Setup

Lie on your back. Knees bent, feet flat on the floor, hip-width apart.

Fingertips light on the sides of your head — fingertips only, never hands locked behind the neck. Elbows point out to the sides.

Press your lower back into the floor. That's your start.
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Why the setup does the work here

Elbows wide matter. If they close in around your face, you'll pull your head forward and your neck does the work instead of your stomach.

Fingertips instead of a grip means you can't yank. Simple fix, saves your neck.

Feet free, not hooked under anything. Hook them and your legs start pulling you up.
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Technique

Curl up and turn at the same time — bring one shoulder across toward the opposite knee.

The shoulder travels, not the elbow. Think "shoulder to knee," even if your elbow never gets there.

Then lower all the way back down — head and shoulders touch the floor.

Come straight back up, turning to the other side. Left, down, right, down. Keep going.

Moderate speed. Not slow, not rushed. No pause at the top, no pause on the floor — you touch down and you're already going the other way.

Breathe out every time you come up.

Why technique decides everything here

Two muscles work at once here, and each needs its own part of the movement.

The curl up — ribs toward hips — is the front of your stomach.
The turn — one shoulder toward the other side — is your sides.

Do both together and you get both. Turn without curling and you just roll your shoulder. Curl without turning and it's a regular crunch.

The reason you come all the way down every rep is rhythm. This exercise is built to flow — down, up, twist, down, up, twist. That steady back-and-forth is what makes it work, and it lets you do more real reps than a slow grinding version would.

Just don't turn "flowing" into "flopping." Touch the floor, don't bounce off it.
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Common Mistakes

Pulling the head. Elbows drag the skull forward. Sore neck, no abs. Fingertips only.

Chasing the elbow. Swinging the elbow toward the knee while the body stays flat. The shoulder must move, not just the arm.

No turn. Coming straight up and calling it alternating. Then your sides do nothing.

Bouncing off the floor. Slamming down and springing back. The floor is lifting you, not your stomach.

Going too fast. Speed turns it into a wiggle. Moderate and controlled is the whole point.

Where people lose results

People count reps here instead of feeling the twist.

The rep is real when your shoulder crosses the midline of your body. If your shoulder blade barely leaves the ground, it doesn't count — no matter how close your elbow got.

And when it gets easy, don't just add reps forever. Hold a light plate on your chest, or slow the lowering down a little. Harder work, same rep range.

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