These two exercises are often referred to interchangeably, but there are quite a big difference between the two. Crunches are also muscle specific in that it only workout one muscle group, where sit ups work on multiple muscle groups.
So are sit ups better then?
Depending on your goal, both of these exercises have its pros and cons. We will be discussing sit-ups vs crunches in this article going into more detail.
Sit ups
How do you do a correct sit up? Here’s how;
➔ Lie on your back with your knees bent at a 90 degrees angle with your feet flat on the ground. Put your finger tips behind your ears with your elbows to the sides.
➔ Take a deep breath and exhale as you contract your core muscles and lift your torso off the floor. Pull your chest towards your knees all the way up as far as you can, so that everything is off the floor and straighten your back.
➔ Then lower your body back down to the floor in a slow, steady and controlled fashion while breathing in again and return to your original position. That is one rep. Start with 10 reps and build it up as you are getting stronger.
Common sit up mistakes
Doing the exercise fast paced and using your body’s momentum to lift your torso up. That’s cheating and you don’t engage your muscles the way you should. Also pulling on your neck and head to lift yourself could lead to injuries.
Which muscle groups does it target?
The six pack muscles are called rectus abdominis, together with the transverse abdominis (deep abs muscles), oblique muscles (side abs) and hip flexors. Sit ups also activate your lower back muscles, chest and neck.
Crunches
How to do correct crunches, here’s how;
➔ Lie on your back with your knees bent at a 90 degrees angle with your feet flat on the ground. Put your finger tips behind your ears with your elbows to the sides.
➔ Take a deep breath and exhale as you contract your core muscles lifting your head and shoulder blades off the floor. Tuck in your chin slightly when lifting. Do it slowly and controlled and lift till you feel your ab muscles are locked, keep it there for a second.
➔ Inhale when you drop back to your original position. Also do it slowly and controlled. That is one rep. Start with doing 10 reps and build it up as you are getting stronger.
Common crunches mistakes
Doing it fast paced tugging on your head trying to get up. Doing it slow and controlled is the key. With this exercise note that your back never comes off the floor.
What muscle groups do I use?
Doing correct crunches will only target your six pack abs (rectus abdominis). This is an intense muscle isolation exercise.
Discussion
Both exercises strengthen your core and sculpt your abdominal muscles giving it more definition. On the other hand none of them burn belly fat. You need a low calorie diet together with cardio exercise to get rid of belly fat so that you can see your perfectly sculpted abs underneath.
Crunches are an easier exercise and better for beginners, there is less movement involved. Your legs and hips are stationary Where sit ups have more movement and exercise more muscle groups and are a better all-round exercise for your core But because of this more movement you are more likely to have injuries. Sit ups can cause back injuries and are hard on your hip flexors and neck. Crunches are an isolated exercise where it is muscle specific and for that reason will sculpt your rectus abdominis better.
Where it comes to abs muscles (rectus abdominis) both crunches and sit ups will focus on and work the upper part of your rectus abdominis. You need to do a different exercise for lower abs, like reverse crunches or mountain climber.
