MONKEYFEET REVIEW
What Is MonkeyFeet?
MonkeyFeet is a portable foot attachment that lets you clip a dumbbell to your foot, opening up a ton of exercise possibilities, whether you're training in a gym, garage, clinic, or pretty much anywhere. As long as you have a dumbbell, you're good to go.
It attaches like a boot with a ratcheting strap to secure around your foot and a clamp on the heel to hold the dumbbell. The unit itself is lightweight (around 1.2 lbs), made of plastic and rubber, and can handle up to a 160 lb dumbbell. If you wear up to a men's size 14 shoe, you’re in the clear.
What Exercises Is It Good For?
There are tons of movements you can do with the MonkeyFeet, but the three main ones that stand out to me as a physical therapist and a strength coach, and the ones I see most often on social media. These are:
Hamstring Curls
Leg Extensions
Hip Flexion Raises
Here’s a breakdown of each and why the MonkeyFeet can be a game-changer for them:
1. Hamstring Curls
Hamstring curls are a staple in bodybuilding and athletic programs. Strong hamstrings not only look good but play a huge role in knee stability, injury prevention, and performance.
But let’s be real: leg curl machines are huge, expensive, and not very common in garage gyms or physical therapy clinics. That’s where MonkeyFeet shines. You can knock out hamstring curls without needing a machine, whether standing or lying on your stomach.
Sure, exercises like RDLs and good mornings work the hamstrings through hip extension, but the hamstrings also perform knee flexion, which is exactly what the curl targets. Fun anatomy fact: one of the four hamstring muscles, the short head of the biceps femoris, only does knee flexion. You're not fully training the hamstrings if your program doesn’t include curls.
2. Leg Extensions
Leg extensions with MonkeyFeet are another solid way to isolate your quads when you don’t have access to a machine. While compound movements like squats and lunges hit the quads hard, they also bring in other muscles and can be fatiguing.
Isolation movements like leg extensions let you really focus on the quads while limiting central fatigue, which is perfect for getting that quad pump or for rehab settings. Just sit on a box, strap on the MonkeyFeet, and extend your leg like you would on a machine.
3. Hip Flexion Raises
Hip flexion, or lifting your knee toward your chest, is something we do all day long with activities like walking, running, stair climbing, and sprinting. Sprinting especially demands strong, reactive hip flexors to improve knee drive for faster sprinting.
There aren’t many machines or tools out there to strengthen the hip flexors directly. MonkeyFeet makes this easier by letting you add resistance to the movement. You can do standing or seated hip flexion raises and really target those muscles.
Other Movements
Beyond the big three, MonkeyFeet can be used for:
Hip extension and abduction
Donkey kicks
Internal/external hip rotation
Ankle exercises
So there’s plenty of versatility here.
My Experience Using MonkeyFeet
Let’s talk setup. It can be a bit of a hassle at first. The device feels a little flimsy when getting it ready, and it’s not exactly easy to walk around in, especially if you’re wearing a pair.
In my opinion, you don’t really need two. Sure, you get a good savings when buying a pair, but one MonkeyFeet is more than enough for most exercises unless you plan on sharing or training both legs at the same time with exercises like leg curls or extensions.
Final Thoughts
Overall, I think the MonkeyFeet is a solid addition to any garage gym, home setup, physical therapy clinic, or sports performance center, especially if you don’t have access to machines like a leg curl or extension.
I’ll keep using it for those three main exercises: hamstring curls, leg extensions, and hip flexion raises. That’s why I was excited about it in the first place, and in my experience, it does a great job at all three.
If you’re looking to pick up the MonkeyFeet, you can check it out here.
