Meet Your Muscles: How muscles are named? We all have two types of obliques. We hate spam! Do not rush and be sure to hold the position for at least two seconds. Oblique crunches can be a great way to improve your overall core strength and tone up your abdominal muscles. The internal obliques lie just underneath the external obliques. Place the hand of your left arm on your hip. Therefore, incorporating several different exercises into your regimen is the key to success. With your arms straight and slightly above the floor, crunch your torso forward and to the right until you can touch your right heel with your right hand. Hit your internal and external obliques with this variation of a traditional sit-up. As these muscles become stronger, the body will also improve in areas of balance and coordination. When you have completed the movement on both sides, you have done one repetition. The obliques are essential in supporting the torso and back and allowing rotation and flexibility, which is important in any athletic endeavor. Sweep the right arm down and under the left armpit, reaching towards the mat behind you. The form collects name and email so that we can add you to our newsletter list for project updates. Checkout our privacy policy for the full story on how we protect and manage your submitted data! Avoid hunching forward or curling your shoulders. Setting Realistic Goals To Achieve Health and Fitness Success. Just imagine yourself holding an orange or an apple under your chin to ensure your maintaining the proper form. Lying oblique reach is definitely one of the most effective exercises to train (help strengthen) your oblique abdominal muscles. Lateral Crunch. Oblique Crunches – Abs Exercise Guide with Photos, Two Arm Hammer Dumbbell Rows – Back Exercise Guide, Overhead Abdominal Crunches – Abs Exercise Guide, Mountain Climbers – Bodyweight Cardio Exercise Guide Photos, Bent Over Rows – Resistance Bands Exercise Guide with Photos, Weight Loss Stories – Melvin Lost 69 Pounds in 6 Months, Top 10 Fitness Tips To Tighten Up and Sculpt Your Body. The internal obliques are located at the hip bone and run diagonally upward to your rib cage. This exercise utilizes your upper body, so movement in your lower body should be kept to a minimum. Also, be sure to use your oblique muscles and avoid using or pulling your neck forward during the crunch. The oblique muscles are located on each side of your abdomen and are commonly referred to as “love handles”. Lie on your back with knees bent, feet flat on the floor, arms by your side. Browse this and over 2,000 other exercises in the free Workout Trainer app for iOS and Android. Join over 175,000 ShapeFit subscribers who are receiving our free weekly fitness newsletter and learn how you can build more muscle, burn off body fat and get into the best shape of your life! These muscles work with the obliques to help complete the crunch, therefore they do not work as hard. It is important to maintain the alignment of the spine and head. Keep the lower back on the floor as you raise up and lower your body, and keep your chin tilted slightly upward to avoid neck injury. Other names for this exercise: fingers to heel oblique touchers, alternate heel touchers, lying oblique reach, foot to foot crunch. This site uses cookies: By using this site you agree to the use of cookies for analytics, personalized content and ads. . This is your initial exercise position. Reps and Sets: You should try to complete at least five to ten repetitions on each side. Antagonists: the same muscles on the other side of the body. Which Exercises Will Help Reduce My Big Breast Size. ShapeFit is a health and fitness company dedicated to providing the best exercise, nutrition and wellness information and resources to help our visitors get in shape, stay fit and live a healthier and happier life! Don’t just say, “I want…, I’ve been weight training for a while with the main goal of adding muscle mass…, I heard an interesting comment on the news the other day. Raise your back a little when doing the movement so as to create additional tension on your abs. At the same time, bend your right leg and raise it slightly, while pivoting your left foot onto the toes to maintain balance.