Tip L-Sits for Monsters Search Skip to content Menu Menu follow us Store Articles Community Loyal-T Club Loyal-T Points Rewards Subscribe to Save Search Search The World s Trusted Source & Community for Elite Fitness Training Tip L-Sits for Monsters This core strength exercise works great for little dudes Here are two ways to make it work for bigger taller folks by Lee Boyce February 11, 2021April 11, 2021 Tags Training The L-sit is a true testimony of core strength. Sadly, most people who can successfully do a gymnastic L-sit are, well, gymnasts. Remember that elite performance usually comes hand in hand with a body type that's best suited to that endeavor for every sport. There are high-achieving outliers. The ideal body type is typically compact for gymnasts, with a longer torso and shorter legs. However, if we want to recreate these patterns to cater to a taller, long-limbed dude who's got a whole lot of meat on his bones, we have to get innovative. For the L-sit, we have to acknowledge that our legs are just too long and heavy for us to coerce physics to join our side. Two modifications/progressions will help. The first one is simple. Attach a band across two low safeties in the squat rack. Place your heels on the band and lift your body. Keep rigid legs and pointed toes. Don't "rely" on the band, though. Do everything you can to lift your heels up, away from the band. Pretend you don't want its help. Attempting holds of 20-30 seconds is a good place to start. Once it gets easy, don't hold for any longer – just use a skinnier band. A second progression is wrapping a band around yourself rather than having a band help lift your heels. First, the movement becomes harder. Since your heels aren't "resting" on the band, your hips, quads, and core are responsible for lifting the legs. Note that I'm not wearing shoes in this variation. This keeps the band from slipping, but even more importantly, it forces me to point my toes, which is crucial to doing proper L-sits and a good habit to adopt so that you totally brace the anterior chain. Though the force angle is a bit different when the bands are around me rather than below my heels, it still offers a bit of assistance to make the lift possible for a 6'4" lifter with long legs. The goal is to use progressively skinnier bands until one isn't needed. Since this version's harder, start with sets of 15-20 seconds. Related: 5 Bodyweight Challenges for Big Guys Related: The Gymnastic Exercise You Need to Master Get The T Nation Newsletters Don' t Miss Out Expert Insights To Get Stronger, Gain Muscle Faster, And Take Your Lifting To The Next Level related posts Training Tip The Mixed-Grip Deadlift Sucks Sure, it'll help you pull more weight, but unless you're a competitive powerlifter and have to use it, it's best avoided. Here's why. Deadlift, Exercise Coaching, Powerlifting & Strength, Tips Dr John Rusin April 21 Training Refresher Course 2 Five Ways to Get Unstuck and Turn Back on the Gains! Training Chris Shugart August 30 Training Fully Functional Shoulders in 15 Minutes A program to increase shoulder strength, endurance, and mobility that can be done anywhere in 15 minutes. Check it out. It Hurts Fix It, Training Nick Tumminello December 22 Training Tip Take the Hang Pull-Up Test Take this quick test of grip strength, then ramp it up and see if you can pass the 5 minute pull-up challenge. Tips, Training Dan John October 15