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With all of the options available at the gym, on television, and in fitness stores for home use, it’s not easy to choose the best abdominal exercise equipment. Strength training purists would argue that the best tool is a floor mat; possibly coupled with a medicine ball. But for those of us who don’t get a sense of satisfaction by doing things the hard way when an easier way is available, there are the toys.

Regardless of the claims put forth by this company or that system, the best abdominal exercise equipment is the thing you’re actually going to use. If you’re in the market for a new cruncher, roller, seated, or swinging, ab workout device, you do need to keep a few things in mind to ensure that you get something that does what it’s supposed to.

A good ab workout machine should be fairly simple to use, and should support your body in a normal abdominal exercise movement. It should allow you to work all of the major abdominal muscles: the rectus abdominis, transverse abdominis (lower and running side to side), and the obliques.

In my opinion, the simpler the equipment, the better. For example, I like a machine that helps perform a crunch by putting a padded support behind the head. Something that looks or feels awkward is probably more effort (and more costly) than it’s worth.

As for the best abdominal exercise equipment, the answer is always going to be a matter of opinion. If you’re simply wondering what to use at the gym, try out your different options, and stick with the one you like the best. If you’re looking to buy an ab toy, trying out a few different choices is still a good idea. You can usually do this at a sports or fitness equipment store; and if you’re determined to order an ab machine off of an infomercial, try it out the day it comes. If it isn’t the best abdominal exercise equipment you’ve ever tried, take advantage of the 30 day return policy.

After all, if the best machine is one you’ll continue to use for a long time, the worst is the one that just sits in a storage closet gathering dust.

The most basic piece of abdominal workout equipment is probably the floor mat. On it, you can crunch, plank, and squeeze the top and bottom of your body together in countless ways to work your abdominal muscles. Floor mats are relatively inexpensive, and the risk of injury due to improper use is very low. They’re even used in group core strengthening classes, and for specialty techniques such as Pilates.

Next on the list of cool, affordable workout equipment is something that’s been around for a while: the exercise ball. Yep, we’re talking about those big, inflatable things. Maybe you already love them, or maybe a deep held fear of falling off onto the floor has kept you from ever using one. Fears aside (none of these balls will raise you more than a couple of feet off the ground at most), the exercise ball is one of the most versatile pieces of fitness equipment available. Almost anything you do while touching it (including simply sitting down) will force your core muscles to engage. And once you add movement to the mix, you won’t be able to help getting a good abdominal workout.

For those of you who enjoy something a bit more high tech, today’s fitness equipment market offers a number of tantalizing choices; most of which will suggestively sell you six pack abs along with the machine. Most gyms have at least one crunch machine—if not multiple models—that lets exercise in a seated position or while lying down. When taking the machine route for abdominal exercise, do be aware that sometimes machines can give too much assistance. If you find your arms are tired after a set on one of these, it’s quite possible that your gripping too hard, and your abs are doing less work than they could.

I’m not a fan of weighted abdominal workout equipment (like many of the ab machines in gyms, that require you to put on a harness and seatbelt before curling down) for the simple reason that the abdominals are not meant to be weight-bearing muscles. The core’s job is to hold our bodies upright; and to train for this job, body weight is more than enough resistance.

Whatever abdominal workout equipment you choose, keep in mind that really focusing on the abs—willing them to work with every crunching or curling motion—will produce a very effective workout. Right now, while you’re at the computer, sit up straight and pick up your feet from the floor, just slightly. Think about holding them above the ground by squeezing your lower abs. Hold it…. Ok, release. Even a chair can work your abs if you know how to use it.

Whether you’re more comfortable with no tech, low tech, or bright shiny high tech equipment, form, technique, and an understanding of the way your muscles function are the keys to any successful workout.

It’s a different world today, from the one where 6 Minute Abs dominated the abdominal fitness equipment market. These days there are so many different options on the market that it’s hard to know what—if anything—will really yield results. Personally, I prefer the simplicity of balance, stabilization, and floor-based abdominal workouts: the old school stuff. But for those of you who absolutely must have a machine or toy to play with, here are a few tips to find the right one.

Remember that there is no single abdominal muscle. Rather, the abs are made up of 6 different muscles: the transverse abdominis, which runs across the belly; the rectus abdominis, or six-pack muscle; and the internal and external obliques (both found on each side; 4 muscles altogether), which wrap around the sides of the abdomen. A good ab exercise or effective piece of abdominal fitness equipment will allow you to target all of these muscles.

