Doing Crunches the right way

We love core strengthening right? So I bet you think you know how to do a crunch right? Are you sure? Hmmm. Maybe not…. to do crunches properly and make sure you are really strengthening your core as much as you need to read on…

Instructions for proper core strengthening with crunches…

step by step instructions are easy and almost exactly what you have always done with one or two new twists…

These extra bits make all of the difference in activating the proper muscles including a muscle called the transversus abdominus which really helps to activate the whole core (anteriorly and posteriorly).

Here are the steps:

Lay on your back with your knees bent
place one hand on your belly
place the other hand behind your neck with your thumb and fingers spanning your neck to the upper back
brace (this is exercise #1 – told you that you would need it again)
put your tongue on the roof of your mouth (yes you read that right)
crunch and lift your shoulders slightly off the floor without moving your neck into flexion.

Ok so why with the tongue thing? It makes it so you can’t engage your neck muscles and you have to use your core. This is the way you were always supposed to do crunches. Who knew right?

Video

for a step by step how to please see my YouTube video below!

Questions, Comments and Queries

And as always, if you have any questions or need more help with something please don’t hesitate to call our office. If you aren’t sure this one is for you please also ask us. If you have an injury this may not be appropriate for you — yet. I always give this exercise to my lower back pain patients but it usually requires some treatment first before we can get to this point. If you have pain, please seek treatment first – Pain is your body’s way of letting you know something is wrong… go get it looked at and fixed! Let us help…