Your living room or bedroom can sometimes be the best gym. Although weights are key to booty gains, you can still tone your butt without using any equipment in between gym sessions. Whether you're short on time, dumbbells, or even a membership, we've got you covered with the best at-home exercises you can do virtually anywhere. Grab a mat or a towel for the 15 moves ahead — and expect nothing less than a sore butt tomorrow morning.
Sumo Squat
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Stand with your feet wide, toes pointing out. Bend your knees, lowering your hips deeply, so your thighs are parallel with the floor. Make sure to keep your weight back in your heels.
Then rise back up, straightening the legs completely and squeezing the glutes at the top of the movement to get the most from the exercise.
This completes one rep.
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Curtsy Lunge
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Start from standing, and step your left leg behind you and to the right so your thighs cross, bending both knees as if you were curtsying. Make sure your front knee is aligned with your front ankle.
Return to standing, and switch sides to complete one rep.
Before you start this move, visualize a large square on the floor; you're standing in the bottom-right corner of it, feet hip distance apart.
Keeping weight in the heels, bend the knees, and squat down. Take a huge jump forward to the top-right corner of that imaginary square, landing quietly back into a squat.
Keep going around the square, jumping to the left, jumping back behind you, and jumping to the right. Now you're back where you started.
Reverse your jumps around the square in the opposite direction.
This counts as one rep.
Keep going for 30 seconds.
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Squat and Lateral Leg Lift
Begin standing with your feet hip-width apart (or slightly wider), toes pointed slightly out. You can clasp your hands in front of you for balance or place them on your hips.
Bend your knees and lower your hips back and down until your thighs are parallel with the floor. Be sure to keep your back straight and chest up. Don't let your knees extend past your toes.
Press through your heels to stand and simultaneously lift your right leg up out to the side.
Return to the starting position. Repeat for 30 seconds before switching sides.
Begin in an elbow plank with your elbows directly under your shoulders, abs engaged toward the spine. Don't let the pelvis sag down or pop up.
Lift your left leg off the ground, bending your knee so the sole of your foot is toward the ceiling. Keep your pelvis square to the floor; don't let it twist.
Press your left heel toward the ceiling as high as you can without moving your pelvis or lower back. The motion will not be huge, but rather concentrated on the booty and hamstring.
This counts as one rep.
Complete 15 seconds of reps on each side.
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Standing Booty Kicks
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Stand tall and place your hands on your hips.
Put all the weight in your left leg, keep both legs straight, and lift your right leg directly behind you. Let your glutes do all the work. Keep your right foot flexed, and work on lifting your heel as high as you can without leaning your torso too far forward. Engage your abs to help you stay balanced.
Then, lower your right leg so it's parallel with your left, but don't let it touch the ground. This completes one repetition.
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Single Leg Squats
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Stand with your feet hip-distance apart and raise your right leg, flexing your right ankle and pushing your hips back.
Lower your body while keeping your right leg raised (a squat with one leg). Keep your knees behind your toes and your heels firmly on the floor.
Hold and then return to standing. This completes one rep.
You can use a bench to squat/sit on to work your way toward doing the single-leg squat if needed.
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Single-Leg Bridge Kicks
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Lie on your back, and place your hands on the floor for stability as you bend one leg and lift the other leg off the ground.
Pressing your heel into the floor, lift your pelvis up, keeping your body in a stiff bridge position.
Slowly lower your body to the floor to complete one repetition.
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Straight-Leg Donkey Kicks
Begin on all fours with your shoulders stacked above your wrists and your hips stacked above your knees.
Engage your core by drawing your belly button into your spine.
Straighten your right leg behind you, with your toe resting lightly on the ground.
Keeping your right leg straight, squeeze your glutes to lift your leg up until it is parallel with the ground. Hold for two seconds and then slowly return to the starting position. Repeat for 30 seconds before switching sides.
Stand with your hands behind your head, with your elbows wide, and bring your right knee to the floor, onto a yoga or exercise mat for padding.
Bring your left knee down so you are kneeling.
Lift your right knee up and place your right foot in front of you. Bring the left foot forward, coming into a deep squat, then press through your heels to come to standing.
Reverse the move and bring your left knee to the floor to repeat the sequence on the other side to complete one rep.
Continue for one minute.
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Single-Leg Squats
Image Source: Unsplash / Jakob Owens
Stand with your feet hip-distance apart and raise your right leg, flexing your right ankle and pushing your hips back.
Lower your body while keeping your right leg raised (a squat with one leg). Keep your knees behind your toes and your heels firmly on the floor.
Hold and then return to standing. This completes one rep.
You can use a bench to squat/sit on to work your way toward doing the single-leg squat if needed.
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Forward Backward Lunge
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Stand with the feet together.
Put weight on the left foot, lift your right knee up, and step into a forward lunge. The front knee should be at a 90-degree angle with the left knee just barely hovering above the ground.
Push into your right heel, come to stand, and immediately step the right foot behind you into a reverse lunge with the left knee at a 90-degree angle.
This counts as one rep.
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Traditional Bridge Exercise
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On your mat, lie on your back with your knees bent and feet flat on the floor. Be sure and keep your feet underneath your knees, not in front. Plant your palms by each side, face down.
Raise your hips up to the ceiling, tensing your abs and squeezing your butt as you do. You should be making a long diagonal line with your body, from shoulders to knees.
Hold for a few seconds, making sure your spine doesn't round and your hips don't sag. Keep your abs and butt muscles engaged.
Lower down to the ground; this is considered one rep.
