A V sit-up is an advanced stomach exercise that starts lying on your back, arms stretched overhead and legs straight, with the feet hovering just above the mat. You lift your upper body and your legs at the same time and reach your hands along your shins, so your body forms a V balanced on your seat, then lower both halves back down with control. In the video the knees bend a little at the top and the feet stay off the mat between repetitions. It is hard work for the stomach and the hip flexors. It also asks much more of the lower back than a bent-knee crunch.

How to do the v sit-ups

Lie on your back on a mat with your legs straight and together and your arms stretched out on the floor beyond your head.
Tighten your stomach and press your lower back gently into the mat, then lift your heels a few inches off the floor, as in the video. If your lower back arches away from the mat here, rest your heels on the floor between repetitions instead.
Breathe out and swing your arms up and forward as you curl your head and shoulders off the mat. Keep going, lifting your chest and your legs together until you are balanced on your seat with your hands reaching along your shins toward your feet. In the video the knees bend a little at the top.
Breathe in and lower your upper body and legs together, slowly, until your shoulders are back on the mat, your arms are overhead and your feet hover just above the floor again.
Repeat at a slow, steady pace. If you have to jerk yourself up, or your lower back arches as you lower, bend your knees more or end the set.

What you should feel

Hard work across the whole front of the stomach and at the front of the hips. Your neck may tire, but there should be no neck pain and no pain in your lower back.

Common mistakes

Letting the lower back arch off the mat as the legs come down.
Throwing the arms forward to jerk the body up.
Crashing back to the mat instead of lowering both halves slowly.
Holding your breath through the set.

How often

An early goal in many programs is 5 to 8 slow repetitions, repeated for 1 to 3 sets a few days a week. End each set as soon as you need to jerk up or your lower back arches as you lower. Your physio will adjust this.

Stop and check with your physio if

Lower back pain, or pins and needles or numbness in a leg.
Neck pain, or tingling or numbness in an arm.
Pins and needles in your arm or hand that do not go away after you stop, or part of your arm or hand goes numb. Get medical advice the same day. If one side of your face or body suddenly goes numb or weak, or your speech becomes slurred or muddled, call emergency services, even if it goes away.
A bulge or ridge appearing along the middle of your stomach, or leaking urine.

From the clinic

V sit-ups are hard. Get comfortable with easier exercises first, such as abdominal crunches, the dead bug and leg raises. To make the V sit-up easier, bend your knees more so they come in toward your chest as you sit up, and let your heels touch the floor between repetitions. Both changes shorten the lever your stomach and lower back have to control. If your neck aches, look toward your knees and let the stomach do the lifting, and stop if it still hurts.

With osteoporosis or low bone density, leave V sit-ups out unless your physio has approved them, and the same applies after a spinal fracture. Each repetition bends the spine forward against the weight of your body, which is the kind of movement bone health programs usually ask you to limit. Disc trouble in your lower back, or back pain that runs into a leg, is a reason to check with your physio before trying them.

Check with your physio first as well if you have a hernia, have had stomach or back surgery, or have diastasis recti, where the stomach muscles have separated down the middle after pregnancy. Lifting both legs and your upper body together puts a lot of pressure on the pelvic floor, so stop if you leak urine or feel heaviness in your pelvis. If you are pregnant, skip V sit-ups and ask your midwife or physio which core exercises suit you.

Written and checked by the PocketPhysio editorial team. Last updated 2026-09-28.

This page is general education, not a diagnosis or a personal treatment plan. If you have pain, an injury or a health condition, see a physiotherapist or doctor before starting new exercises.

V sit-ups