13 Best Butt Exercises to Sculpt Strong Glutes at Home

December 18, 2018 by Team Asprey

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Having strong glutes can help you prevent injury, improve performance and move better
Most people have weak glutes because of inactivity.
Butt exercises should target the muscles of the entire glute complex including the gluteus maximus, medius and minimus muscles.

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Note: These glute exercises are not gender-specific — experts recommend them all for both men and women.

Everyone wants a better butt these days, and not just to look good in jeans. A strong set of glutes can stave off injuries, improve athletic performance, and help you move well as you age.

“Walking, running, jumping, change of directions, and, well, just about everything is better with strong glutes,” says Brett Jones, MS, ATC, CSCS, founder of Applied Strength.

And not to drop a truth bomb but, most of us need to be doing glute exercises — and aren’t. “Lack of use is the biggest reason so many people tend to have weak glutes,” says Cassandra York, PhD, MS, RD, CSCS, best-selling fitness author and a professor at Central Connecticut State University. “We don’t walk as much as we used to. We don’t take the stairs. And when we do move, we tend to be quad dominant,” says York.

Over time, having weak glutes can lead to hip, knee and low back pain. Athletes with glute weakness are also prone to acute injuries such as ACL tears and hamstring strains.

A good butt workout should target the muscles of the entire glute complex: the big, power-producing gluteus maximus, and the smaller, stabilizing gluteus medius and minimus. Below, York, Jones, and award-winning personal trainer Katie Gould share 13 effective butt exercises you can do at home with minimal equipment. All you need for these glute exercises is a flat resistance band/mini band and a kettlebell.

Glute exercises with bands

1. Clamshells

Place a light resistance band around both legs, just above your knees. Lie on one side with knees bent, hips stacked and feet together. Make sure your butt is not tucked. Exhale as you lift your top knee, keeping your feet together. Inhale as you return your knee to the starting position. Do 15 reps. Switch sides.

Targets: gluteus medius and minimus

2. Lateral stepping

Secure a flat resistance band just above your ankles and stand with your feet at about hip-width, keeping feet forward. Keeping your weight in your heels, step your right foot laterally, maintaining the tension in the band. Keep the band taut as you step your left foot slightly to the right. Continue stepping sideways to your right for about 5 steps. Then step to your left to return to the starting position. Repeat three times.

Targets: gluteus medius and minimus

3. Hip thrusts with band

Lie on your back with knees bent and feet flat on the floor. Place a band above your knees. Exhale as you drive your heels into the ground and lift your hips as high as possible, keeping the band taut. Inhale as you slowly lower your hips back to the starting position. Do 12-15 reps.

Targets: gluteus maximus, hamstrings, quadriceps, gluteus medius and minimus, abdominals

4. Standing kickbacks with band

Place a band around your ankles. Shift your weight into your right foot and place the toes of your left foot on the ground about an inch behind your right foot, so there is tension in the band. Exhale as you kick your left leg back about six inches. Avoid arching your back and keep your knees straight. Inhale as you return your left foot to the starting position. Do 10-12 reps. Switch sides.

Targets: gluteus maximus, hamstrings, gluteus medius and minimus

Butt exercises with kettlebell

5. Deadlifts

Stand with your feet at shoulder width and position a heavy kettlebell between your feet. Hinge at your hips and bend your knees while lowering your hands to the kettlebell handle. Your shins should stay vertical. Gripping the handle, exhale as you drive through our heels to extend your hips and rise to standing. Inhale as you slowly lower the kettlebell back toward the ground by hinging at the hips and allowing your knees to bend as needed. Do 10 reps.

Targets: gluteus maximus, hamstrings, upper and lower back, abdominals

6. Kettlebell swings

Stand with your feet slightly wider than shoulder-width with a kettlebell about a foot in front of you. With your weight in your heels, hinge at your hips while lowering your hands to the kettlebell handle. Grab the kettlebell with an overhand grip, “Hike” the kettlebell back between your legs, catching the force of the moving kettlebell with your hips. Exhale as you swing the kettlebell forward by thrusting your hips, straightening your legs, and squeezing your glutes and abs. Once the kettlebell reaches chest height, inhale as you allow it to fall, and guide it back to the “hiked” position.

