Tighten Your Lower Abs With Vacuum Leg Raises With Feet Hooked

The hanging leg raise is a standard abdominal exercise targeting the lower abs...this variation improves on it.

To perform this one, you'll need a "hanging chair" piece of equipment (also known as a "Captain's Chair").

You'll set your hands on the dip handles that most of these benches have on the ends (or set them on the flat arm rests, if yours doesn't have those handles), facing inwards towards the backrest of the bench.

Now instead of doing a leg raise keeping the upper body vertical, you're going to draw your hips upwards, leaning forward, raising your legs up in front of you at the same time...like a reverse hip hinge type of movement.

As you raise your legs, you're going to aim to catch your toes on the bottom of the back rest. Your toes should be straight.

Now the real fun begins...

Keep trying to pull yourself UPWARDS while your toes are hooked and your legs are stopping the movement. This ramps up the tension.

Now use your anterior tibialis (front shin muscles) to pull your toes back which pulls your body towards your feet.

Resist this with your abs.

This simple addition to the movement at the top really cranks up the tension, specifically in the lower abdominal area (not the hip flexors).

Hold for a second or two then lower down.

Repeat for as many reps as you can get with good form.

This is a very simple one and very effective for targeting the lower abs without overworking the hip flexors.

---

Want 90 more unique and challenging exercises to SHRED your core? Check out The Best Core Exercises You've Never Heard Of!

Share This Page...

Want Another Killer Core Exercise Like This?

Another excellent combination exercise for tightening up and strengthening the deep muscles of the core is one that I call "Ab Rippers."

It sounds horrible but it's actually VERY effective, combining a push and a pull at the same time as the torque goes directly through the core.