How To Do Heel Touches? (Muscles Used & Their Benefits)

Start with 2-3 sets of 12-20 reps for heel touches, adjusting based on your ability to maintain form.

Here's how to do heel touches:

1. Locate a flat, suitable surface on which to lie, with your legs straight and arms to the sides. This technique requires no gym gear, but you may use the yoga or exercise mat if you need one.
2. Lie on your back with both knees bent, feet flat, and your heels on the floor.
3. Squeeze your abdominals, and imagine pulling the belly button into the spine to engage your core. Hold this stance throughout, but remember to breathe.
4. Slightly lift your upper back off the floor with your abs and relax your head to avoid straining your neck. This is your neutral position, and where you'll begin.
5. While your left hand goes for your left heel, lean to the opposite side of your body. Touch your heel or extend your motion range as far as possible.
6. Because these are alternate heel touches, return to the starting position and reach for the right heel on the right side.
7. Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.

This workout requires you to devote close attention to your body.

If you experience pain or severe discomfort during the exercise, stop immediately and consult your physician.

Heel touches, suitable for beginners to intermediates, can sculpt the waistline and strengthen the core.

"Heel touches are a variation on the basic crunch technique that entail lying down and squeezing muscles in your abdomen to reach out and touch both heels one at a time."

- Andy Griffiths, Expert Personal Trainer

Based on your fitness level, you may execute it with only your body weight or with extra resistance.

Your oblique muscles will tense as you press with each touch as you switch your reach towards the other heel.

You are effectively developing your entire core with each repetition.

The necessity to maintain our stability and balance as we age becomes more important.

Regularly incorporating heel touch exercise into your abdominal workout will help you achieve precisely that.

This bodyweight exercise engages both the front and side obliques (external and internal).

The transverse abdominal muscles are engaged as you lift your shoulders and head.

The rectus abdominis (the six-pack muscles) stay static and contracted throughout the exercise.

Another perk of performing a heel touch is that your hip flexors will be more flexible.

Here's a rundown of the muscles involved:

1. Rectus Abdominis Muscle

The rectus abdominis, known as the "six-pack,"  is the top layer of the abdominals.

It is made up of two muscle groups that are parallel to each other and flat, divided by connective tissue.

The rectus abdominis is a muscle that passes along the front of the abdomen and looks like a six-pack because it is divided into portions by bands of ligamentous tissue.  Abdominal wall muscles also play a significant role in intra-abdominal pressure and provide support for the axial skeleton, as confirmed by the study published on the National Library of Medicine website [1].

The body fat proportion must be relatively low for the six-pack shape to be seen.

The rectus muscles’ primary duties are to aid in core stability, bend the spine forward, and press the abdominal components.

Regularly performing this exercise can provide several advantages.

• Heel touch variations can improve your balance and flexibility. Repeating the exercise can enhance your lower back's strength and hip flexor suppleness.
• It develops your core muscles. Heel touches engage most of the primary muscles in your stomach, including your upper and lower abs, transverse abdominis, and rectus abdominis (the six-pack muscle).
• Heel touch exercises are a simple ab workout. The heel touch is an excellent exercise to incorporate into your home fitness program because it requires no equipment.
• Heel touches work the oblique muscles. The obliques are another major muscle group engaged during the heel touch. In contrast to other core exercises, such as crunches and sit-ups, heel touches engage the abdominals on both sides of the body.