Abs: crunch vs crunch

If you train your abs, you’re probably familiar with crunches: you lie on the floor and perform small raises of the upper body by contracting the abs.

The good thing with this exercise is it’s very easy for beginners and it’s safe.
But after a while you’ll need to do many and many reps to feel the work, it’s not effective anymore!

Except if you like to lose your time, here a smart alternative for crunches: do your crunches on a stability ball.
The movement is more effective because you work in a greater range of motion: the starting position is a stretch position, you stretch your abs and open the chest. Also, you get a stretch of the spine, especially the upper back which is excellent to decrease muscular tensions.

On a stability ball, you must maintain a balance: you work more muscles for the stabilization: deep muscles of the pelvis and the spine, obliques.
You teach your abs to work in synergy with other muscles which is more functional than regular crunches.

The crunch on the floor is over rated, there are many abs exercises more effective: the stability ball crunch is probably one of the best for its benefits (range of motion, stretch, muscular tension),
If you do floor crunches, my advice is to switch right away, you’ll be happy…