Targets: gluteus maximus, hamstrings, abdominals, upper and lower back, shoulders

7. Goblet squats

Stand with feet at shoulder width, holding a kettlebell at your chest. Inhale as you bend your knees and push your hips back to lower into a squat. Aim for your hips to come as low as your knees and avoid tucking your tailbone. Exhale and drive through your heels to rise to standing. Do 10 to 12 reps.

Targets: gluteus maximus, quadriceps, hamstrings, abdominals

8. Single-leg deadlifts

Holding a kettlebell in your left hand, stand on your right foot and lift your left foot off the ground… Keeping your weight in your midfoot to heel, inhale as you hinge at your hips and slightly bend your knee to push your butt backward. Keep your shin vertical and hips squared forward. Exhale as you drive through your heel to return to standing. Do 10-12 reps. Switch sides.

Targets: gluteus maximus, hamstrings, gluteus medius, and minimus, calves

Glute exercises with body weight

9. Reverse lunge to balance

Stand on your right foot and lift your left foot off the ground. Inhale as you step your left foot back-ward into a lunge, so that your left knee hovers above the ground. Exhale as you drive through your right heel to rise to a single-leg stance, bringing your left leg forward and up to hip height. Do 10-12 reps. Switch sides. Optional: Load this move by holding a kettlebell at your chest or a dumbbell in each hand.

Targets: gluteus maximus, quadriceps, hamstrings, gluteus medius and minimus, calves

10. Single-leg hip thrusters

Lie on your back with knees bent and feet flat on the floor. Lift your hips to come into a bridge position. Lift your left leg off the ground and extend it in front of you, keeping your pelvis level. Inhale as you slowly lower your hips toward the ground. Exhale as you drive your right heel into the ground and lift your hips. Do 10-12 reps. Switch sides.

Targets: gluteus maximus, hamstrings, quadriceps, gluteus medius and minimus

11. Speed skaters

Stand with feet together, hips pushed back and knees slightly bent. Push off with your right foot and leap to your left, landing softly on your left foot. Push off with your left foot to leap back to the opposite side. Alternate sides for a total of 20 reps.

Targets: gluteus maximus, hamstrings, quadriceps, gluteus medius and minimus

12. Frog pumps

Lie on your back with knees bent and feet flat on the floor. Lift your hips to come into a bridge position with a neutral spine. Tuck your chin into your chest. Dig your elbows into the ground. Press the bottoms of your feet together and move your heels as close to your butt as possible. Inhale as you lower your hips toward the ground. Exhale as you lift your hips. Do 15 reps.

Targets: gluteus maximus, medius and minimus

13. Walking lunges

Step forward with your right foot and lower into a lunge, letting your left knee hover above the ground. Push off with your right foot to rise to a single-leg stance and step your left foot forward, immediately lowering into a lunge on this side. Alternate sides for a total of 20 reps.

Targets: gluteus maximus, quadriceps, hamstrings

This Full Body Dumbbell Workout Gets You Fit in 13 Minutes

December 14, 2018 by Team Asprey

A new study found that when it comes to building strength and endurance, performing a single set of exercises to failure can be as effective as completing multiple sets.
Based on the study, this 13-minute full-body dumbbell workout allows you to efficiently get results without clocking serious time in the gym. You can do it at home, with minimal equipment.
Do this dumbbell workout two to three times a week, giving your muscles 48 hours to recover in between.

If you’re looking to get strong in a hurry, you can’t beat this 13-minute full-body dumbbell workout. The format takes advantage of new evidence that doing single sets of seven exercises improves strength and muscular endurance as effectively as three to five sets of the same moves. The catch: You have to perform each set to complete failure.

“One of the greatest things to come out of this study is that it suggests there’s a difference between strength and hypertrophy (the size of your muscles). You don’t have to do as [many reps] as previously thought to get stronger, but you do you have to work really hard,” says Julie Read, a certified personal trainer in Philadelphia.

