Band Alternating V-Up

How to do band alternating V-ups with proper form to fire up your abs and hip flexors

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How to perform

Lie on your back with your legs straight and arms extended overhead, holding the band taut between your hands. Brace your core and press your lower back into the floor to protect your spine. In one movement, raise your legs and lift your upper back off the floor, reaching your hands toward your toes. As you lower back down, cross one leg over the other so the legs alternate position on every repetition. Keep the tension in the band constant and avoid yanking on it with your arms. Exhale as you fold up, inhale as you lower, and keep the motion smooth from start to finish.

Muscles worked

The alternating V-up trains the rectus abdominis through deep spinal flexion, while the hip flexors lift the legs and the band adds load through the arms. Crossing the legs introduces a small rotational demand that also wakes up the obliques.

• Abs
• Hip flexors
• Obliques

Make it easier

Keep the band light or remove it and do standard V-ups with bent knees. You can also lower only the shoulders while keeping the legs in contact with the floor to reduce the hip-flexor demand.

Make it harder

Use a stronger band, slow the lowering phase to three seconds, or add a one-second pause at the top of each fold. Performing the movement on an unstable surface also increases the core challenge.

Common mistakes

Mistake: Tugging the band with the arms instead of driving with the core. Fix: Think of your arms as an extension of the fold and keep the band tension steady rather than yanking it.

Mistake: Arching the lower back when the legs drop. Fix: Keep the lower back glued to the floor and lower the legs only as far as you can control.

Mistake: Rushing the reps and using momentum to rock up. Fix: Slow the tempo and keep each fold deliberate and smooth.