AB machine in Gym?

[HiFi]

do those AB machines in the gym really work.. the kind where u place ur chest up against the pad and crunch forward.. on a side note if u could post ur ab workout, because this is the one muscle that i neglect

[redrock]

I have heard lots of bad things about the one you described. The best thing you can do is just lay on the ground and do various crunches. Do them with knees up, legs flat, legs elevated etc.

[wrstlr69sdnl]

I do a machine crunch its not like what you say you do a crunch and hold on to 2 handles with weight on them and crunch works pretty good

[Archangel230]

Some people like them, others don't. I break my abs into three broad areas: upper, lower, obliques (which hits the serratus too). I do use a modified crunch machine at my gym for probably half of my ab workouts focusing on upper abs and obliques. Leg raises I always include for lower abs. Sets are about 3-4 per exercise and reps vary.

[abstrack]

Those things are JUNK!! your better off doing rope crunches. The abs machines allow you to cheat by using your weight to push forward or using you back to push forward. Just like those ocrunch machines that most of the girls use( NO offense ladies!) those things are garbage also, your better off doing just crunches. Those machines are made for lazy people who like to cheat. You want strong abs, deadlift!!

[MilitiaGuy]

i think machines have ther place it allow u to increase the strenght of the ab muscles espacialy this mashine coz it allow u to add weight

[saboudian]

I'm with FitnessGuy on this one.

There are few different ab machines in my gym that i will use from time to time. Abs are such a versatile muscle group that i'm constantly looking for new ways to hit it.

[Devourer]

ive been doing two different tri sets alternating between the two weekly.
workout 1
15 decline crunches
15 w/ ab wheel
15 hanging knee raises
workout 2
15 crunches
15 roman chair crunches
15 rope pulldown crunches
i do three trisets with no rest inbetween
then i finish off with my oblique exercise
15 roman chair side bends (weighted)
15 dumbell side bends
15 cable side bends
i would use the machine if it were available to me. i would use it in place of the rope crunches alternately.

[TheNewSteel]

I think you are talking about the weighted situp machine, back in high school we had both the weighted crunches where you hold the handles behind your head and the weighted situp machine, the weighted situps felt friggin awesome, but I used to use like 200 pounds on it
nowadays I don't work my abs directly at all, I only use them for stabilization. They sometimes get sore as hell after a good lat work out.

[solidj55]

I think the machine you are talking about is great. THe one where you hold the handles behind your head sucks lol, I would like it but where I am so short I cant seem to get the seat adjusted to where I can get a good crunch unless my feet arent touching the ground, then I feel unbalanced. But back to the machine your speaking of, its great IMO.
I use it supersetted in conjunction with its opposite, the lower back machine that you put your back against and push back. Youll get an awesome lower-back/ab workout. But thats just my opinion.

[solidj55]

Oh yea, my ab workout is basic.

Day 1
Situp Machine(the one your talking about) 2 sets to failure, rep range varies but this is usually my heavy day of 8-12 reps


Day 2
Decline Situps- 2 sets to failure, rep range varies but this is my light day of 20+ reps.


Thats all I do as far as ab work.

[GetPsycho]

what is your body fat? no machine in the world will give you abs if your bf isnt in check

[solidj55]

what is your body fat? no machine in the world will give you abs if your bf isnt in check

This is the most true statement yet. But what I was saying was for function and strength of the abs.