Entering a simple hollow body hold

This topic is maybe sickening to read about for those of you who have mastered it already. I apologize.

But anyway, let's see if this is the correct way.

(The legs portion of this depends on how strong you are. If you're not so strong, you'll have to have them tucked to your chest, if you're stronger then you can extend a bit more, etc.. So let's put that aside and focus on the upper body.)

I have been entering the hollow hold in two ways, and I can't figure out which one is correct.

1) Crunching up, so that your upper back is clearly off the floor. This way, my lower back is pressed firmly into the ground and it can only come off of the ground if I let go of the crunch. So in this position I can not arch while staying crunched.

2) Lay on the floor, tuck your chin to your chest, protract your shoulders, then depress them. This way, I have to actively press my lower back on the floor. In this position I can easily arch if I let go of PPT. So I can have my arms, head, shoulders and legs off the ground and still arch.

As long as you can maintain posterior pelvic tilt, either of them is correct.

You may need to stretch out your lower back.

Sort of the crunch is my preference, but not a 'crunch' in the sense of a curl up of the back. You want to keep it as long as possible, I always think of a sort of 'straight crunch'

Jon Douglas said:

Sort of the crunch is my preference, but not a 'crunch' in the sense of a curl up of the back. You want to keep it as long as possible, I always think of a sort of 'straight crunch'

A straight crunch! Brilliant!

I always crunched heavily. This worked for the tuck version of hollow body hold, but with my legs extended I could not crunch like this while having my arms next to my body because I just fell out of balance, landing on my ass. I had to raise my arms over my head to counter balance.

Paulizdaman said:

A straight crunch! Brilliant!

I always crunched heavily. This worked for the tuck version of hollow body hold, but with my legs extended I could not crunch like this while having my arms next to my body because I just fell out of balance, landing on my ass. I had to raise my arms over my head to counter balance.

How is your arm placement, it is a little unclear? Arms should optimally be positioned at least next to you ears. Having them down by the hips can make this exercise a lot easier, but it depends on a lot of factors.