Exercise Ball Crunch

How to do the Exercise Ball Crunch

1. Lie on an exercise ball with your lower back curvature pressed against the spherical surface of the ball. Your feet should be bent at the knee and pressed firmly against the floor. The upper torso should be hanging off the top of the ball. The arms should either be kept alongside the body or crossed on top of your chest as these positions avoid neck strains (as opposed to the hands behind the back of the head position).
2. Lower your torso into a stretch position keeping the neck stationary at all times. This will be your starting position.
3. With the hips stationary, flex the waist by contracting the abdominals and curl the shoulders and trunk upward until you feel a nice contraction on your abdominals. The arms should simply slide up the side of your legs if you have them at the side or just stay on top of your chest if you have them crossed. The lower back should always stay in contact with the ball. Exhale as you perform this movement and hold the contraction for a second.
4. As you inhale, go back to the starting position.
5. Repeat for the recommended amount of repetitions.

Muscles worked

Role	Muscles
Primary	abs
Equipment	exercise ball
Difficulty	beginner
Type	isolation

No exercise ball? Train the same muscles with these

Ordered by how likely you are to own the 6 options.

Alternate Heel Touchers Bodyweight Crunch - Hands Overhead Bodyweight Crunch - Legs On Exercise Ball Bodyweight Crunches Bodyweight Decline Crunch Bodyweight Flat Bench Lying Leg Raise Bodyweight

Harder than the Exercise Ball Crunch

Hanging Pike expert · Bodyweight Bent Press expert · Kettlebell Barbell Ab Rollout - On Knees expert · Barbell

Superset the Exercise Ball Crunch with

Opposing lower back work — alternate sets without extra rest.

Weighted Ball Hyperextension lower back Hyperextensions (Back Extensions) lower back Stiff Leg Barbell Good Morning lower back Barbell Deadlift lower back

Common questions

What muscles does the Exercise Ball Crunch work?

The Exercise Ball Crunch primarily works the abs. Ab Crunch Machine, Alternate Heel Touchers, and Barbell Side Bend train the same muscle, across 9 equipment types.

What equipment do you need for the Exercise Ball Crunch?

An Exercise Ball. Without an exercise ball, Alternate Heel Touchers, Crunch - Hands Overhead, and Crunch - Legs On Exercise Ball train the same muscle, and 45 of the catalogue's options for this muscle need no equipment.

Is the Exercise Ball Crunch suitable for beginners?

Yes, the Exercise Ball Crunch is rated beginner. Hanging Pike, Bent Press, and Barbell Ab Rollout - On Knees are the progressions from here.

Where should the Exercise Ball Crunch go in a workout?

Late — the Exercise Ball Crunch is isolation work, so it follows your compounds. Supersetting it with Weighted Ball Hyperextension and Hyperextensions (Back Extensions) cuts session time without extra rest.

Similar exercises

Ab Crunch Machine Machine Alternate Heel Touchers Bodyweight Barbell Side Bend Barbell Bosu Ball Cable Crunch With Side Bends Cable Machine Cable Crunch Cable Machine Cable Reverse Crunch Cable Machine