Pilates Inner Thigh Lifts: Steps, Muscles and Common Mistakes

How to do the Inner Thigh Lifts

Lie on your side on the mat with your bottom leg straight, and rest your head on your bottom arm. Bend your top leg and place that foot flat on the floor in front of your bottom thigh.

1. Lie on your side and find a neutral spine.
2. Straighten your bottom leg completely and flex or point your foot.
3. Bend your top leg and place your top foot flat on the mat in front of you.
4. Check that your hips are stacked directly on top of each other.
5. Slowly lift your bottom leg up toward the ceiling.
6. Pause briefly at the top of the movement.
7. Lower the leg back down to the mat with control.

• Breath. Teachers cue breath differently, but you will often hear instructions to exhale as you lift the leg and inhale as you lower it. Some instructors prefer the opposite, so choose the pattern that helps you maintain control.
• Where you feel it. You should feel the work in the inner thigh of your bottom leg and a slight engagement in your side abdominal muscles. You should not feel pinching in your lower back or strain in your neck.
• How many. 8 to 12 controlled repetitions per side

Common mistakes

• Rolling the hips back. Keep your top hip stacked directly over your bottom hip. You can place your top hand on the mat in front of you for balance.
• Losing the neutral spine. Engage your obliques to keep your spine steady. Avoid letting your lower back arch or sag as you lift the leg.
• Moving too fast. Focus on a slow, controlled lift and lower. Momentum takes the work away from your hip adductors.
• Tensing the neck and shoulders. Rest your head completely on your bottom arm. Keep your shoulders relaxed and away from your ears.
• Lifting the leg too high. Only lift the leg as high as you can while keeping your pelvis completely still. A smaller range of motion is better if it means your hips stay stable.

Make it easier or harder

Easier

• Perform the exercise with a smaller range of motion, lifting the leg only an inch or two.
• Bend the bottom leg slightly if keeping it completely straight feels too difficult.
• Rest your top knee on a cushion or block instead of reaching the foot to the floor.

Harder

• Add small pulses at the top of the lift before lowering the leg.
• Draw small circles in the air with your bottom leg while keeping it lifted.

Who should be careful

This is one of the gentler exercises in the repertoire, but the usual rule applies: work in a pain-free range and stop if something feels wrong.

Related exercises

• Frog on the Reformer Beginner
• Bent Knee Fall Out Beginner
• Cat Stretch Beginner
• Chest Lift Beginner
• Clam Beginner

This exercise is part of our pages on Pilates for Osteoporosis, Pilates for Knee Pain.

When to see a doctor or physical therapist

• Sharp pain in your hip joint during the lift.
• Numbness or tingling traveling down your leg.
• Sudden lower back pain that does not improve with a neutral spine.
• Pain in the groin that feels sharp rather than muscular.

This page is general education, not a diagnosis or treatment plan. If you have a health condition, are pregnant or are recovering from an injury or surgery, check with your own clinician before trying new exercises.

How we put this page together. Exercise data (type, level, equipment and muscles) was compiled by our editors from the classical mat order in Joseph Pilates’ 1945 book and from commonly taught mat repertoire. Muscle lists are a general anatomy guide; cueing differs between teachers. Text drafted with AI assistance and checked by the Editorial Team. See our editorial policy. Last checked October 2026.