Scissor Kicks

Muscles worked by the Scissor Kicks

Primary

Hip FlexorsHip Flexor MusclesAbsRectus Abdominis

Secondary

ObliquesOblique AbdominalsDeep CoreTransversus Abdominis

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

Equipment

No equipment — this is a bodyweight exercise.

How to do the Scissor Kicks

1. Lie flat on your back with your hands under your glutes.
2. Lift both legs a few inches off the floor.
3. Alternate crossing one leg over the other in a scissor motion.
4. Keep your lower back pressed into the floor.
5. Maintain a steady rhythm throughout.
6. Repeat for the desired number of reps.

Form tips

• Press your lower back into the floor throughout.
• Keep your legs straight and close to the ground.
• Move with control rather than speed.

At a glance

Scissor Kicks in German & Spanish

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

Related exercises

• Flutter Kicks
• Hanging Leg Raise
• Mountain Climbers
• V Ups
• Ab Wheel Rollout
• Ball Pike
• Barbell Ab Rollout
• Bench Leg Pull-In

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": "scissor-kicks",
  "name_en": "Scissor Kicks",
  "name_de": "Scherenbeine",
  "name_es": "Tijeras",
  "description_en": "A core exercise performed lying on the back, alternating straight-leg crosses to target the lower abdominals and hip flexors.",
  "description_de": "Eine Rumpfübung im Liegen, bei der die gestreckten Beine abwechselnd gekreuzt werden, um die untere Bauchmuskulatur und die Hüftbeuger zu beanspruchen.",
  "description_es": "Un ejercicio de core realizado boca arriba, cruzando alternadamente las piernas rectas para trabajar el abdomen bajo y los flexores de cadera.",
  "category": "strength",
  "force_type": "push",
  "mechanic": "compound",
  "difficulty": "intermediate",
  "body_part": "core",
  "primary_muscles": [
    "hip_flexors",
    "rectus_abdominis"
  ],
  "secondary_muscles": [
    "obliques",
    "transverse_abdominis"
  ],
  "goals": [
    "hypertrophy",
    "strength"
  ],
  "tags": [
    "knee_safe",
    "shoulder_safe",
    "no_axial_load",
    "lower_back_safe"
  ],
  "variation_group": "leg-raise",
  "is_unilateral": false,
  "is_bodyweight": true,
  "instructions_en": [
    "Lie flat on your back with your hands under your glutes.",
    "Lift both legs a few inches off the floor.",
    "Alternate crossing one leg over the other in a scissor motion.",
    "Keep your lower back pressed into the floor.",
    "Maintain a steady rhythm throughout.",
    "Repeat for the desired number of reps."
  ],
  "instructions_de": [
    "Lege dich flach auf den Rücken mit den Händen unter dem Gesäß.",
    "Hebe beide Beine einige Zentimeter vom Boden ab.",
    "Kreuze abwechselnd ein Bein über das andere in einer Scherenbewegung.",
    "Drücke den unteren Rücken in den Boden.",
    "Halte während der gesamten Übung einen gleichmäßigen Rhythmus.",
    "Wiederhole für die gewünschte Anzahl an Wiederholungen."
  ],
  "instructions_es": [
    "Recuéstate boca arriba con las manos bajo los glúteos.",
    "Eleva ambas piernas unos centímetros del suelo.",
    "Cruza alternadamente una pierna sobre la otra en un movimiento de tijera.",
    "Mantén la zona lumbar presionada contra el suelo.",
    "Mantén un ritmo constante durante todo el ejercicio.",
    "Repite el número de repeticiones deseado."
  ],
  "tips_en": [
    "Press your lower back into the floor throughout.",
    "Keep your legs straight and close to the ground.",
    "Move with control rather than speed."
  ],
  "tips_de": [
    "Drücke den unteren Rücken durchgehend in den Boden.",
    "Halte die Beine gestreckt und nah am Boden.",
    "Bewege dich kontrolliert statt schnell."
  ],
  "tips_es": [
    "Presiona la zona lumbar contra el suelo en todo momento.",
    "Mantén las piernas rectas y cerca del suelo.",
    "Muévete con control, no con velocidad."
  ],
  "met": 5.0,
  "images": {
    "flat": {
      "start": "images/flat/scissor-kicks-start.webp",
      "peak": "images/flat/scissor-kicks-peak.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 === "scissor-kicks");

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.