The L-Sit – Train Your Abs Like A Gymnast
15 Mar
What if it were possible to achieve the core and abdominal strength of a world class gymnast while training at home, only for a few minutes per day with no equipment or gadgets? Well guess what – it is possible to do it if you master the L-Sit.
1. Variations
- With bent knees. You can start with this version if you feel you are lacking the strength or hamstring flexibility to do the movement with straight legs.
- With straight legs. Once you are comfortable doing the L-sit with your knees bent, try the straight leg version. The farther your legs are from your body, the tougher it is.
2. Hand Positions
- On parallellets or parallel bars. This is the easiest version, but requires equipment. You can buy a set of parallellets to train at home.
- On your knuckles. This one will strengthen your wrists and knuckles. Good for martial artists.
- On your fingers. Probably the easiest version. See the image above.
- On your fingertips. A slightly different version. Good for martial artists and wrestlers.
3. Progression and Workout Frequency
- Change the variations or hand position. This one is self explanatory. Just go to a different variation or hand position to challenge yourself when it gets easy.
- Progress in time. This is the real deal. Get to one minute non stop in the L-Sit and you will be core bad ass. The way to do it is to do several sets that add up to your total goal time each workout. For example if your goal is 1 minute, do as many sets as it takes you until you reach a total of 60 seconds. So a typical workout could be 12 secs – 10 secs -10 secs – 8 secs – 7 secs – 7 secs – 6 secs.
- When training a skill, it is best to train as often as possible, as fresh as possible. So an ideal variant to train every day and do multiple sets – say after you wake up and before you go to bed, that add up to your total goal time each day. You could do these sets between household chores – say do a set, brush your teeth, do another set, do the laundry or whatever.
There you have it. There are now no excuses not to build yourself a brick breaking set of abs. Even if you don’t have an access to a gym. Even if you have no equipment at home. Even if you have no spare space to train in. And, as a bonus you can’t avoid getting pretty damn strong overall, not just in your abs, when you master the L-Sit.
Incoming search terms for this article:
l-sit,L sit,L-sits,l sits,train like a gymnast,how to train like a gymnast,gymnast abs,l-sit holds,L sit pull ups,l sit progressionRelated posts:
- Renegade Rows – How to Get Ridiculously Hard Abs, Part I
- Core Training – Discover the Hollow Position and the Main Function of the Abs – Stabilization of the Core
- Core Training – The Arch Position Gives You Strong Core Muscles and a Healthy Back
- Barbell Deadlift – How to Train Correctly to Get a Strong Back and Avoid Injuries
hey yavor,
great post. this is one i have a hard time with. i can hold a pretty good plank of around 120-150 seconds followed up with 120 secs per side plank, but l-sits and lsit pullups are really hard for me. i guess ill have to start working on those progressions. i like the “train as much as possible” philosophy too. for example, people wonder all the time how to work on pullups and increase their numbers. its ridiculous how many people don’t know the asnwer:do more pullups. same principle here.
and I’m really feeling the new layout! it looks great
Yash
120 secs for a side is pretty good. The downside is that it gets pretty boring to hold for so long so at this stage it’s best to move to a more challenging exercises such as the L-sit.
Yeah I’m with you on pullups – up the volume and you will get better at the skill you want to master. People don’t want to hear this cause it means more work fro their side
Glad you like the layout, I really put some time in it. Let me know if there is something that bugs you though so I can fix it.
Yavor
p.s. Getting strong at L-sit will really pay off in your physique!
Nothing so far. i think it’s a great layout especially for new visitors because you get a little taste of everything so you can just click away and check out all kinds of different stuff.
Yash,
Thanks buddy, that’s exactly what I had in mind.
Yavor
Good lord those are tough. I think my arms are too short. In all seriousness, I have trouble with the knees bent. Gives me a nice low baseline to improve things, I guess.
Andy,
just take it from there. If the arms are really a problem try the L-sit off the ledge of a chair.
Yavor
Hey Yavor!
Great article buddy. The L-sit is pretty tough move.
Just some advice that I would give to anyone who wants to try an “L-sit pullup” where you hold the “L” position with your legs while doing pullups — do NOT use a wide grip pullup!
The weight of your legs pulls your upper body forward and you end up wrenching your shoulder socket!
I did this a week ago and my shoulder is still tender. So keep your hands close– even touching when doing “L-sit” pullups.
Great article Yavor!
Caleb
Caleb,
watch out with those shoulders. I believe a shoulder width grip is best for pullups 90% of the time.
Yavor
Yavor
Is the L-sit a safe exercise for the lower back? Should those with problems do it?
Regards
Colin
Colin,
It is a safe exercise, but an advanced one. I suggest first getting used to controlling the position of your lower back and pelvis. Take a look at my posts on the hollow position and the arch position.
Then I’d suggest getting good (2min+) at static holds in the plank position – check out the article on planks by my buddy Rusty – 7 Minute Abs? 8 Minute Abs? What About 6 Minute Abs?.
Only then would I suggest training the L-sit.
Cheers,
Yavor
p.s. a great resource on everything you would want to know about problems with the lower back and how to prevent them is Dr. Stuart McGill‘s book Low Back Disorders