High Bar Plank Crunch

View video here

3-POINT SET-UP:

1. Hands on your high bars
   *if on the back, high bars are turned to the mirror OR turned in to face each other

2. Tippy-toes on your carriage

3. Hips up in line with your shoulders

Body Part • Direction • Action Verb:

• Start with your knees directly under your hips (at 90 degrees)

• BEND your knees to your chest just an inch or two

• PRESS (or resist - if you’re on the front) your carriage back an inch or two

Range of Motion:

• Very, very small!! This is a micro-movement. Your knees should only move in and out a couple of inches

• You are NOT pulling your knees all the way in, nor are you extending your legs straight

 Kinetic Checkpoints:

HEAD:
❌ Look up, look down or forward head position

✅ Maintain a neutral head and neck position

SHOULDERS:
❌ Allow your shoulders to shrug
❌ Sink down into your shoulders
❌ Overly protract your shoulders or round your upper back

✅ Find and maintain a strong, neutral position throughout the entire movement
✅ Stay active and engaged in your lats and upper body to support a neutral shoulder position

HIPS:
❌ Allow your hips to drop below the level of your shoulders
❌ Allow your hips to tuck under or “crunch”
❌ Allow your hips to move up & down during the movement

✅ Find and maintain/”freeze” your hips in a neutral position
✅ Keep your hips in line with your shoulders throughout the movement

KNEES:
❌ Focus on pulling the carriage from your knees
❌ Bring your knees too close to your chest
❌ Extend your legs all the way out to a plank

✅ Focus on the movement coming from your HIP joint instead of your KNEE joint
✅ Bend your knees in & out just a couple of inches

HANDS/FEET:
❌ Sink bodyweight into your hands
❌ Allow your heels to drop towards the carriage

✅ Actively engage your upper body to support your bodyweight instead of sinking into your joints
✅ Keep your heels lifted HIGH throughout the entire movement

Talking Points:

• The most challenging part for most of us is to set our hips in the right position. Keep your hips up in line with your shoulders and do not let them move at all throughout this exercise

• This exercise is not about the “crunch” - it is about maintaining a neutral spine and pelvis as you bend your knees in and out

• It is very challenging to support your body on the high bars - it requires significant upper body strength

• Keep your shoulders set in place - that means NO SHRUGGING. If you allow your shoulders to shrug or leave their position you will be dumping all of your weight into your joints (wrist and shoulders)

• Engage your lats and upper body to absorb your body weight in this position

• Your abs are working hard to keep your spine NEUTRAL - no crunching, no gripping