Belly fat blocks knee raises#1630

Hello and thank you for developing the Hybrid Calisthenics app! I want to ask for advice regarding Knee Raises.

I’m quite obese and the fat around my thighs and belly are preventing me from reaching the full motion of knee raises as demonstrated in the app. My knees can only reach up to 90° from floor (perpendicular from core) before they have trouble moving against the fat without tilting my pelvis upwards. Should I do as far the range as I can or should I push through for full range by tilting my pelvis?

Hey. This is Chrys, one of the trainers at Hybrid.

With knee raises, it’s better to focus on safe range of motion than to force a full lift that compromises your form. If your belly or thighs limit how high your knees can go, bring them up to that 90° mark and stop there. You’ll still get solid core activation without grinding through bad mechanics. Tilting your pelvis upward just to squeeze out more range shifts the work away from your abs and can put extra strain on your lower back, so that’s not the direction you want to go.

Stay with the clean range you can do comfortably, and over time as your strength and body composition change, you’ll naturally be able to lift higher. The quality of each rep matters more than forcing the textbook version right now.

Thank you for the reply! I will try your suggestion on the next session.