Of the 200-plus muscles in the human body, arguably the abs get the most attention. Both men and women spend diligent hours trying to make the midsection stand out and look lean and ripped. Vertical leg raises require the body to be in a vertical position, and they are one of the best exercises for toning the abs. As an added bonus, the abs are part of the core. Strengthening the core helps stabilize the spine and promotes better functional ability.
Function of the Exercise
The abs consist of two parts: the rectus abdominis and obliques. The rectus abdominis is the large muscle that sits in the center of the stomach. The obliques run diagonally along the sides of the ribs. When you do an ab workout, your goal is to target each area of the midsection with exercises to create balanced muscles and achieve full development. The vertical leg raise fits well into this plan by targeting the lower portion of the rectus abdominis and obliques.
Benefits
The basic vertical leg raise is performed with a captain's chair or pullup bar. A captain's chair has a padded backrest that gives your back support while your legs hang down toward the floor. The American Council on Exercise, or ACE, lists the captain's chair exercise as one of the best for overall rectus abdominis and oblique recruitment. In fact, a study commissioned by ACE at San Diego State University found that the captain's chair leg raise causes over 200 percent rectus abdominis activation and over 300 percent oblique activation.
Technique
The vertical leg raise takes strict attention to detail to prevent lower back strain. To use the captain's chair, place your feet on the lower supports, rest your arms on the horizontal supports and grip the pegs with your hands. Carefully move each foot off the supports and let your legs hang straight down. Keeping your back tight to the backrest, lift your legs, bend your knees and move them as close to your chest as possible. Slowly lower your legs all the way down and repeat. Follow these same instructions on a pullup bar, but place your hands about shoulder-width apart and keep your arms fully extended.
Variations
Bending your knees during the leg raise is the basic form of this exercise. Once you get into better shape, progress to doing the exercise with your legs straight. You also have the option of moving your knees or legs toward each shoulder. This shifts more emphasis to the obliques. Doing straight leg raises in an alternating fashion is another option.
Change of Resistance
The body makes good resistance when you first start doing vertical leg raises. However, a point in time may come when you can easily reel off 20 to 25 reps with no problem. Being that the captain's chair and pullup bar do not offer you a resistance adjustment, you need to step out of the box so to speak. You may choose to fasten ankle weights to your lower legs, pinch a medicine ball between your thighs or pinch a dumbbell between your feet.
Training Tips
If you do not have access to a pullup bar or captain's chair, you are still in luck. All you need for vertical leg raises is a sturdy, horizontal object from which to hang. Use an open roof truss, floor joist with clamps fastened to it, open beam or tree branch in your backyard.
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