Anti-extension core

Dead bug

Easy3 minFloor space

On your back, reach one arm and the opposite leg away while the low back stays flat. Most core work asks the trunk to move; this asks it to refuse to, which is what it actually does all day.

The dose

8 slow reps per side, ribs down

How to do it

01Lie on your back, knees over hips, arms straight toward the ceiling.
02Press the low back gently into the floor and keep it there for the whole set.
03Slowly reach one arm overhead while the opposite leg extends away, stopping before the back lifts.
04Return with control and alternate; eight slow reps per side.

Mistakes that waste your reps

Letting the low back arch away from the floor, which turns the exercise off.
Moving fast; the slowness is the load here.
Holding the breath instead of exhaling as the limbs reach.

Where this comes from

evidence · emergingestablished practice

Discomfort that eases as you move is normal; pain that sharpens is a stop sign. If this area is injured or persistently painful, a clinician outranks this page.

Written by Kyle Jenkin · updated August 31, 2026 · how we grade evidence

Pairs well with

Lateral line

Overhead side bend

Reach one arm overhead and bend away from it, keeping both feet heavy. You are opening the long seam that runs from ankle to armpit, one of the most under-stretched lines in a chair-shaped life.

→ 3 slow bends per side, exhale into each

Easy2 minevidence · emergingWilke 2016 · myofascial chains

Superficial back line

Hip hinge fold

Soft knees, long spine, fold from the hips and let the arms hang. This loads the best-evidenced fascial chain in the body, one continuous sheet from sole to scalp.

→ 5 slow folds, 3 breaths at the bottom

Easy2 minevidence · strongWilke 2016 · back line verified

One move is a start. A thread is better.

Find your thread →All fascia lines moves

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