Some of the very best ways to tone your abs are done with the use of equipment. Equipment can help you pin point exactly where on your abs you want to workout and can be used by people at any level. Here are four ab workouts you can use to tone your abs and four different machines for each.
Tone Your Abs Exercise # 1 – Exercise Ball
The exercise ball goes by a variety of different names and is available for use in most gyms or is relatively cheap if you do your workouts at home. It is also known as a Swiss ball or stability ball to some.
You can use the exercise ball as a sort of balancing platform when you do your normal abdominal exercises. It works your midsection much harder than working them on the floor because you’ll have to concentrate on your balance which will automatically make you flex your midsection to do so.
In addition to working your abs, the exercise ball will also increase your balance and coordination along with the range of motion for your normal ab workouts.
Tone Your Abs Exercise # 2 – The Medicine Ball
We are going to be using another ball to work your abs but this time it is a weighted ball known as a medicine ball. The medicine ball will intensify your ab workouts because it just adds another form of resistance forcing your abs to contract much more than they would normally.
Many people can fly through their normal ab routines with ease and come to a plateau with the results they see from their workouts. By adding a medicine ball into the routine, the abs will flex more resulting in toner abs.
Some medicine ball workouts would be the single leg v-up, Russian twists, and obliques. You can even tie in your exercise ball with the medicine ball for more intense ab workouts.
Tone Your Abs Exercise # 3 – Leg Weights
Try doing some ab workouts using leg weights to tone your abs. This is a real simple method to increase the resistance of your ab workouts. Just apply the leg weights then try to do some leg raises or bar crunches. You’ll really feel it working those abs much more than without.
Tone Your Abs Exercise # 4 – Resistance Cables
Another way to really tone your abs to perfection is by using cable weights. Find a machine where you can reach the cable from the floor on your knees. Grab the cable, then go to the floor on your knees. Perform some kneeling crunches with the added resistance of the machine.
Be sure not to over exert yourself with any of these ab toning exercises. The equipment is there to help and not to hurt, so if you feel these exercises begin to work anything but your abs, stop what you are doing and consult a professional trainer to help.
