Boat Pose

Muscles worked by the Boat Pose

Primary

Hip FlexorsHip Flexor MusclesAbsRectus Abdominis

Secondary

Lower BackErector SpinaeQuadsQuadriceps Femoris

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

Equipment

No equipment — this is a bodyweight exercise.

How to do the Boat Pose

1. Sit on the floor with the knees bent and the feet flat, hands resting behind the thighs.
2. Lean back until you balance just behind the sit bones and lift the chest so the spine stays long.
3. Lift the shins until they are parallel to the floor, then straighten the legs as far as the back stays flat.
4. Reach the arms forward beside the legs and hold the position for the prescribed time.
5. Lower the feet under control to finish.

Form tips

• Keep the chest lifted; the moment the back rounds, bend the knees again.
• Hold behind the thighs if the hamstrings limit you more than the core does.
• Breathe steadily instead of bracing against a held breath.

At a glance

Boat Pose in German & Spanish

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

Related exercises

• Ab Wheel Rollout
• Ball Pike
• Barbell Ab Rollout
• Bench Leg Pull-In
• Bicycle Crunch
• Bird Dog Hold
• Cable Crunch
• Camel Pose

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": "boat-pose",
  "name_en": "Boat Pose",
  "name_de": "Bootshaltung",
  "name_es": "Postura del Barco",
  "description_en": "A seated balance on the sit bones with the legs lifted and the chest tall, holding a V shape that loads the hip flexors and the whole front of the trunk.",
  "description_de": "Eine sitzende Balance auf den Sitzbeinhöckern mit angehobenen Beinen und aufgerichtetem Brustkorb: die V-Form belastet die Hüftbeuger und die gesamte Rumpfvorderseite.",
  "description_es": "Un equilibrio sentado sobre los isquiones con las piernas elevadas y el pecho alto: la forma de V carga los flexores de la cadera y toda la parte frontal del tronco.",
  "category": "strength",
  "force_type": "static",
  "mechanic": "compound",
  "difficulty": "intermediate",
  "body_part": "core",
  "primary_muscles": [
    "hip_flexors",
    "rectus_abdominis"
  ],
  "secondary_muscles": [
    "erector_spinae",
    "quadriceps"
  ],
  "goals": [
    "endurance",
    "strength"
  ],
  "tags": [
    "core",
    "calisthenics"
  ],
  "is_unilateral": false,
  "is_bodyweight": true,
  "instructions_en": [
    "Sit on the floor with the knees bent and the feet flat, hands resting behind the thighs.",
    "Lean back until you balance just behind the sit bones and lift the chest so the spine stays long.",
    "Lift the shins until they are parallel to the floor, then straighten the legs as far as the back stays flat.",
    "Reach the arms forward beside the legs and hold the position for the prescribed time.",
    "Lower the feet under control to finish."
  ],
  "instructions_de": [
    "Setz dich auf den Boden, die Knie gebeugt, die Füße flach, die Hände hinter den Oberschenkeln.",
    "Lehn dich zurück, bis du knapp hinter den Sitzbeinhöckern balancierst, und heb den Brustkorb, damit die Wirbelsäule lang bleibt.",
    "Heb die Unterschenkel an, bis sie parallel zum Boden sind, und streck die Beine so weit, wie der Rücken flach bleibt.",
    "Streck die Arme neben den Beinen nach vorn und halte die Position für die vorgegebene Zeit.",
    "Setz die Füße kontrolliert ab."
  ],
  "instructions_es": [
    "Siéntate en el suelo con las rodillas flexionadas y los pies apoyados, las manos detrás de los muslos.",
    "Inclínate hacia atrás hasta equilibrarte justo por detrás de los isquiones y eleva el pecho para mantener la columna larga.",
    "Sube las espinillas hasta dejarlas paralelas al suelo y estira las piernas todo lo que la espalda pueda mantenerse plana.",
    "Extiende los brazos hacia delante junto a las piernas y mantén la posición durante el tiempo indicado.",
    "Baja los pies de forma controlada para terminar."
  ],
  "tips_en": [
    "Keep the chest lifted; the moment the back rounds, bend the knees again.",
    "Hold behind the thighs if the hamstrings limit you more than the core does.",
    "Breathe steadily instead of bracing against a held breath."
  ],
  "tips_de": [
    "Halte den Brustkorb aufgerichtet - sobald der Rücken rund wird, beug die Knie wieder.",
    "Fass hinter die Oberschenkel, wenn die Beinrückseite mehr limitiert als der Rumpf.",
    "Atme gleichmäßig weiter, statt gegen angehaltene Luft zu pressen."
  ],
  "tips_es": [
    "Mantén el pecho alto; en cuanto la espalda se redondee, vuelve a flexionar las rodillas.",
    "Sujétate por detrás de los muslos si los isquiotibiales te limitan más que el core.",
    "Respira de forma constante en lugar de aguantar el aire."
  ],
  "met": 5.0,
  "images": {
    "flat": {
      "main": "images/flat/boat-pose-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 === "boat-pose");

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.