Let’s be honest: everyone wants that butt. The round, lifted, perky booty that sculpts your silhouette and sells literally any outfit. But here’s what no one tells you: there’s a difference between “working out” and actually training your body.
You can hit the gym every day, eat clean, and still see zero change in your backside. Why? Because the movement isn’t targeted. The glutes aren’t firing. The strategy isn’t there.
To help us understand how to build that perfectly defined derrière, Lauryn and Michael sat down with Sandy Brockman on The Him & Her Show. As a personal trainer who’s a certified glute specialist, fans and clients of Sandy accurately nicknamed her The Butt Whisperer.
With a nickname like that, you know she’s good at what she does—like really good. Of course, feel free to jump into the full podcast episode (we definitely recommend you do). But below we’re breaking down her best, most cheeky tips to get expertly sculpted glutes:
How to Get a Tight Butt According to “The Butt Whisperer”
Sandy Brockman is the expert when it comes to getting a tight butt. She’s helped hundreds of women build strong, visible glutes through highly intentional, targeted movements.
She helps her clients activate their glutes properly, correct poor movement patterns, and build genuine strength—so they can finally see big (and we mean big) results.
We’re grateful Sandy shared some of her tight-booty wisdom with us, because we know not all of you are in the Austin area to join her classes. But the good news? Sandy is actually a coach on obé Fitness, so you can follow her incredible butt-sculpting programming from literally anywhere.
Here’s how to work out with obé. In the meantime, let’s get into the best glute shaping tips straight from The Butt Whisperer herself.
What Is a Tight Butt?
A tight butt isn’t just about the way things look. It’s not a trick of the eye or a fashion hack. A tight butt means your glutes are strong, active, and actually supporting your body—and, yes, they look SO good.
The gluteus maximus is the largest muscle in your entire body. It drives hip extension, stabilizes your pelvis, and powers almost every lower-body movement. So, yeah…it’s a big deal, far beyond filling out your leggings.
When your glutes are strong, engaged, and firing properly, they create that round, lifted appearance we’re all after. But when they’re weak or underactive, you can develop gluteal amnesia. This is exactly what it sounds like. Basically, your butt is asleep.
The muscles don’t activate, leading to a flat, loose backside. And since the glutes aren’t doing what they’re supposed to, other muscles have to compensate—like the quads and lower back.
So a tight butt is really a combination of aesthetics and function. It’s something we should all strive for, and luckily, Sandy breaks down exactly how to achieve it:
How to Tighten Butt the Right Way
Avoid sitting for long periods.
Sitting for hours a day is one of the main things keeping you from your tight butt goals. When seated, your glutes remain relaxed and lengthened. This is exactly what triggers gluteal amnesia.
The muscles completely forget how to engage and support your body. Eventually, they weaken and lose tension, giving you that flat, soft look.
At the same time, your hip flexors tighten, further preventing glute activation. And since the glutes aren’t working? Those other muscles make up for it. This leads to soreness, bad posture, and even injury.
So, step one of getting a tight butt is not finding the perfect workout. It’s actually about finding ways to break up all the sitting in your day and wake those muscles back up.
We get that some of you have jobs that require a lot of sitting. But here are some things you can do to re-activate your glutes:
+ Stand up every 30-60 minutes.
+ Be really mindful to maintain proper posture. No crossing your legs or slumping.
+ Do 10-15 reps of glute activation exercises, like standing glute squeezes or banded lateral steps. Make sure to switch sides for single-leg exercises to keep everything even.
+ Stretch your hip flexors using the couch stretch (more on that in a minute).
+ Walk around more than you need to when making phone calls, taking a water break, going to the bathroom, and anything else that requires getting up!
Train the glutes from every angle.
Repeating the same movement pattern over and over again won’t get you to your goal. Remember, the glutes are a group of muscles that each need to be trained differently.
To fire each muscle, work your glutes from every angle. That way, you’re sculpting every part of the peach, not just one or two areas.
Here are targeted exercises for each part of your glutes:
Moves That Lift Your Butt:
Hip Thrusts
Glute Bridges
Kickbacks
Deadlifts
Moves That Shape the Side of Your Butt:
Lateral Band Walks
Clamshells
Seated or Standing Abductions
Moves That Round Your Butt:
Frog Pumps
Rotated Kickbacks
Sumo Stance Exercises
Moves That Work Out Your Whole Butt:
Romanian Deadlifts
Good Mornings
Cable Pull-Throughs
Incorporate the couch stretch into every workout.
The couch stretch is a deep hip-flexor stretch that opens the front of the hip and thigh. It releases all the tightness that comes from sitting, keeping your glutes active and ready to fire.
It looks deceptively simple, but it’s intense—in the best way. You’ll feel it immediately. Here’s how to do it:
Place your right knee on the floor with your shin running up the front of the couch. Plant your other foot flat on the ground so that your leg forms a 90-degree angle.
