# Siting Floor Leg Raise - Canonical: https://fitwill.app/exercise/9487/siting-floor-leg-raise/ - Media ID: 9487 - Primary muscle: Abs - Body part: Core - Equipment: Body Weight - Video: https://fitwill.app/videos/9487/siting-floor-leg-raise.mp4 ## Description The Sitting Floor Leg Raise is a bodyweight core movement performed from a seated position on the floor. You plant your hands on the ground slightly behind your hips, lean your torso back a few degrees, and lift your legs off the floor before drawing them in toward your chest, then extend them back out under control without letting them touch down. It looks simple, but because your torso stays anchored behind you, your hip flexors and lower abdominal fibers have to work through a long range with no help from a bench or a hanging position. This exercise is especially useful for people who struggle with hanging leg raises or captain's chair knee lifts. On the floor you have no grip demands and no body-swing to fight, so you can focus entirely on moving the legs from the hip and keeping the trunk rigid. It also suits home trainees, since it needs nothing more than a patch of floor and enough arm strength to support your upper body while your legs travel. The primary work comes from the hip flexors, particularly the iliopsoas and rectus femoris, which drive the thighs up toward the torso. The lower portion of the rectus abdominis works hard to keep your pelvis from tipping forward and your lower back from arching as the legs extend away. The quadriceps keep the knees straight, and the triceps and shoulders take a supporting role as they hold your torso upright against the backward lean. Setup matters more here than in most floor ab work. Sit with your legs fully extended, hands just outside your hips with fingers pointing forward or slightly outward, and lean back only until you feel your weight settle comfortably over your palms. If you sit too upright, the lift feels easy but you lose abdominal involvement; if you lean back too far, your shoulders and triceps take over and your lower back is pulled into a hard arch as the legs extend. Finding the middle ground is what makes the movement hit the intended muscles. To execute it well, think of lifting your thighs first and letting the knees follow, rather than swinging the feet. Draw the knees in until they approach your chest, pause briefly, then extend the legs back out to a hover just above the floor. The lowering phase should take about twice as long as the lift, because that controlled extension is where most of the lower-abdominal demand lives. You will see this movement used as a progression toward hanging leg raises, as a warm-up activation for hip flexor work, or as a higher-rep finisher at the end of a core session. Keep the reps deliberate and the legs from ever fully resting on the floor between reps if you want the set to stay honest. ## Instructions 1. Sit on the floor with your legs extended straight in front of you and your feet together. 2. Place your palms flat on the floor just outside your hips, fingers pointing forward, and lean your torso back until your weight shifts onto your hands. 3. Brace your abdominal wall and gently press your lower back toward a neutral position so it does not arch before the movement starts. 4. Exhale and lift both legs off the floor, bending your knees and drawing your thighs up toward your chest. 5. Keep the movement driven by the hips, not by swinging your feet or shrugging your shoulders. 6. Raise until your knees come close to your chest and you feel your thighs press toward your abdomen. 7. Pause for a beat at the top, then slowly extend your knees and lower your legs back toward the floor, stopping just before your heels touch down. 8. Inhale as the legs travel back out, then begin the next lift without resting your feet on the ground. 9. Keep your chest tall and shoulders down away from your ears throughout, letting your arms support rather than push. 10. At the end of the set, lower your legs fully to the floor, shake out your wrists and shoulders, and rest before the next set. ## Tips & Tricks - If your heels drag or slap the floor on the way out, your lowering phase is too fast; count two to three seconds on the extension to keep tension on the lower abs. - Watch for your hips sliding forward on each rep, which turns the exercise into a small crunch-scoot; anchor your sit bones in place and let only the legs move. - If your wrists ache during the set, slide your hands an inch further back or make fists and rest on your knuckles to keep the wrists straighter. - Rounding your upper back and dropping your chest toward your knees is a common way to fake the top position; lift the thighs toward the torso instead of collapsing the torso toward the thighs. - Straighten the legs only as much as you can without your lower back arching off its neutral line; if extending fully pulls your back into a sway, keep a slight knee bend. - Keep your shoulders pulled down and your elbows mostly straight so the triceps and shoulders support you instead of doing half the work through little bicep curls of the arms. - Breathe out sharply as the knees drive in; holding your breath through the whole rep usually leads to a loose trunk and a swaying lower back. - To make the exercise harder, hover your extended legs an inch off the floor between reps; to make it easier, tap your heels down lightly at the end of each extension. ## Frequently Asked Questions ### What muscles does the Sitting Floor Leg Raise work? The hip flexors, especially the iliopsoas and rectus femoris, drive the legs up, while the lower abdominals stabilize the pelvis and control the extension. The quadriceps help keep the knees straight and the triceps support your upper body. ### Is the Sitting Floor Leg Raise good for beginners? Yes, it is one of the more approachable leg raise variations because there is no grip demand or hanging position to manage. Beginners can bend the knees more and let the heels lightly touch the floor between reps to reduce the load. ### Why do my hands and wrists fatigue before my abs during the Sitting Floor Leg Raise? Your arms carry a share of your bodyweight throughout the set, so grip and wrist endurance can give out first. Spread your fingers wide, press through the whole palm, and build up wrist tolerance gradually, or shorten your sets at first. ### Should my legs stay straight or bent during the Sitting Floor Leg Raise? The image of the movement shows the knees drawing in toward the chest and the legs extending as they lower, so a bent-knee lift with a controlled extension is standard. Straightening the legs throughout makes the exercise noticeably harder on both the hip flexors and the lower back. ### How is the Sitting Floor Leg Raise different from a hanging leg raise? The seated version removes grip fatigue and body swing, so you can focus on clean hip and abdominal work, but it loads the muscles less because the legs travel a shorter arc. It works well as a stepping stone toward hanging variations. ### How far back should I lean when setting up for the Sitting Floor Leg Raise? Lean back only until your bodyweight settles over your palms, roughly a slight backward tilt of the torso. Leaning too far back shifts effort into the shoulders and pulls your lower back into an arch as the legs extend. ### My lower back arches and aches when I extend my legs out. What should I change? Stop the extension earlier, before your heels reach their lowest point, and keep a small knee bend. Also tighten your abdominal wall before each rep so your pelvis stays stacked instead of tipping forward. ### Can I substitute the Sitting Floor Leg Raise with another exercise? Lying leg raises, reverse crunches, and seated knee tucks on a bench or chair all train similar hip flexor and lower abdominal patterns. The seated floor version is distinct in that your arms support your torso, so these substitutes will feel somewhat easier on the upper body. ### How many reps of the Sitting Floor Leg Raise should I do? Aim for sets of 8 to 15 controlled reps where the legs never rest on the floor between repetitions. If you cannot keep your lower back neutral past 10 reps, stop the set there rather than grinding out extra reps with an arched back. ### Is it safe to do the Sitting Floor Leg Raise every day? Because it is a moderate-load bodyweight movement, frequent practice is generally fine for healthy trainees. Still, treat it like any strength exercise and leave a day of recovery after demanding sessions, especially if your wrists or hip flexors feel worked.