Lying Leg Raise
Strengthen your core and target lower abdominal muscles with the lying leg raise. This effective exercise builds strength and improves hip flexor control.
Description
A lying leg raise is a core exercise that targets the lower abdominal muscles. The individual lies flat on their back, raises the legs up to about 90 degrees and then slowly lowers them back down.
How to Do Lying Leg Raise
- 1Setup
Lie flat on your back on a mat with your legs extended straight and together, and your arms resting alongside your body with palms down.
- 2Setup
Engage your core muscles by drawing your navel towards your spine, ensuring your lower back is pressed firmly into the floor.
- 3
Exhale as you slowly raise your legs towards the ceiling, keeping them straight and together, until they are perpendicular to the floor or as high as comfortable without arching your back.
- 4
Inhale as you slowly and with control lower your legs back towards the starting position, maintaining core engagement to prevent your lower back from lifting.
- 5
Stop lowering your legs just before your heels touch the floor, or at the point where you can no longer keep your lower back pressed into the mat, then immediately begin the next repetition.
Tips
- Emphasize the eccentric phase; focus on a slow, controlled descent of your legs to maximize time under tension and enhance core muscle engagement.
- If you find your lower back lifting, place your hands palms down slightly under your glutes for support, or slightly bend your knees to reduce leverage.
- Keep your gaze directed towards the ceiling and your chin slightly tucked to maintain a neutral neck position and avoid straining your cervical spine.
- Actively squeeze your glutes and inner thighs throughout the movement to help keep your legs straight and together, improving control and muscle activation.
Common Mistakes
- ×Arching the lower back excessively during the raise or descent can strain the spine; fix this by ensuring your entire lower back remains pressed into the floor by actively engaging your core.
- ×Using momentum to swing your legs up reduces abdominal work and control; fix this by initiating the movement purely with your core and hip flexors, performing a slow, deliberate lift.
- ×Dropping your legs too quickly on the descent can create unnecessary spinal stress; fix this by controlling the lowering phase, taking at least twice as long to lower as it did to raise.
Variations
Seated Leg Raise
Strengthen your core and hip flexors with the seated leg raise. This effective bodyweight exercise targets the rectus abdominis, improving abdominal
Lying Leg Raise Flat Bench
Strengthen your core and target lower abdominal muscles with the Lying Leg Raise Flat Bench.
Hanging Leg Hip Raise
Strengthen your core and hip flexors with the Hanging Leg Hip Raise. This challenging exercise targets your lower abs and obliques, building serious
Lying Leg Hip Raise on Floor
Strengthen your core and sculpt your lower abs with the lying leg hip raise. This bodyweight exercise targets the iliopsoas and rectus abdominis for a
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