# Scorpion Stretch: how to do it

- Main muscles: hip flexors, lower back
- Also works: chest
- Equipment: bodyweight
- Level: intermediate
- 3D demo (side view): https://media.trainaq.com/exercises/scorpion_stretch/3d1b9c4afb/side-m-720.mp4

## Steps

1. Lie face down with your arms out to the sides, palms flat and forehead resting on the mat.
2. Bend one knee and lift that leg off the floor.
3. Slowly sweep the foot up and across your body towards the opposite hand.
4. Keep both palms pressed down and pause where you feel the stretch.
5. Return slowly and repeat with the other leg, 5–8 times each side.

## Cues

- Palms stay pressed down.
- Move slowly, no kicking.
- Forehead stays on the mat.

## Common mistakes

- Flinging the leg over: guide it slowly under control.
- Lifting the chest and arms: go only as far as your palms stay down.
- Forcing the foot to the floor: stop where the stretch is comfortable.

## The version in our demo

Lying face down with the arms out in a "T", palms down, one bent leg at a time sweeping up and over the back of the body towards the opposite hand, a short pause, then back down, alternating sides. The foot lands level with the far thigh, a medium depth that most people can reach without forcing it.

## Starting position

Lie prone on a mat, legs straight and together, tops of the feet on the floor. Arms straight out to the sides at shoulder height (shoulder abduction about 90°), palms pressed into the floor. Forehead resting on the mat (or a folded towel), neck long. Stomach lightly braced.

## The movement

Bend the right knee to about 90° and lift the right thigh off the floor. Sweep the right foot up and across behind the body towards the left side, letting the right hip lift and the pelvis turn, until the right toes touch the floor beyond the left leg. Both palms stay pressed down and the chest stays as low as possible, so the stretch spreads across the front of the right hip, the lower back and the right side of the chest. Pause briefly, unwind the same path back to the start, then repeat with the left leg towards the right hand.

## Breathing

Exhale as the leg sweeps over, inhale as it returns.

## Tempo

Per side 1.5 s sweep over, 1 s pause, 1.5 s return. Real sets: 5–8 reps per side, or hold each side for five slow breaths.

## Form in numbers

- Right knee flexion about 90° throughout the sweep.
- Both palms stay on the floor; forehead stays down; the left leg stays long on the mat.

## Sources

1. [Peloton (Mariana Fernández, with physical therapist Ashley Katzenback), "If You Can Do One Stretch After a Long Day of Sitting, Make It the Scorpion Stretch"](https://www.onepeloton.com/blog/scorpion-stretch)
2. [Institute of Motion, "UMT JM – Supine/Prone Scorpion Exercise"](https://platform.instituteofmotion.com/library/activity/ov6q53xp/)

Source: https://trainaq.com/exercises/scorpion-stretch