While the study’s workout involved barbells and machines, Read designed this dumbbell version to save you a trip to the gym. Including rest and transition time between exercises, the full-body workout should take about 13 minutes to complete.

How to perform this workout

Choose a weight for each move that will lead to muscular failure within the 8 to 12 rep range. You should not be able to perform another rep without having to put the weight down. At the end of each set, you may feel a little shaky, as your nervous system will be very fatigued. This may take some trial and error, so adjust as necessary for future workouts.

Perform one set to failure of each exercise, resting for 45 to 90 seconds between moves. Allow time to recover and reconnect with the next exercise. Read designed this dumbbell workout alternating between upper and lower body moves. “You want your muscles to be as fresh as possible so you can go as heavy as you can with each exercise.”

Do this dumbbell workout three days a week with at least 48 hours of rest between workouts, for maximum benefits. “I think there is a minimum effective dose you have to work your body at,” she says. However, you also want to allow sufficient recovery time between training sessions, Read adds.

13-minute full-body dumbbell workout

Warm-up

Never lift heavy weights without warming up first. Use your warm-up to prepare for the movements in the dumbbell workout and determine the weight you’ll be lifting. For your warm-up, perform two light sets of each workout move in a circuit format.

Goblet squat

Stand with feet at shoulder width, holding a dumbbell at your chest.
Inhale as you bend your knees and sink your hips between your feet to lower into a squat. Aim for your hips to come as low as your knees and avoid tucking your tailbone. Do not let knees extend past your toes.
Exhale and drive through your heels to rise to standing.
Perform 8 to 12 reps, stopping when you can no longer complete another rep in good form.

Make it harder: Pause for 5 seconds at the bottom of each rep.

Pull-up

Grasp a pull-up bar with a slightly wider than shoulder-width grip and palms facing away from you. Lift your feet off the ground to hang from the bar.
Exhale and pull yourself up until your chin is above the bar. Pause briefly.
Inhale as you lower yourself down until your arms are straight.
Perform 8 to 12 reps, stopping when you can no longer complete another rep in good form.

Make it easier: If you fatigue before reaching 8 reps, jump or use a box to start with your chin at the top of the pull-up bar. Then slowly lower yourself down to a hanging position. Use this strategy to complete the remainder of 8 reps. If you can’t do an unassisted pull-up, use this method to perform individual reps until failure.

Make it harder: For each pull-up, lower yourself down on a count of 5 seconds.

Hip thrust

Position yourself on the floor against a low bench with your shoulder blades just above the edge of the bench pad and feet under your knees. Hold a dumbbell across your upper thighs. You can place a towel under the weight to relieve the pressure. Keep your chin slightly tucked.
Start with your hips barely above the ground. Then exhale as you drive your heels into the ground and lift your hips as high as possible.
Inhale as you slowly lower your hips back to the starting position, keeping a neutral pelvis.
Perform 8 to 12 reps, stopping when you can no longer complete another rep in good form.

Make it harder: Hold the top of each rep for 5 seconds.

Dumbbell overhead press

Hold two dumbbells at shoulder height with palms facing inward.
Exhale as you press the weights overhead, avoiding arching your back.
Inhale as you slowly lower the weights to the starting position.
Perform 8 to 12 reps, stopping when you can no longer complete another rep in good form.

Dumbbell lunge

Stand holding a dumbbell in each hand, with arms at your sides.
Inhale as you step your right leg forward and bend your knee to lower your body toward the ground. Keep your torso upright and aim to keep your front shin vertical.
Exhale and push off with your right heel to reverse the movement and return to standing.
Perform 8 to 12 reps, stopping when you can no longer complete another rep in good form. Then switch sides.

Dumbbell chest press

Lie on a bench with a dumbbell in each hand. Bring the dumbbells to the sides of your chest and hold them with palms facing outward. Your upper arm and forearm should create a 90-degree angle.
Exhale as you press the dumbbells away from your body, straightening your arms. Pause briefly.
Inhale as you slowly lower the weights back to the starting position.
Perform 8 to 12 reps, stopping when you can no longer complete another rep in good form.

