The bench session adds a fourth exercise. 10 sit-ups, a 10-count sit-up hold, 6 crunch kicks and 6 reverse crunches, circuited at 3, 4 or 5 sets with two minutes of rest.
Reverse crunches are the arrival, and they use the bench in a completely different way. You lie face down along it with your hands gripping the far end and your legs hanging off, then drive the legs up and back behind you before lowering them under control. Because the legs travel well below the bench at the bottom, the range is far longer than any floor version allows, and the back of the hips and the lower abs work together across the whole of it. Adding them means the round now hits the midsection from above with the sit-ups and from below with these, and the crunch kicks drop from ten reps to six to make room.
On the reverse crunch, keep your grip firm and your chest resting on the bench, and lift with the hips rather than kicking the legs - the lower back should not arch to buy extra height. Lower slowly, because the bottom of that range is where the exercise is most valuable and most easily rushed. Sit-ups keep the decline standards: full descent, controlled, elbows wide. The hold sits tall at the top with the abs supporting you rather than the pads.
One bench, two directions, and a midsection with nowhere left to hide.
Make it Harder: Add a two-count pause at the top of every reverse crunch before lowering.
Make it Easier: Bend the knees through the reverse crunches and keep the rest of the round as written.
