Want to know the secret to a rounder-looking booty? It’s all about training your lower glutes.
Most people forget about this under-butt area. Big mistake.
This 15-minute lower glute workout routine targets your lower buttocks with zero equipment. Just follow along with exercises like sumo squats, glute bridges, and kickbacks—all designed to hit that exact spot.
Here’s your complete under glute workout:
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Sumo Squats with Pulse
You’re going to start wide with your toes turned out for this one.
The pulse at the bottom is key—it keeps constant tension on those glutes so they don’t get a break.
When you come up, don’t let your hips push forward or you’ll lose that glute activation. Keep leaning slightly forward and press through your heels to really fire up those lower glutes.
How to perform:
- Position your feet a little bit wider than your hips and angle your toes outward.
- Lower your body down into a squat.
- Perform a pulse at the bottom of the movement, then come back up.
- When standing up, press through your heels to engage your glutes.
- Ensure you keep your upper body leaning slightly forward.
- Avoid hinging your hips forward when you come up; keep the tension on the glutes.
Curtsy Lunges
This movement targets those hard-to-reach outer glutes like nothing else.
Step one leg behind you on a diagonal, almost like you’re doing a curtsy. Focus on sitting deep into the heel of your supporting leg—that’s where the magic happens.
If you’re pressing through that heel properly, you’ll feel this right in the side of your bottom glute. Don’t rush it; controlled movement is what gets results.
How to perform:
- Step to the side, bringing one leg behind you on a diagonal.
- Come down into the lunge, focusing heavily on sitting into the heel of your supporting leg.
- Press through the glute of your supporting leg to rise back up.
- Switch legs and repeat the movement on the other side.
- Ensure you are pushing through the supporting heel to feel the tension in your outer glutes.
Side Lunges
Time to work one side at a time with these.
Your stance needs to be nice and wide for this exercise. Sit back into that supporting heel and keep your chest lifted—don’t let it collapse forward.
When you come back to center, here’s the thing most people miss: don’t let that hip push forward. Keep the tension on the glute the whole way through or you’re basically giving your muscles a break.
How to perform:
- Stand with your stance nice and wide.
- Perform this movement on one side at a time.
- Shift your body weight to the chosen side as you come down.
- Sit into your supporting heel and press through that same heel to engage the glute as you come up.
- Keep your chest lifted as you descend; do not let it drop too much.
- Sit back into the movement.
- When returning to the center, keep tension on the glute and do not let your hip go forward.
Glute Bridges
This is a simple movement, but technique matters here.
Between each rep, press your lower back into the floor—this protects your spine rather than just squeezing and arching your back. If it helps, lift your toes off the ground so you’re forced to keep your weight in those heels.
Focus on the pelvic tilt and driving those hips as high as you can toward the sky. You should feel this lighting up the lower glute muscles and the underbutt area.
How to perform:
- Lay down on the ground.
- Press your lower back into the floor in between each repetition to protect your back.
- Keep your weight focused in your heels. If it helps, lift your toes up off the floor to force the weight into the heels.
- Press your hips up as high as you can toward the sky.
- Focus on the pelvic tilt (pressing lower back down) rather than just squeezing the glutes, to avoid arching your back.
Glute Bridge with Abduction
Same glute bridge setup, but at the top you’ll add an abduction.
Here’s what I see people do wrong all the time: when you open your knees out to the sides, your hips drop. Don’t let that happen.
Keep those hips pressed as high as possible while you squeeze your knees apart, then bring everything back down together. This really targets those lower bum exercises perfectly.
How to perform:
- Start in the glute bridge position on the ground.
- Raise your hips up high.
- While at the top of the bridge, perform an abduction by opening your legs/knees outward.
- Keep your hips pressed as high as you can while doing the abduction; do not let them drop.
- Squeeze firmly, then lower everything back down together.
Kickbacks
Get into tabletop position for these 30-second intervals with no rest between sides.
Kick your leg back and stretch it out, squeezing that glute as hard as you can. The key here is not arching your back—keep your core tight and focus only on the working leg doing the work.
This is one of those glute only exercises that directly hits the bottom glute workout zone you’re after.
How to perform:
- Get into a tabletop position (on hands and knees).
- Choose a leg and kick it back behind you.
- Stretch the leg and squeeze the glute as hard as you can.
- Ensure you are not arching your back; keep your core engaged.
- Focus entirely on using the working leg to squeeze the glute.
Fire Hydrants
Still in tabletop, but now you’re lifting that leg out to the side.