From that exaggerated lunge position, gently sink your hips forward. You’ll feel the stretch across your hip flexor and quad—exactly where tightness blocks glute activation. Hold for about 30 seconds, then switch sides by putting your left leg on the couch. If you want a visual, watch Sandy demo the couch stretch herself.
Sandy considers this a non-negotiable part of any glute routine. Do it as part of your warm-up, holding each side for 20–30 seconds. Don’t forget the cool-down, either! Do it at the end of your workout, holding each side for 30–60 seconds.
It’s also worth doing on rest days to maintain mobility. Sandy says even one minute a day can wake up your glutes, improve posture, and get you closer to your tight-butt goals.
Learn to hinge with proper form.
A lot of exercises require you to bend your knees. But when you bend at your hips? That’s called a hinge. You generally use hinges in things like deadlifts, good mornings, kettlebell swings, and cable pull-throughs.
Why are we bringing these up? This fundamental movement is meant to work your glutes, but a lot of people do it wrong. And when you hinge incorrectly, your lower back and hamstrings take over.
+ Start standing with your feet hip-width to shoulder-width apart. Keep a soft bend in your knees and a long, neutral spine.
+ Begin shifting your weight slightly into your heels so the glutes are primed to engage while your toes stay relaxed.
+ Push your hips straight back, sending your butt behind you as your torso naturally tips forward. Keep your spine long—don’t round.
+ Keep your knees softly bent, but avoid letting them drift forward. This is a hip movement. It shouldn’t look like a squat position.
+ Stop when you feel a stretch in your hamstrings. This means you’ve reached the correct depth without overloading your lower back.
+ Drive through your heels and squeeze your glutes as you return to the starting position, standing tall with control.
Prioritize form over heavy weights.
As we’ve said, few things matter more than technique when your goal is a tight butt. And don’t get us wrong—there’s nothing wrong with lifting! But Sandy warns that piling on weight with poor form only trains your body to rely on the wrong muscles.
So your legs, hips, and lower back end up doing all the work—while your glutes get none of the attention. And poor form can be brutal on your spine, leading to back pain and postural issues that totally stall your progress.
To properly activate your glutes, you need clean alignment and intentional movement. Focus on slow, controlled reps that build real tension in the muscle. That’s what actually sculpts and strengthens the booty.
If you want to do heavy weight training, Sandy’s all for it. However, you need to master your form first. If the destination is a sculpted, lifted butt, precision will always outperform ego lifting.
Here are some other benefits of weight lifting for women, if you’re curious.
Slow down the lowering phase of each movement.
The lowering phase of an exercise is when your muscles lengthen. Think of lowering down in a squat, bringing the weight down in a hip thrust, or controlling the descent after you lift your hips in a bridge.
For the biggest gains, slow this part way down. This is where most glute activation and muscle-building tension happens. Rushing through it will slow your results.
If you’re trying to slow that lowering phase down but can’t? Or if you’re having trouble controlling the weight you’re carrying? You’re lifting too much. Ditch some weight and wait until you can do it safely and comfortably.
Again, form is everything.
Add pulses and holds to increase time under tension.
Another way to get more out of every movement is to add pulses and holds. Basically, they increase the amount of time your glutes stay under tension during each rep. This is where the real sculpting happens.
Pulses are controlled micro-movements done at the hardest part of the exercise. It’s not another rep. You’re simply staying in that max-tension zone and moving up and down an extra inch or two.
For example, in a squat, you can sit low and do small, incremental bounces without standing back up. In a kickback, once you fully extend your leg, you can inch it upward a few times before completing the rep.
Holds work similarly. But instead of moving, you pause at the peak of the exercise and squeeze your glutes. You could do this at the top of a bridge or a lift to keep your glutes working nonstop.
Adding pulses and holds is incredible for your butt. They prevent you from rushing through reps, force deeper glute engagement, and intensify the workout without adding extra weight.
If you take any of Sandy’s classes on obé, expect plenty of pulses and holds!
Use resistance bands for targeted activation.
Resistance bands are a great way to ease into weight training because they ensure your glutes are firing and ready for heavier lifts.
When you’re wearing a band, your glutes have to stay engaged to maintain balance and complete the movement. That gentle, constant tension isolates the glutes and encourages proper form and activation.
You can place the band either around your ankles or above your knees, depending on the exercise. Then, spend 3–5 minutes in your warm-up doing band-friendly moves like:
Lateral band walks
Clamshells
Mini kickbacks
Banded squats
Monster walks
Glute bridges
Whatever exercise you choose, make sure you’re pushing out against the band the entire time. And, as always, move slowly and intentionally for the best glute engagement—and the best results.
Want our favorite resistance bands? We like the Booty Bands Set from P.volve. (Fitting name, right?) You can also get 20% off with code SKINNY.
Shape the perfect sculpted booty with The Butt Whisperer’s expert advice!
Feeling inspired to totally change the way you train your glutes? Us too. Sandy’s expert tips can completely transform your body—whether you want better posture . . . or you’re ready to fill out your clothes like Kim Kardashian.
x, The Skinny Confidential team
+ Learn how to tone up your legs.
++ How to get started with Pilates.
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