Are you a copycat?
Written: Mar 27 '06
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Inexpensive, effective, lightweight.
Cons: Not for large people.
The Bottom Line: The Chair is effective and inexpensive. It truly is a copycat.
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| jo.com's Full Review: Ab Chair XL Exercise |
I decided to review the Ab Chair XL after receiving several e-mails such as the one below:
Jo,
My name is XXX and I have been contemplating the purchase of " the AB Chair XL 2006" was wondering if you have tried this or the AB Chair?
I will be sending her the link to this review but let me start by clarifying the names. This Chair is sold as the Ab Chair XL and the Ab Chair Deluxe 2006. I have seen it advertised as the Ab Chair and the Ab Chair Deluxe but from my research and talking with people it seems that the former are the correct terms for this chair. I will first review the XL and if there is interest I will review the XL 2006. I will compare it to the Ab Lounge 2 which can now be found for $100- about $30 more than the $70 Ab Chair XL.
What is the Ab Chair:
Advertised as a less expensive way to work your abdominal muscles and obliques (the muscles on the sides of your body) the Ab Chair is truly a copy cat machine at first glance. I really did wonder if it was really the same machine for less money.
The Ab Chair weighs 35 pounds and has a maximum user weight of 250 pounds. It measures 40 inches long by 20 inches deep by 60 inches high. The Ab Lounge 2 weighs 32 pounds and has the same maximum user weight. It is the same length but it is a higher machine than the Ab Lounge 2. From my own experience and from e-mails I receive I have come to the conclusion that neither of these machines and none of the Ab Lounge machines I have reviewed so far really makes the best ab machine for the larger person. The maximum user weight is low so unless you are tall but very thin you will be tipping this one over! One reason I like machines for overweight people is because heavy people often have a hard time sitting down and getting up from the floor. Not in this case however.
I have also gotten e-mail from people who are very tall and very short. Make sure if you are short you get a Chair with adjustable pedals such as this one. If you are very tall, this may not work for you.
The Ab Chair XL is built very similarly to the Ab Lounge 2. The both are made with rolled steel frames.
I mentioned the oblique muscles above. There are two layers. They are internal and external. They help flex your spine and stabilize your torso. Remember that when you work your abdominal muscles you are strengthening your back as well so even if you hate doing crunches and do not care if you ever have a 6 pack or even a flat stomach your back will thank you for working your ab muscles. The way I work my obliques on the Ab Chair is by bending my legs to the side and doing the crunch motion that the Ab Chair provides. This Crunch motion is the same as that of the Ab Lounge 2.
The blue material is canvas. I don’t care what the material is as long as it is durable. The jury is out on this one. I am convinced that with normal use you will get your money’s worth. However if it is misused (Using more than the maximum weight, children using it as a trampoline, etc.) canvas tears! Having said that it seems that the Ab Chair XL is decently made.
Both machines fold but as I say over and over again once you fold a machine taking it out again is going to take more motivation than many have. So unless you have to fold it, don’t! Please remember that the older Ab Lounge machines have been recalled because of the folding mechanism. At the time I thought it silly because almost every piece of equipment provides some element of danger.
The Ab Chair like the Lounge 2 has adjustable foot rests which are adequate. Your feet will be on these metal pieces. For much of the time you will have your knees bent to do the exact movement you would do on the Ab Lounge. They call it the Jack Knife. It is a crunch move that had me moving my upper body and my lower body at the same time. I do crunches all the time on the floor or various abdominal machines. The “old fashioned” sit ups are out! They can be dangerous to your back so learn how to do crunches properly or get a machine such as this one to help you with your form. Using machines also makes doing abdominal work less boring if you are doing them alone. Crunches are a very effective way to work your abdominal muscles. I work mine every day for about 5 minutes.
I’ll Demonstrate:
The Ab Chair XL is a very simple piece of equipment. It is designed to cradle your body while supporting your head, neck, and back throughout the entire exercise. It does do that.
There are handles on the sides. The handles are really so similar on both machines I have a hard time with how RiteLife, the company that makes the Ab Chair, gets away with this. After you are on you can use the handles to pull yourself up or place your hands over your head and grab onto the strap. I can almost guarantee that the first time you do this you will not be able to figure out how to move the top part of you and the bottom at the same time but you can. You will do it once and realize the technique. The strap or handles are what you will use to move your body at first. Eventually, hopefully, the strap will just guide you and you will use your abdominal muscles to crunch you.
