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Exercises

Alternatives to crunches: ab swaps that are harder, loadable or easier on your neck

Published October 23, 2026

The best alternative to crunches for most people is the reverse crunch: it trains the same six-pack muscle by curling your hips up, keeps your neck on the floor, and is harder than a crunch. If your lower back is the problem, use the dead bug. In the gym, the cable crunch lets you add weight in small steps while you stand, so you can stop doing endless reps.

What a crunch alternative has to replace

Upper abs, bodyweight curl

Crunch

Abs

The crunch curls your ribs down toward your hips with your lower back on the floor. It is light and hard to load, and some people feel it in their neck, so the swaps below either add load, change which end curls, or take the strain off your neck and back.

How to do it

  1. Lie on your back with your knees bent, feet flat, and your arms reaching straight forward at shoulder height.
  2. Breathe out and curl your head and shoulders up, sliding your hands toward your knees as your ribs move toward your hips.
  3. Stop when your shoulder blades are off the floor and hold for a second.
  4. Uncurl slowly until your shoulders touch down, then start the next rep.

Cues

  • Ribs to hips
  • Reach, don't pull
  • Exhale up

Common mistakes

  • Jerking your arms forward to get up: the reach follows the curl, your abs start it.
  • Bouncing off the floor: lower under control so every rep starts from rest.
  • Tucking your chin hard into your chest: keep a fist-sized gap and look at your knees.

Swap for: Reverse Crunch, Cable Crunch, Dead Bug

The crunch trains your rectus abdominis, the six-pack muscle, by curling your ribs toward your hips. It works hardest at the top of the curl, and with only bodyweight it gets easy fast, so most people end up doing very long sets.

Easier on your neck and back

If crunches strain your neck or lower back, change which end moves, or hold still and let your limbs move instead.

Best swap if your neck gets sore

Reverse Crunch

Abs

You curl your hips up toward your ribs instead of lifting your head, so your neck stays on the floor. It is harder than a crunch and trains the same six-pack muscle.

How to do it

  1. Lie face up on a mat, arms flat along the floor beside you, and bring your knees up so your thighs point at the ceiling and your knees are bent about square.
  2. Press your lower back gently into the floor and breathe out.
  3. Use your abs to roll your tailbone and then your lower back off the mat, bringing your knees in toward your chest without changing the bend in them.
  4. Stop when your hips are fully curled and your weight sits on your upper back, pausing for a beat.
  5. Unroll one vertebra at a time until your tailbone touches down, keeping your thighs vertical before the next rep.

Cues

  • Curl the tailbone, not the knees
  • Knee angle stays fixed
  • Slow on the way down

Common mistakes

  • Swinging the legs to throw the hips up: if you need momentum, shorten the range and pause at the bottom of each rep.
  • Pushing hard through your hands to lift: keep your arms relaxed so the abs do the lifting.
  • Dropping the legs toward the floor between reps: stop with your thighs vertical, where the abs still hold tension.
Build a session with Reverse Crunch

Best swap if your lower back aches

Dead Bug

Abs

No curl at all: your abs keep your lower back flat while one arm and the opposite leg reach out. It is easy to learn and gentle on a back that crunches bother.

How to do it

  1. Lie face up on a mat, arms straight up over your shoulders and knees bent 90 degrees directly above your hips.
  2. Breathe out fully and tilt your pelvis slightly so your lower back presses flat into the floor; keep it there for the whole set.
  3. Reach your right arm back toward the floor behind your head and straighten your left leg out toward the floor at the same time.
  4. Stop when your arm and leg hover just above the floor, or sooner if your lower back starts to lift.
  5. Bring both back to the start, then repeat on the opposite pair. One rep is one side.

Cues

  • Lower back glued to the floor
  • Exhale as you reach
  • Slow is the exercise

Common mistakes

  • Letting the lower back arch as the leg goes out: shorten the reach, keep the knee bent more, or lower only the leg until you can hold the position.
  • Rushing through the reps: take two or three seconds to reach out and the same to come back; speed lets momentum do the work your abs should do.
  • Holding your breath: breathe out as you reach and in as you return, so you learn to brace while breathing.
Build a session with Dead Bug

Loaded in the gym

Add weight and you can train your abs in 10 to 15 rep sets like any other muscle, instead of sets of 50.

Best loaded swap, standing

Cable Crunch

Abs

The same curl against a cable, so you can add weight in small steps and stop doing sets of 50. It also works standing, if you would rather not lie on the floor.

