Legs · Bodyweight
Standing Hand Out Cross Kick
How to do the standing hand out cross kick, the muscles it works, and the mistakes to avoid. Pulled straight from the Kovo app's exercise library.
- Equipment
- Bodyweight
- Difficulty
- Beginner
- Logged as
- Reps
- Movement
- Flexion
- Mechanic
- Compound
How to do it
Stand with your feet hip-width apart and arms extended out to the sides. Kick one leg up and across your body toward the opposite hand, then return and alternate. Keep your kicks controlled and your torso tall.
- 1Hip flexors driving each kick up and across
- 2Obliques engaging as the leg crosses your midline
- 3Hamstrings of the standing leg stabilizing you
Common mistakes
- Do not round forward to reach the kick higher
- Avoid swinging the leg with uncontrolled momentum
- Do not lock out the kicking knee hard at the top
Muscles worked
The standing hand out cross kick mainly works the hip flexors, with the lower abs, obliques, upper abs, quads, glutes, hamstrings, side delts, adductors, and tibialis anterior assisting.
- Hip FlexorsPrimary
- Lower AbsSupport
- ObliquesSupport
- Upper AbsSupport
- QuadsSupport
- GlutesSupport
- HamstringsSupport
- Side DeltsSupport
- AdductorsSupport
- Tibialis AnteriorSupport
- Lower BackMinor
- Upper TrapsMinor
- CalvesMinor
- Front DeltsMinor
- Rear DeltsMinor
Kovo programs the standing hand out cross kick for you and tracks it every session.
We build your whole program, drop the right lifts into each workout, and adjust your weights as you get stronger. Free on iOS and Android.
More hips & adductors exercises
- How to do the butterfly stretch
- How to do the external rotation
- How to do the cable hip adduction
- How to do the internal rotation
- How to do the cobra pose
- How to do the core scrunch
Last reviewed June 2026.