The kneeling cable crunch is the Holy Grail of ab exercises.
Lots of people think they need to just stick to crunches to get a six-pack. Or go for loads of reps to actually work your core.
But with the kneeling cable crunch:
- You can load up the weight and feel it within 12-15 reps.
- You’ll probably feel more core activation than most other ab exercises (I know I did!)
- And all you need is a cable machine at the gym to be set!
Plus, because you’re using a cable machine, you can progressively load your kneeling cable crunches for a faster route to core strength and chiseled abs.
In this article, we’ll cover:
- Kneeling Cable Crunch How To
- Kneeling Cable Crunch Muscles Worked
- Kneeling Cable Crunch: 8 Pro Tips
- Kneeling Cable Crunch Benefits
- Kneeling Cable Crunch Alternative Options
- Our Best Ab Resources
- Kneeling Cable Crunch FAQs
We’re Back Muscle Solutions, and we believe that core strength and lower back health go hand in hand. Our specialty is all things back health, and we’re here to support you on your journey to a healthier, stronger back–whether through massage, stretching, or strengthening.
Today, we’ll focus on core strength as we learn how to do the kneeling cable crunch.
Kneeling Cable Crunch How To
Be sure to check out the pro tips section for my advice on how to perform a kneeling cable crunch with pristine form. But for now, let’s start with a basic kneeling cable crunch how-to:
1) Find a cable machine, and set the pulley to its highest setting.
2) Attach a rope attachment to the cable.
3) Stand facing the cable machine, and grab each rope handle.
4) Take 3-4 steps back from the cable machine.
5) Kneel down with both knees on a yoga mat or pad.
6) Now, bring both rope handles down towards your head, holding both ends by your ears.
7) Keeping your thighs perpendicular to the floor and your butt up (not sinking down), hinge forward at your waist to form a 45-degree angle from your hips to your torso. This is your starting position.
8) To initiate the movement, engage your core as you arch your back, bringing your head towards the ground and driving your elbows in towards your knees.
9) Hold for several seconds, keeping your abs squeezed.
10) Then, slowly return to the starting position–engaging your abs throughout the entire exercise.
11) Repeat for 12-15 reps.
Muscles Worked
Now that we’ve established the kneeling cable crunch how-to basics, let’s talk about what muscles you’re actually working. The kneeling cable crunch primarily works the abdominal muscles famous for forming a six-pack: the rectus abdominis.
The rectus abdominis works to flex your spine, which is exactly what you’re doing during a kneeling cable crunch.
It’s important to work out many different abdominal muscles for a strong and bulletproof core–including the transversus abdominis (a deeper, less showy core muscle) and even your pelvic floor.
However, when it comes to aesthetics, the rectus abdominis is typically the major focus, which is part of what makes the kneeling cable crunch such a show-stopper of an exercise.
Additionally, if you want to, you can add in slight variations to your movements for a kneeling oblique cable crunch. This will activate those obliques on the sides of your abs. More about this kneeling cable crunch alternative later.
Kneeling Cable Crunch: 8 Pro Tips
Now that we’ve covered the basics of how to perform a kneeling cable crunch, I want to get a bit more technical.
The thing is: The kneeling cable crunch is an exercise that’s easy to mess up.
That’s because there are so many specific cues to pay attention to during the exercise. Getting off track with your form can mess up your muscle work, causing you to put in a ton of work for little ab results.
And worse: Bad form could also lead to potential lower back pain.
With these 8 pro tips, you’ll be well on your way to getting massive ab gains while keeping your body safe.
Kneeling Cable Crunch Pro Tip #1: Don’t Kneel Too Close to the Cable Machine
Remember how I said to stand 3-4 steps back from the cable machine when you set up for the kneeling cable crunch?
That’s not just a random number.
Positioning your body, so it's not too close to the cable machine can be the difference between your abs engaging or not.
When you stand too close to the cable machine, you actually lose the counterbalance necessary for active ab engagement. You’ll also tend to sink your butt down if you’re too close to the machine, which we’ll cover later.
