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I Completed A 30-Day Squat Challenge To Make My Butt Look Like The Kardashians' —​ Here's How It Really Went

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Can You Squat Your Way To A Kardashian Butt? I Completed A 30-Day Squat Challenge To Find Out (So You Don't Have To)

Full disclosure, I didn't exactly have a "small butt" before I started this challenge. I'm Cuban and Puerto Rican and everyone knows what that means. I've got a little extra junk in the trunk.

But in the age of the Kardashians, it seems like big is never big enough. I feel like every week, Hollywood is obsessed with someone else's butt and it can really make you question if yours is big enough.

I started off with a little more than most girls would've, but I still wanted more. My problem was that I was greedy. I had a big butt but I wanted my butt to be so big that people could see it from the front.

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I set myself up for disaster with this one, knowing deep down inside that the only way to achieve that was with a trip to Dr. Miami. Instead, I naively decided to just work out until my butt looked like a happy medium between Kim Kardashian and Kylie Jenner.

I found a great 30-day squat challenge and got to work. 

It started off easy and tricked me into thinking I was in shape.

In order to keep myself motivated, I made my lock screen on my phone and the background on my laptop the calendar for the challenge. Seeing it staring me in the face every day really convinced me to get out of bed for at least 15 minutes and do my squats in my pajamas before resuming my daily intake of TLC bridal shows.

The first few days were okay. Small sets of basic squats and squat modifications. They even gave you rest days. I felt good about myself and it was nice to feel like I was getting into a workout routine again. 

Then, I had to go up the stairs at my boyfriend's apartment. "Pain" isn't even the word for what my thighs felt.

I could feel them stretching in ways I didn't know they could stretch, and the burning was ridiculous.

I'm not a very fit person, but it was so easy to crank out the squats every day that I didn't even realize I should've been stretching, using a foam roller, and taking my time. Instead, I was just doing rapid-fire squats so I could get it over with.

I learned just how important it is to do your research before starting a new exercise routine.

The challenge had a bunch of different squats which were meant to tone up different areas of the glutes — but as a beginner, I should've started smaller. I totally overworked myself and learned the hard way that it's just going to hurt to walk for a few days. The good news is that over time, I will definitely get used to it.

By the second week, I was in a rhythm of doing my squats while I brushed my teeth in the morning so that I made sure they got done. Getting into a routine with it was the best part because it helped me get other parts of my life on track. Wake up, eat something, brush teeth and do squats, shower, and start my day. 

If you're a little more fit than the average person, you can choose a challenge that has squats that use dumbbells or resistance bands to boost your gains.

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Now, about those gains...

I'd be lying if I said I didn't see a difference in the shape of my butt. When I first started it actually looked like my butt got smaller because it was getting lifted. But in the end, it definitely seemed rounder and perkier than when I started.

That being said, it wasn't that dramatic difference that I was hoping for.

Photo: Author

In the past, I had done a challenge that was 50 squats a day, every day, for a month. That was way more intense — and honestly kind of ridiculous — but for someone who wants more drastic results, that's the type of path you're going to have to take. 

If you just want to lift your back-side a little and tone it, then a challenge like this is perfect, and it's also a great start to working up to those more intense routines. 

However, don't expect to have to start buying new pants to accommodate your new butt. You'll look better than you did before, but no one is going to question if you got work done. 

So after everything, was all that work and pain really worth it?

This workout is definitely a great way to get into a fitness routine, or just to tone up for that event you have in a month. The workout itself is easy and won't take up a huge chunk of your day. 

You can literally do these workouts anywhere, so there's no excuse not to. Just don't assume that you'll be Kim Kardashian at the end of the month. 

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Editor's Note: This article was originally posted in July 2018 and was updated with the latest information.

Josie Fuller is a writer who  studies Journalism and Women's Studies at The University of Florida.