Topic: Leg extension in L-sits, pistols

[Paul Bischoff]

I am unable to keep my legs fully extended when doing L-sits, L-pullups, and pistols.  I'm not sure why, but I bend at the knees.  I can't tell if its flexibility or strength, or even what muscles are preventing me from doing so.  Is this a common problem?  What can I do to isolate it and make it better?

Thanks in advance.

[Elet ET]

Used to be a problem for me too, i think its a combo of both.

[drocco]

I have this issue as well
Not so much with L-sits but when doing L-CUs/PUs and pistols
I always thought it was lack of hamstring flexibility
Once I'm warmed up, there's a big difference but I still need to work on stretching
I imagine core and leg strength could be factors but I'm not sure

[KC Parsons]

I am unable to keep my legs fully extended when doing L-sits, L-pullups, and pistols.  I'm not sure why, but I bend at the knees.  I can't tell if its flexibility or strength, or even what muscles are preventing me from doing so.  Is this a common problem?  What can I do to isolate it and make it better?

Thanks in advance.

Drocco hit it a little. It's likely hammy flexibility, just like people's hard times with doing correct squats. In many people, the weakness of the hip flexors and knee extensors at this angle/in this position is overpowered by the strength of the stretch reflex in the hammies. I'd just suggest that after your workout take about 2 1/2 minutes for each hamstring to stretch them out adequately. Once you can actually get a proper knee extension when in that position, it's likely you'll get the straightening muscles strengthened through doing the movement.

My point being, get those hammies nice and loose and don't worry about the strength of the extensors. Best of  luck my friend, it shouldn't take you very long at all. :]

[Dan Frank]

Yeah, it's likely your tight hamstrings forcing your quadriceps to pull extra freakin' hard. Be careful; you can easily get muscle spasms or strains in your quads from their effort against the antagonist muscles of the hamstring. Warm up and do some active stretching for your hamstrings (i.e. don't use your hands or let gravity do the stretch for you, just flex your quads and abs to bring yourself into the stretching position), then do the exercises. I had this problem with level-ground l-sits, and stretching and posterior chain strength exercises eradicated it pretty quickly.

[Matthew Wang]

Some people recommend only doing exercises like pistols, L-pull ups, and L-sit after you're 50%-75% through with your workout. You don't want to do static stretches before your workout (streches where you just stand/sit there and stretch for 15-30 seconds). So by doing these exercises late into your workout, your body will be warmed up and more flexible.

[Charles Moreland]

Work active flexibility of the hip flexors, abductors, and extensors in conjunction with any form of passive flexibility you may do.

[Paul Bischoff]

Yeah, it's likely your tight hamstrings forcing your quadriceps to pull extra freakin' hard. Be careful; you can easily get muscle spasms or strains in your quads from their effort against the antagonist muscles of the hamstring. Warm up and do some active stretching for your hamstrings (i.e. don't use your hands or let gravity do the stretch for you, just flex your quads and abs to bring yourself into the stretching position), then do the exercises. I had this problem with level-ground l-sits, and stretching and posterior chain strength exercises eradicated it pretty quickly.

Okay. Would lying on my back then raising my leg vertically until it's 90* do the trick (while keeping straight knees, ofc)?  I saw this in Muse's stretching article, but the picture in the link showed him doing it with a band around the bottom of his foot.

Work active flexibility of the hip flexors, abductors, and extensors in conjunction with any form of passive flexibility you may do.

Right. I'll have to google some of that, but I'll figure it out.  Do samson stretches work for this?

[Steven Low]

Anything where you feel pulling in your hammies. There's gallions of hamstring stretches