High Knees

Muscles worked by the High Knees

Primary

Hip FlexorsHip Flexor MusclesQuadsQuadriceps Femoris

Secondary

CalvesGastrocnemiusAbsRectus Abdominis

Also called: hip flexor, iliopsoas, psoas, iliacus, hip flexors, quad.

Equipment

No equipment — this is a bodyweight exercise.

How to do the High Knees

1. Stand tall with feet hip-width apart.
2. Drive one knee up toward the chest while pumping the opposite arm.
3. Quickly switch legs, mirroring the arm action.
4. Continue alternating at a fast pace.
5. Continue for the prescribed work interval.

Form tips

• Drive the knees up to at least hip height.
• Stay light on the balls of the feet.
• Keep the torso upright — do not lean back.

At a glance

High Knees in German & Spanish

Descriptions, instructions and tips ship in all three languages in the JSON.

Related exercises

• Air Bike
• Burpees
• Clean
• Clean and Jerk
• Double Kettlebell Split Jerk
• Elliptical Trainer
• Hang Clean
• Hang Power Clean

Exercise data (JSON)

The record below is exactly what exercises.json ships for this exercise — names, descriptions, instructions and tips in English, German and Spanish.

{
  "id": "high-knees",
  "name_en": "High Knees",
  "name_de": "High Knees",
  "name_es": "Rodillas Altas",
  "description_en": "A bodyweight cardio drill where the knees are driven up to hip height in rapid alternation.",
  "description_de": "Ein Körpergewichts-Cardio-Drill, bei dem die Knie schnell wechselnd auf Hüfthöhe gezogen werden.",
  "description_es": "Un ejercicio cardio con peso corporal en el que las rodillas suben a la altura de la cadera en alternancia rápida.",
  "category": "cardio",
  "force_type": "dynamic",
  "mechanic": "compound",
  "difficulty": "beginner",
  "body_part": "full_body",
  "primary_muscles": [
    "hip_flexors",
    "quadriceps"
  ],
  "secondary_muscles": [
    "gastrocnemius",
    "rectus_abdominis"
  ],
  "goals": [
    "endurance"
  ],
  "tags": [
    "full_body",
    "warm_up"
  ],
  "is_unilateral": false,
  "is_bodyweight": true,
  "instructions_en": [
    "Stand tall with feet hip-width apart.",
    "Drive one knee up toward the chest while pumping the opposite arm.",
    "Quickly switch legs, mirroring the arm action.",
    "Continue alternating at a fast pace.",
    "Continue for the prescribed work interval."
  ],
  "instructions_de": [
    "Stehe aufrecht, Füße hüftbreit.",
    "Ziehe ein Knie zur Brust hoch und pumpe den gegenüberliegenden Arm.",
    "Wechsle die Beine schnell und spiegele die Armarbeit.",
    "Setze den schnellen Wechsel fort.",
    "Setze das vorgegebene Arbeitsintervall fort."
  ],
  "instructions_es": [
    "Mantente erguido con los pies a la anchura de las caderas.",
    "Lleva una rodilla arriba hacia el pecho bombeando el brazo opuesto.",
    "Cambia de pierna rápidamente, espejando la acción del brazo.",
    "Continúa alternando a ritmo rápido.",
    "Continúa durante el intervalo de trabajo indicado."
  ],
  "tips_en": [
    "Drive the knees up to at least hip height.",
    "Stay light on the balls of the feet.",
    "Keep the torso upright — do not lean back."
  ],
  "tips_de": [
    "Ziehe die Knie mindestens auf Hüfthöhe.",
    "Bleibe leicht auf den Fußballen.",
    "Halte den Oberkörper aufrecht — nicht nach hinten lehnen."
  ],
  "tips_es": [
    "Sube las rodillas al menos a la altura de la cadera.",
    "Mantente ligero sobre las puntas de los pies.",
    "Mantén el torso erguido — no te eches atrás."
  ],
  "met": 8.0,
  "images": {
    "flat": {
      "main": "images/flat/high-knees-main.webp"
    }
  }
}

Fetch just this exercise

const { exercises } = await fetch(
  "https://exercise-dataset.com/exercises.json"
).then(r => r.json());
const ex = exercises.find(e => e.id === "high-knees");

Free for personal and commercial in-app use with attribution (“Exercise data by RepDB”) — see the license and ready-made attribution snippets. Redistributing the data as a dataset or API is not permitted.