Can Walking on an Incline Help Tone Your Buttocks?

Buttocks come in all shapes and sizes, but whatever the shape, no one wants a flabby behind. Walking is an excellent form of cardiovascular exercise, often used to burn fat and calories. By adding an incline to your walk, you can directly target your glutes and firm and tone your behind while also getting a great cardio workout.

  1. The Basics

    • The buttocks are made up of three large muscles -- the gluteus minimus, gluteus medius and gluteus maximus. The gluteus minimus is the smallest of the three and lies directly under your gluteus medius. The gluteus medius lies on top of the gluteus minimus and stretches along the outside of the upper hip. The gluteus maximus is the muscle most people think of when they think of "glutes." It is one of the largest muscles in the body, providing the strength necessary to keep you upright as you walk, allowing you to squat down to pick up something off the floor and giving you that nice, round shape in your skinny jeans.

    A Two-Pronged Approach

    • Walking on a flat surface allows the quadriceps -- the front of the thigh -- to take on a good portion of the work, thus letting your glutes off easy. To tone those glutes, you must work them in new and different ways. Walking on an incline shifts the majority of the work to your gluteal muscles. The added benefit of walking on an incline is that it also burns more calories than walking on a flat surface. By using the treadmill incline setting, you will be toning and tightening your gluteal muscles while also burning calories, which helps you lose fat.

    The Routine

    • Warm up by walking on a slight incline for five minutes at 3.5- to 4-mph pace with an initial incline setting of 1 to 3 percent. After that, ramp up that incline and get those glutes firing. Beginners should set their incline to 4 or 5 percent, while advanced exercisers can take the incline all the way to its highest setting, usually 10 to 15 percent. Maintain a steady pace throughout the workout, and increase the incline as the workout gets easier for you to complete. Most beginners will be able to maintain a pace of 4 mph, while advanced exercisers can increase the pace up to 5 or 6 mph. Start with a 10-minute walk and increase the length of your workout as you get stronger. Work your way up to at least a 20-minute walk. Always finish with a cooldown, such as a five-minute walk on a level surface.

    Proper Form

    • As you walk, focus on standing tall with your shoulders back and down, your chest lifted and your eyes looking to the horizon. Keep your arms bent with your hands off the rails -- unless you need them for balance -- and maintain a tight core. Ensure that you are striking with your heels, keeping your joints soft and not locking your knees. Walking with proper form will give you better results and help prevent injury.