Dumbbell bent-over row

Stand with feet at shoulder width and hold a dumbbell in each hand, with palms facing inward. Hinge at your hips and bend your knees slightly until your back is parallel to the floor.
Exhale as you pull the weights up toward the sides of your body, keeping elbows at your sides. Squeeze your shoulder blades together at the top of the movement.
Inhale as you slowly lower the weights to the starting position.
Perform 8 to 12 reps, stopping when you can no longer complete another rep in good form.

Cool-down

After completing your full-body dumbbell workout, walk around to allow your heart rate to recover.

Precautions and disclaimers

It’s important to consider that the study this workout is based on involved fit, young men who had experience with strength training. Read does not recommend this full-body dumbbell workout for novice lifters, as there is more value in training movement patterns with more repetitions.
This workout is not appropriate for anyone who is chronically fatigued or stressed.
Dumbbells may limit you from fatiguing the muscles targeted in an exercise or make the exercise too difficult to perform, Read says. For example, if you continue to load a goblet squat, you’ll experience failure at your wrists before your legs fatigue. And it might not be possible to lift a heavy-enough dumbbell onto your hips to get the response needed in the dumbbell hip thrust. Given this difference, at some point you may need to graduate to barbell versions of these moves, Read says.
“You can’t expect the same results of the study because we’re changing the movements and adding in a lot of variables, but you can see how your body responds by mirroring the study as closely as possible with the equipment that you have,” Read says.
To get similar results, “You need to make sure you’re working to momentary failure on each movement of a full-body workout that includes a variety of movement patterns,” adds Read.

From LSD to Chicken Soup – Jack Canfield #551

December 13, 2018 by Dave Asprey

Why Meditation Helps You Learn Better, According to Science

December 12, 2018 by Dave Asprey

A new study suggests that meditation helps the brain respond better to positive and negative feedback.
That’s a big deal — when you can adapt from negative feedback, you learn from your actions and become a better human.
The researchers suggest meditation impacts the brain’s dopamine signals. Dopamine is a feel-good chemical that impacts decision-making.
Meditation has tons of other benefits. It reduces stress, boosts your focus, helps you sleep better, and improves your heart health. That’s why so many innovators and successful entrepreneurs have a meditation routine.
You can benefit from meditation, too. Check out the tips at the bottom of this article to get started.

A new study says that meditation changes your brain so you can respond better to feedback. Here’s why that’s a big deal: When you know how to use feedback to your advantage, you learn from your actions and become a better, more productive human.

This is just another way of saying that meditation is good for you. It comes up time and time again in my book “Game Changers” because hundreds of thought leaders, innovators, and successful entrepreneurs recognize the same thing: Meditation resets your programming and rewires your brain (in a good way).

Here’s what you should know about the study, why I’ve been talking about meditation for years, and how you can upgrade yourself, starting today.

Meditation and learning: What the study found

Researchers from the University of Surrey trained participants to select images associated with a reward. All participants were hooked up to EEG sensors, which measure brain waves. The participants in the study weren’t all meditation gurus. Some were experienced meditators, some were novices, and some didn’t meditate at all.

According to the study, the people who meditated were more successful in selecting pairings that resulted in a greater reward. Their EEG results also indicated they were less affected by negative feedback. The group that struggled the most? The non-meditators. The researchers found that people who meditated were able to better bounce back and adapt to feedback in order to make informed decisions.

What made the difference? The researchers suggest dopamine, a feel-good chemical in the brain. Previous studies show dopamine impacts the way people learn and process information, and meditation increases dopamine levels. [1] [2] [3] According to the study’s findings, meditation rewires your brain so you’re better equipped to deal with positive and negative feedback.

Other ways meditation makes you better

I’ve been saying for years that meditation is one of the best investments you can make in your brain and body. In my book “Head Strong,” I write that meditation literally changes areas of your brain associated with complex thought, bodily awareness, concentration, and problem-solving.

