Hanging Knee Raise

What is the Hanging Knee Raise?

The hanging knee raise is the beginner-friendly regression of the hanging leg raise: hanging from a pull-up bar, you raise bent knees toward your chest. Bending the knees shortens the lever, making it far more manageable while still training the abs from the bottom up.

Muscles worked

Primary: Abs

The rectus abdominis drives the movement, flexing the trunk and curling the pelvis to draw the knees up, with the lower fibers doing much of the work.

Stabilizers

Grip and forearms hold you to the bar isometrically, while the transverse abdominis braces to keep the body from swinging.

How to perform the Hanging Knee Raise

1. Hang from a pull-up bar with a secure grip and active shoulders, letting the body settle so there is no swing.
2. This is a shorter-lever version of the hanging leg raise, but it still requires a pelvic tuck to load the abs rather than the hip flexors.
3. Raise the knees by first tucking the pelvis, then drawing the thighs up toward the chest by curling the hips.
4. Bring the knees up until the thighs pass horizontal and the lower abs are fully shortened at the top.
5. Pause at the top and avoid using a kick or swing to fling the knees upward.
6. Lower the knees slowly under control back to a straight hang, keeping the shoulders active and the swing killed.

Suggested working range: 12–20 reps. Default progression: double progression.

Mechanics

A hanging, bottom-up trunk-flexion isolation with a shortened lever: bending the knees brings the load closer to the hips, so raising them takes far less strength than straight legs. As with the leg raise, curling the pelvis toward the ribs at the top is what shifts the work from the hip flexors to the abs.

Form cues

• •Curl the pelvis up as the knees rise. The top of the rep is a small posterior tilt, not just tucking the thighs up.
• •Start from a controlled hang and avoid swinging; let the abs, not momentum, lift the knees.
• •Lower the knees slowly back to the hang instead of letting them drop, keeping tension on the abs.

Common mistakes

• •Drawing the knees up by hinging at the hips without tucking the pelvis to engage the lower abs.
• •Swinging the body to kick the knees upward instead of curling them with a controlled contraction.
• •Only bringing the knees to a low angle so the thighs never pass horizontal.
• •Dropping the knees quickly and using the rebound rather than lowering under control.

Variations & alternatives

• •Hanging leg raise: straighten the legs to lengthen the lever, the harder progression once knee raises are easy.
• •Reverse crunch: the same pelvic-curl motion on the floor with no grip demand.
• •Lying leg raise: a floor-based bottom-up option when no bar is available.

Crunch

Abs · Bodyweight

Cable Crunch

Abs · Cable

Hanging Leg Raise

Abs · Bodyweight

Machine Crunch

Abs · Machine

Decline Crunch

Abs · Bodyweight

Programming: sets, reps & when to use it

Program hanging knee raises in the 12–20 rep range as your entry point to hanging ab work. Once you can hit the top of that range with a clean pelvic curl and no swing, progress toward straight-leg raises.

Frequently asked questions