So when you set up, make sure you’re far enough away from the machine. If counting steps doesn’t work for you, try 2-3 feet.
Kneeling Cable Crunch Pro Tip #2: Select a Good Weight
When it comes to the kneeling cable crunch, I suggest not going too heavy or too light.
Here’s why:
If you go too light: It’s not only how far you kneel from the cable machine; it’s also the weight that assists with the counterbalance during the kneeling cable crunch. Go too light with that weight, and your body won't easily stay in position. You might even feel your torso beginning to rock during the movement.
And then, of course, when you go too light, you lose the benefits of building a six-pack. Aim for near-failure–1-2 reps in reserve. That just means go until you have 1 or 2 reps left in the tank, and stop there.
If you go too heavy: When you go too heavy on this exercise, a few things happen:
- Your body might start to rock in order to provide momentum and make it manageable for you to lift the weight. Not ideal.
- You might start using your arms instead of your core.
- Your kneeling cable crunch might turn into a lat pulldown. Lat pulldowns are great–just not for your abs.
Keep enough weight, so you feel counterbalanced and a nice challenge in your abs. Aim for 12-15 reps with 1-2 reps left in the tank. And once you master a weight, you can begin to progressively load up the weight each time you try the kneeling cable crunch.
Kneeling Cable Crunch Pro Tip #3: Lower Body Positioning
One of the most common mistakes during the kneeling cable crunch is sitting your butt back on your heels. Lots of people do this simply because it feels a bit more comfortable.
Instead, Keep these rules in mind for lower body positioning during the kneeling cable crunch:
- Keep your hips in line with your knees, so they form 90-degree angles.
- This means your thighs are perpendicular to the ground throughout the entire motion.
- Avoid your butt sinking down toward the ground or your heels.
Once you set up using the cues above, remember to keep your lower body still throughout the entire exercise. The movement here is all in the hinge, which I’ll explain in the next tip!
Kneeling Cable Crunch Pro Tip #4: Upper Body Positioning
The only part of your body that should be moving during the kneeling cable crunch is your torso.
As you set up, make sure your torso is hinged forward at a 45-degree angle for the starting position. From there, continue to picture your torso hinging forward as you round your spine and contract your abs.
Your arms should also stay completely still during this movement. It’s just your core that should engage.
Kneeling Cable Crunch Pro Tip #5: Round Your Back
At Back Muscle Solutions, we’re always advocating for the best exercise form to protect your lower back. So, we never get tired of saying things like, “Keep a flat back and a neutral spine.”
We never thought we’d see the day when we’d say, “Sure, go ahead and round your spine. Live it up.”
But with the kneeling cable crunch, that’s exactly the stance we take.
In fact, if you keep your back flat and straight during the kneeling cable crunch, your hip flexors will take over the movement instead of your abs.
Thinking back to the muscles worked–remember how the rectus abdominis works to flex the spine? That’s exactly why rounding your spine AND contracting your abs go together during the kneeling cable crunch.
Kneeling Cable Crunch Pro Tip #6: Avoid Bouncing or Jerking
The only part of you moving should be that core as it contracts (which will also round your spine).
Any wobbling or jerking of your upper or lower body indicates that your abs are no longer engaged.
So, remember:
- Lock your knees to the ground, and keep your pelvis still.
- Picture your elbows driving in towards your knees as you keep your arms totally still.
- Keep the rope handles locked up by your ears.
- Picture hinging forward as you contract your abs.
- And pay attention to how the amount of weight you use impacts your stability.
All of these cues will help you stabilize your body during the kneeling cable crunch.
Kneeling Cable Crunch Pro Tip #7: Toes on the Ground
Keeping your toes on the ground throughout the exercise is important because it helps keep your pelvis stable, your butt lifted, and your hips in line with your knees.
Once your butt starts sinking back, your foot positioning will automatically change–so remember–dig those toes into the floor beneath you.
Kneeling Cable Crunch Pro Tip #8: Constant Tension on the Abs
When you have a weak core, it’s easy to just go through the motions of an ab exercise without actually tensing up your ab muscles.
