Today I want to discuss the Ab Lounge. This popular ab equipment claims to be "the ultimate abdominal machine". So how good is the Ab Lounge anyway? I've had one for about 2 years now and I'll share my thoughts with you.
First, it is very easy for a novice to make the mistake of using their arms and legs with the Ab Lounge instead of their abs. So, assuming you have a strong core and good form, the Ab Lounge does work your abs.
But is the Ab Lounge better than regular crunches? A typical ab crunch consists of 2 parts, 1) curling of your upper body and lower body together and 2) returning to the start position. To perform an ab crunch properly, your abs should be working for both parts of the ab exercise.
However, there is a problem with the Ab Lounge. It's kind of a big problem. The Ab Lounge works fine for the curling part of the exercise, but once your body is "curled", it's kind of stuck there. The Ab Lounge locks into an upright sitting position and you can't easily return to the start position using just your abs. No matter what I try, I find that my arms and legs end up doing most of the return part of the exercise, not my abs.
So to recap, regular ab crunches on the floor or with a ball or BOSU work the abs for both parts of the exercise, but the Ab Lounge works the abs for only 1 part of the exercise.
Look at any type of ab equipment in your local gym and you'll find that none of them lock in the sitting position like the Ab Lounge. I'm sure that the reason the Ab Lounge locks up at the sitting position is to make the ab exercise easier.
So, who is the Ab Lounge for? I would have to say the Ab Lounge is for someone that is a beginner who can't do standard ab exercises and wants to work up to performing standard crunches on the floor or with a ball or BOSU. So if you can do regular crunches, stick with that and avoid the Ab Lounge. The Ab Lounge isn't bad, it's just half of an ab crunch. Plus it's easy to cheat and not use your abs on this equipment.
During the week, I do a variety of ab exercises. I'll typically use the Ab Lounge about once a month for some extra variety for my ab exercises. But that's it.
The next time you see an easy-to-use fitness product remember, there is no easy way to fitness. You have to constantly work at it and most importantly, make it fun for you!
"Have Fun, Be Fit!"
Functional Marc
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