Flutter Kicks

How to perform the Flutter Kicks

1. Lie on your back with legs straight, hands tucked under your glutes, and lift both heels a few inches off the floor.
2. Press the lower back firmly into the floor and hold it there for the whole set, since a flat lumbar is what keeps this off the hip flexors alone.
3. Brace the abs and alternate small, quick up-and-down kicks with straight legs, keeping the heels low and the knees mostly locked.
4. Keep the range shallow and the toes pointed, letting the abs work isometrically to stop the pelvis from tipping.
5. Maintain a steady flutter rhythm without letting the legs drift so high that tension leaves the abs or so low that the back arches.
6. End the set when the lower back can no longer stay pinned, then set the feet down rather than letting the lumbar pop up.

Suggested working range: 15–20 reps. Default progression: double progression.

Common mistakes

• •Letting the lower back arch off the floor once fatigue sets in, straining the lumbar.
• •Kicking the legs so high that tension leaves the abs and shifts to the hip flexors.
• •Bending the knees to make the kicks easier instead of keeping the legs long.
• •Fluttering so fast and wide that the pelvis rocks and the brace is lost.

Variations & alternatives

Swap in a related movement if equipment, recovery, or progression demands it.