Does Spinning Tone Your Bum? (And How To Maximize Results)

People take up spinning classes for many reasons. Spinning keeps you fit, helps you burn calories, and gets you in a better mood.

But many people swear that spinning made their butts firm and round.

Is that really the case? Read along as we uncover the science behind that statement and discuss eight ways to increase that toning effect on your glutes.

Table of Contents

What Muscles Does Spinning Target?

Spinning is good for your glutes because it targets the following muscle groups primarily:

Calves
Quadriceps (front of your thighs)
Hamstrings (back of your thighs)
Glutes
Hip flexors

As you can see, spinning strengthens your glutes, but it also targets your legs comprehensively. That’s important because all those muscles we’ve listed above act as supporting groups for your glutes.

And that’s great because having strong legs altogether will make your bum bigger.

In addition, spinning trains your back, arms, shoulders, and chest.

How Does Spinning Build Glutes?

When you’re pedaling, your glutes help to extend your hips. The Gluteus Maximus – that’s your butt muscle and the largest in your body – gets stronger every time you push on that pedal.

Gluteus Maximus has two smaller siblings:

Gluteus Medius, and:
Gluteus Minimus

These muscles are hip abductors, so their role is to enable your legs and hips to move. Besides, they keep your legs stable in the process.

And guess what motions you’re doing while pedaling?

You got that right. You’re moving your legs in front of your body, plus extending your hips in front and sideways.

So each time you do that, your butt grows ever so toned.

Gaining muscle mass has two advantages:

Your butt looks firm because muscles have a tougher consistency.
Your butt may look tighter because muscles have a smaller volume than fat.

That leads us to a fascinating paradox:

Spinning makes your glutes bigger, and that makes your bum smaller but perkier.

How Can You Maximize Your Glute Toning while Spinning?

If you want to firm your bum better with your spin class, you should try the tips below:

1. Adjust Your Seat Properly

If you don’t adjust your seat correctly, you’re running a higher risk of injury. For example, if you have achy hips and knees the day after your spinning class, your seat was probably too low.

Apart from the pain, the low seat position limits your range of motion. That means your glutes will work less hard, and therefore, they’ll get less toned.

2. Increase Your Resistance

The more resistance you’re working against, the harder your muscles will have to work. And when your glutes work harder, your muscles get firmer.

At the same time, you don’t want to be overdoing it. If you can’t walk the next day – that’s a sign you took on too much of a challenge.

3. Keep the Right Form

Adjust your seat and handlebars to ensure you’re keeping the proper form. So, keep your hips back and your shoulders straight. At the same time, tighten your core.

This position ensures that your spine stays in a neutral and relaxed position to avoid injuries. At the same time, it places more pressure on your butt area instead of harming your lower back.

4. Squeeze Your Butt

Squeeze those glutes throughout your spin class, but especially when you’re jumping. These tiny pulses will activate your butt faster so that you can get better-toned.

5. Climb

The climb is an essential part of your spin class because it makes you tighten your glutes more and adds the resistance factor. These two things are vital for sculpting your butt.

When you’re doing a standing climb, make sure to keep a good posture. That means keeping your hips back and squeezing your butt.

6. Warm Up and Cool Down

Never skip your warm-up and cool down. You want your butt muscles ready to tackle the effort if you want to grow your glutes safely. Otherwise, putting too much pressure on cold muscles can lead to ruptures.

The same goes for that cool-down. You want your muscles stretched and relaxed before getting on with your day. If they’re too taut, the risk of injury is increased.

7. Vary Your Workouts

Strength training is a great way to grow your glutes. You can try deadlifts, squats; Pilates reverse leg lifts, or even Barre workouts. Pick diverse routines that target your muscles from different angles, and that way, you’ll grow stronger.

8. Seated and Standing Pedaling

Alternating between these two positions is fun and motivating. Plus, it will make your butt firmer because this change puts more pressure on your glutes.

After all, each time you’re going from sitting to standing, you’re instinctively squeezing your butt. And, as we already discussed above, this squeezing motion has terrific effects on your muscle tone.

Pro tip: Don’t lean too much into those handlebars when you’re standing. You want your butt and legs to take up most of that pressure to increase the toning effect.

Spinning for a Firmer Butt Conclusion

Spinning tones your legs and butt – that’s a fact. However, you’ll have to keep a correct posture, choose challenging workouts, and remember to squeeze those glutes.

Remember that overtraining is dangerous, though.

So, listen to your instructor if you’re taking a spin class and ask them for any tips on staying healthy and making the most of your workouts.

If you’re getting a spin bike for home use – beware! Not all these indoor cycles are created equal, and thus, not all spinning bikes are suitable for your body shape and goals.

The best model for enhancing your glutes should have enough resistance, climb & standing options, and various programs. Alternatively, take a look at Coba Board for a butt everyone will envy.

Author
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Mary D. Brown

Mary is a mom of three, blog writer, strength training addict, fitness psychology guru, Origami dork, and Metallica lover. She has degrees in Communication and Physics and is a certified Personal Trainer.

Mary advocates for one powerful idea: fitness is about challenging yourself, but it’s not a race against the clock. She wants people to understand that the best fitness equipment doesn’t have to be expensive or very popular. The best workouts and machines should always fit your style and needs, not the other way around. So, Mary’s dedication and hard work are the engines that keep this website going.