How to do bird dogs
Hips stay square to the floor — don't let them rotate.
Step by step
- Start on your hands and knees, hands under shoulders and knees under hips.
- Extend one arm forward and the opposite leg straight back.
- Hold for a second with your back flat and your hips level.
- Return under control and switch sides — count both sides as one rep.
The cue that matters: Hips stay square to the floor — don't let them rotate.
How it progresses over eight weeks
In the Fitness Akhi programme, bird dogs appear on Upper Body day, for 3 rounds. The target rises every two weeks — these are the intermediate figures, and there are easier and harder tiers either side of them.
| Weeks 1–2 | Weeks 3–4 | Weeks 5–6 | Weeks 7–8 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 reps | 12 reps | 14 reps | 16 reps |
The target is a lookup, not a formula: each exercise has its own table, hand-set, so one movement can progress faster than another on the same day.
Where it fits
It is one of the exercises in a six-day rotation that runs for eight weeks. Each session is a circuit — you work through the day's exercises in order, then repeat the whole list 3 times — and the app walks you through it one screen at a time, keeping the phone awake so you never have to touch it mid-set.