In need of some awesome crunch / sit-up substitutes

donyellemoniquex3
donyellemoniquex3 Posts: 2,384 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Please & Thank You !

Crunches get boring and I love the idea if crunch less abs !

Replies

  • mdn15
    mdn15 Posts: 145
    plank, regular, one legged, side plank.
  • rileysowner
    rileysowner Posts: 8,337 Member
    Not only are crunches boring, they are not very good for your back. Added to the above things like Mountain Climbers and Cross Body Mountain Climbers are good as well. Also if you have a stability ball you can do rollouts, jack knives, and pikes using it. For that matter even doing planks on it will increase muscle activation since you not only have to hold the plank, but the stabilizing muscles have to work to keep the ball from rolling. I have not done crunches in years as there are many other exercises that are far superior without the potential back issues.
  • rieann84
    rieann84 Posts: 511 Member
    Planks are very good for the core. You can hold it on your elbows, or on your hands. From hands you can twist and raise one arm to the sky, then switch sides. You can also switch from an elbow plank to a push up position one arm at a time, then lowering back down one arm at a time. I actually really like doing jack knifes, too. :)
  • rdean150
    rdean150 Posts: 6 Member
    These are all good suggestions. Plank variations strengthen the core well but don't give a very strong targeted abdominal workout (in my opinion).

    I like jack knives, bicycles, scissors, crunchy frogs... Those will also work your hip flexors as well, and if you've been primarily doing sit-ups / crunches, you will feel that very quickly doing these exercises. So you may want to ease into them. But they do provide excellent ab workouts.

    There are lots of variations of 'crunch' maneuvers that basically alter how you hold your legs and position your back that are generally more effective than standard sit-ups.

    And don't forget the twisting exercises, as others have mentioned, which will target your obliques.

    I'm still fairly new here, so I don't know the policy on linking to outside sources, but a quick google search for 'best ab exercises' or something will give you more ideas, plus illustrations / videos on the proper form for these moves.
  • AJ_G
    AJ_G Posts: 4,158 Member
    Hanging leg raises FTW
  • JNick77
    JNick77 Posts: 3,783 Member
    I don't do all of these in one workout but I do incorporate some (2 to 3) each session.

    - Sprinter Situps x 50 (I'm working up to the point where I can do 50 consecutive reps without stopping)
    - V-Situps x 50 (same as above)
    - Butterfly Situps x 50 (I usually will add them after one of the other situp exercises)
    - Leg lifts with a hip raise / pike: x 25 (working up to a point I can do 25 consecutive reps)
    - Hanging Leg Raises x 50 (same as above)
    - Loaded Side Raises x 50 (will increase weight as I progress)

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