Seated Crunch (Cable)
Also called Cable Seated Crunch
How to do it
Sit on a bench facing away from a high pulley and hold the rope beside your head or across your shoulders. Curl your ribs toward your hips to crunch forward while keeping your hips planted, pause, then return slowly to an upright stretched position without pulling with your arms.
Setup
Place a bench facing away from a high pulley and attach a rope. Sit with both feet planted, hold the rope beside the head without pulling on the neck, keep the hips planted, and begin tall with the ribs lifted.
Where you should feel it
Across the abdominals as the ribs curl toward the pelvis, with the glutes keeping the hips fixed and the forearms only securing the rope. Avoid folding only at the hips or pulling with the arms.
When to use it
Use for progressively loaded seated abdominal hypertrophy with continuous cable tension and a stable lower body. Controlled sets of 8-20 reps work well.