The Captain's Chair Knee Raise is a beginner-friendly bodyweight strength exercise that targets the abdominals. Here's how to do it right — and what to stop doing.
Primary musclesAbs
Secondary muscles—
EquipmentBodyweight
LevelBeginner
TypeStrength
3D demo in the EGON app
01 Execution
How to do the Captain's Chair Knee Raise
Step into a captain's chair station and place your forearms on the pads with your back against the rest.
Grip the handles, let your legs hang straight down and take the weight off your feet.
Brace your abdominals and press your lower back lightly into the pad.
Raise both knees toward your chest, finishing the rep by curling the pelvis upward.
Pause at the top with the abdominals fully shortened.
Lower the legs slowly back to a straight hang and repeat without swinging.
02 The payoff
Why it earns its spot
Ranked first for oblique activation and second for rectus abdominis activation in electromyography testing across thirteen abdominal movements.
Supports the back and forearms, so grip strength does not limit the set the way it does when hanging from a bar.
Progresses simply by moving from bent knees to straight legs without changing the setup.
03 Don't do this
Common mistakes
Swinging the legs up with momentum, which lets the hip flexors do the work the abdominals should do.
Stopping at hip height without tilting the pelvis, which leaves the rectus abdominis barely loaded.
Dropping the legs at the end of the rep, which throws away the eccentric and stresses the low back.
Shrugging into the shoulder pads, which loads the neck and traps instead of the trunk.
EGON Put it on record
Track it in EGON.
Log every set of the Captain's Chair Knee Raise, get your PRs detected automatically, earn aura for the work — and climb five leagues of statues, from Stone to Ego.
