Bench Hollow Hold

Muscles worked by the Bench Hollow Hold

Primary

Hip FlexorsHip Flexor MusclesAbsRectus Abdominis

Secondary

ObliquesOblique AbdominalsQuadsQuadriceps FemorisDeep CoreTransversus Abdominis

Also called: hip flexor, iliopsoas, psoas, iliacus, hip flexors, abs.

Equipment

Flat Bench

Also called: bench, flat weight bench, utility bench, adjustable bench (flat).

How to do the Bench Hollow Hold

1. Lie on your back on a flat bench with the glutes and lower back on the pad and the legs extended.
2. Reach the arms overhead beside the ears.
3. Brace the abdominals and press the lower back into the bench.
4. Lift the shoulders and the straight legs a few inches to form a shallow hollow.
5. Hold the position while breathing steadily, then lower to rest.

Form tips

• If the lower back arches off the pad, raise the legs higher or bend the knees slightly.
• Keep the ribs pulled down and the neck relaxed.
• Hold only as long as you can keep the lower back flat.

At a glance

Bench Hollow Hold in German & Spanish

Descriptions, instructions and tips ship in all three languages in the JSON.

Related exercises

• Dead Hang
• Flexed Arm Hang
• Front Lever
• Handstand Hold
• Hanging L-Sit
• Hanging Tuck Hold
• Hollow Body Hold
• Human Flag

Exercise data (JSON)

The record below is exactly what exercises.json ships for this exercise — names, descriptions, instructions and tips in English, German and Spanish.

{
  "id": "bench-hollow-hold",
  "name_en": "Bench Hollow Hold",
  "name_de": "Hollow Body Hold auf der Bank",
  "name_es": "Mantenimiento del Cuerpo Hueco en Banco",
  "description_en": "A static core hold performed lying on a flat bench: the arms reach overhead and the shoulders and straight legs are lifted into a shallow hollow shape while the lower back stays pressed into the bench.",
  "description_de": "Ein statischer Rumpfhalt im Liegen auf einer flachen Bank: Die Arme sind über dem Kopf gestreckt, Schultern und gestreckte Beine sind zu einer flachen Hohlform angehoben, während der untere Rücken fest auf die Bank gedrückt bleibt.",
  "description_es": "Un mantenimiento estático de core hecho tumbado en un banco plano: los brazos se estiran por encima de la cabeza y los hombros y las piernas rectas se elevan hasta formar una curva hueca poco profunda, mientras la zona lumbar permanece pegada al banco.",
  "category": "strength",
  "force_type": "static",
  "mechanic": "compound",
  "difficulty": "intermediate",
  "equipment": "flat_bench",
  "body_part": "core",
  "primary_muscles": [
    "hip_flexors",
    "rectus_abdominis"
  ],
  "secondary_muscles": [
    "obliques",
    "quadriceps",
    "transverse_abdominis"
  ],
  "goals": [
    "strength",
    "endurance"
  ],
  "tags": [
    "core_focus",
    "calisthenics",
    "knee_safe",
    "shoulder_safe",
    "no_axial_load",
    "requires_bench"
  ],
  "variation_group": "static-hold",
  "is_unilateral": false,
  "is_bodyweight": false,
  "instructions_en": [
    "Lie on your back on a flat bench with the glutes and lower back on the pad and the legs extended.",
    "Reach the arms overhead beside the ears.",
    "Brace the abdominals and press the lower back into the bench.",
    "Lift the shoulders and the straight legs a few inches to form a shallow hollow.",
    "Hold the position while breathing steadily, then lower to rest."
  ],
  "instructions_de": [
    "Leg dich rücklings auf eine flache Bank, Gesäß und unterer Rücken auf dem Polster und die Beine gestreckt.",
    "Streck die Arme neben den Ohren über den Kopf.",
    "Spann die Bauchmuskeln an und drück den unteren Rücken in die Bank.",
    "Heb Schultern und gestreckte Beine ein paar Zentimeter an, sodass eine flache Hohlform entsteht.",
    "Halte die Position und atme dabei gleichmäßig, senke dich dann zum Ausruhen ab."
  ],
  "instructions_es": [
    "Túmbate boca arriba en un banco plano con los glúteos y la zona lumbar sobre el pad y las piernas extendidas.",
    "Estira los brazos por encima de la cabeza, junto a las orejas.",
    "Contrae el abdomen y presiona la zona lumbar contra el banco.",
    "Levanta los hombros y las piernas rectas unos pocos centímetros para formar un hueco poco profundo.",
    "Mantén la posición respirando con regularidad y luego baja para descansar."
  ],
  "tips_en": [
    "If the lower back arches off the pad, raise the legs higher or bend the knees slightly.",
    "Keep the ribs pulled down and the neck relaxed.",
    "Hold only as long as you can keep the lower back flat."
  ],
  "tips_de": [
    "Wenn sich der untere Rücken vom Polster abhebt, heb die Beine höher oder beuge die Knie leicht.",
    "Halte die Rippen nach unten gezogen und den Nacken entspannt.",
    "Halte nur so lange, wie du den unteren Rücken flach halten kannst."
  ],
  "tips_es": [
    "Si la zona lumbar se despega del pad, sube más las piernas o flexiona ligeramente las rodillas.",
    "Mantén las costillas hacia abajo y el cuello relajado.",
    "Aguanta solo el tiempo en que puedas mantener la zona lumbar plana."
  ],
  "met": 6.0,
  "images": {
    "flat": {
      "main": "images/flat/bench-hollow-hold-main.webp"
    }
  }
}

Fetch just this exercise

const { exercises } = await fetch(
  "https://exercise-dataset.com/exercises.json"
).then(r => r.json());
const ex = exercises.find(e => e.id === "bench-hollow-hold");

Free for personal and commercial in-app use with attribution (“Exercise data by RepDB”) — see the license and ready-made attribution snippets. Redistributing the data as a dataset or API is not permitted.