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Machine Seated Side Crunch

IntermediateStrengthTier T3

You sit upright on a side-crunch machine with the chest pad against your torso, gripping the handles with feet under the supports. You bend sideways against the lever, then return slowly.

Targets: Thoracic Spine
Muscles: Rectus Abdominis

Stop if

Choose an easier exercise if pain reaches 6 out of 10 or becomes sharp. Stop and rest if pain reaches 8 out of 10.

This is the general ClapMove rule. This exercise has no extra stop rule of its own.

  • Pain 6 out of 10 or more: choose an easier exercise.
  • Pain 8 out of 10 or more: stop and rest.

Equipment needed

  • Works at the gym

machines

Gym

  • gym machine (No safe home substitute has been reviewed yet.)

Dosage

3

Sets

8

Reps / Time

60 sec

Rest

controlled

Tempo

Step-by-Step Guide

Set up

  • Set the resistance and check it before you sit down.
  1. A woman sitting upright on a lever side-crunch machine, her left side beside the lever, the chest pad against her left side, hands on the handles and feet under the foot pads.

    Step 1 of 3

    Sit on the machine with your left side toward the lever, resistance set. Grip the handles, set the chest pad against your torso and put your feet under the foot pads. Brace your core.

  2. The same woman with her torso bent sideways to the left at the waist against the lever, hands still on the handles and feet under the pads.

    Step 2 of 3

    Crunch your torso sideways to the left, bending at your waist against the lever. Pause briefly at the bottom, then come back up with control.

  3. A woman sitting upright on a lever side-crunch machine, her left side beside the lever, the chest pad against her left side, hands on the handles and feet under the foot pads.

    Step 3 of 3

    Sit on the machine with your left side toward the lever, resistance set. Grip the handles, set the chest pad against your torso and put your feet under the foot pads. Brace your core.

Safety Information

Set the resistance before you sit down and brace your core before you start to bend, and keep your feet under the foot pads and your hips on the seat. Return to upright with control; do not let the lever pull you back up or drop. If you have a back or spine condition, or have had recent abdominal or spinal surgery, ask a physical therapist or physician before trying this exercise, because it loads the trunk through a sideways-bending range against machine resistance. Stop if the exercise causes pain or you become unwell. Seek appropriate professional advice about symptoms or suitability.