5 Reasons to Unclench your Booty
Did your booty disappear during your pregnancy? You’re not imaging it ;) There were a lot of surprises during my pregnancy and postpartum experiences, one of which was a pancake butt. I often found myself clenching and tucking under all the time too. But why?
Why do your glutes disappear during pregnancy?
There are three factors that contribute to the pancake-like appearance:
Fat distribution (more on butt fat here)
Postural shifts during pregnancy
Changes to your glute muscles (postural shifts impact this one too!)
Postural Shifts during pregnancy
During pregnancy, mamas often take on postural shifts and adaptations due to a growing belly and a shifting center of mass. We are quite literally, being pulled forward all the time. This often leads to tucking the pelvis and butt under and taking on a more swayback posture, creating a sense of stability. This postural change in itself changes the appearance of your butt. Your muscles may actually look flatter without an actual change in size.
These postural shifts and the demands of pregnancy and early motherhood impact the availability of our glute muscles.
Postural shifts lead to the pelvis being tucked under and the posterior pelvic floor in a shortened position. Without the ability to find length on the backside we are unable to take the glutes through their full range of motion. Think lengthen to strengthen. And if we are constantly in a “tight” state, we are unable to fully strengthen the glutes to their full potential. We may also feel very “tight” on the backside.
More sitting and down time. In the later stages of pregnancy and early postpartum we are often sitting a lot more. Less time using the glutes in both exercise and walking. It is also common when sitting to tuck the booty under. I recommend using a wedge, pillow, or some type of support to keep yourself more upright. This is an example :)
Why do we care about a tight booty?
Reduces the availability of the pelvic floor: the pelvic floor is part of our awesome core team and when tucked under or in a constant state of clench the pelvic floor cannot support us optimally. The result is a less active and available pelvic floor while exercising, holding your kiddos, and going about our day. This may play a role in leaks or other discomforts, like hip and back pain.
When considering the pelvis and overall position, the pelvic floor muscles connect on the ischial spine on the back side. If we are in a more externally rotated position, the pelvic inlet up top is more open and the outlet on the bottom is more closed (not fully closed, just narrower). This creates a shortening of the muscle fibers that run along the back side. When this happens we get more length in the anterior part of our pelvis as the pressure pushes forward.
Swayback posture example
In a swayback posture we have a lot of compression in the back of the pelvis with a lot of pressure pushing forward and in the low abdominal region (perhaps giving an appearance of a low belly pooch).
During pregnancy the glutes can take on a flatter appearance
During pregnancy there is a lot going on up top in the thoracic / abdominal region (hello baby!). We have a widening of the pelvic inlet to accept all of this added pressure, leading to more external rotation overall. This can shorten the muscles on the back side, even without that full swayback posture appearance. We can bias certain positions during breathing and strength work to help us open up the back side of the pelvic floor, even in pregnancy :) This will also be very important when we go to deliver baby!
Running and walking form (overall gait): If you run or walk with tight glutes and a tucked under bum, the glutes are unable to join the party. This often results in a quad dominant and bouncy running pattern and limited hip extension.
Over time this can lead to injury, and potentially - leaks. If we’re unable to properly shift into the hip and move side to side, we cannot leverage the power of the glutes. The glutes and the pelvic floor are best friends!
See more: Running Strength Tests
SI joint and low back discomfort: the SI joint is the junction at the base of the spine connecting the backbone to the hip bones. Each joint’s role is to act as a shock absorber and support the weight of the upper body, while remaining pretty stable. A booty tuck leaves the SI joint susceptible to irritation, particular with higher impact. Vulnerable SI + reduced pelvic floor availability can lead to lower back discomfort. Add limited hip extension and reduced ability to shift side to side in the hips, and a lot of movement may be coming from your low back.
Flat back: when you tuck your booty you also tend to flatten your low back. When your natural low back curve disappears the discs and joints are more susceptible to injury and wear and tear from impact.
Changes your booty size: When you unclench, release the posterior pelvic floor, and start training the glutes through their full range of motion, you may notice you start filling out your jeans. It may be as simple as unclenching and tuning in to your postural habits throughout the day. You also may notice a decrease in that “tight” sensation in your glutes OR a shift in pelvic floor symptoms.
Glute Building Exercises
What are some of my favorite glute exercises? Be sure to check out this post on how to build strong glutes and this post on leveling up your glute workouts too ;)
Hinges: as moms we bend over a lot to pick up toys, pick up a carseat, reach into a crib, etc. Being able to hinge and lengthen through the glutes on the back side is huge for managing any low back discomfort and just keeping you moving and feeling well :) A hinge is a fundamental movement pattern and it’s always something I include in our workouts. I really love training a single leg variation so we can focus on asymmetries in the body side to side.
2. Step Ups: I LOVE step ups for the glutes, especially that juicy Glute Max. I often opt for a step up variation over a hip thrust, especially for someone who has a tight back side. We can play around with speed too. A step up is functional. Being able to step up on one leg and walk up stairs with load will give you the strength and confidence to do the same thing while holding a baby.
3. Lateral Lunges: being able to shift into the hip is a huge skill that translates over to walking and running. We need to find length on the backside in order for this to happen, and working the frontal plane (side to side) is important to incorporate in our training. I might start with a lateral step to hip shift to get mamas familiar with this movement.
There are so many options, but these are a few of my favorites :)
Questions on a tight booty or training the glutes? I’d love to chat!
Feel good mama.
xoxo,
Erica