Have you seen those late night adverts on cable TV for the latest abdominal exercise equipment? How effective do you think they are? How do you choose which one is best for you? This article will help with all these issues.

It's a fact the nation is getting heavier, and many people are putting on those pounds on around the stomach. This is partly due to the sedentary lifestyle that so many people live, with there desk jobs, which result in the abdominal muscles getting little or no exercise. Combine this with convenience and fast food and the net result is a growth market for abdominal exercise equipment.

A key fact that you'll find barely mentioned in the infomercials for ab machines is simply that these gadgets will not help you loose the layer of fat surrounding your abdominal muscles. You can have a finely sculptured set of 6 pack washboard abs, achieved through sweat and tears on your abdominal exercise equipment, but if they're covered in an inch of fat, you won't turn heads when you take your shirt off. In order to get rid of this layer of fat you need to change your diet and simply take in fewer calories in food than you burn off on a daily basis.

What are your options on abdominal exercise equipment?

One of the cheapest and best exercise options for great abs is surprisingly the simple chin-up bar. You can buy one cheaply at your local fitness store and install it between your door frame at home. Chin-ups are thought to be one of the most effective exercises you can do for an all round upper body workout. To target your abs simply hang down from your bar and bring you knees up to your chest 6-10 times. As you get stronger keep you legs locked at the knees and bring them up from the vertical hang to 90 degrees to your upper body and parallel with the ground, repeat this 6-10 times. Following this routine will give you a truly rounded abdominal workout for very low cost.

Another cheap option is to do crunches on a fitball. Sit on the ball with feet flat on the ground, and roll back until you back is lying on the ball. From this position move your upper body up to do a full crunch. As you get more advanced crunch alternatively to your left and right to get a full range of motion. A fitball really is a very versatile and cheap piece of abdominal exercise equipment.

What about the hi-tech abdominal gadgets?

Firstly stay away from the electrical stimulating equipment such as the slendertone. They have very little effect on your abs and I would not recommend them as the abs equipment of choice. You're better of considering one of the mechanical machines such as the Ab cruncher, Ab slider or wheel. They are very good at isolating the full range of abdominal muscles and produce good results with regular use.

Don't get too obsessed with what specific abdominal exercise equipment is most effective. Each piece has its pro's and con's. You need to decide what your goals are, how hard you're willing to work and then opt for a piece of equipment that you're going to use regularly and not get bored with.