How many reps of the hanging knee raise should you do when you are new to the exercise?

3 sets of 8 to 12 controlled reps, resting up to 90 seconds since grip and shoulders fatigue too. Once you can do 3 sets of 12 with a full pelvic curl and no swing, move to the oblique or straight-leg version.

What can replace the hanging knee raise if there's no pull-up bar?

A lying leg raise or a captain's chair knee raise trains the same lower-ab curl without needing anything to hang from.

What is the hanging knee raise good for?

It's the gateway hanging ab exercise, building the pelvic-curl pattern and lower-ab strength needed for tougher hanging progressions. It's a poor choice for someone with shoulder impingement or an unstable grip injury; a dead bug or lying leg raise trains the same pattern from the floor without hanging load on the shoulders.

Intermediate

Hanging Knee Raise

The hanging knee raise is the gateway to all hanging ab work. Suspended from a bar, you curl your knees up and tilt the pelvis to shorten the lower rectus abdominis against gravity. It is far more manageable than the straight-leg version and teaches the pelvic curl you will need for tougher progressions.

Equipment: Pull-Up Bar
Body part: Abs
Type: Strength
Browse by muscle: Lower Rectus Abdominals
Browse by movement: Spinal Flexion

How to do it

1
Hang from a pull-up bar with an overhand grip and arms straight.
2
Let your body settle so it is not swinging.
3
Exhale and lift your knees toward your chest, curling your pelvis up at the top.
4
Pause when your thighs pass parallel and the abs are squeezed.
5
Inhale and lower your knees under control back to a straight hang.
6
Keep each rep smooth to avoid rocking on the bar.

Tips

Finish each rep by tilting the pelvis, not just bending the hips.
Kill any swing between reps so the abs, not momentum, lift the knees.
Use straps if your grip gives out before your abs do.

Variations

Common mistakes

The shoulders creep up toward the ears at the top of the raise, burning energy in the neck and traps instead of the lower abs.
The lift stalls before the thighs pass parallel and skips the pause there entirely, cutting out the top contraction the rep is built around.
Dropping fast out of the top instead of inhaling through a controlled lower turns the eccentric into a freefall the abs never feel.
Squeezing the bar in a death grip burns out the forearms early, ending the set before the abs are anywhere near fatigued.

Frequently asked

How many reps of the hanging knee raise should you do when you are new to the exercise?: 3 sets of 8 to 12 controlled reps, resting up to 90 seconds since grip and shoulders fatigue too. Once you can do 3 sets of 12 with a full pelvic curl and no swing, move to the oblique or straight-leg version.
What can replace the hanging knee raise if there's no pull-up bar?: A lying leg raise or a captain's chair knee raise trains the same lower-ab curl without needing anything to hang from.
What is the hanging knee raise good for?: It's the gateway hanging ab exercise, building the pelvic-curl pattern and lower-ab strength needed for tougher hanging progressions. It's a poor choice for someone with shoulder impingement or an unstable grip injury; a dead bug or lying leg raise trains the same pattern from the floor without hanging load on the shoulders.

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