Exercise:

Incline Crunches

Target Muscle:

Mid/Upper Abs

Secondary Muscle:

Lower Abs, Obliques

Equipment Needed:

Decline Bench (dumbbell or weight plate if necessary)

Proper Execution:

Lie flat on the bench with your legs securely positioned under the pad. Place your hands behind your head and keep your lower back slightly rounded and flat against the bench. Curl your body up until your abs are fully contracted. Pause briefly at the top, squeeze your abs and then lower your body under control back to the starting position. Continue until you reach muscular failure.

Tips:

Do not pull on the back of your head or try to lift your whole body off of the bench while performing this exercise. The goal is to stimulate your abs only, and this requires that you use a fairly small range of motion. Simply curl your body up until your abs are fully contracted and then lower yourself back down. You can hold a weight plate in front of your face to add extra resistance if necessary.