Physiotherapy · Core

Dead bug

Target Abdominals  ·  Equipment Body weight  ·  Level Beginner  ·  Reps 4

Dead bug is a beginner-level physiotherapy movement targeting the abdominals, written in Posecode, a small open-source language that capable language models can use to describe human movement as text. Authored joint targets and reach-IK solves are constrained to Posecode's configured per-axis bounds. Those bounds constrain the visualization, but they do not certify that a complete movement is safe or clinically correct. This page documents a code example; it is not exercise instruction.

Movement phases

Phase cues are display-only coaching text. The executable joint and contact directives in the source below determine the animation.

1. Set1s · flow Arms reach to the ceiling, knees stacked over the hips
2. Extend right arm & left leg1.2s · flow Lower the right arm overhead and the left leg toward the floor
3. Switch1.2s · flow Return and switch: left arm and right leg reach out
4. Return1s · settle Bring everything back to the start position

The .posecode source

This is the exact text used by the linked playground animation: phases and joint angles, not 3D transforms.

posecode exercise "Dead bug"
  rig humanoid
  pose start = supine

  step "Set" 1s flow:
    shoulders: flex 90
    hips: flex 90
    knees: flex 90
    ground-lock: back
    cue "Arms reach to the ceiling, knees stacked over the hips"

  step "Extend right arm & left leg" 1.2s flow:
    shoulder_right: flex 150
    hip_left: flex 20
    knee_left: flex 5
    ground-lock: back
    cue "Lower the right arm overhead and the left leg toward the floor"

  step "Switch" 1.2s flow:
    shoulder_right: flex 90
    hip_left: flex 90
    knee_left: flex 90
    shoulder_left: flex 150
    hip_right: flex 20
    knee_right: flex 5
    ground-lock: back
    cue "Return and switch: left arm and right leg reach out"

  step "Return" 1s settle:
    shoulder_left: flex 90
    hip_right: flex 90
    knee_right: flex 90
    ground-lock: back
    cue "Bring everything back to the start position"

  repeat 4

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