How to do crunches correctly? The crunch exercise builds the rectus abdominis, your six-pack muscles, with internal and external obliques involved as synergists. Crunches do not require any equipment, and you can do them anywhere.
What Muscles Do Crunches Work?
Known as abdominal crunches, crunches target your abdominal muscles, specifically your rectus abdominis (the six-pack muscle) and your obliques.
This exercise helps build core strength and stability, which can help reduce lower back pain, improve posture, and improve balance and coordination. Additionally, strong abdominal muscles can help support the spine, which can improve overall strength and performance.
How To Do Crunches Correctly?
- Lie down on the floor on your back and bend your knees, placing your hands behind your head or across your chest.
- Slowly contract your abdominals, bringing your shoulder blades about 5 inches off the floor.
- Exhale as you come up and keep your neck straight, chin up. Imagine you’re holding a tennis ball under your chin.
- Slowly lower back down. Repeat.
The Crunch Modifications
The crunch strengthens the core and works the upper abdomen. In contrast to sit-ups, they isolate the abdominal muscles intensely. The crunch is one of the most popular exercises for people trying to get six-pack abs. It helps to tone and strengthen the upper abdominal muscles, which are usually the hardest to target. It also works the obliques and other stabilizing muscles in the core, which can help to improve posture and reduce the risk of injury.
Below I list some of the crunch modifications as inspiration for your workout:
- Oblique Crunches
- Bicycle Crunches
- Reverse Crunches
- Double Crunches
- Crunches with Leg Variations
- Kickboxing Crunches
