Knees-to-Elbows: form, muscles worked and video

Demonstration video

How to do the knees-to-elbows

Instructions

Hang from a pull-up bar with an overhand grip and arms fully extended.
Engage your core and initiate the movement by flexing your hips and knees.
Swing slightly if needed and bring your knees up toward your elbows.
Aim to touch or closely approach the elbows with your knees.
Lower your legs back to the starting position in a controlled manner.

Technical Tips

Use controlled momentum but avoid excessive swinging.
Keep your shoulders active and engaged throughout the movement.
Focus on drawing your knees up using your core, not just leg motion.

Breathing Tips

Exhale as you bring your knees up toward your elbows.
Inhale as you lower your legs back down.

Medical restrictions

Lower back pain or injury
Shoulder instability
Abdominal hernia

Description

Knees-to-elbows is a dynamic core exercise performed from a hanging position on a pull-up bar. Popular in functional fitness, CrossFit, and calisthenics programs, this movement develops strength, coordination, and endurance across the entire core. During execution, the practitioner raises their knees toward their elbows while suspended, utilizing a combination of abdominal engagement, hip flexion, and upper body stability. The motion may involve controlled momentum, making it more accessible than its strict counterpart. Knees-to-elbows help improve grip strength, shoulder stability, and total body coordination. It also acts as a foundational movement for more advanced gymnastics-based skills like toes-to-bar or muscle-ups. Because of its efficiency and scalability, this exercise is commonly included in conditioning circuits and core-focused training. Integrating knees-to-elbows into a workout regimen can enhance athletic performance, improve posture, and support functional strength development.

Knees-to-elbows is a dynamic core exercise performed from a hanging position on a pull-up bar. Popular in functional fitness, CrossFit, and calisthenics programs, this movement develops strength, coordination, and endurance across the entire core. During execution, the practitioner raises their knees toward their elbows while suspended, utilizing a combination of abdominal engagement, hip flexion, and upper body stability. The motion may involve controlled momentum, making it more accessible than its strict counterpart. Knees-to-elbows help improve grip strength, shoulder stability, and total body coordination. It also acts as a foundational movement for more advanced gymnastics-based skills like toes-to-bar or muscle-ups. Because of its efficiency and scalability, this exercise is commonly included in conditioning circuits and core-focused training. Integrating knees-to-elbows into a workout regimen can enhance athletic performance, improve posture, and support functional strength development.

FAQ

Frequently asked questions

What do knees-to-elbows work?

Knees-to-elbows primarily target the abdominal muscles, while also engaging the obliques, hip flexors, lats, and stabilizers in the shoulders and back.

Are knees-to-elbows hard to do?

Knees-to-elbows are moderately challenging and require core strength, coordination, and some upper body endurance, making them suitable for intermediate-level athletes.

How is knees-to-elbows different from strict knees-to-elbows?

Strict knees-to-elbows are performed without swinging, emphasizing control and core activation, while regular knees-to-elbows may use controlled momentum for assistance.

Can I do knees-to-elbows without a pull-up bar?

Knees-to-elbows require a pull-up bar or similar overhead support for proper execution; alternative exercises like hanging knee raises can be used if a bar is unavailable.

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video	Show the exercise video (if available): yes	`?video=1`	0, 1, true, false

Knees-to-elbows

Demonstration video

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