Hip Flexion with Band
Trains the Hip Flexors.
- Equipment
- A resistance band
- Mechanic
- Isolation
- Force
- Pull
- Level
- Beginner
How to do it
- Anchor a band low behind you and loop the far end around one ankle.
- Face away from the anchor and step forward until the band is taut with that foot behind you.
- Hold a rack or a wall for balance and stand tall on the other leg.
- Drive the thigh forward and up against the band until it is roughly level with the floor. The knee can be bent or straight.
- Return slowly, letting the band draw the leg back without letting it swing.
Common mistakes
- Leaning back to get the knee higher. Once the torso tips backward the hip has stopped travelling and the extra height is coming from the spine.
- Letting the band snap the leg back. The return is the loaded half here — the band is pulling and the hip flexors are the only thing slowing it down.
- Setting the anchor high. The band should pull backward and slightly downward; a high anchor pulls the leg down instead, which the hip flexors barely resist.
- Skipping it because the hip flexors are involved in everything anyway. They are involved in everything as a mover, usually alongside something larger. Here they are the only thing being loaded, which is a different demand — and it is a hip flexion exercise rather than a quadriceps one.