Straight Leg Kickback
The Straight Leg Kickback is a bodyweight isolation exercise performed on all fours that targets the glutes and hamstrings. It effectively builds posterior chain strength and improves hip extension stability without requiring external weight.
Iridium schedules this exercise to help you reach your Maximum Adaptive Volume for glutes without accruing the high systemic fatigue associated with heavy compound lifts. If your 7-day history indicates significant recent spinal loading, the AI favors this isolation movement to maintain stimulus while protecting your lower back. Progressive overload is determined by analyzing weight and RPE trends to ensure the intensity remains high enough for hypertrophy despite the lighter loads.
Form Cues
- Start on all fours with hands under shoulders
- Brace your core tightly to flatten your back
- Squeeze your glute to lift your leg straight back
- Keep your toes pointed down at the floor
- Control the lowering phase completely
- Don't arch your lower back to get the leg higher
- Don't swing the leg using momentum
- Don't rotate your hips open to the side
- Don't look up or crane your neck
Common Mistakes
- Hyperextending the lumbar spine
- Using momentum to swing the leg
- Rotating hips to compensate
- Insufficient glute contraction at top
- Bending the knee of the working leg
Muscles Worked
This exercise primarily isolates the gluteus maximus, driving hip extension while keeping the lever arm long for increased tension. It secondarily engages the hamstrings to maintain leg straightness and utilizes the core musculature to stabilize the pelvis against rotation.
Primary
Secondary
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