Crunch (hands overhead)

Description

How to Do Crunch (hands overhead)

1. 1
   Setup

   Lie on your back with your knees bent and feet flat on the floor, about hip-width apart. Extend your arms straight overhead, keeping them close to your ears with palms facing each other.

2. 2
   Setup

   Gently press your lower back into the floor, engaging your core slightly to ensure a stable starting position.

3. 3

   Exhale as you slowly lift your head, shoulders, and upper back off the floor by contracting your abdominal muscles.

4. 4

   Continue to reach your extended hands towards the ceiling, maintaining the overhead position, until your shoulder blades are just off the floor.

5. 5

   Inhale and slowly lower your upper body back to the starting position with control, avoiding letting your head drop back suddenly.

Tips

• Focus on initiating the movement from your core, imagining your sternum pulling towards your pelvis, rather than using your neck or arms to pull yourself up.
• Maintain your hands extended overhead throughout the entire movement to keep the increased leverage challenge on your rectus abdominis.
• Control the eccentric phase (the lowering portion) of the crunch to maximize muscle engagement and prevent momentum from taking over.
• Keep a small gap between your chin and chest to avoid neck strain; imagine holding an orange under your chin throughout the movement.

Common Mistakes

• ×Avoid pulling your head forward with your hands, as this strains the cervical spine; instead, keep your hands gently extended overhead and lead with your chest.
• ×Do not use momentum to "throw" your body up, as this reduces abdominal engagement; focus on a slow, controlled movement driven by your core.
• ×Refrain from lifting your entire back off the floor, as this engages hip flexors more than the rectus abdominis; only lift until your shoulder blades are just off the floor.