The bicycle crunch is a bodyweight exercise targeting the abdominal muscles and hip flexors. It involves a pedaling motion while lying on your back, alternating elbow to knee contact to engage the core.
Also Works
Hip Flexors
How to Perform
1
Lie flat on your back with your hands placed behind your head.
2
Lift your legs off the ground and bend your knees at a 90 degree angle.
3
Bring your right elbow towards your left knee while simultaneously straightening your right leg.
4
Return to the starting position and repeat the movement on the opposite side, bringing your left elbow towards your right knee while straightening your left leg.
5
Continue alternating sides in a pedaling motion for the desired number of repetitions.
Pro Tips
•Rotate your entire torso so your shoulder blade lifts off the ground, not just your elbow; the elbow should follow the rotation, not lead it.
•Extend the straight leg fully and keep it hovering 6-12 inches off the ground to maintain tension on your lower abs.
•Slow down the pedaling motion to a 2-second rotation per side instead of speed-cycling through reps.
Common Mistakes
•Pulling the head forward with the hands instead of rotating the thoracic spine, which strains the neck and reduces oblique activation.
•Moving the elbows toward the knees without actually rotating the torso, turning it into a neck exercise.
•Pedaling too fast and using momentum, which eliminates the time under tension that makes this exercise effective.