We all know that big, round butts have made a resurgence in popularity in the last few years, thanks in no small part to social media and physique-envy. Where once people craved small booties like runway models and having a “big ass” was the worst insult one could muster, we’re now a society proud of some extra junk in our trunks.

And if you’re like many people who exercise regularly, on a quest for a plumper peach (and health and overall fitness, of course), then you aren’t alone.

But did you know that aside from filling out your pants easier, the advantages of having strong glutes are actually quite innumerable? For example, strong glutes can decrease your risk of injury in your knees, hamstrings, groin, and lower-back.

If you’re looking to up your “booty gains” and round and firm your butt, we’ve put together a list of the 5 best exercises to do just that with examples of strength training.

1. Squats

The benefits of squats are many, especially because they’re great for targeting all kinds of muscle groups. They’re especially effective, however, when it comes to rounding out and shaping your butt muscles.

There are plenty of variations of squats, but the barbell squat “allows you to hit the glutes and hamstrings with more volume…”

When you squat, you want to make sure you have proper squat technique, while focusing on your stance and always putting safety first.

Check out the video below to see how to do a squat:

If you’re looking for different kinds of squats, you can also try out the goblet squat and bottoms-up squat.

2. Hip Thrusts

While fun to do because they’re quite sexually suggestive, hip thrusts are a definite must when building your butt muscles. The barbell hip thrust, as demonstrated in the video below, involves sitting with a bench behind you and placing a weighted barbell across your hips.

These are also known as Bridge and Weighted Hip Extensions.

3. Lunges

Honestly, lunges are the exercise I hate the most but always leave my legs feeling the best afterward. Lunges focus heavily on your quads, but it’s your glutes that help you “return to a standing position.”

They’re fairly simple to execute, as you can see in this video below on how to properly squat.

But make sure you avoid a few common lunge mistakes, like the “tightrope lunge,” the “heel pop,” the “upper-body drop,” and more.

4. Deadlift

Referred to as “the king of mass gaining exercises” by Bodybuilding.com, I’d think that’s enough of a ringing endorsement to convince you to add deadlifts to your gym routine.

In fact, deadlifts aid in developing core strength because it assists your body “in almost every movement and position.” It’s also the best movement for developing strong glute muscles.

If you’re curious to try this exercise out, watch the video below to see how to properly do a barbell deadlift:

5. Bulgarian Split Squats

According to Bodybuilding.com, positioning is key when it comes down to how to do a Bulgarian split squat properly because the farther your front leg is in front of you, “the more emphasis you place on your glutes.”

Extra

Strength training is a vital part of any fitness routine. Why? It reduces fat, increases lean muscle mass, and burns calories more efficiently. According to Mayo Clinic, the benefits of strength training include developing strong bones, managing your weight and chronic conditions, and more.

Before you start, make sure you’re prepared and educated and that you understand the science and practice of strength training. Always speak to a doctor or fitness professional who can guide you and assist you in creating a strength training workout plan. For yourself, learn about how much weight is best for strength training, which strength training exercises are best, and anything else you might not be certain of.

Note: The tips in this article should not be taken as medical or professional advice. Always consult a doctor or fitness professional before engaging in any fitness activity.

This article was originally published on January 27, 2019.

Not all Grindr experiences are horrible. This chat between two bottoms on the gay social app prove just that.

In screenshots shared by Twitter user @dps_moira, two gay men exchange the quickest of messages that, while simple, have upped my belief that there is humanity on an app that’s typically more of a stomping ground of “masc4masc” action.

Along with the Twitter caption, “I really hope he is doing ok,” the chat went like this:

#1: Hi. Are you a top?

#2: Hey

#2: No sorry

#1: Never. never ever apologise for being yourself – that’s how the straights kept us down for a hundred years

Related | A pilot used Grindr to hit on one of his passengers mid-flight

To no one’s surprise, the tweet was a hit online, quickly amassing nearly 100K likes and over 16K retweets, with one user replying, “hope he found his top.”

And that’s that on that. Kindness is alive and well. Gay rights!

We all know how good sleeping naked feels and anyone who tells you they hate it is probably lying. But as it turns out, bedtime without the extra layering of pants and underwear can mean a few really good things for your body.

A survey from Mattress Advisor has found that 65 percent of millennials prefer sleeping naked, while 69 percent of people say sleeping naked is more comfortable, 54 percent say it’s far more relaxing, and 54 percent say they sleep better overall.

5 reasons you need to be sleeping naked

1. Protect your sperm and your testicles

So apparently we can all just throw our underwear away because according to Atlantic City-based urologist Brian Steixner, M.D., sleeping in your underwear can actually increase your likelihood of getting an infection. Since bacteria thrive in warm, moist, areas, your underwear that keeps that heat and moisture in need to go.

Plus, Allan Pacey, a leading fertility expert and researcher at the University of Sheffield in England, told the New York Post, “We have known for some time that men who increase the temperature of their testicles, either through the heat exposure at work or by wearing tight underwear, have poorer semen quality compared to men whose testicles are cooler.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Morning mood (📷 @otrotini by @rafa.pics) #gay #gayboy #gaydaddy #gaysnap #lgbt #lgbtq #lgbtpride #pride🌈 #pridemonth #gayfitness #gayguy #gayman #gaymen #gayhot #gayfit #gaypic #instagay #gayusa

A post shared by OMFGay (@omfg_ay) on Jun 9, 2018 at 12:22pm PDT

2. Better sleep quality

We all know how hard it is to fall asleep if you’re too hot, right? Since your core body temperatures need to drop by about half a degree or so for you to fall asleep, shedding those briefs before bed means that your body can cool down quicker. And while you may not lose sleep overall if you’re too warm, you will notice you’re lacking in that really important deep sleep that leaves you feeling refreshed when you wake.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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A post shared by OMFGay (@omfg_ay) on May 28, 2018 at 10:06am PDT

3. Burns calories

A 2014 study in the journal Diabetes found that sleeping in a cold bedroom may activate brown fat cells (a healthy fat that’s stored in your neck and burns calories in order to generate body heat).

Two months into the four-month study, in which five healthy, young men slept in a climate-controlled bedroom for four months, brown fat volume had almost doubled. Those same men burned more calories throughout the day and their insulin sensitivity improved.

Related | Oh look, Colton Haynes is naked and covered in pain in new Instagram photos

4. Increase oxytocin production

It’s no secret that laying naked with your partner is a good thing. But it can actually have some physiological benefits. Skin-to-skin contact can trigger the release of oxytocin, which can protect the heart by lowering blood pressure, reducing anxiety, and boosting your immune system.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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A post shared by OMFGay (@omfg_ay) on Nov 13, 2018 at 6:27am PST

5. Give your love life a boost

According to a survey of 1,000 British adults, couples who sleep in the nude tend to have happier love lives. The survey found that “57 percent of nude sleepers were happy with their relationship, compared with 48 percent of pajama-wearers.”