Exercise Library
Exercise Ball Leg Curl
Lie on your back with your heels on an exercise (stability) ball and your arms by your sides for balance. Lift your hips into a bridge position, then bend your knees to roll the ball toward your glutes, curling with control. Slowly roll the ball back to the starting position while keeping your hips elevated and core engaged throughout the movement for hamstring and posterior chain activation.
Primary muscle
Hamstrings (biceps femoris
Secondary muscles
semitendinosus, semimembranosus), glutes, core stabilizers
Equipment
Ball
Category
Hamstrings
How to Do the Exercise Ball Leg Curl
- Lie on your back with your heels and lower calves resting on top of an exercise ball, arms flat on the floor at your sides.
- Brace your core and squeeze your glutes to lift your hips into a straight line from shoulders to ankles.
- Keeping the hips high, bend your knees and pull the ball toward your glutes with your heels.
- Continue until your feet are flat on top of the ball and knees point at the ceiling.
- Pause briefly with the hamstrings fully contracted.
- Slowly straighten your legs to roll the ball back out, keeping hips lifted the entire time.
- Repeat, lowering the hips only after the set is finished.
Common Mistakes
- Dropping the hips as the ball rolls in: sagging hips turn it into a leg drag and remove glute involvement. Keep the bridge locked from start to finish.
- Curling too fast: speed makes the ball wobble and shifts work to momentum. Slow, controlled rolls keep tension on the hamstrings.
- Pressing with the arms: pushing hard through the hands hides poor core control. Use the arms lightly for balance, not as levers.
- Hyperextending the lower back: arching to lift the hips higher stresses the spine. The line from shoulders to knees should stay neutral.
Track This Exercise in the App
Log your exercise ball leg curl sets in 1RM.fit and watch your estimated 1RM update automatically as you get stronger.