By Grethe Swart

We asked a fitness star for her top moves and nutrition tips to target one of our biggest trouble spots: the booty. Steal her secrets for a toned bum here!

Want to look summerlicious in your newly purchased bikini bottoms and denim shorts? First, you need the buns hun. USN elite ambassador and Puma sponsored athlete Lara Ann Bester, known for her perfectly toned booty, shows us how to get those glutes working.

1. Crab walk with resistance loops:

“Place the resistance loop around your ankles. Bending down as low as you can (into a squat position), move to the front, one foot after the other. The slower the better,” says Bester.

“You need to feel the burn. In order for those glutes to work, the number of reps (30 to 40) is very important. The muscles should almost feel fatigue to ensure that burn.”

Read More: Tone Your Bum With This Squat Combo

“Resistance loops vary in strength (low, medium, heavy), which allows the individual to choose the resistance type they feel comfortable with and that suites their current fitness level. The loop instantly activates the glutes, which tightens and tones that bum faster,” she adds.

2. Side walk with resistance loops (side glutes):

“In a standing position, hands in front of your chest and resistance loops around your ankles, slowly step to the side (in squat position) and come back up to standing position.” Repeat.

Key tip: “Go slowly and do a lot of reps. Feel that burn in your side glutes!”

3. Hip thrust with stability ball:

“On your back, shoulder blades against the stability ball, ensure that your feet are shoulder-width apart facing the front or outwards. Place a small weight on your stomach (optional). With a strong hip movement, lift your lower body upwards while pushing through your heels and squeeze for one to two seconds before slowly releasing back to the neutral position. Repeat. Do 15 to 20 reps minimum.”

Read More: The 5-Minute Flat Belly Fix

“You can also use a resistance loop around your ankles to activate the upper part of your glutes,” says Bester.

Target your bum with the right diet:

“You won’t get the perfect bum if you don’t eat right. Training is 30 percent; eating habits are 70 percent,” says Bester.

So what does a fitness star eat?
“Apart from drinking a lot of water, I include a lot of lean proteins (fish, chicken, ostrich meat) in my diet. I also eat a lot of green salads (peppers, cucumber, rocket leaves, broccoli, beans).”
How would you recommend getting lean quickly?
“In order to get lean quickly, I generally follow a high-fat, low-carb diet where I replace my carb intake with good fats (avo, nuts, seeds, coconut oil, almond butter).”
How do you maintain it?
“To maintain a lean figure, I add slow-releasing carbs to my diet such as white rice, sweet potato, rice cakes, oats, quinoa, bulgur wheat and lentils.”
What to avoid. . .
“I try to eliminate dairy and sugar (no fizzy drinks!) from my diet. Instead, I’ll have one Granny Smith apple a day.”

Ready for denim shorts that will make that booty pop? Try these!