What it means
دراز و نشست (derâz-o-neshast) is the Persian term for a “sit-up.” It is a descriptive compound formed from two pure Persian elements: دراز (derâz), meaning “long” or “lying flat,” and نشست (neshast), the past stem of نشستن (neshestan), meaning “to sit.” Together they literally describe the motion of the exercise: lie flat, then sit up. The word is colloquial and informal in register, used in everyday gym and school PE class speech. A less common formal variant you may encounter in written fitness guides is حرکت دراز و نشست (harakat-e derâz-o-neshast), adding the word for “movement” or “exercise.”
How to use it
- بیست تا دراز و نشست رفتم. (bist tâ derâz-o-neshast raftam.) “I did twenty sit-ups.”
- دراز و نشست برای عضلات شکم خوبه. (derâz-o-neshast barâye azolât-e shekam khube.) “Sit-ups are good for the stomach muscles.”
- هر شب قبل از خواب دراز و نشست میزنه. (har shab qabl az khâb derâz-o-neshast mizane.) “Every night before sleep, he/she does sit-ups.”
- تو کلاس ورزش گفتن سی تا دراز و نشست بزنیم. (tu kelâs-e varzesh goftan si tâ derâz-o-neshast bezanim.) “In PE class they told us to do thirty sit-ups.”
Cultural note
Physical education is a compulsory subject in Iranian schools from primary level onward, and exercises like دراز و نشست are part of the standard curriculum. The descriptive naming pattern of this word, where the compound describes the physical action rather than borrowing a foreign term, is typical of how Persian handles exercise vocabulary. Many Iranian fitness terms follow this pattern, coining native descriptive words rather than adopting English gym jargon.