Core · Bodyweight
Quarter Sit-up with Pillow
How to do the quarter sit-up with pillow, the muscles it works, and the mistakes to avoid. Pulled straight from the Kovo app's exercise library.
- Equipment
- Bodyweight
- Difficulty
- Beginner
- Logged as
- Reps
- Movement
- Flexion
- Mechanic
- Isolation
How to do it
Lie on your back with your knees bent and a pillow placed under your lower back or behind your head for support. Curl your shoulders and upper back a short way off the floor, contracting your abs through the first quarter of a full sit-up, then lower under control. Keep the range small and the abs working.
- 1Your upper abs contracting as your shoulders lift off the floor
- 2A short, controlled curl rather than a full sit-up
- 3Your lower back staying supported against the pillow
Common mistakes
- Do not pull on your neck to lift yourself up
- Avoid using momentum to swing up off the floor
- Do not hold your breath; exhale as you curl up
Muscles worked
The quarter sit-up with pillow mainly works the upper abs, with the lower abs and obliques assisting.
- Upper AbsPrimary
- Lower AbsSupport
- ObliquesSupport
- Hip FlexorsMinor
Kovo programs the quarter sit-up with pillow for you and tracks it every session.
We build your whole program, drop the right lifts into each workout, and adjust your weights as you get stronger. Free on iOS and Android.
More abs & core exercises
- How to do the ab wheel rollout
- How to do the ankle tap plank
- How to do the ankle taps
- How to do the resistance band dead bugs
- How to do the resistance band pallof press
- How to do the rollout
Last reviewed June 2026.