Wake That Butt Up: 20 Exercises to Activate Your Glutes and Build Your Backside

There are lots of reasons to want a strong butt: looks, decreased back pain, healthier knees, and stronger hips. As I tell my clients all the time, a strong butt sets you up to do whatever you want in life. It is literally key to everything, and that is a hill I’m willing to die on.

In this blog post, we’ll focus on activating your glutes. Gluteal muscles switch off for all sorts of reasons (Dead Butt Syndrome anyone?). What we want to do is flip that glute switch the ON position.

The good news is that there are dozens (if not more) of glute exercises. I’ll do my best to organize them into something that makes sense here, so let’s look at some of my favorite glute exercises.

Bouncing Back: Nutrition Hacks for Mounjaro Butt and Ozempic Face

You’ve gotten great results after going on GLP-1 medications for weight loss or to control diabetes, which feels excellent, but there’s a surprise side effect (or two) that isn’t so great: a flat butt and/or saggy skin on your face! Not super fun, but those problems are common after semaglutide weight loss.

It’s not just about looks — it’s about health, too. The decreased muscle mass that comes with appetite-suppressing weight loss medications can lead to osteoporosis and frailty during old age. And the sagging features of “Ozempic Face” correlate to decrease collagen production, which also affects joint health. That’s a recipe for a disaster if I ever heard one!

Move It: How to Get More Activity in Your Day

It is common (but definitely not normal) that we find ourselves more sedentary than we’d like to be. There are moments where it becomes more obvious:

Maybe your doctor has told you to move more. Or maybe you want to lose weight. Or maybe, if you have ADHD like me, you want to jump out of your skin after sitting still for a while and you know moving around makes you feel better. BTW, if you have ADHD or are on the autism spectrum this feeling is pretty normal (although still annoying).

According to a study published in 2023, high step count populations (>8,763 steps a day) have a 60% lower risk of all-cause mortality compared to low step populations (<2k steps a day) and a 51% lower risk of developing Cardiovascular disease. Even small amounts make a big difference. Participants who got 2500-2800 steps per day decrease risk of CVD by 11% and death by 8%. What this means is that moving more makes you healthier, feel better, and less likely to die for any reason.

Get Better Results from Your Workouts With This Time-Tested Method

Ever wonder why some people seem to get better results out of their workouts than other people? Chances are, if you talk to a gym rat who knows what they’re doing, they’ll tell you about the strategy behind their workouts — periodization.

Kind of like how babies learn to crawl before they learn to walk, a good workout program should build on itself in a systematic way. Another way to think about it is like gears on a 10-speed bike (or in a car). You start out in the lowest gear, which gets you ready for the next gear, and so on.

There are all sorts of ways to build periodized programs, but just so we don’t get in the weeds, I’ll focus on only one way: a workout program built for my typical client.

5 Reasons Why Sleep Is the Best Health Hack

“Coffee: because I’ll sleep when I’m dead,” said the smiling Don Draper-looking man, gesturing carelessly with his mug of black coffee, which caused a little to splash out. This was on a magnet at a coffee shop I worked at when I was younger. Funny, yes. True, also yes.

Sleep is one of the most important things a person can do to live linger, get better results in the gym, be more productive, and be happier all around. It’s also my favorite way to be healthier! As a personal trainer and nutrition coach, I recommend it to literally every single client I work with.

Recover Better to Max Out Your Workouts (And Your Life)

You know that phrase “less is more?” It’s kind of a metaphor for recovery activities. You can go balls-to-the-wall in your workouts, but if you aren’t recovering optimally, your efforts in the gym might be wasted — or at least diminished.

People are Calling It Nature's Ozempic, But What IS It?

In the last week or so, there has been a surge of interest in Berberine, with some dubbing it "Nature's Ozempic." This botanical compound has gained significant attention as a potential supplement for weight loss, with countless TikTok and Instagram reels being made daily. In one video I came across a Kardashian-esque weight loss coach and podcaster incorrectly referred to it as a “new supplement.” With all the buzz, it is important to clarify that Berberine is not a new discovery but rather a compound with a long history of use in traditional folk medicine and integrative nutrition. In this post, we will take a closer look at Berberine and explore its origins, how it works, potential benefits, and what you need to know before you try it. After all, it’s the next “new” supplement (cue eye roll), but it’s also pretty amazing. I should know, since I have been using it with clients for over 8 years now.

gut health, supplements, weight lossGary BerglundJune 8, 2023berberine, weight loss, ozempic, metformin, GLP-1

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