# Side Lying Legs Lift - Canonical: https://fitwill.app/exercise/9334/side-lying-legs-lift/ - Media ID: 9334 - Primary muscle: Glutes - Body part: Hips - Equipment: Exercise Mat - Video: https://fitwill.app/videos/9334/side-lying-legs-lift.mp4 ## Description Side Lying Legs Lift is a bodyweight hip exercise performed lying on your side with your legs stacked and lifted together as one unit. Unlike the more common single-leg raise, this version raises both legs off the floor at the same time, which asks the outer hip of the bottom leg and the glutes of the top leg to work together while your trunk holds everything aligned. The image shows the setup clearly: the bottom arm reaches overhead along the floor, the top hand plants on the mat in front of the ribs for light support, and the legs stay long and stacked as they rise and lower. The main work comes from the hip abductors, especially the gluteus medius on the outside of the hip, along with the gluteus maximus and tensor fasciae latae. Because both legs lift together, the adductors on the inner thighs also contract to keep the legs squeezed against each other, and the obliques on the underside of your waist work hard to stop your torso from sagging or rolling. It is a deceptively demanding movement for such a small range of motion. This exercise is useful for anyone who spends long hours sitting, since seated habits often leave the side hips weak and inactive. It is also a common building block in knee and lower-body programs: stronger hip abductors help the knee track better during squats, lunges, and running. Dancers, runners, and people rehabbing or pre-habbing the hip and knee area often use it, and it appears frequently in Pilates and general core work for the same reason. The setup matters more than it looks. Lying on a mat with your whole body in one straight line, bottom arm extended overhead, keeps your spine long and gives you a stable base. If your hips roll forward or backward, or your lower back arches as the legs rise, the sides of your waist stop doing their job and the movement loses its target. Keep the top hand on the floor only for balance, not to push your torso upward. To execute it well, brace your waist gently, squeeze your legs together, and lift both feet off the mat a few inches in a smooth, controlled motion. Think of the legs rising as one piece with a slight lengthening through the heel. Pause briefly at the top, then lower with the same control, letting the legs hover just above the floor before the next rep rather than dropping fully onto the mat. Breathe steadily throughout, exhaling as the legs lift. Common use cases include warm-ups before lower-body training, standalone hip-strength circuits, and Pilates-style floor sessions. Start with two to three sets of eight to twelve slow reps per side. If your hip cramps or you feel it in your lower back, reduce the height of the lift or bend both knees slightly, which shortens the lever and makes the position easier to control. ## Instructions 1. Lie on your right side on an exercise mat with your body in one straight line from head to heels. 2. Extend your bottom (right) arm overhead along the floor so it rests in line with your ear, and place your top (left) palm flat on the mat in front of your ribs for light balance support. 3. Stack your left leg directly on top of your right, squeeze both legs together, and point or flex your feet consistently so they stay aligned. 4. Gently brace your waist and draw your belly in so your torso does not sag toward the floor. 5. Lift both legs off the mat together as one unit, raising them a few inches while keeping your hips stacked and your torso still. 6. Pause for a moment at the top with the legs hovering, feeling the work on the outside of the bottom hip and along both thighs. 7. Lower both legs slowly under control until they hover just above the mat, without dropping or resting between reps. 8. Exhale as you lift the legs, inhale as you lower them, keeping the breath steady rather than holding it. 9. Complete your set on this side, then roll over and repeat the same number of reps lying on your left side. 10. Between sets, roll onto your back or sit up briefly and shake out your hips before resetting your side-lying position. ## Tips & Tricks - The most common mistake is letting the top hip roll backward as the legs lift, which turns the exercise into a back-driven swing. Press your waist slightly toward the ceiling and keep both hip bones stacked. - Lifting the legs too high is another frequent error. Once the hips start tilting, you have passed your useful range; a few clean inches beats a big uncontrolled arc. - If your bottom hip cramps early, shorten the lever by bending both knees to about 90 degrees and lifting from the knees instead. This is a standard scaled version of the same lift. - Do not push hard into the floor with your top hand. It should only steady you; if you are pushing your torso up, your obliques are being cheated out of the stabilization work. - Keep the legs actively squeezed together during the lift. Letting them separate turns it toward two independent movements and reduces the adductor involvement that makes this version distinct. - If your neck or top shoulder gets tight, rest the side of your head on your bottom arm instead of reaching it fully overhead, or support it on a folded towel. - Move slowly on the lowering phase. Dropping the legs back to the mat between reps removes most of the muscle-building tension from the set. - On a very soft surface your balance suffers; use a firm mat so your bottom arm and top palm have a stable base. ## Frequently Asked Questions ### Which muscles does the Side Lying Legs Lift work the most? The main work comes from the hip abductors on the outside of the hip, especially the gluteus medius, supported by the gluteus maximus and the adductors that keep the legs squeezed together. The obliques on your underside stabilize the trunk throughout. ### Why lift both legs together instead of just the top leg? Raising both legs as one unit forces the bottom hip to hold and move the weight of both legs, which challenges the gluteus medius harder. It also trains the inner thighs and waist stabilizers more than a single-leg raise. ### Is the Side Lying Legs Lift suitable for beginners? Yes, as long as the range of motion stays small and controlled. Beginners often do better with the knees bent to 90 degrees, lifting from the knees, until the hips and waist can handle the straight-leg version. ### How high should I lift my legs at the top of the movement? Only a few inches, or to whatever height you can reach without your hips tilting or your lower back arching. Once the pelvis starts moving, the target muscles stop doing the work. ### Why does my bottom hip cramp during this exercise? The gluteus medius is often unaccustomed to this kind of sustained work, especially if you sit a lot. Reduce the hold time, lower the lift height, or bend your knees to shorten the lever, and the cramping usually eases as strength improves. ### What should my arms be doing in the Side Lying Legs Lift? The bottom arm reaches overhead along the floor to keep the spine long, and the top hand rests on the mat in front of your ribs for balance only. If you push down hard with the top hand, you start lifting with the shoulder instead of the hip. ### Can I substitute the Side Lying Legs Lift with standing hip abduction? Standing abduction with a band or cable trains similar hip abductor muscles, but it does not challenge the underside obliques and lying stabilizers the same way. Both are worth using, but they are not identical replacements. ### How many reps and sets should I do? Two to three sets of eight to twelve slow controlled reps per side is a solid starting point. Because the movement is short in range, prioritize tempo and control over adding many more repetitions. ### Should I feel this in my lower back? No, the effort should sit in the outer hip, thighs, and side of the waist. If your lower back works or aches, you are likely arching or rolling the pelvis; reduce the lift height and re-brace your waist before continuing.