Superman

How to perform the Superman

1. Lie face down on the floor with your arms extended straight overhead and your legs straight behind you, forehead resting down.
2. Brace the glutes and the deep spinal muscles before lifting anything, keeping the neck neutral by looking at the floor.
3. Simultaneously raise the arms, chest, and legs off the floor by contracting the entire posterior chain in one gentle extension.
4. Lift only to a comfortable height where the low back muscles contract without cranking into a painful jammed extension.
5. Hold the top position briefly, keeping the arms reaching forward and the legs reaching back to lengthen the body.
6. Lower the arms, chest, and legs back to the floor together under control before starting the next repetition.

Suggested working range: 12–20 reps. Default progression: double progression.

Common mistakes

• •Cranking the low back into a jammed extreme extension rather than a gentle, comfortable lift.
• •Throwing the arms and legs up with momentum instead of a slow controlled posterior-chain contraction.
• •Craning the neck up to look forward, which strains the cervical spine instead of keeping it neutral.
• •Lifting only the legs or only the arms rather than raising the arms, chest, and legs together.

Variations & alternatives

Swap in a related movement if equipment, recovery, or progression demands it.