With the kneeling cable crunch, keeping your core engaged the whole time is pivotal to you getting the most bang for your buck with this ab exercise.
Kneeling Cable Crunch Benefits
In my opinion, the kneeling cable crunch is just plain better than regular crunches. Here are some of the best benefits of the kneeling cable crunch.
Kneeling Cable Crunch Benefit #1: Progressive Overload
When it comes to regular crunches, you can track how many you do, but there aren’t a ton of ways to easily continue overloading your abs for maximum muscle growth.
With weighted ab exercises like the kneeling cable crunch, this is a non-issue.
You can easily set and adjust the weight on the cable machine. And by tracking your progress each week, you can literally watch your abs grow stronger.
Kneeling Cable Crunch Benefit #2: Range of Motion
You’ll find that you get a higher range of motion during the kneeling cable crunch–as compared with the regular crunch.
Kneeling Cable Crunch Benefit #3: Easily Adjustable
I’ll get into this below, but you can very easily adjust to the kneeling cable crunch alternative: the kneeling oblique cable crunch.
Kneeling Cable Crunch Alternative Options
Now, let’s talk about two kneeling cable crunch alternative options that you can use to switch it up.
Kneeling Cable Crunch Alternative #1: Kneeling Oblique Cable Crunch
So, how do you shift the focus from those six-pack muscles to the obliques in a kneeling cable crunch?
Easy.
Instead of crunching straight down, bring both elbows to your right knee. Then, on your next rep, shift over to your left knee.
With this slight variation in movement, you’ll be sure to see results in your obliques.
Kneeling Cable Crunch Alternative #2: Standing Cable Crunch
Now, let's talk about the standing cable crunch vs kneeling cable crunch–because both are pretty similar.
During a standing cable crunch, you’ll set up in the same way at a cable machine, but as the name implies, you’ll be standing instead of kneeling.
When comparing the standing cable crunch vs kneeling cable crunch, there are some pros and cons to consider.
Pros of the Standing Cable Crunch
The standing cable crunch increases your range of motion.
The standing cable crunch is more of a balancing act, so it is a great exercise for increased stability.
Cons of the Standing Cable Crunch
Typically, you won’t be able to crunch as much weight as with the kneeling cable crunch because of the energy and attention devoted to balance and stability.
Ultimately, when it comes to the standing cable crunch vs kneeling cable crunch, you can decide which exercise best fits your needs–or try them both out!
Our Best Ab Resources
At Back Muscle Solutions, we greatly encourage core strength as a part of everyone’s journey towards stronger, more bulletproof backs.
Personally, I notice a huge difference in my back whenever I strengthen my core. And back when I used to live in constant back pain, an ab workout was one of the only things that got me out of pain.
That’s because core strength and lower back strength are closely connected. Check out some of our other great resources on core strength below.
Articles
“Mastering Knee Tucks: Core Strengthening Guide”
“The McGill Crunch: Activate Your Core While Saving Your Back!”
"5 Kettlebell Ab Workouts to Sculpt a Functional Core"
Videos
“Core Exercise Tips For Lower Back Pain"
“3 Core Strengthening Exercises for Lower Back Stability”
"Back Pain Relief Exercises: 3 Ways To Strengthen Your Core... Without Hurting Your Back"
Kneeling Cable Crunch FAQs
Is kneeling cable crunch effective?
The kneeling cable crunch is one of the most effective core exercises–more efficient than regular crunches and easy to progressively overload.
What muscles do kneeling cable crunches work?
The main muscle worked in the kneeling cable crunch is the rectus abdominis. You can also crunch to the side and hit your obliques with a kneeling oblique cable crunch.
How to kneeling cable crunch?
How to do a kneeling cable crunch: 1) Set a cable to its highest setting, 2) Step back from the machine, 3) Kneel down, 4) Bring the rope handles to your head, 5) And crunch down.
[1] https://academic.oup.com/ptj/article/86/5/656/2857416
[2] https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1360859207000496