Superman
Trains the Spinal Erectors.
- Equipment
- Body only
- Mechanic
- Compound
- Force
- Static
- Level
- Beginner
How to do it
- Lie face down on a mat with your arms extended overhead and your legs straight.
- Rest your forehead lightly on the mat so your neck stays in line with your spine.
- Brace your stomach gently and squeeze your glutes.
- Lift your arms, chest and legs off the floor at the same time, so only your hips and stomach remain in contact.
- Hold briefly at the top, keeping your neck neutral and looking at the floor rather than forward.
- Lower everything under control and pause before the next repetition.
Common mistakes
- Looking forward at the top, which extends the neck rather than the upper back. Keep the gaze down.
- Lifting as high as possible. Height is not the goal — a small, controlled lift held for a moment does more than a big one produced by momentum.
- Rushing repetitions. This is a low-load exercise where the value is in the hold and the control.
- Assuming it is a stretch because it is done on the floor without equipment. It shortens the erector spinae against gravity, which is strengthening work — the same reason its category here is exercise rather than stretch.