Home / Exercises / Incline Leg Hip Raise (Leg Straight)
Incline Leg Hip Raise (Leg Straight) animation

How to do the Incline Leg Hip Raise (Leg Straight)

CoreAbsBodyweightIntermediate

The incline leg hip raise with straight legs is one of the most demanding bodyweight core movements, forcing your abs to control both leg elevation and hip flexion against gravity's full resistance. Master this and you build the kind of deep, functional abdominal strength that transfers to every athletic movement you train.

Add this to my personalized plan →

Muscles worked

Primary
AbdominalsObliques
Secondary
Hip flexorsLower back

Step-by-step

  1. Lie back on an incline bench with your head at the top, grip the pad or handles firmly behind your head, and extend both legs straight out at a slight downward angle to start.
  2. Brace your core hard, then drive your straight legs upward by first flattening your lower back into the bench before any hip movement begins.
  3. Continue lifting until your hips curl off the bench and your legs point toward the ceiling, squeezing your abs at the top of the movement.
  4. Lower your legs in a slow, controlled arc back to the start position without letting your lower back arch away from the bench.

Common mistakes

  • Using momentum by swinging the legs up instead of initiating with an abdominal contraction, which shifts the work to your hip flexors and removes tension from the abs entirely.
  • Letting the lower back arch and lift off the bench at the bottom of the rep, which compresses the lumbar spine and signals your abs have lost control of the movement.
  • Dropping the legs too fast on the descent, surrendering the eccentric phase where significant strength and muscle development occurs, so lower with a deliberate 2 to 3 second count.

Pro tip — At the top of each rep, think about tilting your pelvis posteriorly by driving your tailbone toward the ceiling rather than just lifting your legs, this small pelvic tuck maximally shortens the rectus abdominis and turns a good rep into a great one.

Sets & reps by goal

Build muscle3–4 sets × 10–15 reps
Get stronger3–4 sets × 6–8 reps
Lose fat / tone3 sets × 12–20 reps

Rest: 60–90 sec between sets.

More Core exercises

3 4 Sit Up3 4 Sit UpAir BikeAir BikeBarbell Seated TwistBarbell Seated TwistBarbell Side Bent IIBarbell Side Bent IIBarbell Standing TwistBarbell Standing TwistBarbell Stiff Leg Good MorningBarbell Stiff Leg Good Morning
Want this built into a full plan?2fit4u turns moves like this into your personalized weekly program — free to start.
Build my free plan →