---
title: Toes to Bar
seo_title: How to do toes to bar
skill: raise my toes to the bar without swinging
tags: [core, grip]
image: 29-hanging-leg-raise.mp4
image_source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_jLskVdzS4o
image_credit: The Movement Collective
image_credit_url: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCShVqoSeRX4HOTAA39veJHQ
image_title: "Hanging leg raise tutorial"
image_clip: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_jLskVdzS4o?0:17.40-0:20.40
authors: []
prerequisite: tuck-l-sit
track: reps
published: 2026-04-17
---

Toes to bar is the full-range, straight-leg version of the hanging leg raise. You hang from a bar, keep your legs completely straight, and raise them all the way up until your toes touch the bar above your head. It's a humbling jump in difficulty from knee raises: straight legs dramatically lengthen the lever, so your abs, hip flexors, and grip all have to work much harder for much longer.

This exercise doesn't just build a very strong core, it also teaches compact, coordinated movement. Hitting the bar cleanly without swinging, using pure core strength, is what separates a strong gymnast-style core from a crunch-builder.

## How to do it

Hang from a [pull-up](/calisthenics/pull-up) bar with a shoulder-width overhand grip and a still body. Without swinging, keep your legs glued together and completely straight. Drive your toes up in a big arc toward the bar, tucking the pelvis under at the top so the toes meet the bar (or as close as you can get). Lower slowly back to a still dead hang before the next rep.

See more here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_jLskVdzS4o

*[The Movement Collective](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCShVqoSeRX4HOTAA39veJHQ) · [Hanging leg raise tutorial](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_jLskVdzS4o)*


## Target

- **Sets:** 3
- **Reps:** 10
- **Rest:** 90 seconds between sets
- **Advance when:** 3×10 with straight legs, toes touching the bar

## Key tips

- Keep your legs straight. Even a slight bend makes it much easier
- Tuck your pelvis under at the top; it's not just hip flexors, it's core
- Control the descent, don't just let your legs swing down
- Minimize swinging between reps; pause and reset if you start kipping
- Progression path: [hanging knee raise](/calisthenics/hanging-knee-raise), then [tuck L-sit](/calisthenics/tuck-l-sit) for straight-arm core, then L-raise (legs parallel to floor), then toes to bar