7 Benefits Of Leg Raises In 2024: A Comprehensive Guide

Leg raises are the ab exercise you didn’t know you were missing. They help to target the obliques and the muscles you need to strengthen for six-pack abs.

They’re also one of the best exercises for strengthening the hip flexors. Strong hip flexors help you maintain better posture, improve athletic performance, and can even help alleviate low back pain. 

If leg raises aren’t a regular part of your workout regime, don’t worry. You’re going to learn about the benefits of leg raises and exactly why you need them in your life. Let’s get into it.

7 Benefits Of Leg Raises

If leg raises aren’t a regular part of your workout routine, they will be after you read about these benefits.

A Stronger Core

One of the most highly sought-after benefits of leg lifts is their ability to strengthen the core. Leg raises are effective for targeting the obliques and upper and lower rectus abdominis muscles.

The obliques are often referred to as the side abs as they are located more toward your ribcage. They help with twisting motions through the core and also help to support your spine.

Your upper and lower rectus abdominis muscles, on the other hand, are what give your core a six-pack appearance. These muscles help to bend the core forward, and because of this, are the most active during leg raises.

Many exercises involve the core muscles as stabilizers. However, leg raises are among the few that take the core muscles through both concentric and eccentric engagement. 

This is when your muscles shorten (concentric) or lengthen (eccentric) under tension. Growing evidence suggests that including eccentric exercises in a training routine is a good way to prevent and restore muscle loss. 

Therefore, anyone wanting to improve their core strength and appearance will benefit greatly from regularly practicing leg raises.

Improved Hip Flexor Strength

The hip flexors are a group of muscles located on the front of the hip. As the name suggests, they are responsible for flexing the hips, or simply put, drawing your thighs towards your torso.

The hip flexors can play an important role in a number of different sports, especially ones involving sprinting. They are also a key contributor to comfortable posture since they affect how your pelvis sits when you’re at rest.

However, the hip flexors, in comparison to some other major muscle groups, are often weak and underused. This is because when we sit all day, the hip flexors remain inactive and in a shortened position. 

Over time, prolonged muscle shortening causes the muscles to become tight and less flexible, a condition known as adaptive shortening. Adaptive shortening of the hip flexor muscles can limit mobility, cause low back pain, and impact your posture.

Leg raises are one of the best exercises for actively improving hip flexor strength. They can be used to counteract the negative implications of long days spent seated and improve your athletic performance.

For the best athletic results, use leg raises in addition to other leg workouts to strengthen the entire lower body.

Accessibility

Another benefit of leg raises compared to other popular lifts is how easy they are to perform.

No equipment is required and they can be performed anywhere, the gym or even the comfort of your own home. This reduces the barrier to entry, allowing complete beginners to reap the benefits of this exercise. 

It also means that if you incorporate leg raises into your regular workout regime, it will be easy to stick with them. Regardless of seasonal changes or busy periods of work, you always have the power to improve your physique.

Improved Posture

When it comes to improving posture, regularly performing leg raises can help in a few different ways.

Firstly, they help to strengthen the core muscles. This includes the rectus abdominis, transverse abdominis muscles, and obliques; all of which are considered important torso stabilizers.

These muscles work together to provide a stable base for the body. They make all the difference in preventing slouching and promoting an upright posture.

Also, as mentioned above, leg raises effectively strengthen the hip flexors, which in turn improves their flexibility. Since tight hip flexors directly affect the spine’s ability to comfortably support the body, strengthening them can also improve posture.

Reduced Lower Back Pain

Low back pain is one of the most prevalent conditions worldwide, affecting up to 619 million+ people. It can greatly reduce quality of life by causing chronic pain and affecting mobility.

Luckily, leg raises can help to prevent and reverse low back pain-causing conditions.

One of the reasons is that, as mentioned above, leg raises are an effective exercise for improving core strength. This can make all the difference in lumbar spine support, effectively reducing the load on your lower back.

And while hip flexor mobility isn’t the only cause of low back pain, it can definitely contribute to it. 

Tight help flexor muscles can cause excess anterior pelvic tilt, a condition where your pelvis is tilted more forward than average. This excess forward tilting can exaggerate the natural curve of the lower back (lordosis). 

