Hanging windshield wipers: how to do it, muscles worked and variations
Controlled leg rotation from a hang for advanced core work.
- Main muscles
- Obliques
- Secondary muscles
- Rectus abdominis, Erector spinae, Iliopsoas, Adductors
- Equipment
- Bodyweight, Pull-up bar, Stability ball
- Variations
- 3
All 3 variations
Lying windshield wipers
Side-to-side rotation of bent legs lying on your back that mobilizes the spine and hips.
Form. Lie with your arms out to the sides and your knees bent together, let them fall to one side keeping your shoulders down and come back to center to go to the other side.
Common mistake. Lifting your shoulders off the floor, dropping the legs without control, or forcing it if you have lower-back discomfort.
Hanging windshield wipers
Advanced bar exercise where the legs move in an arc from side to side while the trunk resists rotation.
Form. Start with bent knees, stabilize your shoulders and move your legs in a small arc you can brake.
Common mistake. Swinging, losing your grip, or forcing range once the lower back is no longer controlled.
Stability ball windshield wipers
Lying on your back with arms out to the sides, a stability ball held between your feet with legs raised is moved from side to side, working the obliques and lower-back control.
Form. Lying with your arms open (you can hold dumbbells resting on the floor as an anchor) and the ball between your feet, lower your legs to one side without lifting your shoulders and return; alternate.
Common mistake. Lifting your shoulders, lowering further than you can control, letting go of the ball, or dropping the legs.
Other exercises for the same muscles
