Cable Seated Crunch

1. Set a rope attachment on the high pulley and sit on a bench or stool with your back to the stack.
2. Reach overhead and pull the rope ends down to the sides of your neck or shoulders, holding them there for the whole set.
3. Plant your feet and sit tall with a slight forward lean as the starting position.
4. Exhale and crunch your ribs down toward your pelvis, rounding your upper spine against the cable resistance.
5. Keep your hips still; the movement is spinal flexion, not a hip hinge.
6. Squeeze the abs hard at the bottom of the crunch for a one-count.
7. Inhale and uncurl slowly back to the tall starting position, feeling the abs stretch under load, then repeat.

Common Mistakes

• Hinging at the hips: bowing forward with a straight spine works the hip flexors, not the abs; the ribcage must curl toward the pelvis.
• Pulling with the arms: dragging the rope down with the lats and arms hides weak abs; the hands only anchor the rope in place.
• Too much weight: a stack you can only move by hinging and yanking is counterproductive; pick a load that allows a slow, full crunch.
• No controlled return: letting the stack snap you back upright wastes the loaded stretch that cable crunches uniquely provide.