The Superman exercise is a great bodyweight exercise to prevent lower back injuries, improve your posture, and develop a better connection between your mind and the muscles in your back and glutes. When it comes to exercises that can be done almost anywhere that target often-neglected muscle groups like your lower back, the superman exercise lives up to its name to save the day.
Due to the simplicity of the exercise, many mistakes are made when performing Superman. When raising the feet and arm, we must make sure that we raise them parallel to the ground. Keep your arm and leg straight and avoid bending your knee or elbow. It is imperative for the exercise that we hold the position at the top of the repetition. That is, when you raise your arm and leg alternately, you must maintain the position to do the job correctly. You may not feel this if you do not hold the position correctly.
Also, being upside down can prevent us from breathing as we normally would during exercise, but we must breathe to get oxygen to the muscles. In addition, the breath helps to stabilize the core and maximize the results of the exercise.
Superman exercise variants
Here we show you the best Superman exercise alternatives to further develop your butt and back. If the original exercise causes any pain or discomfort, or if you are looking for a variety of exercises to build hip and lower back strength for other athletic movements, substitute the following movements.
Remember that you want to feel your back working, but not straining. Stop the exercise if you feel any pain. Be careful or avoid this exercise if you have a back injury and after the first trimester of pregnancy.
Inverted hip extension on Fitball
This first variation is one of the most optimal options if you lack mobility or suffer from shoulder pain. It places a lot of emphasis on the lower back, glutes, and hamstrings. The stability ball elevates movement (literally) and can help you correct hitches in your technique, especially too much lower back movement; hyperextension could cause pinching which should be avoided. It's hard to hide technique errors on a stability ball.
Take a weight bench and place a stability ball on top of it. The ball should be small enough that when you lie on it, you can grab a bench. While maintaining your balance, lift your feet off the ground and while keeping your legs straight, lift your heels until your body hits parallel to the bench and lower your back down.
Try not to let your toes touch the ground between reps. The burn should be palpable in the lower back, glutes, and hamstrings toward the top of the rep.
inverted china plank
The reverse chin plank takes post-workout to the next level. It is an advanced isometric exercise for the entire posterior chain, especially the gluteal and lower back muscles. Using only your upper back and heels for support, you're fully on your lower back, glutes, and hamstrings to keep you from hitting the floor.
Using two boxes or weight benches, place one under your shoulders and the other under your heels while lying supine. From the moment your back is lowered until your heel touches the bench, you will not have any support. The goal is to maintain a plank position parallel to the ground by engaging your posterior chain.
When you're ready to increase the resistance, hold a weight plate or dumbbell close to your hips (it's best to have someone help you carry it). You should instantly feel the need to engage your glutes more to hold the plank.
Back Extensions – Superman on the machine
Performed from either a 45 or 90 degree angle, back extensions train the same muscles (from a different angle) as the superman and are an equally effective exercise for strength and muscle development of the lower back and glutes. .
Unlike the standard superman, this one can be loaded with plates, bars, dumbbells, or resistance bands. When you do this exercise, try each type of resistance source so you can feel each one. Your technique should stay the same no matter which one you use, but there are noticeable differences in practice.
good morning with bar
The Barbell Good Morning is a useful alternative for those who are more comfortable using a barbell and are focused on improving their squat or deadlift.
The bar puts pressure on the lower back, hips, and requires good shoulder mobility, so make sure you can perform them with proper form (work with a very light weight until proper form is achieved). If shoulder mobility or back pain is a problem, it would be best to lean more on the other alternatives listed above. Good days should be mastered with lighter loads before increasing intensity and range of motion.
Hip extension with hamstring curl
The movement of the stability ball requires that you mark your technique yourself. Any deviation in hip extension or curvature will cause you to fall off the ball.
First things first, while lying semi-supine, place one heel on the stability ball. From here, engage your glute, rotate your hips forward, and assume a plank position with your other leg bent.
Once you're in control, bend your straight leg contracting your hamstring to draw the stability ball toward you. However, do not relax the buttocks at any time; They must remain active at all times. Perform the eccentric move back to the board. Once there, lower your hips to the ground until your butt touches the ground and immediately climb back up on the board without resting.