![]() Are Crunches Effective for Building and Strengthening the Abs?įor beginners, crunches are a great way to build strength and muscle in the abs. Take a brief pause at the top to feel the abs contracted, and work that for a second or two each rep to maximize each rep. Milking the top part of the crunch is a great way to get an awesome abdominal contraction. Think about laying back down after a crunch as if you were laying on a bed of sharp nails. Training the lowering portion of the lift (eccentric) means you do not just let gravity take you to the floor. Lowering yourself under control not only helps protect the lower back but also helps you get more muscle growth and stimulus, every rep. Mistake 4 – Not Controlling the Lowering Portion (Eccentric) Make sure to focus on what you’re doing, slow down the movement, and feel the ab muscles contracting. This goes along with mistakes 1 and 2, however, most people are not aware of feeling their abs working during crunches. Keeping your lower back actively pushed into the ground will help you engage your abs more, keep tension on them even at “rest”, and minimize excessive stress on the lower back. This is a huge issue and requires a lot of attention to detail by most people. ![]() Mistake 2 – Not Keeping Lower Back on the Floor When using excessive momentum, just know that you are sending stress throughout the body rather than being hyper-isolated to the abs. Using excessive momentum such as swinging your arms may help you get “more reps”, but the stimulus will be less in the abs and more across the entire body. 5 Mistakes to Avoid When Doing Crunches Mistake 1 – Using Too Much Momentum Check out the Fitbod app today to get started. Ready to take your training to the next level? With the Fitbod app you can create awesome workouts using exercises just like the ones in this article by selecting what muscles you want ot train, what equipment you have access to, and your specific workout goals. Pro Tip: Resist the urge to swing your arms around to aid in the movement. Pause in this position, and then reverse the movement making sure to keep tension in the abs.Your arms should be lifted upwards and out in front of you as if you are trying to touch your heels.Lift the torso upwards while simultaneously pulling the knees up to the chest.Lie on your back with your arms and legs extended.This exercise works similar muscle groups to the tuck crunch and is roughly the same difficulty. The cocoon crunch is like the tuck crunch, however, the hands start extended behind your head and the end “tuck” position is different. Keeping this movement slow and controlled will help you feel the muscles working better. ![]() Pro Tip: Think about lifting your torso up first, and then add a rotation at the top. Lower yourself down, and extend both legs out front again, and then repeat reps, making sure to alternate every rep (right elbow to left knee, left elbow to right knee).When you are almost at the top of the crunch, rotate your torso so that your left elbow touches your right knee.Perform a crunch, lifting your torso up off the ground but still keep your lower back flat on the floor.With the legs straight out in front of you, either keep your feet on the floor or keep them up off the ground a few inches.Place your hands either behind your head or across your chest.Lie on the ground with your lower back flat against the floor.This is a more advanced crunch exercise, so be sure you are able to do regular crunches and reverse crunches properly before attempting this. This bodyweight crunch is a combination exercise that trains both the standard crunch and the obliques by adding a twisting movement. Note for Fitbod Users: All 15 of the crunch variations below can be found in the Fitbod app, and each one comes with a video explaining proper form to go along with the how-to sections below. 15 Types of Crunchesīelow are 15 of the best crunch variations to add to your workouts. ![]() If you’re looking for more core workouts, check out the Fitbod app and get 3 free workouts.
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