Full back curl

Muscles worked: Back, Hamstrings, Glutes
BackHamstringsGlutes
🔧 no equipment ↕ Pull 🔁 reps Difficulty:

Muscle outlines from Body Muscles by Ivan Vulović, Apache 2.0 — regrouped and recoloured for Muscle Train.

How to perform

Stand tall, feet hip-width apart, knees slightly bent. Inhale, lengthen. Exhale, tuck your chin and roll down, initiating the curl from the neck. Let your head’s weight guide the movement; arms hang loose. Curl through the mid-back, feeling each vertebra release. Continue through the lower back, maintaining a smooth, controlled descent. Pause briefly at the bottom. Inhale as you reverse the sequence, stacking vertebrae from the bottom up, ending in the starting position. That’s one rep.

Muscles Worked

Erector spinae (full length)hamstringsglutes
Secondary: Multifidus, quadratus lumborum, deep cervical flexors, rectus abdominis

Tips

Curl one vertebra at a time, avoiding a hip hinge. The movement should resemble a slow, spinal wave. Maintain a slight bend in your knees to allow pelvic and spinal mobility. Let gravity assist the descent; avoid forceful pulling. The return phase is crucial – reverse the movement deliberately to build motor control and improve posture.

Similar exercises

Kettlebell squat curl Upper arms, Glutes, Abs · 🔧 Kettlebell 3/10 Dumbbell leg curl Hamstrings · 🔧 Dumbbells, Flat Bench 2/10 Rings leg curl Hamstrings · 🔧 Rings 4/10 Stability ball leg curl Hamstrings · 🔧 Stability Ball 3/10 Machine prone leg curl Hamstrings · 🔧 Leg Curl Machine 1/10 TRX alternating leg curl Glutes · 🔧 TRX 3/10 Resistance band leg curl Hamstrings · 🔧 Resistance band 1/10 Machine seated leg curl Hamstrings · 🔧 Machine 1/10
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