Alternate Leg Raise (Advanced 2)
This second advanced progression removes your last comforts: shoulders and head curl slightly off the floor, arms hover unassisted at your sides, and the legs scissor slowly with both hovering low between reps. Everything that could help the abs has been taken away — which is exactly the point. Coached by Maddy (NASM-CPT) — these are the exact form cues he gives on every client's first week.
Muscles worked
Sets & reps by goal
| Goal | Sets × Reps | Rest |
|---|---|---|
| Strength | 3 × 3–6 per leg (max control) | 90 s–2 min |
| Muscle | 3 × 9–12 per leg | 60–90 s |
| Endurance | 2 × 18–27 per leg | 60 s |
Rep ranges per Helms 2014 · Schoenfeld 2016.
Level — Advanced
The hardest leg-raise variation in this library — treat it as a destination, not a starting point.
Proper form — 5 cues
- Curl your head and shoulder blades a few centimetres off the floor and keep them there.
- Hover both arms just off the ground — no hands tucked under the hips.
- Scissor the legs slowly, each one taking a full 3 seconds to travel.
- Hold both legs in the low zone briefly each cycle before the next exchange.
- Keep the lower back sealed to the floor — that seal is the whole exercise.
Breathing: Steady exhale through each lowering phase; never trap your breath to brace.
The 3 mistakes Maddy corrects most
How to program alternate leg raise (advanced 2)
| Goal | Phase | Sets | Reps | Tempo | Rest | RPE |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| strength | weeks 1–4 · build | 3 | 6 per leg | 5-0-2-0 | 90 s–2 min | 7 |
| strength | weeks 5–8 · intensify | 3 | 4 per leg | 5-0-2-0 | 90 s–2 min | 8 |
| strength | weeks 9–12 · peak | 3 | 3 per leg | 5-0-2-0 | 90 s–2 min | 9 |
| hypertrophy | weeks 1–4 · build | 3 | 12 per leg | 3-0-2-0 | 60–90 s | 7 |
| hypertrophy | weeks 5–8 · intensify | 3 | 10 per leg | 3-0-2-0 | 60–90 s | 8 |
| hypertrophy | weeks 9–12 · peak | 3 | 9 per leg | 3-0-2-0 | 60–90 s | 8–9 |
| endurance | weeks 1–4 · build | 2 | 18 per leg | 2-0-2-0 | 60 s | 6 |
| endurance | weeks 5–8 · intensify | 2 | 22 per leg | 2-0-2-0 | 60 s | 7 |
| endurance | weeks 9–12 · peak | 2 | 27 per leg | 2-0-2-0 | 60 s | 7–8 |
| beginner | weeks 1–4 · learn | 2 | 8 per leg | 3-0-2-0 | 60–90 s | 5 |
| beginner | weeks 5–8 · groove | 3 | 10 per leg | 3-0-2-0 | 60–90 s | 6 |
| beginner | weeks 9–12 · load | 3 | 10 per leg | 3-0-2-0 | 60–90 s | 6–7 |
Tempo = eccentric-pause-concentric-pause, seconds (X = explosive intent).
Common questions
How is this different from the first advanced leg raise?
The leg action is the same — straight-leg scissors with a low hover — but here your head and shoulders stay curled off the floor and your hands give no support. That upper-body position keeps the rectus abdominis contracted at both ends, so there is no slack anywhere in the set.
How do I know I am ready for this version?
Two checkpoints: you can do 12 clean reps per leg of the standard advanced version with a flat back, and you can hold a hollow-body position — shoulders and legs hovering — for 20 seconds. If either is missing, this version will just teach your lower back to arch under fatigue.
Should my abs shake during this?
A tremble near the end of a hard set is common and harmless — it is the muscles firing near their limit. Shaking from rep one, or a lower back that lifts with it, means the progression is too far ahead of you today. Step back one version and own it first.
When am I ready to progress from this to hanging leg raises?
A reasonable benchmark is three sets of ten slow reps per leg with your shoulders curled off the floor, arms hovering, and zero arching through the lower back. Hanging raises add grip demands and full-body swing control on top of the core work, so also build a dead-hang time of thirty seconds or more. When you make the jump, start with hanging knee raises rather than straight legs — the pattern transfers, the lever is shorter, and quality stays high.
Should I do this before or after my weight training?
After, in most programs. This drill fatigues the deep trunk muscles that stabilise your spine during squats, deadlifts, and overhead pressing, so burning them out first makes heavy lifts feel worse and riskier. Slot it into the final ten minutes of a session, or give it its own short core day. The exception is a light technique day, where leading with core work does little harm and guarantees the exercise does not get skipped.
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