Squats are one of the most common workouts for enhancing glute muscles. Even this simple exercise can be a bit confusing. If you’ve noticed your back becoming rounded or arched while squatting, this is what we mean by the butt wink, and a lot of experts consider it a wrong form.
Read the following blog to understand how to do squats properly. Also, explore additional diet and workout tips like doing mobility, consuming protein-rich options like peanut butter and MB protein shakes and more for rapid glute gains.
How Bad is Butt Wink?
A butt wink appears when you lower down in a squatting position while flexing the back. This causes your lumbar spine to round.
The human spine is meant to be twisted and rounded to assist a wide range of motions, so butt winks aren’t inherently bad when squatting. However, as you do weighted squats with repeated reps, it can put a lot of load on your back. This is when you are at a high risk of back injury.
How to Fix It?
Before you unravel the secret to fixing a butt wink, understand more about a neutral spine first. Your neutral spine has only a little curve at the lumbar region. Experts recommend figuring out this neutral spine form, also referred to as the safe to squat zone (STS zone).
Now, the goal is to go as low as you can while squatting without forming butt wink. Here’s how to do it:
- Keep your feet roughly shoulder length apart and squat with your femur bone parallel to the ground. You may require practice on your core stability and lumbopelvic region to get this right. That’s just the basics.
- Now you may be having trouble with keeping a neutral spine due to low ankle or hip mobility, elevate your heels to a few inches.
- Avoid going too low or doing “ass to grass” squats, this can potentially reduce the probability of forming butt winks.
Doing squats this way is the correct form. It can help target your glutes too. Take a look at the next section for some tips on promoting glute growth.
Tips to Enhance Your Glutes
Here are some tips related to diet and exercise for maximizing your squat efficiency and getting awesome glutes! Check out below:
- Do mobility drills to increase your hip and ankle flexibility. This will allow you to squat deeper and work up your butt muscles.
- Do core exercises like supine heel taps and planks to get more control on your back to ace your stance.
- Consume protein rich workout snacks made with peanut butter, quinoa, and dried fruits. You can also take MB or On whey proteinshakes to increase muscle strength of back and glutes.
To Sum Up
Butt wink is a common issue that happens when you lack ankle and hip mobility, causing your lumbar region to get arched. This can be a spinal issue if you do repeated reps with it or do weighted squats. Fix your butt winks by improving joint mobility, strengthening your core and back, to ace your form. You can also consult a trainer if you are not able to get a perfect stance.
