How to do an Exercise Ball Crunch
Reviewed by Jim Parker, CPT, B.A. Kinesiology
Workouts with Exercise Ball Crunch
Target muscles worked
Instructions for Proper Form
Exercise Ball Crunch is a weighted variation of the standard Crunch. By holding a medicine ball, you can add more weight to this usually bodyweight exercise. This is a great variation for anyone looking to make their crunches more challenging.
- Sit on the edge of the Exercise Ball with your knees bent and feet planted firmly on the ground.
- Lay your back onto the Exercise Ball placing your back into an extended position.
- Fold your arms across your chest, or place your hands behind your head.
- Flex your abdomen to bring the bottom of your ribcage to your belly button while slightly tucking the chin until your upper back is off of the Exercise Ball.
- Keep tension in your abdomen as you lower your shoulders back to the Exercise Ball.
- Avoid excessive movement of the Exercise Ball throughout the exercise.
Common Form Mistakes
Sitting Up Too Far
Crunches are designed so you only raise your shoulder blades, not your entire torso. While it isn’t ineffective or dangerous to raise your torso off the ground, it isn’t a crunch. Focus on contracting your abs to get just your shoulders elevated.
Sets & Reps Calculator
Average Exercise Ball Crunch standards by male, female, gender, weight, age and height
Use this calculator to see Fitbod's possible first recommendations for you. This would be your starting line, based on more than 4.5 billion logged sets from 1.1 million users.
- beginner3sets9reps1 Set Max10reps
- intermediate4sets10reps12reps
- advanced4sets11reps14reps
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Alternatives & Variations to Exercise Ball Crunch
1. Crunches
94 mSCORESWAPPED 9,293 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.
2. Ab Crunch Machine
96.1 mSCORESWAPPED 8,704 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
3. Plank
92.8 mSCORESWAPPED 7,194 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.
4. Bicycle Crunch
91.8 mSCORESWAPPED 6,093 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.
5. Russian Twist
96.2 mSCORESWAPPED 6,088 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.
6. Vertical Knee Raise
92 mSCORESWAPPED 5,623 TIMESVertical Knee Raise is a bodyweight core exercise that involves suspending yourself, and then engaging your core to raise your knees towards your chest. By keeping your torso upright, and raising your knees, this exercise is a bit better for building functional, real world strength.
7. Leg Raise
96.5 mSCORESWAPPED 5,295 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.
8. Sit Up
93.8 mSCORESWAPPED 5,160 TIMESSit Up is one of the most common exercises out there. It’s a bodyweight exercise that targets your core. Sit Ups are very similar to Crunches, however, rather than raising just your shoulder blades off the ground, you raise your entire upper body. This gives you a bit more range of motion than Crunches, however you’ll start to lose some tension in your core at the top of the movement.