How to do an Alternating Heel Touch
Reviewed by Jim Parker, CPT, B.A. Kinesiology
About this exercise
- Sets Logged
- 720,543
- Popularity Rank
- 148th
- Difficulty
- Beginner
- Abs Strength
- 95 mSCORE 15th
- Equipment Required
- Bodyweight-only
Workouts with Alternating Heel Touch
Target muscles worked
Instructions for Proper Form
Alternating Heel Touch is a bodyweight, core exercise that involves laying on the ground and reaching towards your heel on either side. By raising your shoulder blades off the ground, you’re already engaging your core, while reaching towards either side helps to engage your obliques.
- Lay on your back with your feet planted onto the ground and knees pointed towards the ceiling or sky.
- Position your arms to the side.
- Brace your core and raise your shoulders off the ground while keeping your neck in a neutral position.
- Bring one hand as close to the heel of the same side as possible and then repeat the movement for the other side.
Common Form Mistakes
Shoulders Off the Ground
Keep your abs engaged, and shoulders off the ground for the duration of the exercise, especially as you become fatigued. Allowing your shoulders to drop will help you perform this exercise for more reps, but it will reduce the effectiveness.
Sets & Reps Calculator
Average Alternating Heel Touch standards by male, female, gender, weight, age and height
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Alternatives & Variations to Alternating Heel Touch
1. Russian Twist
96.2 mSCORESWAPPED 408 TIMESRussian Twist is one of the more common core exercises. This exercise targets multiple muscles in your core, but the reason for including this exercise is usually to target your obliques. By raising your feet off the ground, engaging your core, and twisting to each side, you can better target this specific muscle in your core.
2. Crunches
94 mSCORESWAPPED 345 TIMESCrunches are one of the most common exercises out there. It’s an easy to perform, bodyweight exercise that targets your abdominals. Crunches are very similar to Sit Ups, however, instead of raising your upper body all the way into a near sitting position, you only raise your shoulder blades off the ground. This is a great exercise for beginners looking to build core strength.
3. Dumbbell Side Bend
38.8 mSCORESWAPPED 311 TIMESDumbbell Side Bend is an isolation exercise that primarily targets the obliques. The use of a dumbbell adds resistance to the movement, helping to build muscle mass and strength in your sides. This is a simple exercise that aids in improving core stability and can be easily incorporated into any abdominal workout routine.
4. Ab Crunch Machine
96.1 mSCORESWAPPED 301 TIMESAb Crunch Machine is a variation of Crunches performed with a machine. Unlike standard Crunches, the use of a machine gives you more control over your resistance. In addition, the machine will restrict your range of motion allowing you to focus more on exertion than stabilizing the movement.
- Intermediate
- Abs
- Ab Crunch Machine
5. Leg Raise
96.5 mSCORESWAPPED 294 TIMESLeg Raise is a simple bodyweight core exercise that involves laying on the ground and suspending your legs in the air. While your core does play a significant role in raising your legs, the real benefit comes from controlling their descent back to the floor.
6. Bicycle Crunch
91.8 mSCORESWAPPED 272 TIMESBicycle Crunch is a more difficult version of a standard crunch. Instead of raising your torso off the ground for each rep, you keep your torso off the ground, and your core engaged. By cycling your legs, you add more instability to the movement, which leads to better core activation.
7. Plank
92.8 mSCORESWAPPED 266 TIMESPlanks are one of the most common core exercises out there. This is a bodyweight exercise that is performed for time rather than reps. Planks don’t require any movement, instead they force you to place yourself in a position that requires you to engage your core, and maintain that muscle activation for the duration of the exercise. This is a great way to help build strength and stability in a way that will translate to a variety of other exercises, and your daily life.
8. Dead Bug
92.4 mSCORESWAPPED 158 TIMESDead Bugs are a bodyweight core exercise that requires you to lay on your back, and alternate extending your arms and legs out away from your body. The position you’re in on the ground keeps your core engaged, while extending your arms and legs away from you forces you to further recruit your core to continue to stabilize yourself.