There is no doubt this machine works. I “feel” abdominal work even though I work them daily. I felt my abdominals working and though I can’t say I was sore from this machine as I often am after a Pilates class I could feel a burn in my abdominal muscles.
As I pulled myself up the top of the Chair came with me and the bottom came up. This is what I call a double crunch. Without the machine you can do a crunch using just your upper ab muscles (lift yourself slightly off the floor with your hands loosely behind your head) or you can lift your lower half off the floor with your legs up. Your bottom comes up and straight up trying not to curl too much.
I found the same resistance on both machines. Under the chair you will find two rubber resistance bands. At the base of the Chair are the adjustable foot pedals I mentioned. I moved them closer and farther away to find that the closer they were the easier it was to do the crunch movement. That is because there is less tension on the resistance bands.
Jo’s Final Thoughts:
I think the Ab Chair XL is a decent alternative for someone who wants a low stress ab work out. Which machine would I buy? The Ab Lounges are made by Fitness Quest certainly a well-known company which gives me a bit of comfort but the Ab Chair XL has a better warranty. It isn’t great but it is twice the length. Given that the machines are alike in the way they are used and the effectiveness of them I would go with the less expensive machine. Currently that is the Ab Chair XL. However if I saw an Ab Lounge with a warranty for a great price I would go with Fitness Quest.
Please get advice from your doctor before starting any exercise program. And please this machine will be very enticing for children. Young children should not be on this machine and certainly not unsupervised since they can get hurt. I have no problem with pre-teens using the Chair as long as they are careful and have been taught properly how to use it.
I am recommending it and considering the price giving it 4 stars.
I posted some letters I received and my answers on another review. I am not going to post them all but I think, although they were geared to the Lounge, a few of them will be helpful if you are thinking of the Chair as well.
The letters have not been edited for correct spelling or grammar.
1. “I have a bulging disc and bone spur in my lower back, right above the sacrum. Lying on the floor to do any exercise is impossible as the bone spur is right over the sciatic nerve. Would this chair not put pressure on the lower back like the floor does? There doesn’t seem to be an exercise program that can compensate for this problem that I can find so I was hoping this machine might be the answer. My weight has done nothing but climb since I have had to start limiting my activities.
Any information would be greatly appreciated.“
My response was to seek medical advice.
2. “I read a review that you wrote on epinion about the ab lounge. You mentioned that you would respond to questions so I’d like to ask one.
I know you can’t give medical advice but how hard is the ab lounger on the back? I have a herniated disc and don’t want to aggravate the situation.
A couple of years ago, I tried using the ab roller and it really hurt my back. Any information you can provide would be helpful.“.
I e-mailed this person back and forth several time to determine if this disc was currently herniated. When I found out it was I wonder how she was even moving since I too herniated my disc 10 years ago and could not walk. In any case I told this person that medical advice was essential but once she/he had the go ahead from the doctor it was not hard on the back.
3. “I bought the machine a couple days ago and I have a question about it. Yesterday I did 150 jackknife crunches. I thought my abs would be sore the day after, but the only place I felt it was in my upper thighs, not my abs. My upper thighs also ached as I did the crunches on the lounge. Why is this? Am I doing the exercise wrong? “
My response: “I feel it in my thighs also. Even if I do a crunch on an incline bench I feel it in my thighs. Make sure your abs are pulled in really tightly. If they are not you actually may be pulling up with your thighs and you do not even know it! 150 are a lot. If you are doing them correctly (and I would have to see) then 25 is really enough! So you may just be doing too many considering that this is a new machine for you. Hope this helps. Let me know if your thighs hurt less as time goes on. Jo“
Her response to mine. “I went home and tried them again and figured out what was going on... I WAS pulling up with my thighs. I didn't have sneakers on the first time, thus my feet were slipping off the pedals. Apparently, I was unconsciously worrying about my feet slipping off that I was using the wrong part of my body to get me into the crunch position. I did 2 sets of 25 last night, and felt it more this morning!
Thanks for your help!“.
To the consumer:
There are so many models that are new on the Ab Lounge and there will be on the Ab Chair. Please feel free to let me know what your interests are and I will attempt to review them. I would like to know what you are looking for. Thank you for reading. jo
All my fitness equipment reviews can be found here.
Recommended:
Yes
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Member: Jo
Location: On a bluff overlooking the ocean.
Reviews written: 1660
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Spent one glorious day on the beach. The sun came out!
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