Crunches and Variations
Kick your abdominal exercise routine up a notch and try this fun variation on a classic crunch. Crunches check all the boxes when it comes to strengthening and toning your core. If you want to challenge your muscles, then give crunches a whirl today.
Benefits of Crunches
Like situps, crunches help you build muscle. But unlike situps, they work only the abdominal muscles. This intense muscle isolation makes them a popular exercise for people trying to get six-pack abs.
Crunches also make them ideal for strengthening your core, which includes your lower back muscles and obliques. Doing so can improve your balance and posture.
Common Mistakes
Pulling On Your Neck With Your Hands
It seems as though people take out their frustration with crunches on their necks. Yanking on your neck will not make your crunch any more productive, but will in fact, most certainly pull a muscle in your neck.
Not Curling Up High Enough In Your Back
Curling just your head and neck forward do not help your abdominal muscles at all. So make sure you get your back high enough off the ground.
Using Momentum And Going Way Too Fast
Slow and steady wins the race – and gets you rock hard abs way quicker than doing crazy fast crunches. When you get better at crunches you don’t get faster, you get slower and more controlled because you aren’t using momentum any more
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Variations
Crunches
- Lie on your back with your hands crossed over your chest.
- Place your feet on the floor with your legs bent.
- Lift your torso along with your shoulder blades off the floor and crunch your rib cage towards your lower belly.
- Hold for two counts and then lower slowly to the starting position.
Cross Crunches
- Lie on your back with knees bent and hands behind your head.
- Keeping lower back pressed into the floor. Lift your shoulder blades off the floor and then curl your upper body diagonally across your body towards your right knee.
- Contract your abs and obliques as hard as you can at the top of the movement.
- Lower back down and repeat on the same side before switching sides.
Exercise Ball Crunches
- Get hold of an Exercise ball and sit on it.
- Slowly roll out such that your back is firmly placed on the ball.
- Place your hands behind your head or extend them in front of you. Your thighs must be parallel to the floor.
- Curl your back and raise your head and shoulder blades off the ball to do a crunch.
Knee Crunches
It primarily targets the rectus abdominis or “six-pack” muscles. It can be performed for time or reps as part of any abs-focused circuit or workout.
- Lie with your back flat on the ground and your legs raised.
- Hold your hands behind your head and look toward your stomach.
- Contract your abs and bring your knees up to your elbows.
Reverse Crunches
- Lie on your back with knees bent and feet a few inches off the floor.
- Slowly contract the abs, focusing on rotating the pelvis up and bringing your knees towards your rib cage.
- Concentrate on letting your abs do the work. Hold at the top then slowly lower your knees to the starting position.
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