Does Exercising on an Elliptical Increase Your Butt Size?

An elliptical, also known as an elliptical machine or elliptical trainer, provides an all-over body cardio workout that builds endurance and burns calories and fat. An elliptical workout utilizes the muscles in the backside known as the glutes, and provides enough resistance to help tone these muscles. However, the elliptical alone doesn’t provide enough resistance to bulk up the glutes and increase butt size.

  1. Know the Glutes

    • Your buns are each made up of three muscles collectively referred to as the “glutes” -- the gluteus minimus, the gluteus medius and the gluteus maximus. According to MedicineNet.com, all of these muscles work together to help us walk, run and move our legs. The gluteus medius is responsible for providing stability to the pelvic region when we move. The gluteus maximus is the largest muscle of the group, which lies on top of the other two under the surface of the skin, giving your rear its shape.

    Fast-Twitch vs. Slow-Twitch

    • The gluteus maximus is made up of a combination of fast-twitch and slow-twitch muscle fibers, notes Fitness magazine. Fast-twitch muscle fibers provide bursts of speed and power and are worked best with strength exercises like weight-lifting. Slow-twitch muscle fibers are built for endurance and providing movement over time, which means that these are the fibers that are most effective during endurance workouts like walking, distance running, stair climbing and elliptical training. The other two gluteus muscles are made entirely out of slow-twitch fibers which, says Fitness magazine, means that the butt as a whole can benefit from both resistance training and endurance training.

    Elliptical Endurance Training

    • The elliptical is a hybrid between a stair climbing machine and a cross-country ski machine. With its combination of pedals that work the legs and poles that work the arms, it provides a low-impact cardio workout for the entire body -- just the type of endurance workout that works the slow-twitch muscle fibers in the glutes. Although this type of workout doesn’t do a lot to build muscle, it does help to burn fat, making the gluteus maximus more visible beneath the skin.

    Elliptical Resistance Training

    • Many elliptical machines come with settings that allow you to increase the resistance that the machine provides to your muscles. The elliptical is also an ideal machine for high intensity interval training, or HIIT. During a HIIT workout, you work as hard and fast as you can for a few minutes, and then slow down for a few minutes to catch your breath. According to the fitness blog SuperSkinnyMe.com, by using these methods, you can do more to target the glutes during your elliptical workout and tone your backside. However, this still won’t provide the amount of resistance necessary to bulk up your gluteus maximus and increase your butt size.