The prisoner half situp is an abdominal exercise performed with body weight, focusing on the abs and hip flexors. It involves lying on your back, hands behind your head, and curling your torso up to a 45 degree angle before lowering back down.
Also Works
Hip Flexors
How to Perform
1
Lie flat on your back with your knees bent and feet flat on the ground.
2
Place your hands behind your head with your elbows pointing outwards.
3
Engaging your abs, slowly lift your upper body off the ground, curling forward until your torso is at a 45 degree angle.
4
Pause for a moment at the top, then slowly lower your upper body back down to the starting position.
5
Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.
Pro Tips
•Keep your hands interlocked behind your head with your elbows wide; do not let your elbows close together during the curl.
•The prisoner position increases the lever arm, making this harder than a standard half sit-up.
•Curl up to about 45 degrees and lower slowly for 2-3 seconds to maximize time under tension.
Common Mistakes
•Pulling on the neck with the hands to assist the curl, which strains the cervical spine and reduces ab work.
•Closing the elbows together in front of the face, which shortens the lever arm and makes the exercise easier.
•Using momentum to swing past the sticking point instead of controlled abdominal contraction.