Core · Bodyweight
Atomic Sit-up
How to do the atomic sit-up, the muscles it works, and the mistakes to avoid. Pulled straight from the Kovo app's exercise library.
- Equipment
- Bodyweight
- Difficulty
- Beginner
- Logged as
- Weighted reps
- Movement
- Flexion
- Mechanic
- Isolation
How to do it
Lie on your back with your legs raised and knees bent over your hips, hands reaching toward your shins. Crunch your torso up while simultaneously pulling your knees toward your chest so your upper body and legs meet over your midsection. Lower under control back to the start and repeat.
- 1Your upper abs and hip flexors crunching the body together
- 2A tight squeeze through the midsection at the top
- 3Control on the way down rather than dropping
Common mistakes
- Yanking your head forward with your hands
- Letting your lower back arch off the floor
- Using momentum instead of your abs to fold up
Muscles worked
The atomic sit-up mainly works the upper abs and lower abs, with the hip flexors and obliques assisting.
- Upper AbsPrimary
- Lower AbsPrimary
- Hip FlexorsSupport
- ObliquesSupport
- QuadsMinor
Kovo programs the atomic sit-up for you and tracks it every session.
We build your whole program, drop the right lifts into each workout, and adjust your weights as you get stronger. Free on iOS and Android.
More abs & core exercises
- How to do the ab wheel rollout
- How to do the ankle tap plank
- How to do the ankle taps
- How to do the resistance band dead bugs
- How to do the resistance band pallof press
- How to do the rollout
Last reviewed June 2026.