Butt-to-Wall Straddle Pancake Leg Lifts

All-LevelsExternal Rotation
Written By Danielle Enos (Dani Winks)

Flexopedia > Hamstrings, Adductors & Hip External Rotation

Butt-to-Wall Straddle Pancake Leg Lifts

Muscles Stretched: Hamstrings, Adductors

Muscle Group Strengthened: Hip Flexors, Hip External Rotators

Type of Stretch: Active Dynamic

Difficulty: All Levels

Suggested Prerequisites: none

This back-lying hamstring stretch is a great variation for students who struggle to keep their back flat when trying to straddle pancake. It’s also a challenging strengthener for our hip flexors and hip external rotators, which can help you forward fold deeper in your seated straddle pancake.

How To

Step 1

Start lying down on your back, butt close to (or touching) the wall, and extend your legs up the wall. If you have tighter hips, start with your butt a couple of inches away, if you have more flexible hips, starting with your butt touching the wall will make this more challenging.

Open your legs out into a straddle, with your feet staying on the wall. If this feels like an intense stretch in the back of your thighs (hamstrings), scoot farther away from the wall, or slightly bend your knees.

Step 2

Keeping your spine and the back of your hips pressing down into the floor (don’t let your hips rotate or lift!), lift your legs away from the wall. This should feel like a squeeze in the top of your thighs (quads) and front of your hips (hip flexors) - you may also feel a squeeze in your outer hips (glutes) keeping your legs open out in the straddle. Then relax your legs back to touching the wall.

If you can easily kick your feet more than a couple of inches away from the wall, you can work your hip rotation by trying to kick your feet, knees, and thighs down towards the floor (not just “away from the wall”) - aim to try to kick your toes down towards the floor.

Repeat for 8-12 (controlled!) leg lifts.

Modifications

Need to make it easier?

Start with your butt farther away from the wall.

Slightly bend your knees.

Want to make it harder?

Keep your sits bones pressed to the wall the whole time.

Start in a wider straddle.

Add a yoga block or foam roller under your mid back and perform these leg lifts with a slight arch in your lower back.

 
 
Danielle Enos (Dani Winks)

Dani is a Minneapolis-based flexibility coach and professional contortionist who loves sharing her enthusiasm for flexibility training with the world.

https://www.daniwinksflexibility.com
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Straddle Hip External Rotation with Band