Bend your knees with your feet flat on the floor and arms extended over your head.
Execution
Keeping your neck neutral, exhale as you lift your arms and upper back off the floor.
Hold for a count of two. Squeeze your abs.
Reverse the motion as you inhale and return to the starting position.
Repeat for the desired number of prescriptions.
Comments and tips
Keep your neck neutral. Do not tuck in your chin. Tucking in your chin will recruit your neck flexor muscles instead of your abdominal muscles.
Bending your knees and putting your feet flat on floor will help in keeping your lower back flat and prevent arching.
The long arm crunch is more challenging compared to the typical crunch since keeping your arms extended places your center of gravity higher up in your body. This increases the resistance your abdominals have to work against when lifting your head and upper back off the floor.
To increase the exercise difficulty, hold a dumbbell with both hands.
This exercise is also known as the extended arms crunch.
