fitness
Exercise at Home: Crunches
Continuing our Exercise at Home series this week with crunches and full v-ups.
This is a great exercise to help build and improve strength in the core and abdominal muscles and improve posture and balance.
Once youâve mastered the crunch try turning your exercise into V-Ups, to work those muscles even further.
Follow the steps demonstrated by our PT in the video below:
- 1. Lie on your back with your knees bent and feet flat on the floor hip-width apart. Place your hands behind your head so your thumbs are behind your ears.
- 2. Hold your elbows out to the sides but rounded slightly in.
- 3. Tilt your chin slightly, leaving a few inches of space between your chin and your chest. Gently pull your abdominals inward.
- 4. Curl up and forward so that your head, neck and shoulder blades lift off of the floor. Hold for a moment at the top of the movement and then lower slowly back down.
- 5. Complete 3 sets of 12 reps.
Progress into Full V-ups:
- 1. Start in the starting crunch position.
- 2. Stretch our your arms and legs at the same time so that your body is in a straight line. Tense your core muscles to support your back.
- 3. Bring your arms and legs in at the same time so you end up touching your toes or getting as close as you can to them.
- 4. Complete 3 sets of 12 reps.