Pilates Spine Twist

Muscles worked by the Pilates Spine Twist

Primary

ObliquesOblique Abdominals

Secondary

Lower BackErector SpinaeDeep CoreTransversus Abdominis

Also called: oblique, obliques, side abs, external oblique, internal oblique.

Equipment

No equipment — this is a bodyweight exercise.

How to do the Pilates Spine Twist

1. Sit tall with the legs straight and together, feet flexed, arms out to the sides at shoulder height.
2. Grow tall through the spine and press both sit bones into the floor.
3. Rotate the trunk to one side as far as the hips stay square, then return to the centre.
4. Rotate to the other side in the same way.
5. Keep alternating for the desired number of repetitions.

Form tips

• The legs are the anchor: if one foot slides forward, the pelvis has moved.
• Lengthen upwards before each rotation instead of sinking into it.
• Turn the head with the trunk rather than leading with it.

At a glance

Pilates Spine Twist in German & Spanish

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

Related exercises

• Ball Pike
• Bicycle Crunch
• Cable Pallof Press
• Cross-Body Crunch
• Dumbbell Side Bend
• Half Moon Pose
• Human Flag
• Kettlebell Russian Twist

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": "pilates-spine-twist",
  "name_en": "Pilates Spine Twist",
  "name_de": "Pilates Spine Twist",
  "name_es": "Spine Twist de Pilates",
  "description_en": "A seated rotation with the legs together and the arms wide: the trunk turns to each side in a controlled pulse while the pelvis and legs stay completely still.",
  "description_de": "Eine sitzende Rotation mit geschlossenen Beinen und weit geöffneten Armen: der Rumpf dreht kontrolliert zu jeder Seite, während Becken und Beine vollkommen still bleiben.",
  "description_es": "Una rotación sentada con las piernas juntas y los brazos abiertos: el tronco gira a cada lado de forma controlada mientras la pelvis y las piernas permanecen completamente quietas.",
  "category": "stretching",
  "force_type": "dynamic",
  "mechanic": "compound",
  "difficulty": "intermediate",
  "body_part": "core",
  "primary_muscles": [
    "obliques"
  ],
  "secondary_muscles": [
    "erector_spinae",
    "transverse_abdominis"
  ],
  "goals": [
    "mobility"
  ],
  "tags": [
    "mobility",
    "stretching"
  ],
  "is_unilateral": false,
  "is_bodyweight": true,
  "instructions_en": [
    "Sit tall with the legs straight and together, feet flexed, arms out to the sides at shoulder height.",
    "Grow tall through the spine and press both sit bones into the floor.",
    "Rotate the trunk to one side as far as the hips stay square, then return to the centre.",
    "Rotate to the other side in the same way.",
    "Keep alternating for the desired number of repetitions."
  ],
  "instructions_de": [
    "Setz dich aufrecht hin, die Beine gestreckt und geschlossen, die Füße angezogen, die Arme auf Schulterhöhe zur Seite.",
    "Wachs durch die Wirbelsäule nach oben und druck beide Sitzbeinhöcker in den Boden.",
    "Dreh den Rumpf zu einer Seite, so weit die Hüften gerade bleiben, und komm zur Mitte zurück.",
    "Dreh auf die gleiche Weise zur anderen Seite.",
    "Wechsle weiter für die gewünschte Anzahl an Wiederholungen."
  ],
  "instructions_es": [
    "Siéntate erguido con las piernas estiradas y juntas, los pies en flexión y los brazos abiertos a la altura de los hombros.",
    "Crece a través de la columna y presiona ambos isquiones contra el suelo.",
    "Rota el tronco hacia un lado mientras las caderas sigan cuadradas y vuelve al centro.",
    "Rota hacia el otro lado del mismo modo.",
    "Sigue alternando las veces indicadas."
  ],
  "tips_en": [
    "The legs are the anchor: if one foot slides forward, the pelvis has moved.",
    "Lengthen upwards before each rotation instead of sinking into it.",
    "Turn the head with the trunk rather than leading with it."
  ],
  "tips_de": [
    "Die Beine sind der Anker: rutscht ein Fuß nach vorn, hat sich das Becken mitgedreht.",
    "Verlänger dich vor jeder Drehung nach oben, statt in sie hineinzusacken.",
    "Dreh den Kopf mit dem Rumpf, statt mit ihm vorauszugehen."
  ],
  "tips_es": [
    "Las piernas son el ancla: si un pie se adelanta, la pelvis se ha movido.",
    "Alárgate hacia arriba antes de cada rotación en lugar de hundirte en ella.",
    "Gira la cabeza con el tronco en lugar de que ella lidere."
  ],
  "met": 5.0,
  "images": {
    "flat": {
      "start": "images/flat/pilates-spine-twist-start.webp",
      "peak": "images/flat/pilates-spine-twist-peak.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 === "pilates-spine-twist");

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.