How to do a dead bug exercise
The dead bug is done lying on your back with arms pointing at the ceiling and knees bent at right angles above your hips. Press your lower back gently toward the floor, then slowly reach one arm overhead while the opposite leg straightens toward the floor, and return. Switch sides. Move only as far as your back stays down, and breathe out as you reach.
Why it matters: It trains the core to keep the back steady while the arms and legs move, which is what everyday carrying needs.
Steps
- Lie on your back and point both arms straight up at the ceiling.
- Lift your legs so your knees are bent at right angles, stacked above your hips.
- Breathe out and let your lower back settle gently toward the floor.
- Reach your right arm back overhead while your left leg straightens toward the floor.
- Stop the reach when you feel your lower back starting to lift, and bring both back.
- Repeat with the left arm and right leg, moving slowly enough to control every inch.
- Keep your feet higher, or move only the legs, if your back keeps lifting.
Stop and call a professional if
- you notice a bulge or doming along the middle of your stomach as you reach, especially after a pregnancy: see your clinician or a pelvic floor physical therapist
- your back hurts during the movement rather than your stomach working: stop and see your clinician or a physical therapist
- you are pregnant, gave birth in the last year, or have a heart, joint, bone or pelvic floor condition: ask your clinician or a physical therapist which movements suit you first
- you feel chest pain or pressure, faintness or breathlessness far beyond the effort: stop and call your local emergency number, 911 in the US
Questions to ask the professional
- Is a smaller range better for me while my core rebuilds?
Common mistakes
- Moving fast so momentum does the work.
- Letting the lower back arch as the leg goes out.
- Holding your breath through each reach.
Teach this to someone
A one page sheet for showing a friend, a teenager or a parent: what to say, what to show, and one question to check it landed.
Teach: How to do a dead bug exercise
What to say
The dead bug is done lying on your back with arms pointing at the ceiling and knees bent at right angles above your hips. Press your lower back gently toward the floor, then slowly reach one arm overhead while the opposite leg straightens toward the floor, and return. Switch sides. Move only as far as your back stays down, and breathe out as you reach.
What to show
- Lie on your back and point both arms straight up at the ceiling.
- Lift your legs so your knees are bent at right angles, stacked above your hips.
- Breathe out and let your lower back settle gently toward the floor.
- Reach your right arm back overhead while your left leg straightens toward the floor.
- Stop the reach when you feel your lower back starting to lift, and bring both back.
- Repeat with the left arm and right leg, moving slowly enough to control every inch.
- Keep your feet higher, or move only the legs, if your back keeps lifting.
Where it stops
Stop and call a professional if you notice a bulge or doming along the middle of your stomach as you reach, especially after a pregnancy: see your clinician or a pelvic floor physical therapist.
Check question
What sets how far you reach in a dead bug?
Answer: Whether your lower back stays down. The exercise trains a steady back, so the range stops where that is lost.
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Quick quiz
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Related skills
Sources
- Certified exercise professional guidance on movement form, 2025. Reviewed September 28, 2026.
Written in our own words from the sources above. It is general information, not advice for your situation; where a professional, your doctor or your lease says something different, follow them.
Last reviewed . First published .