Bring your knee up as high as possible without wobbling your upper body around. When you start throwing your weight into it, you’re cheating the movement and your glutes aren’t doing the work.
Keep everything strong and still—just move that working leg. This absolutely torches those outer glutes.
How to perform:
- Remain in the tabletop position with your core tight.
- Lift your leg out to the side.
- Focus on bringing that knee up as high as you can.
- Do not wobble your upper body or throw your weight into the movement; keep everything strong and still.
- Move only the working leg.
Donkey Kick Pulses
You’re going to pulse for 30 seconds straight on this one.
If that sounds too intense, try pulsing twice, bringing the leg in, then back up—pulse, pulse, in. The trick is keeping your working hip driven down toward the floor so you’re not opening the leg up and cheating.
Send that heel straight up to the sky and pulse. Your lower glute should be burning by now.
How to perform:
- Stay in the tabletop position.
- Drive your working hip down toward the floor to ensure you do not open the leg up; avoid cheating the movement.
- Send your heel up toward the sky.
- Pulse the leg in this position for the duration.
- If continuous pulsing is too difficult, you can modify by pulsing twice, bringing the leg in, and then bringing it back up.
Elevated Clam Shells
This might feel a bit funky the first time you try it.
You’ll be up on the heel of your hand with your legs bent, focusing entirely on lifting with that lower leg to squeeze the side glute. If being up on your hand doesn’t work for you and you’re not feeling it, drop down to your elbow for regular clam shells.
This exercise is all about that mind-to-muscle connection with your side glutes—really focus on isolating that working muscle.
How to perform:
- Position yourself on the floor, placing pressure on the heel of your hand to elevate your upper body.
- Keep your legs bent.
- Lift your hips up and squeeze the side glute.
- Slowly lower yourself back down.
- Focus your mind-to-muscle connection on the side glute.
- If balancing on your hand is too difficult or you don’t feel it, you can modify by coming down to your elbow for a regular clam shell.
Single Leg Step-Up
For the last exercise, you’re going down into a kneeling position for 45 seconds each leg.
Think of this like you’re stepping up onto something, but without any equipment. Drop your knee down, then shift all your weight into the heel of your supporting leg to stand up.
Take it slow and find that sweet spot where you really feel the glute of the standing leg firing up. This is a killer finisher for your lower glute workout routine.
How to perform:
- Start in a kneeling position, letting your knee drop down.
- Focus on your supporting leg (the front leg).
- Drive through the heel of the supporting leg to bring your back knee up, mimicking the motion of stepping up onto something.
- Shift your weight into the supporting heel when you are down.
- Use your glute to stand up.
- Take the movement slowly to find the “sweet spot.”
Good Morning to Squat
Your feet should be about shoulder width, maybe slightly wider.
Hinge forward, sending that booty back, then come up and drop into a squat. The moment you start hinging upward from the good morning, those glutes should fire up—that’s how you know you’re doing it right.
This combo movement works both the lower buttocks workout and your hamstrings.
How to perform:
- Stand with your feet about shoulder-width apart or a little wider.
- Perform a “Good Morning” by hinging your hips back and sending your booty back while bringing your torso forward.
- Come up from the hinge, then immediately go down into a squat.
- Come up from the squat and repeat the sequence.
- You should feel your glutes fire up specifically right as you start to hinge to come upward.
Reverse Lunge with Kickback
Step back into a reverse lunge—knee not touching the floor this time.
Here’s where it gets interesting: shift your weight into the supporting leg, squeeze that back glute, then come to center before switching sides. Sit deep into your lunges and press through those heels.
This final exercise combines lower glute exercises with balance work, making it the perfect way to finish your 15-minute lower glute workout at home.
How to perform:
- Stand at the top of your mat.
- Step back into a reverse lunge.
- Ensure your back knee does not touch the floor; stay down in the lunge.
- Shift your weight into the supporting (front) leg.
- Squeeze the back glute, then return to the center.
- Switch legs and alternate the movement.
- Sit back into the lunge and press through your heels.
Article Medically reviewed by
I’m fitness coach Ashley Castleberry, an NASM-certified personal trainer and nutritionist, as well as a coach on an established YouTube Channel with over 1 million followers. With certifications from major fitness brands, I specialize in athletic, HIIT, and strength training. Leveraging my experience coaching clients on lifestyle changes, I provide customized exercise and nutrition guidance to help people reach their fitness goals, whether that be weight loss, muscle gain or overall health improvement.