The great thing about exercising is that you can usually feel whether or not you’re performing the movement correctly. If you’re trying to work your legs but only feel pressure in your back, there is obviously something wrong. The same goes for abdominal exercises: if you’re using a piece of abdominal fitness equipment, you should “feel it” in your abs.

If you can, try out some different models at a specialty store. Many gyms will have at least a couple of pieces of abdominal fitness equipment as well; and often the amount of use these get is a good indicator of ease and effectiveness.

If you prefer to order things from television, make sure you put together and try your purchase as soon as you get it. Most television offers will include a 30 day trial period, so take advantage of yours. There’s no reason to be stuck with a piece of exercise equipment that is too difficult to use, or that doesn’t give you, personally, a good workout.

So if you’re seriously in the market for an ab toy that’s going to work, take some time to do some research. Test some things out; you’ll know a good piece of abdominal fitness equipment when you try it. Most importantly, keep it somewhere painfully visible (like not in the storage shed or closet) to ensure that you’ll either use it or feel guilty for not using it every single day. After all, no piece of exercise equipment will do a thing for you unless you actually use it.

If you’re like me, you scoff at most abdominal exercise machines on the market today. (If you’re not like me in that respect, you might want to stop reading so that your feelings aren’t hurt.) The ads and infomercials make it look so easy: six pack abs just by lying down. Devices to make crunches easier than ever (but if easier means less work, then how can it be effective?), and to give you a workout without ever having to do another crunch again.

At the gym there are ab rollers and crunchers that you use sitting, standing, and lying down. I know that some people really like having to strap into a padded seat in order to work their abs, but I’ve got to ask: is any of this really necessary?)

I should admit here that in addition to scoffing at abdominal exercise machines as a general rule, I also pretty much hate traditional ab workouts. I don’t understand how people can do hundreds of crunches in every position, perform dozens of leg raises, and hold planks for minutes at a time without getting bored.

Perhaps—in spite of my best intentions—I am the reason there are so many abdominal exercise machines on the market today. I know I’m not the only person living who understands the importance of core strength; yet cringes and balks at the mere thought of spending more than 5 minutes on abdominal exercises. For those of you like me, perhaps a good piece of equipment is exactly what we need.

Come to think of it, I do like that padded ab bench at the gym that has the headrest and the handles overhead. I’m way more willing to do crunches on that thing than on the ground. So maybe I should get an ab toy to keep at home, so that instead of trying to avoid doing crunches, I can feel like playing, and still get a workout.

Don’t get me wrong: I still firmly believe that 99% of the abdominal exercise machines on the market are unnecessary (and that leftover 1% is only because I can’t be sure I’ve really seen them all). I know exactly how to get a good ab workout with no machines whatsoever. But the truth is that sometimes I don’t want to. For those of you who are like me in this respect, perhaps an abdominal exercise machine is exactly what we need.

There are a variety of different abdominal exercise equipment machines on the market today. You can pretty much spend as much, or as little, as you like – and price is no guarantee of quality. From simple ab rollers, to thousand-dollar contraptions with hydraulics and vibrating pads, the options are staggering.

There’s a couple of things to keep in mind when choosing a piece of abdominal exercise equipment. Firstly, you need to be clear on your goals.

Are you looking to tone and tighten your abdominal muscles?

Are you looking to shed some fat around the midsection?

Do you want your stomach to “hang out” less and hug more tightly to your torso, without having to suck it in?

Do you want to add raw muscle mass to your abdominals, so they are more prominent?

It’s important to ask yourself these questions before you invest in an ab exerciser – largely for the reason that nearly all ab exercisers will only help you achieve one or two out of these four goals.

If your aim is to shed a fair bit of bodyfat around your midsection, then I can tell you now that there is very little point investing in an abdominal exerciser. You can not “spot reduce” bodyfat in a certain area by working the muscles nearby – the only way to burn fat is to expend more calories than you consume, on a consistent basis. This translates to a clean diet full of protein, complex carbs and healthy fats, combined with regular cardio and resistance training. Abdominal training can be part of that, sure – but in itself it is not going to do much for your fat loss efforts.

Abdominal exercise equipment is designed to develop the abdominal muscles specifically. If your goal is to build, tone and firm the specific muscles that make up your six-pack (and yes, everyone has them – sometimes they’re just hidden!) – then an ab exerciser might well be an excellent investment.