KEY AREAS: Upper and middle ABS
START POSITION: Sit on a yoga mat, alongside a bench which has a straight edge. Raise both feet up onto the bench and slide your bum forward until the backs of your knees are snug with the bench edge. It is important that your upper legs (thighs) are vertical from knee to hip, and that the bench is not too high – so your hips and bum should be planted firmly on the mat for stability.
Place your hands on your temples (or grab both ears) and point your elbows forwards. Many people point their elbows outwards but this is lazy and will create more instability for the lower back.
NOTES: Difficulty Rating 45%
The bench crunch is a perfect ‘finishing exercise’ at the end of most gym workouts. It forms part of the Mojoh Method recommended finishing sequence for beginner and intermediate levels of ability.
This exercise is very safe for lower back issues, and the difficulty level is easily varied to suit all abilities.
As with all ABS exercises, if this exercise is not performed correctly then there is an increased risk for lower back.
However, building strength in abdominal muscles is an important part of recovery from lower back issues.
If you have a gym partner, ask them to tap their fingers firmly onto your middle ABS one or two times as you pause at the top position for a second or two. this has a strong psychological focusing effect on the person doing the exercise and I can confidently say that even if this sounds a little weird – it really works! For Rocky Balboa fans you might remember that Rocky was actually being punched in his stomach by his sparring partner whilst performing some pretty extreme situps. It’s probably not a great idea for you (or me) to try this.
Here is a brilliantly motivating training montage from that timeless film (just in case you need a little motivation) 🙂
