Lower back exercise
Cat-CowHow to do it, with form in numbers
- Main muscles
- Lower back, Upper back
- Also works
- Abs
- Equipment
- Bodyweight
- Level
- Beginner
How to do it
How do you do the Cat-Cow?
- Get on your hands and knees with your hands under your shoulders and knees under your hips.
- Breathe in as you let your belly sink, lift your chest and look slightly forward.
- Breathe out as you round your back up towards the ceiling and tuck your chin.
- Keep moving slowly between the two, one breath for each, for 5–10 rounds.
Cues
- Move one vertebra at a time.
- Let your breath lead the movement.
- Keep your neck long.
Common mistakes
- Cranking your head back: lift your gaze only a little and keep your neck long.
- Rushing: slow down so each position takes a full breath.
- Shifting your weight back and forth: keep your hips over your knees and shoulders over your hands.
Form in detail
What does good form look like?
The version in our demo
On hands and knees, flowing slowly between cow (back dips, chest and gaze lift) and cat (back rounds, chin tucks), one breath per position.
Starting position
Tabletop on a mat. Hands flat under the shoulders, shoulder width apart, fingers forward; knees under the hips, hip width apart (15–20 cm); tops of the feet on the mat. Spine neutral and roughly level, head in line, gaze at the floor just in front of the hands.
The movement
- Cow (inhale): tip the pelvis forward so the tailbone lifts, let the belly sink, draw the shoulder blades together and lift the chest and gaze forward. The spine curves into a gentle U. - Cat (exhale): tuck the tailbone under, draw the belly in and press the floor away so the middle of the back rises towards the ceiling and the shoulder blades spread apart; the chin tucks towards the chest. The spine curves into an arch. - Hands and knees never move. Arms stay straight, thighs stay vertical; the hips stay over the knees and the shoulders over the wrists throughout. All motion is in the pelvis, spine and neck.
Breathing
Breathe in as the back dips into cow; breathe out as it rounds into cat.
Tempo
One cow and one cat, 7 s: 3 s inhale moving into cow, 0.5 s pause, 3 s exhale moving into cat, 0.5 s pause. Real sets: 5–10 slow rounds.
Form in numbers
What are the angles and distances?
- Neck: gaze lifts to the floor about 1 m ahead in cow (neck extension about 15°, never cranked back); chin about a fist from the chest in cat.
- Shoulder blades: squeeze together in cow, spread wide with the upper back rounded in cat.
- Arms and thighs stay vertical (within 5°) throughout.
The targets our 3D demo was built to, from the references below. Bodies differ, so treat the ranges as a guide for your own build.
For coaches
Use this demo in your clients’ programs
The Cat-Cow is in Trainaq’s exercise library. Add it to a workout, and your client sees this demo in the free Trainaq app above the sets they log.
Sources
