Yoga Poses for a Better Butt

This is yoga for your booty. Strengthening your glutes can reduce the risk of injuries and improve your posture. Come over to your mat and begin in table pose. Broaden your palms on the mat, get grounded and centered in table.

Then we're moving into balancing the cat-- right leg back, left arm forward. Take a few breaths here. This is an easy plank to strengthen and balance the body. If you'd like, you can reach around and take the hand, the left arm and take hold of the foot of the right leg. That's cross-bow, just gets the shoulder involved and goes a little deeper into the glutes.

And balancing the cat on the other side so the left leg and right arm gentle flex in the back foot.

The option is to take the outstretched hand and take a hold of the foot, bending the back knee.

Coming back through to table pose, we're going to take the right leg back and bring the knee to the nose. So squeeze the knee in toward the nose and outstretch. You're really working the glutes here if you draw the knee in toward the nose and stretch out, lengthening the front of the leg. Trying the other side, just squeeze the knee in and reach back.

This is working all three muscles of the glutes.

And find yourself in a down dog, lengthen the fingertips, draw your heels toward the floor, and step the right leg forward, high runner's lunge. Gently let the back knee pulse to the ground a few times. So just slowly, slowly at the back knee, the left knee, just to kiss the ground, and then straighten the leg. This is working the top of the left hip flexor. It's also engaging through the glutes.

Reset in down dog. Let the left leg come forward into high runner's lunge. And just start to bow the knee toward the ground. Slow and steady just pulse the knee.

This pose is said to fire up the metabolism. Step back into down dog. Take the right leg forward into high runner's lunge and put the hands on the instep of the foot. Lengthen the spine.

Gently let the back knee touch the ground. This is lizard pose. It's a deep hip stretch, but it's also helping you remove tension in the hips so that you can have a more flexible, fluid body.

Come into down dog. As you inhale, just step the left leg forward. Bring the hands in the instep. Really lengthen out through the back leg. And then slowly drop the right knee toward the floor. It's a deep stretch here in the glutes.

Also working around the band of the hips. Slowly come out of the pose. Step through to down dog.

And bring your right leg forward, standing strong on the right leg. Balancing on the right leg, left leg can go back. This is half moon pose, and it really tones the upper hips and the side butt. The right hand-- right fingers are on the ground. Left hand can reach to the sky.

You can also always hold on, put a block on the right hand if that pose is too challenging for you. Try the other side. Left leg-- standing strong on the left leg, slowly just let the right leg reach behind you parallel to the floor. If you want to go a step beyond, you can take the right arm toward the sky. Gently lift the spine.

And just come back to a stable position, coming into a plank pose. Hands on the mat, we just wrapped the left foot around the back of the right leg or to stretch the left leg back. You're strengthening the glutes here as you lift the other foot. But you can draw it behind the heel or just stretch it back.

Take your whole body toward the floor. The whole front body's on the floor. The shoulder head's moved toward the floor, hands on the mat. Lift up to the chest and then lift up through the legs, reaching up to the chest. This is locust pose, strengthening for the entire back body.

So you're really engaging through the glutes, but you're also relaxing. Exhale, relax. Bend one knee. Bend the other knee.

Take your hands. You can take a hold of your toes or your feet or your ankles, whatever's available. Inhale. Reach up through the chest and heart for bow pose.

Take a few deep breaths here. It's a really great back stretch. You're also engaging the strong muscles of the booty. Release your hands to the mat and just relax your neck. Turn one cheek to the mat and turning the other cheek, relax both sides of the neck. Press your way out.

Bring the legs around in front for a seated spinal twist. First the right knee is bent. Left knee is tucked under.

Taking your left hand, hug the right knee and turn the torso. It's wringing out any tension in the spine. Long breath here.

Move over to the other side for the spinal twist. So let the right leg go under. Left leg steps on top.

Think of opposite arm hugs opposite leg. To the right arm hugs the left leg and just easy twist. This pose is said to tone up the nervous system, help to strengthen the nerves, and to unwind tension in the hips.

And start to move into your resting pose just lying down on the mat. Let yourself focus on the breathing. Completely relax the body.