How to do it

  1. Attach a rope to a high pulley, pick a moderate weight, and hold one end of the rope in each hand beside your head.
  2. Turn your back to the stack, take a step forward so the weight lifts, and set your feet hip-width apart with soft knees.
  3. Keep your hands fixed next to your head and breathe out as you curl your ribs down toward your hips, rounding your upper and middle back.
  4. Squeeze at the bottom for a second, with your elbows heading toward your thighs and your hips still in the same place.
  5. Uncurl slowly back to tall, letting the cable stretch your abs, then start the next rep without resting the stack.

Cues

  • Ribs to hips
  • Hips stay put
  • Round down, not bow forward

Common mistakes

  • Hinging at the hips: if your butt moves back as you go down, your hip flexors and arms take over; lock your hips in place and only round your spine.
  • Pulling with the arms: keep your hands glued to your head so the rope moves only because your torso curls.
  • Going too heavy: if you cannot pause at the bottom, the weight is too much; the abs need control, not a yank.
Build a session with Cable Crunch

Loaded swap on a machine

Machine Crunch

Abs

A seated crunch against a weight stack. Your back is supported and you pick the load, so it suits anyone new to weighted ab work.

How to do it

  1. Set the seat height so the machine's pivot sits near your belly button and your feet hook under the pads or rest on the footplate.
  2. Hold the handles or place your arms on the pads with your elbows pointing forward, and sit tall with your back on the pad.
  3. Breathe out and curl your chest down toward your hips by rounding your spine, keeping your hips on the seat.
  4. Hold the squeeze for a second when your ribs are closest to your pelvis.
  5. Uncurl slowly back to upright and let the weight touch down lightly before the next rep.

Cues

  • Ribs to hips
  • Arms just hold on
  • Slow on the way back

Common mistakes

  • Pulling with your arms: if your shoulders and arms burn first, lower the weight and let your hands rest on the handles.
  • Hinging at the hips instead of curling: keep your lower back on the pad and think about shortening the distance from your ribs to your pelvis.
  • Bouncing the stack between reps: pause briefly at the top so the abs start every rep from a stop.
Build a session with Machine Crunch

Harder bodyweight crunch

Decline Crunch

Abs

The decline makes your abs lift your whole trunk, and a plate at your chest adds load when it gets easy. Curl up one segment at a time rather than throwing yourself up.

How to do it

  1. Set the bench to a decline and hook your feet under the pads, hips near the edge of the seat.
  2. Lie back with your fingertips lightly behind your head, or hug a plate to your chest once bodyweight is easy.
  3. Curl your torso up, rounding your spine one segment at a time.
  4. Stop when your torso is upright or just short of it.
  5. Lower slowly back to the bench.

Cues

  • Curl, do not hinge
  • Ribs to hips
  • Slow lowering

Common mistakes

  • Yanking on your head to get up: your hands only rest there, or hold a plate instead.
  • Swinging up with momentum: if you need a bounce at the bottom, lower the decline.
Build a session with Decline Crunch

Weighted sit-up on the floor

Plate Sit-Up

Abs

Legs long on the floor and a plate held up at arm's length turn a crunch into a full sit-up with load. Pick it when there is no decline bench.

How to do it

  1. Sit on the floor with your legs straight out in front of you, then lie back.
  2. Hold a weight plate in both hands with your arms straight, pointing up over your chest.
  3. Curl your head and shoulders up, then keep rolling until your torso is upright, arms still reaching up.
  4. Pause for a moment at the top.
  5. Roll back down slowly, one part of your spine after another, until your shoulders touch the floor.

Cues

  • Arms stay straight and pointing up
  • Roll up, roll down
  • Exhale on the way up

Common mistakes

  • Throwing the plate forward to get up: keep it over your shoulders and use a lighter one.
  • Dropping back to the floor fast: the lowering is half the work.
  • Legs lifting as you sit up: hook your feet under something heavy or take a lighter plate.
Build a session with Plate Sit-Up

Harder at home: a dumbbell, a wheel or a bar

When crunches are easy, a dumbbell, a longer lever or a bar makes a short set hard again.

Weighted crunch with one dumbbell

Dumbbell Suitcase Crunch

Abs

Legs up and a dumbbell reaching toward your feet gives you a crunch you can load at home. Move up a dumbbell when every set reaches 20 reps.

How to do it

  1. Lie face up and raise both legs straight up so your feet point at the ceiling.
  2. Hold one dumbbell with both hands, arms straight above your chest.
  3. Breathe out and curl your head and shoulders off the floor, reaching the dumbbell up toward your feet.
  4. Pause for a second at the top with your ribs pulled toward your hips.
  5. Lower your shoulders slowly to the floor, keeping your legs pointing up, and start the next rep.

