How Many Leg Raises Should I Do? The Definitive Core Guide

You want lower abdominal definition, and you know leg raises are the tool to get you there. But staring at the pull-up bar or the floor mat, a confusing question always pops up: how many leg raises should i do to actually see results?

Do you go for high reps until you feel the burn, or stick to low reps with weights? Get the volume wrong, and you’re just exhausting your hip flexors or risking lower back pain. Get it right, and you build a bulletproof core.

This guide cuts through the noise to give you the exact numbers based on your goals and fitness level.

Quick Summary: The Ideal Rep Ranges

If you are looking for a fast answer for the Featured Snippet, here is the breakdown of volume based on training experience:

Beginners (Floor Raises): Aim for 2–3 sets of 10–12 reps. Focus on keeping your lower back glued to the floor.
Intermediates (Captain’s Chair/Hanging Knee Raises): Target 3–4 sets of 12–15 reps. Focus on controlled eccentric (lowering) movement.
Advanced (Hanging Straight Leg Raises): Perform 3–4 sets of 15–20 reps, or add weight and drop to 8–12 reps for hypertrophy.
Frequency: Do not train abs every day. 2–4 times per week allows for necessary muscle recovery.

Analyzing Leg Raise Sets and Reps for Hypertrophy

The "more is better" mentality is the enemy of abdominal growth. Your abs are skeletal muscles, just like your biceps or quads. They respond best to progressive overload, not endless endurance work.

The Science of Rep Ranges

When determining leg raise sets and reps, consider the outcome you want:

Strength & Hypertrophy (Growth): 8–15 reps. If you can do more than 15 with perfect form, the exercise is too light. Add a dumbbell between your feet.
Endurance: 20+ reps. This improves stamina but won't necessarily make the muscle "pop" more visibly.

How Many Leg Raises Should I Do a Day?

A common search query is "how many leg raises should i do a day," which implies a daily habit. This is a mistake.

If you are doing hundreds of leg lifts daily, you aren't training intensity; you are training endurance. Furthermore, your abs need recovery time to repair and grow. Training them hard every single day leads to diminishing returns and potential overuse injuries in the hip flexors.

The better approach: Treat how many leg lifts should i do a day as a weekly volume question. Aim for 10–15 hard sets per week, split over 3 or 4 sessions.

Common Mistakes When Counting Reps

The number of reps you count is often higher than the number of effective reps you actually performed.

The Momentum Trap

If you are swinging your legs at the bottom of a hanging leg raise, you are using momentum, not muscle. If you do 20 swinging reps, you likely only performed about 4 effective reps for your abs. Stop the swing at the bottom to ensure every digit in your count matters.

The Hip Flexor Takeover

When asking how many leg lifts should i do, you must ask: "Where am I feeling this?" If the burn is primarily in the front of your hips rather than your stomach, your form has broken down. Usually, this happens when you lower your legs too far down or arch your back. Stop the set immediately when you lose tension in the core.

My Personal Experience with how many leg raises should i do

I used to fall into the volume trap. I remember looking at a program that demanded 50 hanging leg raises in a single set. I thought I was crushing it, but in reality, my grip was failing long before my abs were.

The specific issue I ran into wasn't just muscle failure; it was the "forearm pump." Hanging from the bar for the time it takes to do 20+ slow, controlled reps is brutal on the hands. I found that my calluses would start tearing and my forearms would cramp up around rep 12, forcing me to drop off the bar even though my core had more in the tank.

I also noticed a very specific, sharp "click" in my right hip when I lowered my legs past a certain point during floor raises. It was a tactile reminder that my psoas (hip flexor) was doing the work, not my abs. Once I stopped chasing the number 50 and started using ab straps (to kill the grip fatigue) and limiting my range of motion to keep tension on the abs, my rep count dropped to 12, but the soreness the next day was entirely in my lower core.

Conclusion

Stop obsessing over hitting an arbitrary number like 100 reps. The answer to how many leg raises is simple: do as many as you can with perfect, slow form, typically falling between 10 and 15 reps. If it gets too easy, add weight, don't just add more reps.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many sets of leg raises should i do for a six-pack?

For visible abs, aim for 3 to 4 sets of 10–15 reps, 3 times a week. However, remember that a six-pack is revealed by low body fat, so diet plays a larger role than the specific number of sets.

Can I do leg raises every day?

It is not recommended. Like any muscle group, abs need 24–48 hours to recover. Training them every day can lead to tight hip flexors and lower back strain without adding extra benefit.

How many leg lifts should i do if I am a complete beginner?

Start with lying floor leg raises. Aim for 2 sets of 8–10 reps. If straight legs are too difficult or cause back pain, bend your knees and perform knee tucks instead until your core strength improves.