Crunches are your go-to exercise that requires literally no special equipment to start with and can be performed at your convenience anywhere. You do not have to worry about being a beginner in this exercise as well because there are several crunches variations, catering to all levels of exercisers available. But first, the question is, what do crunches do to your body? If you are looking to tone up your abs or build six-pack abs then doing crunches will help you in achieving this goal. Not only this, as crunches specifically target your abdominal muscles that is why they also help in building core strength by also affecting the lower back muscles and the oblique muscles.
Although there are many variations of crunches available in fitness tutorial videos available on the internet, however a basic crunches workout (Forward crunch) starts with you getting on the ground by lying on your back with your knee bent. Put your hands behind the head with elbows thrust out away from the body. Then you proceed to lift up your head and shoulders upwards but not all the way up off the ground. While doing this you will feel your abs tighten up because you will be squeezing them in the process of lifting your upper body off from the ground. This is why it is said that if you end up performing crunches incorrectly then you might injure yourself.
Nevertheless when you do perform them in the correct manner then you will end up reaping several fitness benefits that are listed down below in this article.
Benefits of Crunches
1. Building up core strength and improving balance
Having a strong core prevents you from injuries and helps you perform day to day physical activities efficiently, that is why crunches being core strength-building exercises can help with improving body balance.
2. Tones and strengthens the abs
As mentioned earlier, crunches specifically focus on the abdominal muscles and teach the abs muscles to function in a coordinated manner, which is why if you are looking to tone your abs or build six-packs then you should definitely consider adding them to your workout routine. Crunches help build muscle endurance in the abdominal muscles, and it has been observed that people who did crunches only one day a week had improved muscle endurance even while being a novice in abdominal muscle training exercises.
3. Burns calories
Doing crunches for a few minutes can help you in burning many calories, which means that crunches help with losing weight. A 30 minute workout of crunches can get rid of a whopping 300 calories. However, fitness experts will suggest you with slowly building up your pace if you are a beginner for this workout.
4. Promotes good posture
By building core muscle strength without putting strain on the back, crunches laser focus on strengthening the muscles that support your backbone, thereby preventing you from experiencing debilitating back pain. Thus, it does help in improving posture.
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