Getting your “om” on has tons of other benefits, too. Meditation:

Increases focus by helping you filter out distractions, or “mind wandering” [4] [5]
Reduces stress and anxiety by down-regulating stress hormones [6] [7]
Improves cardiovascular health by reducing blood pressure [8] [9] [10]
Improves sleep quality by increasing relaxation

That’s just the tip of the iceberg. Learn more about the benefits of meditation for your brain and body.

How to hack your meditation practice

Ready to upgrade your life and take control of your brain? There are loads of ways to start meditating or upgrade your practice today. You can try a meditation app or a free guided meditation practice online. This yoga nidra routine will make you feel like you just got a full night’s sleep.

Remember that consistency is your most important goal. Everyone’s experience with meditation is a little different, so you should form a habit based on what works for you and your schedule. Start with as little as 2 – 5 minutes a day, and work up to 20 minutes when it begins to feel like a habit.

Because I love to hack my performance, I recommend upgrading your practice once you have the basics of meditation down. That’s why law 40 in “Game Changers” is “Hurry! Meditate faster.” By that, I mean you can benefit even more from your practice by reducing the time it takes to reap all those brain-boosting benefits.

Here’s how:

Sign up for a meditation class to learn how to meditate better.
Measure your heart rate variability to make sure you’re actually putting yourself in a meditative state.
Check out my conversation with Bill Harris, the founder, president, and director of the Centerpointe Research Institute, on this episode of the podcast to discover more ways to hack your meditation practice.

Read Heavily Meditated

In Heavily Meditated, Dave Asprey teaches you how to get the full benefits of meditation in the fraction of the time and effort of traditional meditation. You’ll learn the most effective techniques, including ones you probably have never heard of before, as well as the science behind why those techniques work. You’ll learn how to access altered states with your breath, how to reset your entire nervous system so past traumas and triggers no longer hold you back, and so much more. This book will change your life.

Lessons on Living Life Your Way: Garrett Gee #550

December 11, 2018 by Dave Asprey

Magnesium for Sleep: How to Supplement for Better Zz’s

December 11, 2018 by Team Asprey

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Magnesium may promote better sleep by regulating melatonin, helping to activate the body’s parasympathetic nervous system, and activating the brain-calming GABA neurotransmitter.
Magnesium deficiencies have been linked to insomnia and poor sleep.
About half of Americans are short on magnesium. You can get magnesium through a number of whole foods, including leafy greens and avocado, as well as a daily supplement.
Soaking in an Epsom salt bath may also be an effective way to reap the brain benefits of magnesium.

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For many people, it takes more than a few sheep to guarantee a good night’s sleep. One alternative to those imaginary baa-ing balls of wool? Magnesium. Science suggests a magnesium deficiency could lead to restless nights — or even insomnia. Conversely, supplementing with magnesium has been associated with better sleep.[ref url=”http://www.jle.com/en/revues/mrh/e-docs/magnesium_supplementation_improves_indicators_of_low_magnesium_status_and_inflammatory_stress_in_adults_older_than_51_years_wit_287101/article.phtml?tab=texte”]

How does magnesium help with sleep?

For one, magnesium might promote better sleep by reducing stress. Research suggests that supplementing with magnesium has the potential to alleviate mild anxiety.[ref url=”https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5452159/”] A number of biological processes may underlie this mollifying effect. A 2016 study suggests that magnesium lessens stress by keeping the sympathetic nervous system (aka your fight-or-flight stress response) in check, and activating the parasympathetic nervous system, which has a calming effect.[ref url=”https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs15006-016-9054-7″]Other evidence indicates magnesium may calm your pre-bedtime racing mind, by regulating your brain’s GABA activation (GABA is the neurotransmitter that helps the brain relax).[ref url=”https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5452159/”]

Magnesium also helps control the sleep-wake-cycle-regulating hormone melatonin. One study that investigated the effects of magnesium on insomnia found that magnesium supplements improved subjective measures of insomnia, while also boosting melatonin levels, among a group of elderly subjects.[ref url=”https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3703169/”]

