The very top of your legs at the point where your hips and thighs meet is strengthened through side leg raises. You exercise your leg abductor muscles of the gluteus medius and gluteus minimum with or without the use of a resistance tool. Your...
Leg lifts use the weight of your body to help tone your leg muscles. Depending on the type of lift you do, you can tone your outer thighs, inner thighs or buttocks. Strengthening your leg muscles can also help you avoid injury when working out,...
You may never have heard of your psoas, but you use it every day to stand up straight and walk. This deep internal muscle is part of your core -- it attaches to the bottom of your midspine, runs along your lower spine and pelvis and down onto the...
Leg lifts can be performed in a variety of ways, with each variation working a different set of muscles. But all leg lifts involve the muscles and tendons of the hip joints, so if you're having pain from leg lifts it could be caused by an...
When it comes to perfecting each movement of the hand or lift of the leg, ballet dancers have to start with the basics. This means perfecting movements such as the leg lift by performing the exercise slowly. By gaining the control and muscle...
Leg lifts may be a form of calisthenics, or exercises performed using your body weight with no other equipment. You can also do leg lifts with weights or on weight machines.
Leg lifts are a common abdominal exercise that use leg motions to tone core muscle groups. While leg lifts offer a basic abdominal workout, modifications and alternatives, such as the vertical leg crunch, have tweaked the exercise to maximize the...
Leg lifts work your abdominals and hips flexors -- the muscles that help bring your thighs up to your chest. Like many other forms of abdominal training, leg lifts do not require a trip to the gym, you can do them in your own home. You do not need...
Football requires agility, speed, mental focus and a rock-hard core. All the moves used during football, from throwing to blocking, require you to have strong abdominals. Leg lifts are an exercise crucial during practice to strengthen your...
In an effort to get a flat stomach, many people set out to do situp after situp or crunch after crunch, expecting to see results. However, if you really want a toned midsection, you have to take a balanced approach to fitness and perform the...
Exercises consist of a joint movement against resistance in the form of weight, body weight or gravity. Isolation movements target one muscle group while compound movements work more than one. While the target muscle group contracts, opposing...
Exercise is beneficial, but some exercises are more effective than others, especially when you are targeting a problem area. One area of the body commonly targeted due to low muscle tone is the abdominals. Two popular methods of exercising the abs...
Long a staple of aerobics videos, lying leg raises are, in fact, an excellent exercise for toning your inner thighs, where your hip adductor muscles reside. If you want to build strength and endurance in your hip adductors, you must use proper...
Recovery from any surgery can be frustrating and painful. Recovery after rodding surgery, though, can be additionally frustrating. The physical pain combined with the extended immobility time can be depressing if you don't have a plan for...
Exercising the abdominal region with body weight exercises like seated leg lifts develops strength and power in your midsection. Developing core strength improves performance in a wide variety of competitive sports and aids posture while sitting...
Core muscle strength is part of a healthy back routine. Squats build quadriceps strength while leg lifts build abdominal and hip flexor muscles. If you have a pre-existing back condition such as a herniated disc or osteoarthritis, consult your...
For anyone who lives a sedentary life, a little extra weight around the thighs can be a persistent problem. With leg lifts, you can strengthen the relevant muscles for a trimmer appearance and also improve your core stability. However, targeted...
Leg lifts are great for strengthening and toning a number of muscles throughout the legs. Depending on the number of sets and repetitions you do, leg lifts can be a helpful component to any weight loss regimen. Leg lifts should be accompanied by a...
The best way to improve abdominal and hip flexors strength is bent knee Roman leg lifts. This exercise is more efficient than regular crunches. This exercise works on the obliques as well as the rectus abdominis. It also helps in shaping the...
Leg lifts are exercises that place stress on the structures of your lower body. If any structures in the left quadrant of your flank are damaged or under stress, leg lifts will cause you severe pain. If the pain is not addressed in any way, it may...
Flabby outer thighs make a lot of women embarrassed to wear shorts or a bathing suit. Work the outer thigh muscles to tone and shape with leg lifts. Leg lifts can be done at home, the gym, or while traveling by using your own body weight. Using a...
Using a dip bar to support yourself while performing leg lifts is difficult. Your upper body must contract and remain motionless while your raise your legs. You may find this more difficult than hanging from a chinning bar. Performing leg raises...
While there are certainly exercises and training that you can incorporate into your routines to tone your legs, sometimes it is tough to really make a difference. Unless you are a runner or speed walker and have never been overweight, you've...
Lifting your legs against the force of gravity while lying on your back, front or side helps strengthen the muscles that surround and act on your hip joints. Learning about these muscles can help you determine how to incorporate leg-lift exercises...
Lower-body exercises target and strengthen your butt and leg muscles, which include the thighs, hamstrings, quadriceps and calves. In "Fitness after 40," author Dr. Vonda Wright suggests incorporating cardiovascular exercises such as jogging,...
When you think of effective abdominal exercises, the leg lift may not be the first one that comes to mind. Maybe you think of old gym class staples, such as the situp or the crunch, or the side bend to work the obliques. The the leg lift...
Leg lifts work your abdominals and your hip flexors. These muscles work together to help raise your legs. The main muscle of your abdomen contracts along its length to pull your pelvis, or your legs, up to your chest. No upper- or low-abdominal...
Body stretches are the best method of warm-up before any routine. Touching the toes and doing side bends help you warm up for side leg lifts. One of the best exercises to warm the hip abductor is the lying hip abductor stretch. There are two ways...
The stiff-leg deadlift primarily works your glutes, erector spinae and hamstrings. Done properly, it's one of the best non-machine exercises for developing your hamstrings, an often underdeveloped muscle group. But when done with poor technique,...