Vertical Leg Crunches - Muscles Worked, Benefits, How To & Alternatives

To strengthen the body, you need to improve the core first. It is the foundation of your body, always keeping you upright and strong. But, when you want to gain muscle and become stronger, you must have the right approach. If you have been working out until now, you are probably already familiar with a certain routine. The thing is, goals change from one period to the next. And as goals change, so should the exercises.

Out of all the new ab exercises you can implement in your routine, vertical leg crunches are by far the best ones. They are ideal if you want to target your core and abs. Consider the vertical leg crunches as an advanced version of the standard crunches. In this case, your legs are elevated, creating a whole new level of difficulty.

This is why we have prepared the ultimate ab crunch workout for you. These exercises can make a difference to your workout routine and help you improve yourself. 

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Let’s jump right into the subject! Due to their convenience, vertical leg crunches are a very popular choice for many. These can be done with or without additional equipment. It all depends on your strengths and goals. They don’t require any special conditions during your exercise sessions. This means you can include them in your routine, even if you are working out at home.

First, assume the right position. We will then describe a few steps for properly positioning your body to do vertical leg exercises.

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Start by laying flat on the floor. Place your yoga or exercise mat and lay on top of it. Extend your legs, and try to point your toes upward. This way, your entire body will form one straight line. Find a comfortable position and try to relax. In some cases, people find vertical leg crunches a bit challenging to do. But, there are ways to improve your comfort, such as including a towel, additional yoga mat, blocks, and so forth. 

It is time to fold your hands and place them behind your neck. Try to interlock the fingers and place them on the back of your head or neck (preferably). This way, you will get the ultimate support while you are doing the crunch alternative. The hands should rest and be in a comfortable position. They should not pull on your head.

A good tip is to try not to bend your spine or neck. If you are experiencing some flexibility issues, place your hands a little wider on the sides of your head. The same goes for mobility issues.

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Your legs should be straight. Try to keep them together and lift them to a position where they are perpendicular to the ground. If you are not flexible enough, you can slightly bend your legs at the knee. But only slightly. Try to keep your legs as straight as possible. Also, as you do these exercises, you work on your flexibility. Over time, you will be able to keep your legs straight up. A gentle tip here – try to do some yoga or stretching before exercising, and cross your ankles if it makes you feel more comfortable.

Also, avoid curving your back at the lower spine. Remember, it needs to be flat on the floor. 

The exercise won’t be effective if you don’t contract the core. Once you’ve placed yourself in the proper position, take a deep breath. Then, contract your core so that the movements will be correct and ensure the core always stays like this. Remember to keep the back fully on the ground. There should not be space between your back and the ground. Finally, be careful with your breathwork. Not breathing properly will definitely affect your performance, and you won’t be able to do as many crunches as you can. With that said, exhale as you do the crunch, inhale as you go back.

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Now that you’ve learned how to do regular vertical leg crunches, it is time to move on to the alternatives. We are presenting three exercises for you to choose from. You can do all of them or choose the ones you believe to have the biggest impact on the body. Consider your physical abilities at every point. If you can’t do the second and third exercises, then we suggest you stick with the first one until you feel stronger. 

The goal of this exercise is to curl your upper body so you can lift the shoulders off the ground. Contract the muscles and lift the upper part of your body as if you would lift your chest to the sky. Try not to curl up your shoulders and spine while doing this. Instead, raise your shoulders and exhale as you contract your abdominal muscles.

When doing upper body curls, you utilize all the steps we mentioned earlier. Keep in mind that you should not pull on your neck with your hands. To curl up your body, use your abdominal muscles. Keep your chin in line with your chest.

If you want to intensify the exercise, you can lift your upper body and hold that position for a few seconds. This way, you fully engage your core. Keep yourself elevated, and try not to pull on your neck to avoid straining it. Keep your legs straight, pointed up, and in one position while you’re holding the crunch.

After you’re done, slowly lower your upper body to the ground. While doing this, always keep your muscles contracted. Just imagine lowering your spine back to the ground bit by bit. While you lower the upper part of your body to the ground, try not to move your legs. They should still be in the upright position and locked tightly. Also, refrain from slamming your body to the ground. You could injure yourself this way. Even when you’ve lowered your body to the ground, you should still keep your legs up in the air.

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In the first exercise, you have supported your head. In this second exercise, you will try to extend the arms instead of supporting it. As you lift your body upward, try to extend your arms and reach for your toes when you are doing the vertical leg crunches. Extend them as far as you can, hold the pose for a few seconds, and release.

When you reach, try not to bend your shoulders and your upper back. This exercise is an excellent way to increase the difficulty of the crunches. When you go back down, slowly lower your upper body – as you did with the first exercise. 

The third exercise poses the biggest challenge. Depending on your fitness goals, you may either want to go directly to this one or gradually work your way up to it. Ramping up the difficulty of the exercise is all about using weights. Even if you are working out at home, you need to know exactly how to utilize the extra weights to make the most out of the exercise. In this case, here’s how you do it.

Take a rounded weight plate and hold it against your chest. If you want to, you can hold it behind your back. Try to keep your form at all times - core engaged, arms tight, back straight. Lift the upper part of your body and hold for a few seconds. Slowly lower your upper body back using a very controlled motion.

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Other than helping you look amazing and feel incredibly healthy, there are other benefits of vertical leg crunches. These are excellent for the overall health of your body. We are going to share the best benefits with you. You can enjoy these only if you indulge in properly executing the exercise. As you read along, you will notice that they have some incredible benefits for your body. 

It’s not just that they work several muscle groups; they do that simultaneously. If you try to compare the vertical leg crunches with the regular counterpart, you will notice a significant difference. The traditional crunches only focus on your muscles, which are responsible for your six-packs. On the other hand, these crunches work for more muscle groups. For example, they focus on your upper and lower body muscles and the abdominals. They also focus on the hamstrings, hip flexors, and glutes. 

And when we say your abs, we mean all of your abs. It is so nice to know that you can implement a specific exercise into your workout routine that can do all that for you. There is a way to tone your lower and your upper abs by doing the proper work. While you hold your legs straight up in the air, you activate the lower part of your abdominals. When you lift your upper body and hold the crunch, you activate the upper part of your abdominals. That’s what makes this exercise a lot better than regular crunches.

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We love a toned and healthy body. We always want to inspire and educate on the subject. We also love a workout that will make us sweat and show significant results. But there is also the question of convenience. That is probably one of the best things about this ab crunch workout. You can do vertical leg crunches in the comfort of your own home – as long as you have a suitable surface. Do them on your yoga mat or your carpet. This is the ultimate home exercise. It requires no supervision, and it requires equipment that you probably already have at home. Adding it to your exercise sessions is both convenient and a smart move. 

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