In my 35 years as a physical culture and health practitioner, I have never witnessed such an onslaught of exercise gadgets as there are today.  An of all the exercise “junk” on the market today, the abdominal development equipment is probably the most confusing. 

With each different device advertised, there’s an “expert” attached to it whose goal is to “set you straight” on why their device is supposedly the best.  Interestingly, they seem more concerned about where you should put your arms, hands and head than they are with how to exercise the abdominals for maximum results. 

I have been providing successful instruction on abdominal development for many years, and for the life of me, I don’t understand the sudden confusion among these so-called “experts”.  Sure, the abdominals can be exercised effectively with these devices, but the question is: do you really need a device to exercise the abdominals effectively?  The answer, very simply, is no.

When I was a competitive body builder, I was working two jobs, raising a family and caring for my home.  As a result, I had just one-hour a day to train for competitions, so I didn’t have a lot of time to waste on my waist.  So, I applied some of the practical knowledge I had about developing muscular size and strength and applied it to my abdominals- working them intensely within a repetition zone of 8 to 15 reps to momentary muscular failure.  And to do this most effectively, I needed to analyze exactly what the abdominals do..and don’t do.

There are four sets of abdominal muscles.  From most superficial to deep they are: the abdominal rectus, the external oblique, the internal oblique and the transverse abdominal.  The rectus are the most “showy,” the ones that give the “six-pack” look.  The externals are the second most pronounced with a look of fingers pointing obliquely down and forward on the sides of the rectus. 

The rectus abdominals’ primary function is to flex the torso towards the pelvis.  The two sets of oblique muscles are strong synergists- or stabilizers- during this function.  A second function of the abdominals is forced expiration, as in sneezing or quickly blowing out a candle.

After determining the mechanics and function of the abdominals, I decided to try exercising the abs using both functions: torso flexion and forced expiration.  To do this, I had to use a very slow motion or protocol.  I began by lying on the floor in a standard pre-exercise posture with my upper leg 45-degrees to the torso with both feet on the ground.  To help me feel the intensity of the contractions and focus on the effect the process is having, I put my fingers into the abdominal region.  That way, if I feel the contractions let up, I can re-establish my concentration. 

When starting the movement, it takes about 5 to 8 seconds to reach the full crunch position- about 30-degrees of torso flexion.  When I get to the end point of the crunch, I keep the air-way open and try to continue crunching up, causing a tremendous contraction in the abdominals while emptying out the lungs as much as possible.  Then, while remaining in the full-forced crunch position, I take small breathes of air, with each breathe going to the end.