Stability Ball Crunches

Muscles Worked

To the right you'll find videos and descriptions of several different types of exercise ball crunches that you can implement into your workout. I personally encourage it...

and this is why!

Enjoy and good luck!

This is the simplest thing in the book. It's fantastic for those tiny stabilizing muscles of the back and your abs! It's especially useful if you're sick and tired of doing crunches on the floor (who isn't?).

The Exercise

First, find yourself (or buy yourself) an exercise ball. Position the ball under your upper back. Place you feet flat on the floor and bend your knees to a 90 degree angle. Cross your arms over your chest. Now you're ready!

Slowly lift your shoulder blades towards the sky - UPWARDS!

You only want to move your shoulders 3-4 inches from the starting position. This is NOT a sit-up. Check here if you're looking for sit-ups.

Now it's your turn!

Buy an Exercise Ball

Step 1: Position the ball under your mid/lower spine with your feet flat on the floor and knees bent at 90 degrees. Cross your arms over your chest (I like to hold my left shoulder with my right hand, and vice versa).
Step 2: Lift your shoulders and upper back about 2 inches towards the sky. Exhale at the same time. Hold position for 3 seconds.
Step 3: Slowly return to starting position and inhale.

The most important concept about this exercise is to remember that it is NOT a sit-up. This type of movement does not localize the core stabilizers.

What you want to do is lift your shoulders and back from 2-3 inches from the starting position using only your abdominal muscles. Hold for 3 seconds and return.

Remember to always go slow. What's the rush? It's quality rather than quantity.

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