The best abdominal equipment works different muscles of the core simultaneously. Strive to use abdominal equipment that is small and lightweight, making it easy to travel with or use outside the gym. The textbook "Exercise Physiology: Energy, Nutrition and Human Performance" says three major muscles comprise the abdominals: the transverse abdominis, running laterally across the waistline; the rectus abdominis, running from sternum to pubic bone; and the obliques, running along the sides of the torso.
Stability Ball
Stability balls were designed by an Italian plastics manufacturer in 1963. Made from soft, elastic PVC, stability balls range in size from 55 to 85 centimeters. Using a stability ball immediately challenges the deepest muscles of the core to keep the body stable during exercises. Stability balls come with small hand pumps and take about 10 minutes to inflate and deflate, making them easy to transport or travel with. "Stability balls are wonderful and so versatile in working the abs," said American College of Sports Medicine certified personal trainer Shelby Young. "They're fairly cheap, less than $15 apiece, and they can be used in many, many exercises to exercise each area of the body: lower and upper body and core."
Abdominal Wheel
Simple and small, the abdominal wheel fully engages the three muscles of the core. Also known as the ab roller, this equipment is comparable to the size of a loaf of bread. It consists of a small wheel with a post sticking out both sides of the wheel, like an axle. The ends of the post are small enough for your hands to grip. Most ab wheel exercises involve you holding the wheel with both hands, and either from the ball of the feet or the knees, rolling it out and pulling it back in. The inward and outward rolling causes your abdominals to engage to move the wheel. "This is definitely in the 'simple and effective'category when it comes to ab equipment," said Young. "That's not to say it's not a great piece of equipment. It's small, compact and is very convenient to travel with or just keep in your house and really work your abs with."
Mini Abdominal Ball
The mini ab ball is simply a smaller version of the large stability ball. Made of the same material, the mini ab ball is a lot more unstable due to its smaller size. The mini ab ball works the lower abdominals, obliques and the transverse abdominis. Unlike the larger stability ball, the mini ab ball is targeted more to abdominal exercises, rather than lower and upper body exercises. "The mini ab ball is a small little piece of equipment that you can do some challenging exercises on," said Young. "Again, they're cheap, easy to travel with and are very effective in working and strengthening the abs."
References
- "Exercise Physiology: Energy, Nutrition and Human Performance"; William D. McArdle, Frank I. Katch, Victor L. Katch; 2006
- Shelby Young, ACSM Certified Personal Trainer; Hampshire Hills Sports and Fitness Center; Milford, N.H.
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