Abs Lounge for a Tight, Sleek Stomach

Nowadays, it seems like everywhere you look, there is another advertisement on how to get a flat, six-pack stomach. Not only are tight abdominal muscles more aesthetically appealing, they are important for you health.

Not only are strong abdominal muscles more attractive, they have numerous health benefits too.

• Improve your posture
• Improved posture and strong abdominal muscles protect your back against injury.
• Improve your breathing
• Strong abdominal muscles help stabilize the body. When the body is stabilized. there is less pressure on the joints.
• Strong abdominal muscles increase your endurance and power.
• Strong abdominal decrease your risk for a hernia. Weak abdominal walls are the biggest cause for hernias.

Before we discuss how to get flat, sexy abdominal muscles, a myth about abdominal fat needs to be rectified. Abdominal fat cannot be spot-trained away. You can do a thousand crunches a day and as long as you have a layer of fat over the abdominal muscles, your stomach will still be fat. The only way to lose fat is to consume less calories than your body uses. However, once you lose the fat; tight, toned muscles will appear if you exercise them. 

There are five abdominal muscles: the transversa abdominus, the rectus abdominus, the external oblique muscles, the internal oblique muscles, and the multifidis. The transversa abdominus is the deepest muscle layer. It stabilizes the trunk and maintains internal abdominal pressure. The rectus abdominus lies between the ribs and extends to the pelvis. It helps the central part of the body move. If there is no excessive fat and the muscle is tone, this muscle gives the appearance of the desired six-pack abdomen.

The external obliques lie along the outside of the rectus abdominus. Each muscle helps the opposite side of the tunk twist. For instance, if you twist to the lift, the right external oblique is performing the work.

The internal obliques lie along the outside of the rectus abdominus just inside the hipbones. They also help the trunk to twist. However, unlike the external obliques, if you twist to the left, the left internal oblique performs the work.

The multifidis runs along the spine. Working with the transvera abdominus, it increases spine stability and protects the back agaisnt strain and injury.

Unless you exercise, more likely than not, you will not have fit abdominal muscles. The most common way to exercise your abdominal muscles is through doing crunches. However, if crunches are not done properly, you can injure your neck and spine. To avoid injuries, help provide the proper form when doing crunches, and offer more range of motion; the Ab Lounge was invented. Over time, several different models of the Ab Lounge have come out. The following reviews are excerpts from Amazon.

Ab Lounge Sport

On Amazon, this machine was given three out five stars. It's the basic model, and small improvements have been made since this one came out. According to the product description, the Ab Lounge has the following features:

• Unlike standard sit-ups or bent knee crunches, the Ab Lounge supports the body, back, neck, and head.
• A jack knife design that gives your abdominal muscles a complete range of motion. It's superior in toning and tightening your abdominal muscles.
• Includes a dvd, instruction book, and a healthy eating guide. The dvd has several different workouts and shows how to target different abdominal musucles.

Although most customers were pleased with their purchase and the performance of this machine, two did not notice any significant results. Four complained about the machine being difficult to assemble. Two complained about the machine not folding up as advertised

Ab Lounge 2

This machine has a four stars out of a five star rating. On Amazon, the pictures of the Ab Lounge Sport and the Ab Lounge 2 look exactly the same. The features were the same too except the Ab Lounge 2 was rated for 250 pounds rather than 275 pounds. The machine's serial numbers were different though.

Ab Lounge Ultra Sport

This machine has a four out of a five star rating. In comparison to the other two machines, this machine has a mesh fabric rather than a canvas fabric. The Focus Strap and Iso-Grip padded handles have multiple hand positions. This machine was rated for 275 pounds. Unlike the standard Ab Lounge, this machine is foldable.  There were no complaints about resistance or  difficult assemply. When assembly was mentioned, the customers said it was easy to assemble.

The overwhelming majority of the customers claimed they love this machine, it met their performance expectations, and they highly recommend it. Even customers with back problems or who have had back surgery were pleased with machine's ease of use. However, there was a recall because of injuries that occurred while opening and closing the machine. Machines sold after late 2004 have new safety features to make it easier to open and fold. If you purchased a machine before late 2004, you can read about the recall at cpsc.gov website. Enter Ab Lounge into the search box.

As for complaints, one customer complained that the narrow design at the top of the machine hurt their shoulders. Another customer complained about the quality of the machine. Although another customer was pleased with the machine, they warned that children using the machine should be supervised.

Ab Lounge XL

This machine has a four out of a five star rating. Unlike the former machines, this model has adjustable foot pedals to accomodate different heigths and a quick-release folding system.

Forty-three customers reviewed this machine. Like the Ab Ultra Sport, the overwhelming majority of the customers were pleased with the machine, and it met their expectations. As for cons, one customer complained that the grips pulled away from the machine after the first day because the washers are too small. After replacing them with large washers, the problem was alleviated. Another customer complained about the hand grips pulling away after three days.

Ab Rocket Abdominal Trainer

This machine is rated three and a half stars out of five stars. Whereas the other machines are manufactured by Ab Lounge, this machine is manufactured by Ab Rocket. Unlike the Ab Lounge machines, this machine has a rolling cushion rather than a canvas or mesh seat. It also has three resistance settings.

Many customers thought this is the best ab device availble. Whereas the ab rocket works the abdomen better, they thought the ab lounge exercises and stretches more parts of the body. Other customers said, "I love this product...I would buy it again tomorrow...really lightweight and easy to set up...with three dislocated discs over 20 years, no strain on my back whatsoever...it has really made a difference in both our abdomens and even our stomach."

The cons mentioned were, "spring tension does not offer very much resistance...the design is wrong - my head would not stay on top of the ab rocket... the resistance coils are difficult to change...in order to fold the unit flat for storage, you have to unscrew tension springs...needs stronger tension springs...cheap plastic chair parts were not durable."

When performing abdominal exercises, there are a few things to remember. First, perform the exercise slowly. Researchers have found when abdominal exercises are performed more slowly, the stabilizing muscles are used more than when the exercise is performed more quickly. Secondly, as your raising up, make sure you exhale.

Exercising the abdominal muscles not only gives you a better appearance, it also provides several health benefits. By using a model like the Ab Lounge, it also helps give the muscles a better workout and prevents injury to the back. Furthermore, you can exercise in the comfort and privacy of your home without having to pay expensive gym memeberships. Order one today and enjoy a sexier, flatter stomach!