How to do hanging leg raises for a strong core

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

You will need more than one week of practice, but the result is worth it.

Why do hanging leg raises on a horizontal bar

Hanging leg raises are a real champion in core load. In this exercise, the rectus abdominis muscle is tense by 130% of the maximum voluntary contraction (when you yourself tense it with all your might without moving), and the oblique muscles by 88%.

Also, due to the lifting of the legs, the iliopsoas and rectus femoris muscles receive a good load. And since you are hanging, the muscles in your shoulder girdle and forearms also tighten.

Can hanging leg raises harm your back?

This exercise is often referred to as hazardous to the lower back. Indeed, the hanging lift on the horizontal bar provides a serious load on the spine. But at the same time, it cannot be called unequivocally dangerous.

One study compared the pros (activation) and cons (compression) of different movements for pumping the abdominal muscles. Raising straight legs provided significant compression of the spine, but at the same time it loaded the rectus and oblique muscles better than other movements. And the press fold, which is commonly used to create cubes, provided more compression, but at the same time pumped muscles worse.

Hanging leg raises are also called unsafe because of the load on the lumbar muscles. In people who remain seated for a long time, the iliopsoas muscles can shorten, increasing the deflection in the lower back and putting the spine at risk. It is believed that additional pumping of these muscles can make the problem worse.

However, hammered and strong muscles are not the same thing. For example, in one experiment, it was found that pumping the lumbar muscles does not increase the deflection in the lower back and does not harm posture.

Conversely, strong psoas increase hip control, help to activate the gluteus muscles better, and improve shuttle and sprint performance.

If you sit a lot, you can supplement your workouts with hip flexor stretches to keep your muscles not only strong, but also elastic. Hanging leg raises will not spoil your posture and, if performed correctly and with a healthy spine, will not lead to pain and injury.

If you doubt the health of your back or know that there are problems, first check with your doctor if you can perform such movements. Or immediately replace it with safer alternatives - crunches with the lower back pressed to the floor or a bar.

How to learn to hang leg raises on a horizontal bar

Hanging straight leg raises on a horizontal bar requires sufficient strength of the hip flexors and abdominal muscles, good stretching and grip strength. We will show you several movements that will help prepare your body for hanging leg raises and perform them without the risk of falling off the bar.

Raising your legs while lying on the floor

This movement does not require additional equipment and even a horizontal bar. It increases the strength of the hip flexors and the lower rectus abdominis muscle.

Unlike hanging leg raises on a horizontal bar, a similar movement on the floor creates more compression in the lumbar spine. Therefore, it should be performed a little differently in order to reduce the risks to the back.

Lie on your back, place your hands along your body, palms down. Bend your hips and knees at right angles, tighten your abs and press your lower back to the floor - this is the starting position.

Then lift your legs and lift your pelvis off the floor. Gently lower yourself to the starting position and repeat. Do 3 sets of 10 reps, then gradually increase the number of reps until you reach 25 reps per set.

Seated Leg Raises

This movement will help develop hip flexor strength without overloading your lower back.

Sit on the floor, tilt your body forward and place your palms behind your knees. Raise your straight legs and lower back. Try not to throw them, but return them to the floor smoothly. Do 3 sets of as many reps as you can with good form.

Raising the legs on an incline bench

Lie on a bench, put your hands behind your head and grab the edge with your hands. Raise your hips to a right angle with your body, bend your knees. Straining your abs, lift your legs up and lift your pelvis off the bench. Return to starting position and repeat.

Do 3 sets of 10-12 reps. If you don't have access to the gym (and incline bench), move on to hanging your knees to your chest while hanging from the bar.

Raising the legs in the captain's chair

This exercise will help strengthen your abs and hip flexors without clogging your forearms. You will be able to fully load the core, regardless of the strength of the grip. You can perform this movement on a special simulator - the captain's chair, or on two high boxes, as in the photo below.

