Other exercise

Weighted Crunch (Plate) form, muscles worked, and workout tracking

The weighted crunch performed while hugging a plate to the chest loads the rectus abdominis through a short-range spinal flexion, with the obliques assisting as stabilizers. Adding external resistance lets lifters progressively overload the abs in the six-to-fifteen rep range, making this the standard progression for building visible abdominal thickness once bodyweight crunches become too easy.

Weighted Crunch (Plate) illustration

How to do Weighted Crunch (Plate)

  1. 1Lie on your back with your knees bent, feet flat on the floor, and hold a plate against your chest with both arms crossed over it.
  2. 2Exhale and brace your core, then curl your shoulder blades off the floor by flexing your spine, not by yanking your neck forward.
  3. 3Pause briefly at the top and squeeze your abs while keeping your lower back in contact with the floor.
  4. 4Avoid pulling with your hip flexors or letting the plate drift away from your chest, which reduces tension on the abs.
  5. 5Inhale as you lower your shoulders back down under control and repeat without using momentum off the floor.

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Track Weighted Crunch (Plate) in Plates

Save this movement to a workout template, log sets and rest periods, and keep your training history in one focused gym tracker.