A female barre instructor is on the floor in a barre studio in a mid back curl position, her lower back is on the floor, her upper back, head and legs are raised.

Perfect your Mid-Back Curl

21 November 2017

The Mid-Back Curl is a great move for working all areas of your abdominals. Here's a video with some tips from our Teacher Trainers on how to perfect your technique.

 

  1. Lie on the floor. Ensure your knees are bent and your heels close to your seat
  2. Float your legs to 'table-top' and take a hold round the back of thighs. Inhale, and as you exhale lift your head, neck and shoulders off the floor.
  3. Scoop out the abdominals, making sure your tail bone is tucked and you’re focusing on pushing your rib cage down towards the floor. Ensure your back is not arching.
  4. Inhale, and as you exhale lift your head, neck and shoulders off the floor. Everything below the rib cage needs to stay attached to the ground whilst everything above it should be lifted off the floor to create a nice curved shape in the spine.
  5. Don’t let your arms take all the weight, in doing this, you’re really engaging your core and making it work even harder.
  6. Once you’re there, you can then start making tiny, isometric movements up and down, making sure you hold still at the top and at the bottom of the movement. These tiny pulses work into your rectus abdominals which is that six pack layer you can see.
  7. You can also twist the movement, reaching side to side, whilst still holding onto the backs of your thighs, this will work your obliques as well.