How Many Crunches Does It Take Until You Notice a Difference?

Ever look at someone and think, “Man, how many crunches does it take to look like that?” If you want to tone your abs, crunches—which target the top part of the abs—can help. But if you want to see results, it’s helpful to know how often you should do them and the best types of crunches to prioritize.

Keep reading to see what fitness trainers want everyone to know about crunches, including when you can expect to notice results from doing them.

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Do Crunches Help With Weight Loss?

If your primary motivation for doing crunches is weight loss, it’s time to think of a more effective approach. “Unfortunately, you can’t crunch your way to weight loss and you can’t spot reduce fat in a certain body area,” says Tami Smith, CPT, a certified personal trainer and the founder of Fit Healthy Macros.

Smith explains that weight loss requires maintaining a calorie deficit, which is burning more calories than you take in each day. “If your only approach to weight loss were to do crunches, you’d have to do an absurd amount of crunches to burn any kind of significant calories; it’s just not optimal,” she says.

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Louis Chandler, CPT, a certified personal trainer with Alo Moves, also says that crunches alone won’t lead to weight loss, but they can help tone your abs. “They are a tool for increasing core strength since they primarily target the superficial abdominal muscles, which helps to improve core stability, posture and muscular endurance,” he says. However, he adds that true core strength comes from deeper muscles like the transverse abdominis, diaphragm and pelvic floor, which play a crucial role in stabilizing the spine and supporting overall movement.

How Long It Takes To See Results From Doing Crunches

Let’s say you did the hard work and lost the weight you wanted to lose. Now, you want to work crunches into your fitness routine to give your abs some definition. How long will it take to see a change? First, both trainers say that it’s important to be consistent. Both say that only doing crunches once a week is not often enough to see results. Instead, Smith and Chandler recommend doing a 10 to 15 minute core workout two to three times a week.

On top of that, Chandler says it’s important to do other types of exercises too. “The best method is going to be incorporating functional fitness movement patterns that require you to use the entire core to stabilize. You can do this with squats, lunges and hinges, for example. Just make sure to brace through the core for the most effective movement, which means using the whole body,” he says. Some other exercises he recommends doing are planks, dead bugs, mountain climbers and flutter kicks. Chandler says that regularly doing yoga, Pilates and strength training is also a good way to build up your core strength.

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Both trainers say that how long it will take to see results varies from person to person, but in general, Smith says if you do crunches for 10 to 15 minutes at least three times a week, you’ll likely notice a difference in four to six weeks. “For those who have more body fat, it could take several months to reveal any muscle tone and it would require that they focus on other weight loss factors in order to see any kind of results,” she says.

4 Crunches Trainers Love

Feeling motivated? Below are four types of crunches Smith and Chandler recommend for seeing results as quickly as possible.

1. Reverse crunches

1. Lie down on your back with your hands at your sides. Lift your legs, bending at the knees.

2. Use your core muscles to lift your hips off the floor by curling your pelvic muscles toward your chest.

3. Pause at the top of the movement and then slowly come back to the starting position. Do 10 reps.

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2. Side plank

1. Lie on your side with your legs straight out, stacked on top of each other.

2. Place your forearm on the floor, in line with your shoulder.

3. Engage your abs and push through your feet and forearm to lift your hips up. Hold for 30 seconds.

3. Swiss ball crunches

1. Sit on a Swiss ball (also called a balance ball) with your feet flat on the floor.

2. Walk your feet out as you lean back until your shoulders and upper back are on the ball. Place your hands behind your head.

3. Use your core to lift your shoulders and upper back off the ball. Come back to the starting position. Do 15 reps.

4. Bicycle crunches

1. Lie down on the floor. Lift your legs, bending at the knees.

2. Put your hands behind your head. Lift your head, neck and shoulders up while twisting your body to one side, bringing your elbow to your opposite knee.

3. Engage your core and roll your shoulder blades on the floor to repeat the move on the other side. Do 15 reps.

While solely doing crunches won’t lead to weight loss, they can be an effective exercise move to integrate into your fitness routine to build core strength and tone your abs. Stick with it! With dedication and consistency, you’ll see results.

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Sources

• Tami Smith, CPT, certified personal trainer and the founder of Fit Healthy Macros

• Louis Chandler, CPT, certified personal trainer with Alo Moves