Ab Crunch Machine

What it is

This isolation movement targets your abdominal muscles using a specialized machine. You perform a crunching motion by simultaneously lifting your legs and curling your upper torso. It's an effective way to strengthen your core with focused resistance.

Technique tips

• Start with light resistance to perfect your form.
• Keep your arms bent at 90 degrees with triceps on the pads.
• Exhale forcefully as you contract your abdominals into the crunch.
• Focus on moving the weight solely with your core muscles.
• Maintain a slow, controlled motion throughout the entire exercise.
• Return deliberately to the starting position before repeating.

How to track your progress

Log the weight and reps of each set. Straddly turns every set into an estimated one-rep max, so a heavier single and a strong set of eight both count as progress, and it flags a personal record the moment you beat your best.