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Exercise library · Abs

Dead bug

Core stability for the abs with your bodyweight.

How to do it

1 of 3

Arms up, knees over your hips

  1. Starting position

    Lie on your back with your arms straight up, knees bent over your hips and lower back against the floor.

  2. The movement

    Lower the opposite arm and leg toward the floor, bring them back and switch sides without lifting your lower back.

Most common mistake

Don't let your lower back lift off the floor, shorten the movement and keep your abs braced.

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Muscle group
Abs
Equipment
Bodyweight
Where
Home or gym
Logged as
Reps

Muscles worked

The dead bug trains your trunk to keep your back still while your arms and legs move. The rectus abdominis and the deep transversus abdominis do most of the work, with help from the obliques. As your leg lowers, it tries to tip your pelvis and arch your lower back, and your abs have to resist that. Your hip flexors carry the leg. The straighter your leg and the closer it gets to the floor, the harder the exercise, because the lever gets longer.

Common mistakes

  • Rushing. With fast reps, momentum takes over the work. Lower your arm and leg over two to three seconds, pause briefly at the far end and bring them back calmly.
  • Holding your breath. Breathe out slowly as your arm and leg lower and breathe in as they come back, without letting go of the tension in your abs.
  • Tensing your neck and shoulders. Your head should rest on the floor and your shoulders stay relaxed. If you lift your head or shrug your shoulders towards your ears, your neck is doing the work, not your abs.

Variations and alternatives

  • The plank trains the same ability to keep your back still, but supported on your forearms.
  • The bear hold is done on all fours with your knees just off the floor and is another option with no equipment.
  • The hollow hold is a harder step, with your arms and legs straight and lifted at the same time.
  • The ab wheel rollout is much heavier and suits you once both the dead bug and the plank feel easy.

Sets and reps

The dead bug is done in slow, controlled reps, not heavy sets. Many people do 2 to 3 sets of 6 to 10 reps per side, or work to time, for example 30 to 45 seconds per set. Shorten the movement when your lower back starts to lift, and end the set when even that is not enough. The guide to sets and reps explains how sets and rest fit together.

Make it harder only once every rep keeps your back on the floor. Straighten your leg more, lower it closer to the floor, slow down or hold a light dumbbell in each hand. If it is too hard to begin with, move only your legs or only your arms. That is progressive overload, even without weights. If your back hurts, stop the exercise and have it looked at by a doctor or physiotherapist.

Swap for

Taken, or missing the equipment? The same movement with something else.

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