Two common exercises ranked as the worst ones you can do -- you may be surprised to find that one of them is squats. Squats are certainly not to be ruled out as an exercise, and many people swear by them, but the study determined that the amount of muscle activation in squats was significantly lower than some other exercises, such as lunges and step-ups. That means that for better glute work, you should add those to your regimen instead.

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The other glute exercise that scored low -- in fact, scoring the lowest -- was horizontal and vertical leg presses, which had the least amount of EMG activity. This comes as no surprise to some trainers, who have been pointing out for years that leg presses target the legs, essentially doing very little for the glutes. A better alternative? Quadruped hip extensions, which generate significantly more muscle activity in the gluteal muscles, according to the study.

While traditional moves like squats and leg presses aren't bad for your butt, the bottom line is that they're not the best, either. If you're looking to tone your tush to its tightest, you need to spend more time on the moves that will gain the ultimate results. Now, thanks to science, we know what those are.