Hamstrings exercise
Dumbbell Lying Leg CurlHow to do it, with form in numbers
- Main muscles
- Hamstrings
- Also works
- Calves
- Level
- Beginner
How to do it
How do you do the Dumbbell Lying Leg Curl?
- Lie face down on a flat bench with your knees just off the end.
- Have someone place a light dumbbell between your feet, or set it there before you lie down; squeeze it between your arches.
- Pull your toes up and hold the sides of the bench.
- Bend your knees to bring the dumbbell up until your shins are vertical.
- Lower it slowly until your legs are almost straight.
Cues
- Hips down into the bench.
- Squeeze the dumbbell, toes up.
- Slow on the way down.
Common mistakes
- Lifting the hips to swing the weight up.
- Going past vertical and losing the dumbbell.
- Using a dumbbell too heavy to control.
Form in detail
What does good form look like?
The version in our demo
A hamstring curl without a machine: lying face down on a flat bench with one dumbbell squeezed between the feet.
Starting position
Lie face down on a flat bench with the kneecaps just off its end, hips and thighs on the pad, trunk level. Hold the sides of the bench near the front end. A dumbbell stands between the feet: the handle squeezed between the arches, one head over the toes and one at the heels. Ankles flexed (toes pulled up towards the shins) so the bell can't slip; legs nearly straight.
The movement
Bend only the knees, bringing the heels up until the shins are vertical (about 90°). Pause, then lower slowly to nearly straight. The hips stay pressed into the bench; don't arch the lower back or lift the thighs.
Breathing
Breathe out as you curl; breathe in as you lower.
Tempo
1.4 s curl, 0.4 s pause, 1.8 s lowering, 0.4 s with the legs out.
Form in numbers
What are the angles and distances?
| Measure | Target | Good range | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|
| Knee flexion, start → top | 5–12° → 90° | top 80–95° (past vertical the bell slides off) | |
| Kneecaps past the bench end | 4 cm | 2–8 cm | |
| Hip lift off the pad | 0 cm | ≤ 1 cm | |
| Ankles | flexed about 90° to the shin all the way | toes never pointed | |
| Feet | together, squeezing the handle | — | |
| Face above the pad | ≥ 3 cm (head lifted a little) | — |
The targets our 3D demo was built to, from the references below. Bodies differ, so treat the ranges as a guide for your own build.
For coaches
Use this demo in your clients’ programs
The Dumbbell Lying Leg Curl is in Trainaq’s exercise library. Add it to a workout, and your client sees this demo in the free Trainaq app above the sets they log.
Sources
Sources
- ExRx.net, "Dumbbell Lying Leg Curl" (prone on a bench, knees just past the end, dumbbell between the feet, raise until the knees are fully flexed short of the bell falling, lower)
- ACE Exercise Library, "Lying leg curl" (hips down, knees only, controlled lowering)
- NSCA, Essentials of Strength Training and Conditioning, 4th ed. (2016), ch. 15, lying leg (knee) curl
