Core · Bodyweight
Standing Turn and Knee Raise
How to do the standing turn and knee raise, 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
- Rotation
- Mechanic
- Compound
How to do it
Stand tall with feet hip-width apart. Rotate your torso to one side while driving the opposite knee up toward your midline, crunching as the knee and torso meet. Return to center and alternate sides in a smooth, controlled rhythm.
- 1Your obliques engaging as you rotate and drive the knee up
- 2Your hip flexor lifting the knee to hip height or higher
- 3Your standing leg and core keeping you balanced
Common mistakes
- Hunching forward instead of staying tall through the spine
- Rushing the rotation and losing balance
- Letting the knee drift outward instead of crossing toward center
Muscles worked
The standing turn and knee raise mainly works the obliques and hip flexors, with the lower abs and upper abs assisting.
- ObliquesPrimary
- Hip FlexorsPrimary
- Lower AbsSupport
- Upper AbsSupport
- Lower BackMinor
- QuadsMinor
- GlutesMinor
- CalvesMinor
- Tibialis AnteriorMinor
Kovo programs the standing turn and knee raise 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 abs & core exercises
- How to do the ab wheel rollout
- How to do the ankle tap plank
- How to do the ankle taps
- How to do the resistance band dead bugs
- How to do the resistance band pallof press
- How to do the rollout
Last reviewed June 2026.