your body uses energy stored in your tissues to enable you to exercise. When these energy stores run low, you might experience a light head or dizziness. Always make sure you have “fuel” in your body before exercising. A good way to accomplish this is to eat a 200-calorie snack 30 minutes to one hour before exercising.

Examples: half a peanut butter sandwich, cereal and milk or a banana and juice. These foods contain carbohydrates, which are your body’s chief energy source.

Medications Taken

Some medications, including those used to treat blood pressure, can contribute to dizziness after exercising. Read the information labels or pamphlets associated with your medications for listed side effects such as dizziness or fainting.