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Reach Ups

Lying on your back with legs raised, you reach both hands straight up toward your toes, lifting only the shoulder blades off the floor in a short, strict crunch. The tiny range is the feature — it keeps continuous tension on the upper abs while the lower back never leaves the mat. Coached by Maddy (NASM-CPT) — these are the exact form cues he gives on every client's first week.

Muscles worked

Abs · rectus abdominis Obliques

Sets & reps by goal

Goal	Sets × Reps	Rest
Strength	4 sets x 4-6 reps with a 3-sec squeeze at the top	90 sec
Muscle	3 sets x 9-12 reps	60-90 sec
Endurance	2-3 sets x 18-27 reps	30-45 sec

Level — Beginner

Beginner — strict and self-limiting; the vertical legs stop most cheating before it starts.

Proper form — 5 cues

Lie on your back and raise both legs so the soles of your feet face the ceiling.
Extend both arms straight up, fingertips aimed at your toes.
Curl the head and shoulder blades off the mat, reaching the hands toward the feet.
Pause at the top for one second with the abs fully shortened.
Lower until the shoulder blades just graze the floor — then reach again without resting.

Breathing: Exhale as you reach toward the toes, inhale as the shoulder blades lower back to the mat.

The 3 mistakes Maddy corrects most

Swinging the arms to generate lift.. Throwing the hands upward creates momentum that carries the torso, letting the abs coast through the very range they should own. Fix: Keep the arms rigid like poles and move them only as far as the trunk curl carries them.

Legs drift away from vertical as reps accumulate.. As the abs tire, the legs lower to shift work into the hip flexors, quietly changing the exercise into something easier. Fix: Re-stack the feet over the hips between reps; if they will not stay, bend the knees slightly rather than letting the legs fall forward.

Pulling the chin to the chest to fake height.. Neck flexion adds visual range without abdominal work and leaves the neck sore instead of the abs. Fix: Hold a fist of space under your chin and let the reach come from the ribcage curling, not the head nodding.

Common questions

Reach-ups vs crunches — what is the difference?

Geometry. In a crunch, the feet are on the floor and the torso curls over bent knees; in a reach-up, the legs point at the ceiling and the hands chase the toes, which fixes the pelvis and makes momentum much harder to use. Most people find reach-ups stricter — the vertical legs act as a built-in form check that ordinary crunches lack.

Why is the range of motion so small?

Because the upper abs only shorten a few centimetres — that is their real range. The shoulder blades lifting and lowering a hand-span is the entire productive arc; anything bigger comes from the hip flexors or momentum. Judge reach-ups by the burn and the top-position squeeze, not by how far off the floor your torso travels.

Can I do reach-ups if crunches bother my neck?

Often, yes. The straight-arm reach gives your head a direction to follow, which reduces the chin-tucking habit that strains necks during crunches. Keep a fist of space under the chin, let the arms lead, and start with short sets. If the neck still complains, place your tongue on the roof of your mouth and lower the rep count while the pattern improves.

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