The knee touch crunch is a bodyweight abdominal exercise that targets the abs and also engages the hip flexors. It involves alternating reaching across the body to touch the opposite knee while performing a crunch motion.
Also Works
Hip Flexors
How to Perform
1
Lie flat on your back with your knees bent and feet flat on the ground.
2
Place your hands behind your head with your elbows pointing outwards.
3
Engaging your abs, lift your shoulder blades off the ground and reach your right hand towards your left knee.
4
Return to the starting position and repeat, this time reaching your left hand towards your right knee.
5
Continue alternating sides for the desired number of repetitions.
Pro Tips
•Lift your shoulder blades off the ground by curling your rib cage toward your pelvis, not by pulling your neck forward.
•Reach across your body with intent, actually touching or nearly touching the opposite knee on each rep.
•Exhale forcefully as you crunch up to engage the deep abdominal muscles.
Common Mistakes
•Pulling on the head and neck with the hands, which strains the cervical spine and reduces ab engagement.
•Using momentum by rocking up rather than performing a controlled, deliberate crunch.
•Not rotating the torso enough, just reaching the arm without actually twisting through the obliques.