How to do a Leg Pull-In
Reviewed by Jim Parker, CPT, B.A. Kinesiology
Workouts with Leg Pull-In
Target muscles worked
Instructions for Proper Form
Leg Pull in is a bodyweight exercise that targets your core. By raising your legs off the ground, you’re already engaging your core. Additionally your core helps to pull your legs in towards your chest.
- Lie on your back with your knees extended and arms by your sides with your palms facing down.
- Brace your torso by breathing into your stomach and flexing your abdominal muscles.
- Keep your arms on the floor as you pull your knees up to your chest while keeping your shins parallel with the floor.
- Once your thighs come into contact with your midsection, hold this position for a moment.
- Lower your legs under control to the starting position.
Common Form Mistakes
Dropping Your Heels
Don’t allow your heels to drop between reps. Keep them elevated throughout the entire exercise. You would be able to perform more reps by giving yourself some time to rest between reps, however it will make this exercise less effective. Focus on keeping your core engaged, and your legs elevated.
Sets & Reps Calculator
Average Leg Pull-In standards by male, female, gender, weight, age and height
Use this calculator to see Fitbod's possible first recommendations for you. This would be your starting line, based on more than 4.5 billion logged sets from 1.1 million users.
- beginner3sets9reps1 Set Max10reps
- intermediate4sets9reps11reps
- advanced4sets10reps12reps
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Alternatives & Variations to Leg Pull-In
1. Ab Crunch Machine
96.1 mSCORESWAPPED 6,056 TIMESAb Crunch Machine is a variation of Crunches performed with a machine. Unlike standard Crunches, the use of a machine gives you more control over your resistance. In addition, the machine will restrict your range of motion allowing you to focus more on exertion than stabilizing the movement.
- Intermediate
- Abs
- Ab Crunch Machine
2. Crunches
94 mSCORESWAPPED 4,125 TIMESCrunches are one of the most common exercises out there. It’s an easy to perform, bodyweight exercise that targets your abdominals. Crunches are very similar to Sit Ups, however, instead of raising your upper body all the way into a near sitting position, you only raise your shoulder blades off the ground. This is a great exercise for beginners looking to build core strength.
3. Plank
92.8 mSCORESWAPPED 3,888 TIMESPlanks are one of the most common core exercises out there. This is a bodyweight exercise that is performed for time rather than reps. Planks don’t require any movement, instead they force you to place yourself in a position that requires you to engage your core, and maintain that muscle activation for the duration of the exercise. This is a great way to help build strength and stability in a way that will translate to a variety of other exercises, and your daily life.
4. Vertical Knee Raise
92 mSCORESWAPPED 3,763 TIMESVertical Knee Raise is a bodyweight core exercise that involves suspending yourself, and then engaging your core to raise your knees towards your chest. By keeping your torso upright, and raising your knees, this exercise is a bit better for building functional, real world strength.
5. Russian Twist
96.2 mSCORESWAPPED 2,985 TIMESRussian Twist is one of the more common core exercises. This exercise targets multiple muscles in your core, but the reason for including this exercise is usually to target your obliques. By raising your feet off the ground, engaging your core, and twisting to each side, you can better target this specific muscle in your core.
6. Leg Raise
96.5 mSCORESWAPPED 2,776 TIMESLeg Raise is a simple bodyweight core exercise that involves laying on the ground and suspending your legs in the air. While your core does play a significant role in raising your legs, the real benefit comes from controlling their descent back to the floor.
7. Cable Crunch
88.8 mSCORESWAPPED 2,186 TIMESCable Crunch is a variation on the more standard Crunch. Unlike Crunches, this is a weighted exercise that does not have you laying on your back. Instead of using your bodyweight for resistance, you use a cable machine. This gives you more control over your resistance, as well as more control over the direction that resistance is coming from.
8. Sit Up
93.8 mSCORESWAPPED 2,117 TIMESSit Up is one of the most common exercises out there. It’s a bodyweight exercise that targets your core. Sit Ups are very similar to Crunches, however, rather than raising just your shoulder blades off the ground, you raise your entire upper body. This gives you a bit more range of motion than Crunches, however you’ll start to lose some tension in your core at the top of the movement.