Place your forearms on the pads of the simulator, press your back against the back and lower your shoulders. Tighten your abs and tilt your pelvis back, imagining that you are pulling your pubic bone towards your navel. Bend your knees and pull them up to your chest as high as you can.

Smoothly and under control, lower your legs back and, without relaxing your abdominal muscles, do the next repetition. Perform 3 sets of 10-15 times.

Raising the knees while hanging on the horizontal bar

Hang on the horizontal bar, holding the bar with a straight grip slightly wider than your shoulders. If you only have a parallel horizontal bar, as in the photo, this will also work.

Bend your knees and pull them up to your chest as close as you can. Try to tilt your pelvis back at the top point - so that the person in front of you sees your butt, not your knees.

Slowly lower your legs back and repeat again. Try not to relax your abdominal muscles throughout the exercise. Perform 3-5 sets of 10-15 times.

Back of the thigh stretch

For strict leg raises to the horizontal bar, not only muscle strength is needed, but also good flexibility. This exercise will help stretch the muscles on the back of your thigh.

Sit on the floor and stretch your legs straight in front of your body. Straighten up and bend forward, trying to reach your feet with your toes. You don't have to crochet your back in an attempt to reach - this will put more stress on your spine and won't do you any good.

If stretching is not enough, just grab a belt or expander, throw it over your feet and stretch forward, keeping your back straight. You should feel a gentle stretch in the back of your thigh, not severe pain. Fix the position and hold it for 30 to 60 seconds. Rest a little and repeat two more times.

Repeat the stretch regularly, morning and evening. Ideally, after a basic workout or at least a little warm-up. You can also combine the forward bend with other back-thigh stretches.

How to do hanging leg raises

Grasp the bar with a straight grip shoulder-width apart. Tighten your abs and tilt your pelvis back (pull your pubic bone towards your navel). This is the starting position you will return to after each rep.

Raise your legs up until the feet touch the horizontal bar. If you don't have enough stretch to lift your straight legs, you can bend your knees slightly.

Slowly lower your legs, returning to the starting position, and repeat the movement. It is important not to throw your legs down, but to bring them back under control. This not only protects your spine, but also puts more stress on your muscles.

Over time, try to straighten your legs more and more, but make sure that the body does not lie horizontally, as in the video on the right. This spoils the form and reduces the load on the muscles at the top of the exercise.

Continue to stretch the back of the thigh, and over time, you will be able to perform a strict leg raises to the bar without compensatory torso bending.

How else can you do the exercise

If you can do 10 strict leg raises to the bar without any problems, try other exercises.

Lifting legs with kipping

This movement is used in crossfit and functional all-around training. Due to inertia in this version, part of the load is removed from the press and hip flexors, but at the same time the arms and shoulders work more.

You should not do this exercise if you have shoulder problems, or if you are working on muscle strength and are not going to do crossfit workouts.

Grasp the horizontal bar with a straight grip wider than your shoulders. Swing your body, pushing your shoulders first back and then forward so that your chest goes beyond the horizontal bar, and your body becomes like the bend of a bow.

Having gained momentum in this way, push your shoulders back and at the same time raise your legs, touching the horizontal bar with the toes of your sneakers. Lower your legs again, while simultaneously feeding your chest forward for the next acceleration.

You can perform this movement with your legs straight or bent. In the latter version, you first pull your knees to your chest, and then sharply straighten them, touching the horizontal bar with your feet.

By kipping you can do more reps without jumping down. But be careful: in this version, due to inertia, the risk of injuring the shoulders and falling off the bar greatly increases.

Resistance Leg Raises

To increase the difficulty of the movement, you can put weights on your legs, as well as squeeze a medicine ball, medicine ball, or a small dumbbell between your ankles.

Observe all the technical points for classic leg raises.

How often to do hanging leg raises on the horizontal bar

Do this movement 1-2 times a week, three sets of 10-15 times. If you can do more, add resistance and reduce the number of times per set.

Don't leave hanging leg raises as your only abdominal exercise. Since it creates a lot of compression, alternate with regular curls, plain and side planks.