While some degree of curve is okay, too much can place increased stress on the vertebrae in the lower back.

Low Impact

High-impact activities are ones that require both of your feet to be lifted off the ground simultaneously. For example, running is considered high-impact.

Although high-impact activities have been shown to improve bone density, they can also be harder on the bones and joints. The jarring of your feet hitting the ground as you run makes it unsuitable for people with certain pre-existing injuries.

Leg raises, on the other hand, are a low-impact exercise. This means they are safe for everyone to perform, as they strengthen muscles without putting undue stress on the joints.

Workout Variety

Any regular gymgoer will understand the importance of continually switching up exercises. Doing the same routine week in and week out can get boring, making it more difficult to regularly show up for workouts.

On top of that, practicing different exercise variations can help you to target different muscles. This is an important piece of building strength and a well-balanced physique.

Considering there are more than ten leg raise variations, as listed below, you have plenty of options to choose from. It’s an easy exercise to continually modify to maximize its muscle-building potential and keep things interesting.

Tips For Doing Leg Raises

• As you perform your leg raises, it’s important to keep your entire lower back on the floor at all times. Not doing so will transfer the tension from the abdominal muscles to the lower back, causing strains and discomfort.
• If you struggle to keep your low back grounded, try doing variations with your feet lifted higher off the ground. You can also try bending your knees. This makes it easier to keep the core engaged and the spine firmly planted.
• During the lifting and lowering phase of the exercise, make sure to move nice and slow. Doing so helps prevent momentum and gravity from doing the work for you, producing maximal core strengthening.

Variations

As mentioned above, one of the perks of leg raises is its wide range of variations. As your strength increases, you can take advantage of different leg raise variations for an exciting new challenge.

• Hanging Leg Raises — Hanging leg raises can be done on a pull-up bar with or without back support. Holding onto the bars, simply raise your straight or bent legs towards your chest. In addition to strengthening the same muscles as the lying variation, hanging leg raises help to improve grip strength. One study showed a 45% increase in grip strength from repeated dead-hangs that lasted 10–30 seconds.

• Decline Bench Leg Raise — Leg raises can also be performed on a decline bench with your head at the top of the incline. The declining body position adds resistance to the exercise, making it more challenging.

• Weighted Leg Raise — You can also perform the above variations while holding a dumbbell or using ankle weights to increase the intensity.

• Resistance Band Leg Raise — For an additional challenge, you can also use a resistance band. Simply attach the band to a sturdy object and lie on your back with the band around your feet.

To add variety to your workout, you can also experiment with different leg movement patterns. 

• Leg Circles — Start by lying on your back and squeezing your legs together while you move them in a circular motion. Just make sure to switch rotational direction.

• Flutter Kicks — Start by laying on your back with your legs extended and feet lifted slightly off the ground. Then, kick them up and down in a fluttering motion.

• Scissor Kicks — This variation is ideal for targeting the obliques. To do it, start by holding your legs one to two feet off the ground. Then, cross your shins over one another and alternate the top leg each time.

• Supine Marching — Start by laying on your back with both of your knees bent and feet firmly planted. Then, keeping one foot planted, lift one leg off the floor, drawing your bent leg in towards your chest. Return the lifted leg to the ground before switching sides.
• Dead Bug — This variation increases your arm involvement, which can help target the upper rectus abdominis muscles. Start laying on your back with your arms extended in front of you and your legs lifted and bent at 90 degrees. Slowly lower one leg and the opposite arm before returning to the starting position and switching sides.

Conclusion

This simple yet effective exercise can strengthen your core, improve your posture, and alleviate low back pain. 

For that reason, incorporating leg raises into your gym or at-home workout routine is a must. Especially for people who want to improve their core strength or spend most of their workday seated.

Luckily, leg raises are extremely easy to perform, requiring no equipment. There are also plenty of leg raise variations for you to choose from, so you won’t get bored.
There are plenty of options for incorporating this exercise into your workout routine. Some of our favorites include a 3 day workout split or 5 day workout split, but the choice is yours. Happy lifting!

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