Plow Pose

Muscles worked by the Plow Pose

Primary

Lower BackErector SpinaeHamstringsHamstring Muscles

Secondary

GlutesGluteus MaximusTrapsTrapezius

Also called: erector spinae, spinal erectors, lower back muscles, back extensors, hamstring, hamstrings.

Equipment

No equipment — this is a bodyweight exercise.

How to do the Plow Pose

1. Lie on your back with the arms alongside the body, palms down.
2. Lift both legs overhead and support the lower back with the hands.
3. Lower the toes towards the floor behind the head, keeping the legs as straight as comfort allows.
4. Hold the position for the prescribed time, breathing steadily and keeping the head still.
5. Roll down one vertebra at a time with the hands supporting the back.

Form tips

• Never turn the head while you are in the pose; the neck is loaded and must stay neutral.
• Rest the toes on a chair or a stack of cushions if the floor is out of reach.
• Skip this pose entirely if you have any neck complaints.

At a glance

Plow Pose 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
• Cat-Cow
• Child's 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": "plow-pose",
  "name_en": "Plow Pose",
  "name_de": "Pflug",
  "name_es": "Postura del Arado",
  "description_en": "An inversion in which the legs pass overhead until the toes reach the floor behind the head, lengthening the whole back of the body.",
  "description_de": "Eine Umkehrhaltung, bei der die Beine über den Kopf wandern, bis die Zehen den Boden dahinter berühren - das verlängert die gesamte Körperrückseite.",
  "description_es": "Una inversión en la que las piernas pasan por encima de la cabeza hasta que los dedos de los pies llegan al suelo por detrás, alargando toda la parte posterior del cuerpo.",
  "category": "stretching",
  "force_type": "static",
  "mechanic": "compound",
  "difficulty": "intermediate",
  "body_part": "back",
  "primary_muscles": [
    "erector_spinae",
    "hamstrings"
  ],
  "secondary_muscles": [
    "gluteus_maximus",
    "trapezius"
  ],
  "goals": [
    "mobility"
  ],
  "tags": [
    "mobility",
    "stretching"
  ],
  "is_unilateral": false,
  "is_bodyweight": true,
  "instructions_en": [
    "Lie on your back with the arms alongside the body, palms down.",
    "Lift both legs overhead and support the lower back with the hands.",
    "Lower the toes towards the floor behind the head, keeping the legs as straight as comfort allows.",
    "Hold the position for the prescribed time, breathing steadily and keeping the head still.",
    "Roll down one vertebra at a time with the hands supporting the back."
  ],
  "instructions_de": [
    "Leg dich auf den Rücken, die Arme neben dem Körper, die Handflächen nach unten.",
    "Heb beide Beine über den Kopf und stütz den unteren Rücken mit den Händen.",
    "Senk die Zehen Richtung Boden hinter dem Kopf, die Beine so gestreckt, wie es angenehm bleibt.",
    "Halte die Position für die vorgegebene Zeit, atme ruhig und lass den Kopf völlig still.",
    "Roll Wirbel für Wirbel ab, die Hände stützen den Rücken."
  ],
  "instructions_es": [
    "Túmbate boca arriba con los brazos junto al cuerpo y las palmas hacia abajo.",
    "Eleva ambas piernas por encima de la cabeza y sostén la zona lumbar con las manos.",
    "Baja los dedos de los pies hacia el suelo por detrás de la cabeza, con las piernas tan estiradas como resulte cómodo.",
    "Mantén la posición durante el tiempo indicado, respirando con calma y sin mover la cabeza.",
    "Desciende vértebra a vértebra con las manos sosteniendo la espalda."
  ],
  "tips_en": [
    "Never turn the head while you are in the pose; the neck is loaded and must stay neutral.",
    "Rest the toes on a chair or a stack of cushions if the floor is out of reach.",
    "Skip this pose entirely if you have any neck complaints."
  ],
  "tips_de": [
    "Dreh den Kopf in dieser Haltung niemals zur Seite - der Nacken ist belastet und muss neutral bleiben.",
    "Leg die Zehen auf einen Stuhl oder einen Kissenstapel, wenn der Boden zu weit weg ist.",
    "Lass diese Haltung bei Nackenbeschwerden ganz aus."
  ],
  "tips_es": [
    "Nunca gires la cabeza dentro de la postura; el cuello está cargado y debe quedar neutro.",
    "Apoya los dedos de los pies en una silla o unos cojines si el suelo queda lejos.",
    "Evita esta postura por completo si tienes molestias cervicales."
  ],
  "met": 5.0,
  "images": {
    "flat": {
      "main": "images/flat/plow-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 === "plow-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.