BoomerGirl.com

Are you happy with your butt? Most of us aren’t.

They’re too big, too saggy, too soft, and I’ve even heard men complain of having “lost” theirs. (“Honey, have you seen my glutes anywhere?”)

The largest muscle in your body is your gluteus maximus — the muscle that spans both cheeks and goes into full operation mode anytime you move from standing to sitting or press from a bent knee to a straight-leg position. It’s got a lot of aliases including the buttocks, butt, rear, derriere and glutes.

Unfortunately, we’ve become a nation of sitters that, except for the short intervals when we’re transitioning from one sitting activity to another, are rarely on our feet anymore.

Picture the following daily pattern for millions of people:

• We wake up in the morning and get to work sitting in the car — average U.S. commute one way is 26 minutes. We arrive at work and sit in a desk chair an average of 5 to 8 hours. We drive back home. We arrive home tired and watch TV or curl up with our favorite book sitting on our comfortable cushiony sofa. Then we go to bed.

So it’s no wonder that the majority of us have an under-developed gluteus maximus. Cardio and weight training activities (like squats and dead lifts) can make a difference in your backside, along with stair-steppers, elliptical trainers, climbing machines, running, biking and hiking — all of which help tighten and develop the gluteus maximus muscle that gives definition to your rear side.

If you live in an area with lots of hills, the best way to condition your gluteus maximus is to walk, run, bike or hike on inclined trails, roads and paths instead of working out mostly on level surfaces. If you can’t get outside because it’s still too muddy or wet, another option is to gradually increase the incline of your exercise equipment (such as treadmill or ski machine) to simulate working out on hills. If you don’t have time to get outside to work your gluteus maximus, try the chair squat several times a day — it can be done at home or work. The chair squat forces you to keep your knees behind your toes, and it's always there if you lose your balance and need to sit down. You can make it more difficult by squatting down until you're just above the chair.