Exercise guide · Advanced · Compound

Arm Slingers Hanging Straight Legs: How to Do It & Muscles Worked

The arm slingers hanging straight legs exercise involves hanging from a pull-up bar and lifting your straight legs up in front of you, targeting the abdominal muscles while also engaging the shoulders and back.

Primary muscles
Abs
Secondary muscles
Shoulders , Lats
Equipment
Body Weight
Level · type
Advanced · Compound
Demonstration of the arm slingers hanging straight legs
Front view: muscles worked by the arm slingers hanging straight legs. Primary: abs. Secondary: shoulders and lats.
Back view: muscles worked by the arm slingers hanging straight legs. Primary: abs. Secondary: shoulders and lats.
Primary Secondary

How to do the arm slingers hanging straight legs

  1. Step 1: Hang from a pull-up bar with your arms fully extended and your legs straight down.
  2. Step 2: Engage your core and lift your legs up in front of you until they are parallel to the ground.
  3. Step 3: Hold for a moment at the top, then slowly lower your legs back down to the starting position.
  4. Step 4: Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.

Sets, reps and programming

Suggested sets, reps and rest for the arm slingers hanging straight legs by training goal
Goal Sets Reps Rest Effort
Strength 3–5 3–6 3–5 min 1–3 reps in reserve
Muscle growth 3–4 6–12 2–3 min 1–2 reps in reserve
Muscular endurance 2–3 12–20 1–2 min 1–3 reps in reserve

Ranges follow the ACSM position stand on progression in resistance training. Muscle grows across a wide range of loads when sets end close to failure (Schoenfeld et al., 2017), longer rests between heavy sets support strength and size (Schoenfeld et al., 2016), and stopping a rep or two short of failure works about as well as training to failure (Grgic et al., 2022). Estimate your working weights with the strength calculators.

Arm Slingers Hanging Straight Legs alternatives

More exercises that train the abs as their main target:

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Sources

  1. American College of Sports Medicine. Progression models in resistance training for healthy adults. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2009;41(3):687-708.
  2. Schoenfeld BJ, Grgic J, Ogborn D, Krieger JW. Strength and hypertrophy adaptations between low- vs. high-load resistance training. J Strength Cond Res. 2017;31(12):3508-3523.
  3. Schoenfeld BJ, Pope ZK, Benik FM, et al. Longer interset rest periods enhance muscle strength and hypertrophy in resistance-trained men. J Strength Cond Res. 2016;30(7):1805-1812.
  4. Grgic J, Schoenfeld BJ, Orazem J, Sabol F. Effects of resistance training performed to repetition failure or non-failure on muscular strength and hypertrophy: a systematic review and meta-analysis. J Sport Health Sci. 2022;11(2):202-211.

Step-by-step instructions and demonstration media are from the ExerciseDB exercise dataset.

This guide is general fitness information, not medical advice. Stop if an exercise causes pain and speak to a doctor or physiotherapist about injuries or health conditions before starting a new programme.