Supine Strap Active Straight-Leg Raise

stretchhipeasyHamstrings (front leg)

Content last reviewed: 2026-07-06

Supine Strap Active Straight-Leg Raise — start/setup and end/loaded positions — Left: start / setup position. Right: end / loaded position.

How to do it

Lie on your back with one leg straight on the floor and a strap or belt looped around the arch of the other foot.
Keep both knees fully straight and the down-leg pressed into the floor.
Use the strap to raise the working leg toward the ceiling until you feel a firm hamstring stretch.
Actively pull the leg a little higher with your own hip flexors, then let the strap assist the last few degrees.
Lower under control and repeat, gaining a little range each rep.

Form cues

Keep the raised knee dead straight — no bend to cheat height
Toes pulled back toward the shin
Down-leg stays flat and long on the floor

Dosage

Frequency: daily
Volume: 2–3 sets × 8–10 reps each side
Hold: 2 s at end range
Progress by raising higher, not by bending the knee.

Muscles worked

hamstrings — anatomical illustration — hamstringsAnatomical illustration derived from BodyParts3D, © The Database Center for Life Science, licensed under CC BY-SA.

iliopsoas — anatomical illustration — iliopsoasAnatomical illustration derived from BodyParts3D, © The Database Center for Life Science, licensed under CC BY-SA.

quadriceps — anatomical illustration — quadricepsAnatomical illustration derived from BodyParts3D, © The Database Center for Life Science, licensed under CC BY-SA.

Stretches: hamstrings

Strengthens: iliopsoas, quadriceps

Target muscles

Hamstrings Iliopsoas Quadriceps

Posterior Neck Stretch (Chin Tuck, Supine)Shoulder Adductor / Lat Stretch (Supine Overhead Reach)Lateral Neck Flexor Stretch (Side Tilt)Neck Extensor Stretch (Seated/Supine Flatten Neck)Pectoralis Minor Stretch (Supine Assisted)One-Joint Hip Flexor Stretch (Supine, Knee to Chest)