Hey My Friends! Happy New Year once again! We are kicking off 2026 with a new movement - the L-sit! I’m not going to lie - this is a difficult movement that is not accessible for a lot of athletes. However! There are lots of great modifications that will give you the same benefits and move you closer to mastering this skill.
What Is the L-Sit Hold?
The L-sit hold is an isometric core exercise where you support your body on your hands while extending your legs straight out in front of you, forming an “L” shape. It’s commonly performed on the floor, using parallettes, boxes, dip bars, or even a stable, hexagonal-shaped set of dumbbells.
Although it looks simple, the L-sit is a full-body strength movement that challenges the core, hip flexors, shoulders, triceps, and even grip strength—all without impact.
For the mid-life athlete, the L-sit is especially valuable because it builds joint-friendly strength, control, and active mobility that carries over to everyday movement and sport.
Benefits of Adding the L-Sit to Your Workout
The L-sit isn’t just a “core exercise”—it’s a movement skill with wide-ranging benefits, especially for athletic aging populations.
1. Builds Deep Core Strength
The L-sit targets the deep stabilizers of the core, including the transverse abdominis, helping improve posture, spinal stability, and overall movement efficiency.
2. Strengthens Hip Flexors Actively
Unlike passive stretching, the L-sit strengthens the hip flexors in a controlled, active range, which is key for walking, running, and getting up from the floor as we age.
3. Improves Shoulder Stability
Supporting your body weight through straight arms trains shoulder depression and stability—important for protecting the shoulders during lifting, pushing, and daily tasks.
4. Joint-Friendly and Low Impact
Because the L-sit is isometric and bodyweight-based, it builds strength without pounding the joints, making it ideal for longevity-focused training.
5. Enhances Body Awareness and Control
Holding tension throughout the body improves coordination, balance, and neuromuscular control—often overlooked but critical for injury prevention and confidence in movement.
Today’s workout is a modification of CrossFit WOD 251220. We have 5 rounds for time of a triplet that includes a full-body, power movement in the dumbbell thruster that will raise your heart rate and target full-body strength and power followed by 2 isometric holds. We have explored the benefits of isometric holds in an earlier Athletic Aging post: Take A Seat with the Wall Sit and the High Plank Hold. Today, we will be working on the L-sit and the Pike Hold.
Warm Up
TABATA - 20 seconds of work / 10 seconds of rest x 8 rounds. Perform each movement in sequence until you have completed 2 rounds of all 4 movements.
Air Squat - perform for 20 seconds, then rest 10 seconds; then….
High Plank hold - perform for 20 seconds, then 10 seconds of rest… and so on.
Movement Practice
Review the linked video for the dumbbell thruster and select a weight that you can do all 10 repetitions unbroken. If you have a barbell, you can substitute a barbell thruster.
Select your option for the L-sit. Below are options and alternatives from easiest to most difficult. Try them out and select an option that you can hold for the full 20 seconds.
(Easiest option) L-Sit in chair
(Alternative movement) V-Sit hold
(Alternative movement) Bench Dip top hold (add one straight leg lift, or one bent knee - switch at the 10-second mark)
(Intermediate and Advanced) L-Sit and modifications
Practice the Pike Hold. If you are proficient with handstands (with or without wall support), for an advanced-level substitute. If you are somewhere between the Pike hold and the handstand, you can use a box for your Pike Hold. If you have shoulder limitations, you can substitute a high plank or low plank hold with legs straight or for an easier option, with knees on the ground.
Workout
5 rounds for time
10 thrusters
20-second L-sit hold (or above option/modifications)
30-second Pike hold (or above option/modifications)
SCORE - The amount of time it takes to perform all 3 movements in sequence for 5 rounds.
Cool Down
Show your shoulders some love and jump-start your recovery with this 15-minute shoulder-focused yoga stretch session. #dontskiptheyoga
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Hi Bryan! Thank you so much for your comment, the kind words, and for subscribing! So many times high-yield movements like isometric holds and weighted carries get lost when they are diamonds in the rough for those of us with aching joints, impact limitations and the like. Thanks again for the comment! -Dr. Carla
Hey There! Thank you so much for your very astute comment and for reading! In this workout, the fatigue you point out generated by the hold shows up when you try to do the thrusters! Pairing a high-fatigue, full-body power movement like the thruster makes this exhausting in a very sneaky way! It's one of those "What the hell just happened?" workouts! <LOL>. Thanks again for the comment! Happy New Year!