He texts with Kate Upton (no, he can’t introduce you), and Karolina Kurkova dubbed him the “master of the ass.” In this newest set of workout GIFs, David Kirsch — trainer of Heidi Klum and most recently, two-time Sports Illustrated cover girl Upton — shows us how to get Upton Butt. Key to getting a Kirsch-ed butt is thinking about your butt “as you do the moves.” “You need to direct all your energy there,” he told me during a recent workout session, sounding like The Secret for your butt. “Put your brain in your butt.” (Butt thoughts:Mmm, cushiony. Mmm, caftan.) While putting your brain in your bust may not give you Kate Upton–like décolletage, transplanting your brain to your butt during these moves will yield better results. Here are his “butt-blaster” moves, explained in seven GIFs below.
Move 1: There’s a three-part move that Kirsch calls the “sumo lunge,” crediting this exercise with getting Heidi Klum into Victoria’s Secret runway shape just after pregnancy. This shapes and tones the tops of your thighs. Here are the first two moves: a roundhouse kick and a side kick.
Move 2: Connect the previous move with a frog jump. Don’t forget to think very hard about your butt as you do these moves, as if you are Sisqó in 1999 (or maybe like it’s 2013). Kirsch also suggests that you pull in your belly button to engage your stomach as you perform 15 reps of this move.
Move 3: Kirsch calls this move the outer sweep, which is a squat that reverse crosses over a lunge. Think of it as stepping back into a deep curtsy. Make sure that your front knee is properly aligned (and not over your heel).
Move 4: This plié toe squat works your abductors. Keep your toes pointed outward and lift your heels for 15 reps.
Move 5: Kirsch’s infamous platypus walk, which you can do with ankle weights (if you want to put your brain in your butt and your ankles). This works out your thighs, inner butt, and lower butt (apparently the butt has quadrants). Move five steps forward and five steps back. Make sure that your thighs are parallel to the floor and your weight is in your heels.
Move 6: This is a reverse lunge to a high kick, which tones and strengthens the hamstrings. Repeat for 15 reps.
Move 7: The last move is a single-leg dead lift, which is a test of stability. Keep your back leg parallel to the floor, make sure your hips are square, and repeat 15 times.
