Mistakes are so common with abdominal exercises that the crunch has the dubious honor of qualifying for a spot in as one of the exercises most often performed incorrectly.
Here’s a close look at abdominal training no-nos:
- Avoid doing neck-ups. In other words, lift from your abs, not your neck; otherwise, you’re asking for neck pain. Your head and neck shouldn’t be involved in abdominal exercises at all — they’re just along for the ride. Place your hands behind your head without lacing your fingers together, slide your shoulders down, and tilt your chin slightly so there’s about a fist’s worth of space between your chin and your chest. Your head and neck need to stay in this position throughout the exercise.
- Don’t move your elbows. Your elbows have nothing to do with abdominal exercises. After you position your elbows out and slightly rounded inward, leave them there. If you pull your elbows up and in, you’ll end up pulling on your neck.
- Don’t arch or flatten your back. We frequently remind you to pull your abs in, but always keep a slight gap, the width of a finger or two, between the small of your back and the floor. Avoid squeezing your buttocks and jamming your lower back into the floor.
- After the lift, don’t forget the curl. The crunch involves more than simply lifting your head, neck, and shoulder blades off the floor; you also need to curl forward, as if you’re doubling over. Imagine how you’d move if you were lying on the floor and someone dropped a weight on your stomach. That’s the movement you’re aiming for here.
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