Cues

  • Reach the weight up, not forward
  • Legs stay vertical
  • Slow on the way down

Common mistakes

  • Letting the dumbbell drift back over your face between reps: keep it above your chest the whole set.
  • Letting your legs fall toward the floor as you tire: bend your knees a little and keep them over your hips.
  • Jerking up with your arms: the dumbbell rises because your shoulders curl, not because you push it.
Build a session with Dumbbell Suitcase Crunch

Harder crunch with no equipment

Jackknife

Abs

Your shoulders and straight legs lift together into a V, so your abs curl from both ends. It is a big step up from crunches with no gear.

How to do it

  1. Lie face up on a mat, legs long and arms resting straight beside you.
  2. Brace and lift your shoulders and your straight legs off the floor at the same time.
  3. Reach your hands toward your feet as your body folds into a V over your hips.
  4. Lower both ends back to a light touch on the floor over two seconds, then repeat.

Cues

  • Fold, then unfold slowly
  • Hands meet feet over the hips
  • No bounce at the bottom

Common mistakes

  • Swinging your arms to throw yourself up: lift your shoulders and legs with your abs, then reach.
  • Crashing back to the floor: lowering is half the rep, so take two seconds.
Build a session with Jackknife

Hardest swap

Ab Wheel Rollout

Abs

Your abs stop your back from arching as you roll out, a harder job than any crunch. A set of controlled reps is hard with no added weight.

How to do it

  1. Kneel on a pad with the wheel under your shoulders and arms straight.
  2. Tuck your pelvis so your lower back rounds slightly, then roll the wheel forward as your hips follow.
  3. Go as far as you can while keeping that tuck, ideally until your arms are near overhead.
  4. Pull the wheel back to your knees by squeezing your abs, not by sitting your hips back.

Cues

  • Tuck first, then roll
  • Hips move with the wheel
  • Stop before the back arches

Common mistakes

  • Letting the lower back sag at the far end: roll toward a wall so it stops you at a range you control.
  • Pulling back by bending at the hips: drag the wheel back with your abs and keep the hips forward.
Build a session with Ab Wheel Rollout

Pull-up bar swap

Hanging Knee Raise

Abs

Hanging and curling your pelvis up trains the same muscle from the bottom end, with your back off the floor entirely. Curl at the top, don't just lift your knees.

How to do it

  1. Take hold of the bar with an overhand grip about shoulder-width apart and hang with your arms straight and your feet clear of the floor.
  2. Pull your shoulders slightly down away from your ears and let your body go still before the first rep.
  3. Bend your knees and bring them toward your chest, keeping your legs together.
  4. As your thighs pass parallel to the floor, tuck your tailbone and roll your hips up so your knees climb toward your chest.
  5. Lower your legs slowly until they hang straight below you again, and stop any swing before the next rep.

Cues

  • Roll the hips, don't just lift the knees
  • Lower slower than you lift
  • Start each rep from stillness

Common mistakes

  • Swinging back and forth to get the knees up: pause at the bottom of each rep, and if you can't stop the swing, shorten the set.
  • Stopping when the thighs reach parallel: that is mostly hip flexors; keep going and curl the pelvis up so the abs finish the rep.
  • Letting go of the shoulders and hanging loosely: keep a little tension pulling the shoulders down so you stay steady on the bar.
Build a session with Hanging Knee Raise

Standing: no floor at all

Ab work on your feet, with your trunk holding still against a cable or a dumbbell.

Standing swap with no curl

Pallof Press

Abs

Standing side-on to a cable, you hold the handle out at your chest while your trunk refuses to turn. Use it if lying on the floor is the problem.

How to do it

  1. Set a single handle at chest height on a cable column, or loop a band around a rack post or a closed door at the same height.
  2. Hold the handle with both hands against your breastbone, then walk sideways away from the anchor until the cable pulls clearly toward it.
  3. Stand side-on with feet just wider than your hips, knees soft, and squeeze your glutes and abs as if bracing for a shove.
  4. Press the handle straight out from your chest until your arms are long, keeping your hands in line with your breastbone.
  5. Hold the long-arm position for two seconds without letting your hands drift toward the anchor, then bring the handle back to your chest.
  6. Finish every rep on one side, then turn to face the other way and repeat.

Cues

  • Hands stay on your midline
  • Ribs down, hips square to the front
  • Long arms, slow count, no drift

Common mistakes

  • Letting the handle drift toward the anchor as you press: take a step closer to the stack, or pick a lighter band, until your hands stay on your midline.
  • Turning your hips or shoulders to meet the cable: point both hip bones and your chest forward, and squeeze your glutes before every rep.
  • Pressing fast and returning fast: the hard part is the hold at full reach, so count two seconds there on every rep.
Build a session with Pallof Press

Standing swap with one dumbbell

Dumbbell Suitcase Carry

Abs, Quads

Walking with one heavy dumbbell at your side makes your trunk hold you upright. Ab work with no floor, no curl, and nothing on your neck.

