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Hanging leg raise

Also called hanging leg raises, hanging straight leg raise, hanging toes to bar.

What is a hanging leg raise?

The hanging leg raise starts from a straight-arm hang and lifts straight legs in front of the body, finishing by curling the pelvis upward when range allows. It trains the hip flexors and abdominal wall while the grip and shoulders support the hang.

Anatomical illustration of a straight-leg hanging leg raise shown from a dead hang to feet near the bar, with the abdominal wall and hip flexors highlighted.

How do you perform a hanging leg raise?

Set up

  1. Take an overhand grip on a bar high enough that your legs can hang clear of the floor, then settle into a straight-arm hang.
  2. Bring the legs together, brace the trunk and let any initial swinging stop before the first repetition.

Execution

  1. Raise your straight legs in front of you without kicking or leaning far behind the bar.
  2. Continue as high as you can control; at the top, curl the pelvis toward the ribs instead of only folding at the hips.
  3. Lower the legs slowly to a quiet hang and stop the next rep from becoming a swing.

Common mistakes

  • Kipping the legs upward

    A swing supplies momentum before the hip flexors and abdominals do the work. Reset in a quiet hang.

  • Only folding at the hips

    The legs may rise while the pelvis stays unchanged. Finish by bringing the pelvis toward the ribs within your controlled range.

  • Dropping through the bottom

    A fast descent feeds the next swing and jars the hanging position. Lower until the body is still enough to repeat.

Where it fits in a session

Use it as direct abdominal work after the lifts for which grip and hanging strength need to be fresh.

If straight legs cause swinging, use bent knees and earn a controlled range before lengthening the lever again.

Muscles worked

Front
Front — Schematic surface view. Some muscles are partly visible or not shown.
Back
Back — Schematic surface view. Some muscles are partly visible or not shown.

Primary

Secondary

Select a muscle name to locate it.

Schematic surface view. Some muscles are partly visible or not shown.

The hip flexors raise the legs, while the abdominals control the pelvis and add the upward curl shown at the top. The forearms work isometrically to maintain the hang.

Variations

  • Hanging knee raise — Shortens the lever by bending the knees, making the movement easier to control.
  • Two frames of an anatomical figure lying face up on the floor, side by side on a white background, with no equipment drawn. In the left frame the legs are straight and together, resting flat on the floor with the arms down at the sides. In the right frame the same figure has raised both straight legs together to roughly thirty degrees above the floor, well short of vertical, with the hands flat on the floor beside the hips. In both frames the abdominal wall along the front and side of the torso is shaded red; the hip flexors at the front of the hip are not coloured.
    Lying leg raiseUses floor support and removes the grip demand.
  • Anatomical illustration of a kneeling cable crunch before and after the torso curls forward, with the abdominal muscles highlighted.
    Cable crunchTrains trunk flexion against a cable without raising the legs.

Frequently asked questions

What muscles do hanging leg raises work?

The iliopsoas and other hip flexors raise the legs. The rectus abdominis and obliques control and curl the pelvis, while the forearms hold the bar.

Should your legs stay straight during hanging leg raises?

This version uses straight legs, but a small comfortable knee bend is acceptable. Use a hanging knee raise if a shorter lever is needed to prevent swinging.

How high should you lift your legs?

Lift as high as you can without using a kick. Going above hip height is useful only if you can continue by curling the pelvis under control.

How do you stop swinging on hanging leg raises?

Begin from a still hang, lift without leaning back, lower slowly and pause long enough for any movement to settle before the next rep.

Sources

  1. Anatomy, Abdomen and Pelvis, Rectus Abdominis. StatPearls, NCBI Bookshelf. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK519044/
  2. Bordoni B, Varacallo M. Anatomy, Bony Pelvis and Lower Limb, Iliopsoas Muscle. StatPearls, NCBI Bookshelf. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK531508/

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