Dead bug
3 sets of 8 slow reps per side, lower back pressed down, 1 min rest.
- Slot
- Strength
- Focus
- Stability
- Time
- 5 min
- Intensity
- Low intensity
- Injury risk
- Low injury risk
- Equipment
- Floor space
How to do it
Lie on your back with your arms straight up and your knees bent 90 degrees above your hips. Press your lower back into the floor. Slowly lower your right arm overhead and your left leg toward the floor at the same time, stopping before your back lifts, then bring them back. Switch sides. Do 8 reps per side, 3 sets, with 1 minute rest. Teaches you to keep your body tight while your arms and legs move, like on steep climbs.
Run it now
The same timer as the app: a five-second get-ready, then every round and rest counted down with a beep. Keep this page open while you train.
Dead bug
0:00 / 5:05
Ready
5:05
3 rounds
3 sets of 8 slow reps per side, lower back pressed down, 1 min rest.
High risk: read the protocol, stop if anything feels wrong.
- 3
- rounds
- 1:00
- rest
- 5:05
- total
Done.
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Take the quizWho it's for
Learning to keep your midsection still while your arms and legs move, which is exactly what steep climbing asks for. Deceptively hard when done properly.
Common mistakes
- The lower back lifting. That's the whole exercise. Stop the rep before your back comes off the floor, even if that means barely moving.
- Going fast. Slow. Eight reps a side should take a while.
- Holding your breath. Breathe throughout. If you can't, reduce the range.
- Extending both limbs further than you can control. Range comes later.
How to progress
More range first, then slow the tempo, then add a light weight in the moving hand. If the back keeps lifting after a few weeks, do fewer, slower reps rather than more.
When it fits
The training periods this exercise fits into in Blok Sessions.
Base Lots of easy climbing, good movement and aerobic fitness.
Strength Stronger fingers and pulling, with weight you control.
Power Explosive moves, momentum and coordination.
Power Endurance Keep your power through one hard move after another.
Endurance Climb longer before you pump out, by moving efficiently.
Performance Peak for a trip or a comp: focus, reading problems, trying hard.
Deload Train less, let your fingers recover, keep moving.