How to do it

  1. Pick up a heavy dumbbell in one hand like a suitcase.
  2. Stand tall with your shoulders level and the free arm relaxed.
  3. Walk forward with short, steady steps.
  4. Keep your torso from leaning toward the weight.
  5. Set it down after the distance or time, then carry it in the other hand.

Cues

  • Shoulders level
  • Stand taller than normal
  • Short, even steps

Common mistakes

  • Leaning away from the weight to balance it: you should look like you carry nothing.
  • Going so heavy that your grip gives out before your core does: shorten the walk instead.
Build a session with Dumbbell Suitcase Carry

Example sessions without the crunch

Session 1

Gym, want weight to add

Open in the session builder
  • Workouts2× a week
  • Working sets20 a week
  • Per workout~20 min
  • EquipmentAdjustable Cable, Decline Bench, Pull-Up Bar

You train in a gym and want ab work that progresses like your other lifts.

The cable crunch replaces the crunch with a loaded curl, the plate-loaded decline crunch adds a second one, and hanging knee raises work your abs from the hips up. 10 working sets.

Abs
ExerciseSets × repsRIRRest
Cable Crunch1 warm-up set firstRibs to pelvis, hips still. 4 × 10–15 1 75 s
Decline CrunchPlate at your chest. 3 × 8–12 2 90 s
Hanging Knee RaiseCurl the pelvis at the top. 3 × 10–15 1 75 s
How to run it
At the end of two gym days a week, with a day between.
How to progress
When every set reaches the top of its range at the RIR shown, add the smallest weight jump on the cable or a heavier plate on the decline crunch.
Open in the session builder

Session 2

Home, crunches hurt your neck or back

Open in the session builder
  • Workouts3× a week
  • Working sets30 a week
  • Per workout~20 min
  • EquipmentDumbbells

You train at home with a dumbbell, and crunches leave your neck or lower back sore.

Reverse crunches keep the curl with your head down, dead bugs train your abs with your back flat, and the suitcase carry adds standing core work. 10 working sets.

Abs
ExerciseSets × repsRIRRest
Reverse CrunchHips leave the floor. 4 × 10–20 1 1 min
Dead BugReps per side. 3 × 8–12 2 45 s
Dumbbell Suitcase CarryReps are steps. Left, then right. 3 × 20–30 2 75 s
How to run it
Two or three times a week.
How to progress
Add reps to the top of each range, then slow the lowering to three seconds. On the carry, add steps to 30 per hand, then use a heavier dumbbell.
Open in the session builder

Session 3

Home, crunches got easy

Open in the session builder
  • Workouts2× a week
  • Working sets20 a week
  • Per workout~20 min
  • EquipmentAb Wheel, Dumbbells

You can do crunches all day and want a home ab session that is hard again.

The ab wheel rollout is the hardest swap, the dumbbell suitcase crunch is a crunch you can load, and jackknives curl from both ends. Short, hard sets close to failure. 10 working sets.

Abs
ExerciseSets × repsRIRRest
Ab Wheel RolloutRoll only as far as you control. 3 × 6–12 2 90 s
Dumbbell Suitcase Crunch 4 × 12–20 1 1 min
Jackknife 3 × 8–15 1 1 min
How to run it
Twice a week, with a day between.
How to progress
On the rollout, roll a little further each week before adding reps. On the suitcase crunch and jackknife, add reps to the top of the range, then a heavier dumbbell or a three-second lowering.
Open in the session builder

Make it fit you

Questions

What works better than crunches?

A swap you can make harder over time: the reverse crunch, a weighted cable or decline crunch, or an ab wheel rollout. All train the same muscle without needing sets of 50.

Can you build abs without crunches?

Yes. Reverse crunches, hanging knee raises and cable crunches train the same muscle, and loaded versions let you keep adding resistance as you get stronger.

What to do if you can't do a crunch?

Start with the dead bug, which trains your abs with your back flat, or the reverse crunch with a small range. Both are easier on your neck.

What is a standing alternative to crunches?

The cable crunch can be done standing, and the Pallof press and dumbbell suitcase carry train your abs on your feet with no curl at all.

Will doing 100 crunches a day flatten your stomach?

No. Crunches strengthen your abs but don't burn fat from your stomach; that comes from losing body fat overall.

What will 20 sit-ups a day do?

Not much once they get easy. Two or three ab sessions a week with sets close to failure, using harder swaps, will do more.