Abdominal Benches

A stubborn layer of subcutaneous fat is what prevents many of you with an otherwise decent physique from developing a chiseled set of abs. I mean, I'm used to seeing the odd male beer belly proudly protruding out from under a hockey jersey, but more and more I'm seeing women and even children with an extra roll of belly fat. I'm not going to lie to you folks, banishing belly fat is tough. It takes a lot of willpower and dedication, but carrying extra fat around your middle makes you a ripe candidate for type 2 diabetes and heart disease.

Many folks shy away from abdominal work because it's hard, but if you truly want to tone your spare tire then there's no better abdominal isolator then performing sit ups, leg lifts and crunches on an abdominal bench. After all, lying on the floor grunting and groaning doesn't do any of us justice. By using an abdominal bench (starting at $180 online) you'll take advantage of the added resistance that gravity offers, and witness a leak in your spare tire faster than you can say six pack!

Use an ab bench, also called a decline bench, to perform crunches like this:

• Position the bench in the decline position.
• Lock your feet in under the foam ankle pads.
• Place your hands on either side of your head (behind your ears) and raise your upper body slowly (from the waist) while contracting or crunching your abs.
• Hold briefly, then slowly lower your body back down making sure to keep at least 1-inch of space between your back and the bench so you hold the ab contraction throughout the entire exercise.

Figure 01 Figure 02 Figure 03

If you can only afford one bench, do what I did and purchase a flat, incline, decline bench so that you can perform all of your resistance training on one. This way you can follow up decline abdominal crunches with leg lifts, another great exercise to dissolve that belly fat. To perform leg lifts: Lie on your flat bench and grip the padding above your head for support (Figure 01). Slide your butt to the edge of the bench so it's still supported by the bench, but so your legs are hanging off and your feet touch the floor (Figure 02). Keeping your legs straight and feet together contract your abdomen and lift ( DON'T swing) your legs upwards towards the ceiling (Figure 03). When I perform leg lifts I make sure I'm getting the most out of them by concentrating hard on using my abdominal muscles. I never swing my legs to. Remember, quality is always better then quantity.

Adjustable Decline Benches