Arch Body Hold

The Arch Body Hold is a bodyweight core exercise where you lie on your stomach and lift your arms and legs off the floor at the same time. It trains the muscles along your spine, your glutes, and the back of your body to work together and hold a strong, stable shape.

Lie face down on the floor with your arms reaching overhead and your legs straight behind you. Rest your forehead lightly on the ground, keep your palms facing each other or down, and place your feet together or only slightly apart.

From the floor, lift both arms and both legs together by squeezing your glutes and the muscles along your spine. Think about making your body as long as possible from your fingertips to your toes. Hold this lifted position without letting your arms or legs drop.

Breathe normally and keep gentle tension through your midsection. To make it easier, lift just your arms or just your legs, or hold for a shorter time. To make it harder, reach your arms and legs farther away from each other and hold longer. This exercise pairs well with the hollow hold to train full-body tension from both the front and the back.

Fault: You bend your knees or let your feet drag on the floor. Fix: Keep your legs straight, point your toes, and lift your thighs fully off the ground.

Fault: You crank your lower back by arching only from your waist. Fix: Squeeze your glutes first and think about lifting from your whole back and hips, not just bending at the lower spine.

Fault: Your arms and legs lift unevenly or one side drops. Fix: Lift both arms and both legs together in one smooth motion and check that both sides stay level.