Walking is absolutely a great form of exercise, and one that doesn't get a ton of love because it's so chill and easy compared to other forms of exercise, Saltos says. But, rather than building butt muscles, walking can actually make your bum a bit smaller.
You won't get big legs if you walk
But unlike the general perception, larger legs are caused due to stored fat rather than muscle. Haven't we all noticed that our legs lose fat, when we shed weight? That's because the body changes when you lose the unwanted flab.
To build your glutes, you need some form of strength work, a stimulus of some sort that puts your glutes under tension. Walking on its own doesn't do this.” If that's more what you're looking for, you'd need targeted glute exercises.
Inactivity and aging can lead to sarcopenia (muscle loss), which will cause a once-full and round butt to become flat. Essentially, if you stop working out and stop deliberately trying to strengthen and build your glute muscles, the size of your muscles will decrease with age (age-related sarcopenia).
Glute growth generally takes 6-8 weeks to see noticeable changes, however, some individuals may find it takes 10-12 weeks based on diet, training, and body type. When trying to grow your glutes faster, you should train them multiple times a week (2-3X) and make sure you are eating enough calories to build muscle.
The women walked between 50-70 minutes 3 days per week for a total of 12 weeks. After the study, they found that the study participants lost an average of 1.5% body fat and 1.1 inches around their waists.
Fyfe agrees that walking alone is not enough to transform your body shape. “Walking may improve your aerobic fitness and reduce body fat, but will do little to improve your strength and muscle mass,” he says.
A new exercise regimen puts stress on your muscle fibers. This causes small micro tears, also known as micro trauma, and some inflammation. Those two conditions in your muscle fibers are the reason you may gain some weight.
Protein-rich food sources like eggs, salmon, brown rice, and quinoa help in muscle building and increase the size of glute muscles. These are rich in protein foods that go straight to your bum and add an extra layer of fat.
Eat Your Way to a Bigger Butt
Clean eating and training are equally important. Diet alone won't give you a bigger butt, but when combined with exercise, it can maximize your results. Let's start with protein. Your muscles, including the glutes, need protein to grow and recover from training.
A regular squat regimen might shrink the fat on your glutes while simultaneously growing the muscles beneath. The net result may be a butt that's bigger, smaller, or the same size as before. But at the end of the day, squatting regularly will do nothing but good for your rear view.
There are many ways in which your body can change by doing 100 squats per day. The first and most obvious is a potentially bigger and rounder buttocks, as well as increased strength in your legs, glutes and core, and more toned definition.
The Bottom Line. In general, you can easily grow your glutes around 1-2 inches with consistent workouts and good habits. Make sure to fill your diet with protein-rich foods, and up your weights every once in a while to keep challenging your muscles and getting those results.
Researchers found that those who performed gluteal squeezes increased their hip extension—or glute—strength by 16 percent compared to an 11 percent increase in those who performed glute bridges. Gluteal girth also increased in the group who performed gluteal squeezes.
Expert trainers will typically recommend that you work out 3-4 times a week, taking plenty of time for muscle recovery and rest. If you imagine that you could dedicate 3-4 hours a week to your lower body, you might see results in as little as 5-6 weeks.
Butt building exercises like squats, step ups, deadlifts, hip thrusts and lunges will help to build muscle in your butt (your glutes) and keep it firm and toned. When choosing exercises, it's important you do exercises that are more likely to increase and grow your muscle cells (also known as muscular hypertrophy).
Sitting for the majority of each day can lead to gluteal muscle weakness and even tight hip flexors—the combination of which is sometimes called “dormant butt syndrome.” While you may need or prefer to sit much of the day, try to get up and take breaks once in a while to activate your gluteal muscles.
As we age, fat naturally atrophies and the skin can become loose, making the butt appear as if it's sagging. As skin and fat change, cellulite becomes more apparent. Plus, we lose an average of 5% of muscle mass every 10 years after the age of 35, which also affects the shape of your rear.
However, without understanding your net caloric balance, walking 10,000 steps, 15,000 steps, or even 20,000 steps a day might not be enough to cause any meaningful fat loss or improvements in body composition. To achieve fat loss, you need to burn more calories than you get from your food.