Weighted Crunch

Lie down on your back with your knees bent and feet flat on the ground. Hold a weight or dumbbell on your chest. Curl your upper body up, contracting your abdominal muscles. Slowly lower yourself back down to the starting position. Repeat for desired number of repetitions.

How to perform the Weighted Crunch

  1. Set up. Set up in a stable, balanced starting position appropriate for the Weighted Crunch using your free weights.
  2. Brace and execute. Brace your core, control the descent, and move through a full pain-free range of motion while emphasizing your abdominals.
  3. Reset. Reverse the movement under control and reset between repetitions, keeping your form crisp on every rep.

Coaching cues

  • Move with intent — every rep should feel deliberate, not rushed.
  • Drive force through your abdominals rather than momentum.
  • Keep your breathing steady: exhale on the hard part, inhale on the reset.

Common mistakes

  • Using too much weight and losing positional control.
  • Cutting the range of motion short and missing the target muscle.
  • Letting your spine round or hyperextend instead of staying neutral.

Detailed cues, common mistakes, and demonstration video are available in the Fitly app.

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Variations of Weighted Crunch

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