The bicycle crunch is a crunch with a twist: elbow toward the opposite knee while your legs pedal.
1Starting positionStart2End positionFinish
Setup
Lie on your back with your hands behind your head and your shoulder blades slightly off the floor. Lift your legs with your knees bent. Keep your lower back pressed down the whole set.
Execution
Lie on your back, hands behind your head, shoulders off the floor, knees pulled to your chest — starting position.
Extend one leg forward while twisting to touch the opposite knee with your elbow.
Alternate sides at a steady pedaling pace.
Common mistakes
Pulling your head with your hands — they only support it; your torso does the turning.
Fast, short reps — a slow twist with a pause beats speed.
Moving the elbow while the shoulder stays down — lift and turn the shoulder toward the knee.
Legs so low your lower back lifts — raise them higher.
