Cat-Cow

Muscles worked by the Cat-Cow

Primary

Lower BackErector SpinaeAbsRectus Abdominis

Secondary

Deep CoreTransversus AbdominisTrapsTrapezius

Also called: erector spinae, spinal erectors, lower back muscles, back extensors, abs, six-pack.

Equipment

No equipment — this is a bodyweight exercise.

How to do the Cat-Cow

1. Start on all fours with the hands under the shoulders and the knees under the hips.
2. Exhale and round the spine towards the ceiling, tucking the tailbone and letting the head drop.
3. Inhale and reverse it: let the belly sink, lift the chest and tailbone, and look slightly forward.
4. Move between the two shapes slowly, one breath per position.
5. Finish in a neutral spine and sit back onto the heels.

Form tips

• Let the breath set the tempo rather than rushing between the two positions.
• Keep the hands pressing evenly so the shoulders do not collapse towards the floor.
• Move the whole spine, including the neck, instead of hinging only at the lower back.

At a glance

Cat-Cow in German & Spanish

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

Related exercises

• Back Extension
• Barbell Deadlift
• Bench Child's Pose
• Bodyweight Good Morning
• Bow Pose
• Cat Stretch
• Child's Pose
• Deficit Deadlift

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": "cat-cow",
  "name_en": "Cat-Cow",
  "name_de": "Katze-Kuh",
  "name_es": "Gato-Vaca",
  "description_en": "A kneeling flow that alternates between rounding the spine towards the ceiling and letting it sag while the chest opens, moving every segment of the back through its range.",
  "description_de": "Ein Flow im Vierfüßlerstand, der zwischen rundem Rücken Richtung Decke und abgesenktem Bauch mit geöffneter Brust wechselt und dabei jedes Segment der Wirbelsäule durch seinen Bewegungsradius führt.",
  "description_es": "Un flujo a cuatro apoyos que alterna entre redondear la columna hacia el techo y dejarla descender mientras el pecho se abre, moviendo cada segmento de la espalda por su recorrido.",
  "category": "stretching",
  "force_type": "dynamic",
  "mechanic": "compound",
  "difficulty": "beginner",
  "body_part": "back",
  "primary_muscles": [
    "erector_spinae",
    "rectus_abdominis"
  ],
  "secondary_muscles": [
    "transverse_abdominis",
    "trapezius"
  ],
  "goals": [
    "mobility"
  ],
  "tags": [
    "mobility",
    "stretching"
  ],
  "is_unilateral": false,
  "is_bodyweight": true,
  "instructions_en": [
    "Start on all fours with the hands under the shoulders and the knees under the hips.",
    "Exhale and round the spine towards the ceiling, tucking the tailbone and letting the head drop.",
    "Inhale and reverse it: let the belly sink, lift the chest and tailbone, and look slightly forward.",
    "Move between the two shapes slowly, one breath per position.",
    "Finish in a neutral spine and sit back onto the heels."
  ],
  "instructions_de": [
    "Geh in den Vierfüßlerstand, die Hände unter den Schultern, die Knie unter den Hüften.",
    "Atme aus und runde die Wirbelsäule Richtung Decke, zieh das Steißbein ein und lass den Kopf sinken.",
    "Atme ein und dreh es um: lass den Bauch sinken, heb Brust und Steißbein und schau leicht nach vorn.",
    "Wechsle langsam zwischen beiden Formen, eine Atemphase pro Position.",
    "Beende in neutraler Wirbelsäule und setz dich auf die Fersen."
  ],
  "instructions_es": [
    "Colócate a cuatro apoyos con las manos bajo los hombros y las rodillas bajo las caderas.",
    "Exhala y redondea la columna hacia el techo, metiendo el coxis y dejando caer la cabeza.",
    "Inhala e inviértelo: deja descender el abdomen, eleva el pecho y el coxis y mira ligeramente al frente.",
    "Alterna entre ambas formas despacio, una respiración por posición.",
    "Termina en columna neutra y siéntate sobre los talones."
  ],
  "tips_en": [
    "Let the breath set the tempo rather than rushing between the two positions.",
    "Keep the hands pressing evenly so the shoulders do not collapse towards the floor.",
    "Move the whole spine, including the neck, instead of hinging only at the lower back."
  ],
  "tips_de": [
    "Lass den Atem das Tempo vorgeben, statt zwischen den Positionen zu hetzen.",
    "Druck die Hände gleichmäßig in den Boden, damit die Schultern nicht Richtung Boden sacken.",
    "Beweg die ganze Wirbelsäule inklusive Nacken, statt nur im unteren Rücken zu knicken."
  ],
  "tips_es": [
    "Deja que la respiración marque el ritmo en lugar de correr entre las dos posiciones.",
    "Presiona las manos por igual para que los hombros no se hundan hacia el suelo.",
    "Mueve toda la columna, incluido el cuello, en lugar de doblar solo la zona lumbar."
  ],
  "met": 5.0,
  "images": {
    "flat": {
      "main": "images/flat/cat-cow-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 === "cat-cow");

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.