One of the most common requests I hear at Diversified Health and Fitness gym is the request for “6 Pack Abs”. These, besides the perfect butt, seem to be the Holy Grail of working out. And while there are many things you can do to get your abs in gear, it’s important to understand the abs and how to best acheive results.

Your abs are not just the space between your chest and your bikini line. Your abdominal muscles are a part of your core muscles, which is the group that supports your entire middle zone. That’s pretty much the neck down to the mid part of your thigh. You core is vitally important in almost every exercise you perform, so strengthening this entire area is, without a doubt, a very important goal. You engage your entire core in everyday movements, all the time.

But let’s focus on your front abdominal muscles, the ones that you’d like to look like a washboard. A lot of my clients think that if they just do 100 crunches a day, they’ll be well on their way. And while this can help a little, it’s not going to help if you have a layer of fat over your muscles, and if you’re only doing crunches. So it’s important to attack this from all sides: proper nutrition, smart exercise, and minimizing stress. Why the last one? Studies have shown that increased stress packs on the midsection pounds.

It’s also important to know that some abdominal exercises are much more effective than others. It’s also better to really work out your abs in a short amount of time with highly effective exercises than to waste time and energy on the aforementioned 100 daily crunches.

According to research, the single best move you can do for your abs is the device in your gym called “The Captain’s Chair.” This is a great piece of equipment that you hoist yourself between the two side supports on your elbows and forearms, which will cause your legs to dangle. Now bring your legs up from the waist for as long as you can to work those rectus abdominals, and then turn to the side and work those obliques. This is an AB KILLER, and believe me, yours will be burning in no time! My clients hate it when I put them on here, but they’re not paying me to not get them results. You’ll see some results too when you’re on here for awhile, I promise!

The second best thing you can do is use an inflatable exercise ball. Besides being a lot of fun, these work on your stabilizer muscles as well, and those sometimes get less use than they should. For core work, the ball is a must, and it’s very versatile. Tomorrow I’ll go over some more exercises on the ball, but most gyms have them and they should not be ignored.

The traditional crunch can still work wonders, it’s true. However, it’s important to switch up that crunch a little so you get the most out of the exercise (we’ll also touch on form for crunches tomorrow) and also work all the various areas of your abdominals. And unlike the others, the crunch is easy to do in a hotel room or when you’re at home, during TV commercials (hint, hint!)

So tune in tomorrow for my favorite ab blasting exercises!