ab lounge review - is this machine really an effective exercise for your abs?
ab lounge review - is this machine really an effective exercise for your abs?
The Intense Workout
Hello person who is interested in the ab lounge. What you are about to read is my review and opinion of this abdominal machine, as well as a tiny little secret that they don't want you to know about. This review will contain every single thing you need to know about the ab lounge and abdominal exercises and machines in general, and by the end you will without a shadow of a doubt know whether or not you should buy it. You know what, I don't feel as though I've gotten your attention yet. Hmmm... let's see... I know...
The ab lounge commercial is complete and utter bullshit.
Do I have your attention now?
Fantastic.
Let's keep going then.
So I've been seeing this commercial for this ab lounge machine a lot lately. The whole commercial is a giant lie. Actually it's a series of lies formed together to create one giant lie. Sadly this lie is causing people to waste their money. This is something I don't like. See, in 1998 I bought this contraption called the "Ab Rocker." I was clueless and stupid. It took about a week for me to realize what a total waste of money it was and how it was doing nothing different for my abs than plain old crunches. The ab lounge is today's ab rocker. I want to prevent you from being clueless and stupid.
Before I go any further, I want to state that I have had people e-mail me and tell me that due to their back problems they can't perform basic ab exercises like crunches. They go on to say that laughably fancy abdominal machines such as the ab lounge are useful to them because of their back problems. I don't have back problems. I am not a back specialist. Therefore, I cannot refute these statements. It is possible that machines such as the ab lounge are better for people who have bad backs and can't do exercises like crunches. If you have a bad back and think this may help you work your abs while lessening the stress on your back, then by all means go for it. Get your 2,000 easy payments of a billion dollars ready and place your order now.
However, if you are planning on buying the ab lounge because:
A) You think it is a more effective exercise than other ab exercises
B) You think it will get rid of your stomach fat
C) You think it will make you lose weight
Then my friend, you would be wasting your money. Despite it's bullshit commercial, the ab lounge doesn't do any of these things.
If anything, it's a less effective ab exercise than crunches. The same way the barbell bench press would be more effective than a bench press machine, crunches are likely a better ab exercise than the ab lounge. At best, they are equal. At worst, crunches are better. Machines (for all muscles) do part of the work for you. They keep the weight (in this case, your body) stable. Exercises not done on machines recruit the use of stabilizer muscles to keep the weight in place. The more muscles used, the greater the results. So, there goes bullshit claim #1.
The ab lounge will also NOT get rid of the fat on your stomach. No ab exercise will. It's scientifically impossible to directly target the fat of a specific body part. It's a common workout myth known as "spot reduction." The same is true for every muscle, not just abs. Back exercises don't burn back fat, leg exercises don't burn leg fat, and ab exercises don't burn ab fat. Exercises work muscles. A proper diet gets rid of fat. There goes bullshit claim #2.
If you've ever seen this stupid ab lounge commercial, you've seen the part where they show some lady or some guy wearing their old fat pants with them saying how using the ab lounge caused them to lose a trillion pounds in just 2 weeks. Ok, that may be an exaggeration, but it's pretty close. Anyway, if you can force yourself to look away from their funny looking fat person pants and focus your eyes on the bottom of your television screen, you'll see a message that goes a little something like:
" *We are lying to you. This guy and this lady actually ate a diet low enough in calories so that they would lose weight. They also did cardio on a regular basis. The ab lounge had nothing to do with their weight loss results. We just try to make it look like it did so, ya know, we can steal your money." And there goes bullshit claim #3.
Again, that's an exaggeration. But again, it's not that far off. The next time you see this commercial be sure read the fine print. If anything, you'll get a good laugh.
I gotta say, the one thing I do like about this thing is how it's called the ab lounge. It's like... forget about working out on the floor or a weight bench like a normal person... just sit back and relax on our ultra comfortable lounge. I want to invent a machine called the Ab Hammock. "Now you can workout while relaxing at a BBQ in your backyard!" Then maybe the Ab Bed. "Its like sleeping only it's working your abs!!!!!" It's all gimmicky marketing stuff. Gimmicky marketing stuff is another way of saying useless waste of money. So in that aspect, the ab lounge finally succeeds.
Anyway, let me end this review already. If you just want to have another ab exercise to do and have extra money to spend, go for it. It's fine as an additional $175.00 ab exercise. If you have a bad back and think this may be better for it than crunches, go for it. If you're looking for an extra place to lounge in your living room, go for it. If you are none of these things, keep your wallet in your pocket. Stick to basic ab exercises like crunches and leg raises. Add in a proper diet plan and a proper workout routine for the rest of your body and you will have perfect slim sexy swimsuit washboard six pack abs in no time... for free.
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