What Are Different Exercises for Shrinking and Increasing Butt Size?

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On September 27, 2025

If you’re trying to achieve a smaller butt, increasing your physical activity level and reducing your calorie intake can help you reach your goal. Growing a bigger, more shapely butt involves increasing your protein and calorie intake along with exercises to build your glutes.

Exercises for a Bigger Butt

If you want a bigger butt, you need to work on increasing the size of your gluteal muscles (glutes). This involves combining appropriate exercises with the right nutrition.

According to the National Academy of Sports Medicine (NASM), increasing muscle size is not always the same as increasing muscle strength — though they’re related. Muscle hypertrophy (muscle building) is achieved by overloading your muscles to the point of failure through resistance training or weightlifting. As your muscles heal, they slowly grow bigger.

Research shows that several different exercises are effective at increasing the size of your glutes, including:

Back squats
Leg presses
Weighted hip thrusts
Hip extensions

Nutrition is also important for building glutes. Increasing your calorie intake and eating enough carbs and high-quality protein will help maximize your gains, according to the NASM. Aim for a protein intake of about 1.5 to 2 grams (g) per kilogram (kg) of body weight.

Remember to get adequate rest between training sessions. It’s during this recovery time that your muscles actually grow. The NASM recommends resting muscle groups for at least 48 to 72 hours between training sessions.

Exercises for a Smaller Butt

If you’re trying to achieve a smaller butt, you need to focus on creating a calorie deficit. That means burning more calories than you take in, and it’s the key to losing fat anywhere on your body.

Unfortunately, you can’t choose where you’ll lose fat from first. But if you focus on maintaining that calorie deficit, your butt will shrink along with the rest of you.

When reducing your calorie intake to create a deficit, it’s important to do so gradually. Crash diets might provide rapid weight loss in the short term, but you’re more likely to regain the weight as soon as you return to your previous eating habits, according to MedlinePlus.

Additionally, consuming fewer than 1,200 calories per day for women and 1,500 calories per day for men may not be safe without the help of a health professional, according to Harvard Health Publishing. Eating too few calories can put you at risk of nutrient deficiencies.

Mayo Clinic recommends aiming to lose 1 to 2 pounds per week for sustainable weight loss. While everyone’s calorie needs are different, this works out to a deficit of about 500 to 750 calories per day.

You can estimate your calorie needs using the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s MyPlate Plan calculator based on your age, sex, and activity level.

Working out can also help you create a calorie deficit if you’re trying to lose weight. The activity guidelines from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services recommends:

Strength training for each major muscle group at least two days per week
At least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity or 75 minutes of vigorous-intensity aerobic activity per week.

Depending on your goals, you may need more exercise than these minimum recommendations to lose weight.