Rocking (Pilates)

Face down holding your ankles in a bow shape, you rock forward onto the chest and back onto the thighs.

Back extension (Pilates) family

Rocking (Pilates)

Harder option

Face down holding your ankles in a bow shape, you rock forward onto the chest and back onto the thighs.

DemandHard

Equipment requiredFloor space

Muscle focusBack · Glutes · Quads · Shoulders

Written instructions available. A verified 3D demonstration has not been built for this variation.

Source-researched guide. Clinical review is pending.

How to move

Lie face down, bend the knees and hold the tops of the feet or the ankles.
Breathe in and press the feet into the hands to lift the chest and thighs into a bow.
Rock forward onto the chest as you breathe out and back onto the thighs as you breathe in, keeping the shape.
Finish, then rest in child's pose if comfortable.

Form cues

Press the feet into the hands to lift.
Rock with the whole shape, not the head.
Avoid: cranking the neck, or pinching the lower back.

Practice and cautions

5 reps (the classical sequence uses 5). A suggested starting point. No trial has tested this move on its own.

Avoid it with back or knee injuries; master the swan first. Not in pregnancy. This is movement education, not an assessment or treatment prescription. Stop for sharp or increasing pain, dizziness, numbness or tingling; seek individual guidance for symptoms, injury or restrictions.

Add to a routine Log a session

Sources and review status

Sources support the educational description; they do not establish that this exercise is suitable for you.

No variation is labeled clinically validated.

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What it works

Muscles

Main: Back. Also: Glutes, Quads, Shoulders.

Equipment

None: body weight and floor space.

Level

Advanced. See the easier and harder options above.

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Questions people ask

What muscles does the Rocking (Pilates) work?

Mainly the back, with help from the glutes, quads and shoulders.

What equipment do I need for the Rocking (Pilates)?

No equipment: your body weight and a little floor space.

Is the Rocking (Pilates) good for beginners?

It is an advanced move. Build up to it with the Double-leg kick (Pilates double kick) first.

What is an easier alternative to the Rocking (Pilates)?

Try the Double-leg kick (Pilates double kick). Both are written steps in the same progression.