Ab machines

[LovelyLace08]

Hi,
My name is Lacy and I love cathe's video's. I do both cardio and weights, however I enjoy cardio more. I am petite in size, but would like to lose 7-10 pounds. A bigger problem for me is my stomach. I don't like my pants to feel uncomfortable around the waist, but still like to wear fitted jeans. And lately I have really been wanting those well defined ABS like the stars on T.V. and Cathe. I do ab workouts with Cathe after I finish a workout, and other days I just do 100 crunches on a stability ball. I plan to continue doing abs with cathe, because I think they feel like they work. I was wondering if any of those ab machines actually work. On T.V. I have seen advertisements that show how the machine works a bunch of different sections of the abs at once. If I purchased an ab machine could it help my abdominal goals? Anyone know a good machine...I came to you ,cathe fans, because I trust you know what workouts are intense and effective.
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR HELP!

 

[nancy324]

Hi Lacy! I can totally relate to you. I think everyone these days wants a great midsection. I love to watch the infomercials on TV, although I never buy anything. My feeling about the ab machines that I have seen on TV is that some of them are useless and make false claims, and others work but are unnecessary because the same results can be obtained with Cathe's and other instructor's ab routines.

Do you have Cathe's Ab Hits? It is a DVD with nothing but ab workouts from all of Cathe's videos. There are also lots of pilates, yoga and ab videos on the market that target the abs or midsection that I believe will give you more value than any ab machine. I don't know what ab machine you are looking at, but it's likely that the commerical for it is tapping into your understandable desire to look like Janet Jackson or Britney Spears. How much do you want to bet that Janet Jackson and Britney Spears don't use machines? I think they each do hundreds of crunches every day.

Save your money and your precious space!! Just my two cents worth.
-Nancy

 

[hippahips]

Hi Lacy,

Nancy makes some really good points about ab work. Those pop stars with the 6-pack may also have some really great plastic surgeons in their little black books aside from expensive personal trainers. I have never used an ab machine. The most amount of money that I've spent in my 10 years or so exercising has been on Cathe DVD's, a barbell set and pairs of heavier dumbbells. And it has been worth every penny.

I'm with Nancy on the Ab Hits DVD. I do 2 or 3 segments as often as I can in a week. Cathe's ab workouts in her Intensity Series are also great. It's also a good idea to eat clean and healthy. It took me about 4 months of intense strength and aerobic workouts, and many struggles with clean eating (because laying off on the junk has been hard for me) to get to this point where I am ONLY BEGINNING to see the formation of a 4-pack and lines that mark my obliques. I plan to continue what I'm doing, using only my Cathe DVD's. If someone gave me an ab machine, it'll surely go on E-bay and with the money I get, I'll buy another Cathe DVD and if there's some change left over, more plates for my barbell. Just my two cents...

Good luck on your program,
Pinky:7

 

[kathryn]

Much of abdominal definition depends on the amount of body fat you have and how much of it you carry in the abdominal area. While core work and ab work will help train and strengthen the muscle, which is very important for back health as well as posture, it won't by itself give you trim and lean abs. For that, you need to watch what you eat and do exercise that burns calories. Cardio burns calories while you do it, as well as afterward. Weight training gives a better "after burn".

Strange as it may seem, the best resistance exercises for defined abs aren't ab exercises, but squats and deadlifts, which use a huge amount of muscle, and thus burn more calories.

I personally have very strong abs, but still have a belly pooch, due to both excess fat and heredity (as well as gender, I suppose, as female hormones often tend to encourage storage of fat in the lower abs as well as hips and thighs).

As for the machines and gadgets, actually the best ab exercises (specifically for abs)are gadget-free> They include crunches on a stability ball and bicycles (accordiing to a couple of articles I've read about the scientifically proven best ab exercises).

 

[scm]

I have never bought an ab machine, but I did purchase Winsor Pilaties. That is tough for me and I did have sore abs after doing her workout.


Susan C.M.

 

[LovelyLace08]

Thank you girls,
I did know that you need to do cardio and other workouts to lose the flab inorder to create abs. But, you really helped me...I think I'm on the right track already and am just impatient. Doing Cathe workouts and abs on the stability ball with give defintion..I'm sure I'll never have the six-pack look, but I have alittle definition already, if you look in certain lighting...lol. I do have the ab Hits DVD and I like it, but even more I love the medicine ball workouts in the Intensity Series. I think I'll stick to doing abs without a machine.

Lacy,

 

[lesliemarie]

I fell into that trap. I bought one once thinking that was the answer and I was going to have rock hard abs like Brittney spears, well I just wasted about $35.00. I have had more luck with Cathe's ab hits then the ab thing I bought. Yes these stars all have their very own personal trainer, But I found here everyone kind of supports everyone so in a way you do have a personal trainer here

 

[trevor]

I remember once where Cathe stated that you had to use some weight with your ab exercises in order to get the defined abs. That, combined with clean eating, mixing up your ab routine,and heredity, of course.
I also have read that any set of abs work where you are going beyond 45 seconds is wasted movement. If you are doing a hundred crunches you probably need to go to a different ab exercise, or combine crunches with a different ab exercise. There's really no reason to perform all those crunches and you might see better results by taking that time that you use for those extra crunches and do a different, more challenging exercise.
Trevor