So I figure I will make the first post about a very popular subject. Getting a flatter stomach and showing those abs. With the new year coming quickly many people will be hitting the gym and trying to achieve this. There won’t be just one best abs exercise but with combining a few together, you might start to see better results.

The American Council on Exercise (ACE), an organization that claims to be America’s authority on fitness, conducted a study of various exercises for the abdominal muscles. This study revealed the ten most effective ways of developing the abs. So here is the scoop on the best abs exercises and how they should be done.

Torso Track – the fifth best abs exercise but the toughest to accomplish. It can injure the back if not done right.
• Firmly hold the Torso Track handles and, while inhaling, pull in the abs.
• Slowly exhale as you move smoothly forward. Do not collapse for this will hurt the back
• Go back to the first position while slowly contracting the abs. Repeat all three steps.

Long Arm Crunch – the sixth best abs exercise that focused on the upper abdominal muscles
• While lying on your back, stretch out the arms beyond the hand and lace together the fingers. The upper arms should be near the ears.
• Using the abs, lift the upper body, especially the shoulders, off the floor.
• Hold and then go back to the first position.

Reverse Crunch – the seventh best abs exercise that works out the whole abdominal area
• While lying on the floor with hands lying flat on the sides and ankles crossed, lift the knees and legs and move them towards the chest. The upper leg and the lower leg should form a right angle.
• Then, using the abs, lift the hips and bring the legs straight up.
• Lower the hips and legs and then repeat the lifting the above steps. Avoid swinging the legs.

Full Vertical Crunch – the eighth best abs exercise that engages the whole body
• While lying on your back, lift the legs straight up.
• Using the hands to support the head, lift the upper body off the floor. Keep the legs in its position. And the whole body would resemble a letter “J”
• Release and lower the shoulders and leg. Then repeat the above steps.

Ab Rocker – the ninth best abs exercise that targets the six pack muscles
• Sit comfortably on the Ab Rocker and firmly hold the bars or handles.
• Move forward, making sure that the force is being supplied by the abdomen. Concentrate on the abdominal muscles and not the arms.
• Slowly release and repeat the above steps.

Plank on Elbows and Toes – this tenth best abs exercise is also great in developing endurance.
• While lying on the floor, face down and hands close to the body, spread out the hands against the floor.
• Raise the upper body by pushing against the floor. Raise the toes and then rest on the elbows. The upper arm and the lower arm should create a right angle, with the lower arm parallel to the floor.
• Contract the abs by keeping the line of the back straight from head to ankles. If needed, adjust the position of the pelvis downwards to achieve this straight line.
• Hold the above position for at least 20 seconds and then slowly go back to the original position

So there is the first half of the best abs exercise list. The part about nice abs that people tend to over look is the eating part. It will be 10 times harder to get great abs if you are eating unhealthy while doing abs workouts. I will go into more detail about this in a later post, but if you want to see better results make sure and cut unhealthy food choices out of your daily food intake.