Sitting Windshield Wipers
Sitting Windshield Wipers Exercise Description
Sitting Windshield Wipers are a bodyweight core exercise that trains rotational control while the legs move side to side. Performed seated with a slight lean, you lift the legs and sweep them like windshield wipers without letting the torso collapse or twist. The external and internal obliques provide the primary control of the side-to-side motion; the rectus abdominis and transverse abdominis brace to resist extension and keep the ribcage and pelvis linked. Hip flexors assist by maintaining the leg lift and stabilizing the pelvis. Keeping the spine long and the movement slow emphasizes control over momentum, promoting a strong, coordinated midline through the transverse and frontal planes.
- Muscle Groups: Abs, Obliques, Waist
- Target Muscles: External Obliques, Internal Obliques
- Assisting Muscles: Quadratus Lumborum
- Stabilizing Muscles: Iliacus, Psoas Major, Rectus Abdominis, Transversus Abdominis
- Body Area: Upper Body
- Body Parts: Core
- Body Surface: Side
- Body Symmetry: Bilateral
- Equipment: Bodyweight
- Exercise Patterns: Other
- Exercise Type: Strength
- Functional Grouping: Trunk Lateral Flexors, Trunk Rotators
- Joint Involvement: Single-joint
- Muscle Location: Deep Side Abs, Side Abs
- Movement Direction: Lateral
- Muscle Position: Lateral
- Gender: Female
How To Do The Sitting Windshield Wipers Exercise
‘- Sit on the floor, legs together in front; hands on the floor just behind your hips, chest lifted.
– Set ribs down and brace your abdominal wall; shoulders relaxed away from ears.
– Find neutral to slightly posterior pelvic tilt; keep a long, tall spine (avoid slumping).
– Lift both feet off the floor, knees together; keep them straight or softly bent to maintain control.
– Keeping your torso steady, sweep both legs as one unit to the right in a smooth arc.
– Stop before your low back moves or your chest turns; control the range.
– Use your obliques to bring the legs back to center without swinging.
– Sweep to the left with the same control, keeping hips level.
– Breathe continuously—exhale as the legs move, inhale through center.
– Avoid collapsing the chest, shrugging, holding your breath, or using momentum.
– Lower the feet with control to finish and sit tall.
Sitting Windshield Wipers Tips
‘- Sit with legs together in front, hands on the floor just behind your hips, and chest lifted.
– Set your ribs down and brace your abdominal wall while keeping your shoulders relaxed away from your ears.
– Hold a neutral to slightly posterior pelvic tilt and a long, tall spine; avoid slumping.
– Lift both feet off the floor with knees together, keeping them straight or softly bent for control.
– Sweep both legs as one unit in a smooth arc while keeping your torso steady.
– Stop the leg sweep before your low back moves or your chest turns to control the range.
– Use your obliques to bring the legs back to center without swinging or using momentum.
– Keep your hips level as you sweep to the left with the same control.
– Breathe continuously—exhale as the legs move and inhale through center, avoiding breath holding.
– Lower your feet with control at the end and finish in a tall seated position.
Sitting Windshield Wipers Beginner Introduction
Sitting Windshield Wipers are a bodyweight core movement performed on the floor in a seated position, with the upper body slightly reclined and supported by the hands. Both feet hover above the ground and travel together in a smooth arc from side to side, similar to the motion of real wipers. While the legs glide in this sweeping pattern, the chest and trunk stay tall and steady, turning it into a rotational stability challenge rather than a fast, swinging exercise.
This motion places strong demand on the side abs as they guide the legs across, while the front abs work like a brace to keep the ribs and hips working together. The hip flexors help by holding the legs up and adding extra steadiness around the pelvis. The exercise is characterized by a long, organized posture and a calm, unhurried tempo, highlighting control, balance, and coordination through the middle of the body rather than relying on momentum.