In addition, magnesium might be an especially effective ally against insomnia for people suffering from restless leg syndrome. Researchers have found a connection between magnesium and a reduction of mild- and moderate restless leg syndrome, as well as a reduction in restless-leg-related insomnia.[ref url=”https://www.mayoclinicproceedings.org/article/S0025-6196(11)62160-5/fulltext”][ref url=”https://academic.oup.com/sleep/article/21/5/501/2725976″]

Where can you get magnesium — and how much do you need?

Magnesium is readily available in a variety of foods. Almonds and cashews are some of the most magnesium-dense foods around. Another good option: leafy greens, like spinach, which contain about 20 percent of your recommended intake per a half-cup (just be sure to cook them first to reduce oxalate levels). Avocados contain about 44 milligrams of magnesium per cup, while salmon, white rice, and carrots also contain a moderate amount of magnesium.[ref url=”https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/Magnesium-HealthProfessional/”]

If you’re struggling to pile magnesium onto your plate — about half of Americans fail to get enough magnesium in their diets[ref url=”https://academic.oup.com/sleep/article/21/5/501/2725976″] — consider taking a supplement. (Think you might be magnesium-deficient? Check the list of symptoms here.) The National Institutes of Health recommends a daily intake of 400 to 420 milligrams for men and 310 to 360 for women, and The Bulletproof Diet recommends taking as much as 600 to 800 milligrams a day. But don’t overdo it. Magnesium is the leading ingredient in several laxatives, so don’t be surprised if taking too much magnesium leads to stomach distress or diarrhea.[ref url=”https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/Magnesium-HealthProfessional/”] Here’s everything you need to know about choosing the right magnesium supplement for you. I personally recommend Bioptimizer’s magnesium to most people, (so much so, that I have a coupon code for them: use “DAVE” at checkout for $10 off).

You might also be able to reap the snooze-enhancing benefits of magnesium by taking an Epsom salt bath before bed. A small study found that soaking in Epsom salts, which are a mineral compound of magnesium and sulfate, elevated magnesium levels.[ref url=”https://www.seasalt.com/media/wysiwyg/docs/report_absorption-of-magnesium-sulfate.pdf”] This suggests magnesium can do its job by penetrating the skin. For optimal results, use a ratio of about 1 gram of Epsom salts per 100 liters of water (so about 600 grams of salt for a standard, 15-gallon tub) and bathe two to three times a week. Bonus: if you go the salt-bath route, you might be double-dipping in sleep benefits: There’s evidence that a warm bath or foot bath in the evening can help you rest easier.[ref url=”https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0020748913001132?via%3Dihub”][ref url=”https://www.jstage.jst.go.jp/article/jpa/19/1/19_1_21/_article”]

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13 Best Butt Exercises to Sculpt Strong Glutes at Home

Glute exercises with bands

1. Clamshells

2. Lateral stepping

3. Hip thrusts with band

4. Standing kickbacks with band

Butt exercises with kettlebell

5. Deadlifts

6. Kettlebell swings

7. Goblet squats

8. Single-leg deadlifts

Glute exercises with body weight

9. Reverse lunge to balance

10. Single-leg hip thrusters

11. Speed skaters

12. Frog pumps

13. Walking lunges

How to perform this workout

13-minute full-body dumbbell workout

Warm-up

Goblet squat

Pull-up

Hip thrust

Dumbbell overhead press

Dumbbell lunge

Dumbbell chest press

Dumbbell bent-over row

Cool-down

Precautions and disclaimers

Meditation and learning: What the study found

Other ways meditation makes you better

How to hack your meditation practice

Read Heavily Meditated

How does magnesium help with sleep?

Where can you get magnesium — and how much do you need?

Get on “The Inside Track” with Dave

See What Trouble Dave’s Getting Into on Social

Start hacking your way to better than standard performance and results.

Get on
“The Inside Track”
with Dave