Crunch
Trains the Abs.
- Equipment
- Body only
- Mechanic
- Isolation
- Force
- Pull
- Level
- Beginner
How to do it
- Lie on your back with your knees bent and your feet flat on the floor, hip-width apart.
- Rest your fingertips lightly beside your ears, or cross your arms over your chest. Do not lace your fingers behind your head and pull.
- Tuck your chin slightly so your neck stays in line with your spine.
- Curl your ribcage toward your pelvis, lifting your shoulder blades off the floor. The lower back stays on the floor throughout — this is a short movement.
- Pause at the top and breathe out, then lower under control until your shoulder blades touch the floor again.
Common mistakes
- Pulling on the head with the hands. The neck ends up doing work the abdominals should, and it is the reason so many people say crunches hurt their neck. Fingertips resting, elbows wide, no pulling.
- Trying to sit all the way up. Once the lower back leaves the floor the movement has become a sit-up and the hip flexors take over. A crunch is deliberately short.
- Going fast for high repetitions. The rectus abdominis responds to load like any other muscle; slow repetitions, and weight when bodyweight becomes easy, do more than a hundred fast ones.
- Expecting crunches to reveal abs. Visible abs are a body fat outcome. Crunches make the muscle thicker, which makes it more visible at a given body fat — they do not remove the layer over it.