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Straight Leg Toe Touches

Straight-leg toe touches hold the legs vertical over the hips while the shoulder blades curl up and the hands reach toward the toes. Maddy uses them to bias the upper region of the abs while the vertical legs anchor the pelvis and protect the lower back. Coached by Maddy (NASM-CPT) — these are the exact form cues he gives on every client's first week.

Muscles worked

Abs · rectus abdominis Obliques

Sets & reps by goal

GoalSets × RepsRest
Strength3 × 6 reps with a 2-s reach hold90 s
Muscle3 × 9-12 reps60 s
Endurance2-3 × 18-27 reps30-45 s

Level — Beginner

Beginner-to-intermediate; hamstring flexibility, not core strength, is what usually limits the set-up.

Proper form — 5 cues

  1. Send both legs straight up until the ankles stack over the hips.
  2. Reach both hands toward the toes as you exhale and curl the shoulder blades up.
  3. Keep the legs absolutely still — they are the anchor, not the movement.
  4. Lead with the ribcage folding, chin staying off the chest.
  5. Touch down the shoulder blades softly between reps and go again.

Breathing: Exhale as you reach for the toes, inhale as the shoulder blades lower.

The 3 mistakes Maddy corrects most

Kicking the legs toward the hands to shorten the distance.. The leg swing rocks the pelvis and creates the illusion of a bigger crunch while the abs do less. Fix: Imagine the feet are pressed against a ceiling that never moves; only the torso travels.
Reaching with the arms while the shoulder blades stay down.. Arm reach without trunk flexion is a shoulder movement — the abs never actually shorten. Fix: Make shoulder blades clearing the floor the rep standard; touching the toes is a bonus, not the goal.
Letting the legs drift away from vertical as the set fatigues.. As the legs tilt away, the hip flexors and lower back pick up strain and the reach distance grows dishonestly. Fix: Re-stack ankles over hips between reps; if the legs will not stay, bend the knees slightly rather than letting them fall.

Common questions

My hamstrings are too tight to hold my legs vertical — now what?

Bend the knees to whatever angle lets your thighs stay vertical and your low back stay heavy on the floor — the crunch mechanics are unchanged. Work on hamstring flexibility separately with the wall hamstring stretch, and straighten the legs a few degrees each week. A vertical thigh with bent knees beats straight legs drifting at forty-five degrees every time.

Do toe touches work lower abs or upper abs?

The rectus abdominis is one muscle, but movements where the ribcage moves toward a fixed pelvis — like this one — produce more demand in the upper region, while movements where the pelvis curls toward a fixed ribcage, like reverse crunches, bias the lower region. That is why Maddy pairs straight-leg toe touches with a pelvic-tilt drill in the same block rather than picking one.

How is this different from a V-up?

In a V-up both the torso and the legs travel to meet in the middle, demanding coordination and hip flexor work. In straight-leg toe touches the legs are parked vertically and only the torso moves, which isolates trunk flexion and is far friendlier to beginners and to anyone whose lower back complains during V-ups. Own this first; the V-up is the graduation.

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