How to do a Standing Leg Side Hold
Reviewed by JP Michelsen, CPT, B.A. Kinesiology
About Standing Leg Side Hold
Target muscles worked
Instructions for Proper Form
Standing Leg Side Hold is an isolation exercise that primarily targets the glutes and hip abductors. By raising one leg to the side and holding it there, you engage these muscles to maintain stability and balance. This exercise helps improve balance, stability, and muscle endurance. It's a great addition for anyone looking to fine-tune lower body strength and muscle control.
- Stand with your weight on one foot and raise your opposite leg out to the side such that your toes are pointing in front of you.
- Tense the muscles in your thighs, hips and glutes.
- Hold this position for the duration of the exercise.
- Maintain good posture by keeping your core engaged for stability, your shoulders back and your chest up. Keep your legs straight with a slight bend in your knees.
- You should feel this exercise primarily in your glutes and hips.
Alternative Exercises to Standing Leg Side Hold
1. Single Leg Kickback
86.2 mSCORESWAPPED 690 TIMESSingle Leg Kickback is a compound, bodyweight exercise that primarily targets your glutes. The exercise requires you to engage your glutes, and kick your leg back and up with your knees bent. Targeting each side independently is a great way to identify discrepancies in mobility and strength between sides.
- Beginner
- Glutes
2. Dumbbell Hip Thrust
88.1 mSCORESWAPPED 624 TIMESThis exercise is a weighted variation on the more standard Hit Thrust. By holding a dumbbell against your hips, you can add a bit more resistance to this usually bodyweight exercise. This is a great variation for adding a bit more difficulty to your Hip Thrusts.
3. Hip Thrust
97 mSCORESWAPPED 616 TIMESHip Thrust is a compound, bodyweight exercise that primarily targets your glutes. This is a great beginner exercise that can help you learn and develop your glute drive, which is helpful for a number of different exercises and general movements. It’s a simple and easy to perform exercise that can help you develop strength.
- Beginner
- Glutes
4. Straight Leg Kickback
57.6 mSCORESWAPPED 497 TIMESStraight Leg Kickback is a bodyweight exercise that primarily targets the glutes. By extending your leg out behind you, and off the ground, you’re already engaging your glutes and hamstrings. By pulsing your leg up and down, you take your already engaged glutes, and move them through a limited range of motion. This is a great exercise for isolating the glutes.
- Beginner
- Glutes
5. Dumbbell Glute Bridge
69.3 mSCORESWAPPED 495 TIMESThis exercise is a weighted variation of the more common Glute Bridge. Like other Glute Bridge variations, this exercise primarily targets your glutes. By placing a dumbbell against your hips, you can add a bit more resistance to this exercise. This is a great variation for anyone looking to make their Glute Bridge a bit more challenging.
6. Single Leg Hip Thrust
80.4 mSCORESWAPPED 387 TIMESSingle Leg Hip Thrust is a variation on the more standard Hip Thrust. Like other Hip Thrusts, this compound exercise primarily targets the glutes and hamstrings. By performing the exercise one leg at a time, you add more instability to the movement, which can help improve muscle activation and address strength discrepancies between sides. This variation provides a greater focus on single-leg strength and balance.
- Beginner
- Glutes
7. Glute Kickback Machine
94.6 mSCORESWAPPED 383 TIMESGlute Kickback Machine is a variation on the more standard Single Leg Kickback. Unlike the standard variation, this exercise uses a machine to add resistance to the movement rather than just bodyweight. This gives you a bit more control over your resistance, and can be more easily scaled to your current capabilities. Additionally, the use of a machine restricts your range of motion, and adds stability to the movement. This lets you focus more on exertion than stabilizing the movement.
- Beginner
- Glutes
- Glute Kickback Machine
8. Cable Hip Extension
89.9 mSCORESWAPPED 351 TIMESCable Hip Extension is an exercise that involves strapping your leg to a cable machine, and then extending your leg out behind you. The use of a cable allows you to have precise control over the direction your resistance is coming from. This lets you perform this exercise from a standing position unlike many other similar exercises that require you to lay on the ground.
- Beginner
- Glutes
- Hi-Lo Pulley Cable
9. Frog Pump
53.8 mSCORESWAPPED 321 TIMESFrog Pump is a variation on the more standard Hit Thrust. Like Hip Thrust, this is a compound, bodyweight movement that primarily targets the glutes. By placing your feet together with your knees flared out to either side, you can further recruit your hip flexors.
- Beginner
- Glutes
10. Kettlebell Swing American
83 mSCORESWAPPED 312 TIMESThis exercise is a variation on the more common Kettlebell Swing. Like the more standard version, this is a compound, explosive movement that primarily targets the glutes. By swinging the kettlebell overhead, this exercise can better translate to some more advanced exercises like Snatches. This is a great exercise for developing power.
- Intermediate
- Glutes
- Kettlebells