Crunch Hold

An isometric abdominal exercise that builds core endurance and teaches the ability to maintain tension under load.

Exercise Details

Level
Beginner
Body Area
core
Type
core
Required Equipment
Target Muscle Groups
Primary
Secondary

Setup

Lie on your back with knees bent. Place hands behind your head or at your sides.

Instructions

1. Perform a crunch, lifting your shoulders off the floor.
2. Hold the peak contraction for the designated time.
3. Keep your abs tight and lower back grounded.
4. Breathe shallowly while maintaining tension.
5. Lower with control.

Common Mistakes

1. Holding your breath.
2. Pulling on the neck.
3. Sagging the shoulders.

Alternative Exercises

Wipers
Intermediate / Bodyweight-only / Abs / isolation
An advanced rotational core exercise targeting the obliques and transverse abdominis. It builds extreme rotational control and stability.
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Weighted Crunch
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A resistance-based abdominal exercise designed to build muscle thickness. Adding weight forces the rectus abdominis to work harder against gravity for maximum hypertrophy.
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