Is the ab lounge really a good effective tool to use for abdominal workouts?

Question

Does it work? Is it easier on your back? Every time I do sit ups, on the decline bench thing or on the floor it hurts my back. Would the ab loung make it easier for ab workouts without the back pain?

Answer 1

I have a lot of back pain, and it is very easy on my back. I've been usuing it for 20-30 minutes a day for about a week now and I've lost 6 pounds so far.

Answer 2

The ab lounge is a total rip-off. It's a machine designed to help you perform one of the most useless abdominal exercises there is. The reason sit-ups and crunches hurt your back is because they are bad for your back.



Sit-ups are a terrible exercise for working your abdominals in the first place. They actually work the rectus femoris and the psoas far more than the rectus abdominis. Sit-ups should be classified as a hip-flexor exercise, not an abdominal exercise. I can't believe people still do them.



Crunches aren't much better. They re-enforce poor movement patterns, chronically shorten the rectus abdominis, cause excessive and repetitive flexion of the spine (which results in degeneration of the vertebrae and disc over time), yield no FUNCTIONAL benefit, and don't work the abdominals in a way that you will actually use in real life. Yet another exercise we should eliminate from our core-training lexicon.

Answer 3

I use it in combination with your typical sit ups and crunches. I like it and can feel and see it in the Abs. With any Ab workout you need to vary the exercises because the Abs are such a big muscle group. The Ab Lounge does elevate stress on your back.