Raising Your Glutes, Raising Your Game
Previously I waxed lyrical about the wonders of the
derriere, the beauty of its design, and the reason for its curves and contours
… but, remember a design must be constantly updated. Designs are there to be
worked upon, to stay relevant and to stay at the top of their game; as for the
muscles sitting at the tops of your legs … well, they are no different.
In riding, strong glutes provide you with a wealth of
advantage with the perfect seat allowing you to hone the perfect steed. So, how
to get a bottom to be proud of? Firstly, wonderful people, you need to lunge,
and lunge a lot. In fact, you need to lunge about as many times as the words
lunge appears in this ‘lungeing’ blog (lunge, lunge, lunge…). However, it is important
that all the focus is on the back leg in the lunge and not the front. For the
perfect set up, step one foot back, rolling onto the toe of this foot with a
bend in the back knee, and a bend in the front foot, with the front foot placed
firmly down. Balance your weight evenly over both the feet and lower the body
down, bending both knees, then fire the glute in the back leg as you rise back
up. Try to imagine the pubic bone is moving up towards your nose and keep the
glute burning as you lift and lower, up and down, at a nice slow and steady
speed, repeating 12 times before switching legs, and setting the other glute on
fire.
This exercise can also be done beautifully on a Pilates Reformer machine, with one foot against the carriage head-rest and the other foot astride the floor, pushing a weighted spring backwards and forwards to get extra weight behind the lunge adding even more of a kick to the glute.
Another really key point to note is the importance of
stretching. Before, embarking on lunge, lunge, lungeing, a fabulous mobility
warm up and hip and buttock stretches will literally take the hand brake off
your parking muscles, increasing the range of motion, and ensuring you get the
maximum from your maximus. I adore putting clients’ legs in straps, in a
completely non fifty shades kind of way, again on the Pilates Reformer machine.
It is not only an amazing way to take the tension off the lower back and
stretch open tight hip flexors - which my dear riders, really are your forte,
your piece de resistance, your je ne sais quoi - but, also, a fantastic insight
into which leg is stronger than the other, which muscles are dominant, which
are compensating, and allowing us to work together at correcting these pesky
imbalances. In fact, it is crucial to come off the horse and on to an
altogether very different kind of machine, one that doesn’t mould to your
design, but instead remains rigid, gently coercing your body into a logical
rhythm, which once perfected can be translated beautifully back to the horse.
The next exercises I love for the bum are focused around my
latest obsession Ballet Barre. Ballerinas are really not that much different
from riders, their bodies communicate their art form and have to be deliciously
strong and responsive to their environment. However, the grace of a ballerina
need not be emulated; it is just their booty toning exercises we steal, to
create an altogether different kind of steel… the buns. Using a Pilates Soft
Overball (large squidgy ball) placed in the crux of the knee and thigh of one
raised leg, arms against a barre, or chair, simply pulse the leg up to the
ceiling straight for 16 pulses, two sets, then turn slightly at a 45 degree
angle and repeat. Next, swing the knee forward to the chest and back up to the
ceiling whilst lowering the chest down towards the barre or chair, ensuring the
Overball remains in place, and therefore the muscles are continuously
activated. This is delightfully difficult and creates a devilish burn,
tightening just the right spot at just the right intensity.
So there you have it, just a few techniques to create a
truly delectable bottom which deserves to be encased in only the best pants.
Indeed, after all the work put into creating the perfect bum, only the perfect
pants will do, pants that know your worth, and that’s where Derriere Equestrian
come into the equation. It’s as simple as Lottie Exercise + Derriere Equestrian
= The Perfect Seat. Now, go figure…
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