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The HIT MethodAn independent guide to high-intensity training

Butt Kicks: How to Do It, Muscles Worked and Easier Options

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Butt kicks, also called the butt kickers exercise or butt kicks exercise, are a beginner level, moderate impact movement that requires no equipment. This exercise involves jogging in place while bringing your heels toward your glutes. It primarily targets your hamstrings and calves, while your quadriceps and hip flexors work as supporting muscles.

Adding this drill to your routine helps build lower body endurance and coordination. Because it relies on quick, repetitive motions, you challenge your cardiovascular system while actively engaging the back of your legs. Focus on maintaining a steady rhythm rather than rushing the movement.

Exercise data

Impact
Moderate
Level
Beginner
Equipment
None
Main muscles
hamstrings, calves
Also working
quadriceps, hip flexors
Movement
Jogging in place while bringing the heels toward the glutes
Low-impact swap
standing hamstring curls, alternating

How to do a butt kicks

Stand tall with your feet about hip-width apart and your arms bent at a ninety-degree angle by your sides. Keep your chest up and your core engaged.

  1. Shift your weight slightly onto the balls of your feet.
  2. Kick your right heel up backward to tap your right glute.
  3. Lower your right foot back to the starting position.
  4. Immediately kick your left heel up to tap your left glute.
  5. Continue alternating legs at a jogging pace.
  6. Pump your arms in rhythm with your leg movements.

Form cues

  • Keep your chest upright.
  • Land softly on the balls of your feet.
  • Pump your arms to keep the rhythm.
  • Pull your heel directly under your thigh.

Common mistakes

  • Knee driving forward. Keep your thighs pointing toward the floor. The motion should happen at the knee joint behind you.
  • Landing heavily. Avoid slamming your entire foot into the ground. Stay light and land softly on the balls of your feet.
  • Slouching. Keep your shoulders back and your chest open. Looking straight ahead helps maintain a neutral spine.
  • Dead arms. Do not let your arms hang loosely at your sides. Actively pump them to help drive the pace of your legs.

Easier and harder versions

Easier

  • standing hamstring curls, alternating
  • Slowly stepping in place while lifting one heel at a time

Harder

  • Perform the movement while traveling forward and backward.
  • Increase your speed to raise the cardiovascular demand.

Using it in intervals

When programming butt kicks into your high-intensity intervals, use them to build cardiovascular endurance and warm up the hamstrings. During active work periods, push your pace to increase the intensity while maintaining a light footfall. As fatigue sets in, you might notice your heels dropping lower or your torso leaning forward. Focus on pulling the heel all the way up and keeping your chest proud, even if it means slowing your speed slightly to preserve proper form.

Formats that suit this move: 40/20 Intervals, EMOM Workout, Low-Impact HIIT Workout.

Impact note. This move involves jumping. If impact bothers your knees, ankles, back or pelvic floor, use the low-impact swap: standing hamstring curls, alternating.

Similar moves

When to stop and see a doctor

  • Sharp pain in your knees or hamstrings.
  • A popping sensation in your calf muscles.
  • Dizziness or lightheadedness.
  • Severe pain in your lower back or hips.

This page is general information, not medical advice. If you have a heart condition, high blood pressure, joint problems, are pregnant or have been inactive for a long time, talk to your doctor before starting vigorous exercise.

How this page was made. Exercise data (impact, level, equipment, muscles) was compiled by our editors as a general anatomy and coaching guide. Text drafted with AI assistance and checked by the Training Desk; see how we write. Last checked October 2026.