Dead Bug is a great exercise to improve core muscle strength, endurance, and functional capacity. The problem is, often times people are compensating by over arching their back and don't even realize this. When you over arch your low back, you have now took the demand off of the core muscles. . Here is a hack to ensure you are NOT Cheating your Dead Bug! . 1. Anchor a band onto a stable surface then stretch it behind your low back region prior to getting into this position. 2. Perform your dead bug, whichever variation you prefer. 3. Focus on squishing the band with your low back, this will ensure that you are engaging the core! . ❌If the back overarches you will notice the band begin to pull towards its anchor. . 💥Fun fact: A recent study compared core activity with 3 different speeds of the bird dog (60, 90, and 120 beat. The highest activity of Rectus Abdominus and Obliques were found when perfomring this exercise with higher speed. These findings demonstrate that the performance of the dead-bug exercise with both the upper and lower extremities combined at a high speed. . Note: These mechanics also apply to other core exercises! . Citation: "Changes in Muscle Activity of the Abdominal Muscles according to exercise method and speed during dead bug exercise." By: Yun et al. 2017
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