A study led by Peter Francis, Ph.D., at the biomechanics lab at San Diego State University put different abdominal exercises to the test and found that not all are created equal.

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The abdominal exercise zone will also provide information about more ways to working out, more ideas and tips about muscle and body development, diets and tips to increase the productiveness of your efforts and most important, information about the exercise that you are trying out, and the ones that you are considering.

Effective Exercises:

Bicycle maneuver. To do this exercise, you lie flat on the floor with your lower back pressed to the ground. Put your hands beside your head. Bring your knees up to about a 45-degree angle and slowly go through a bicycle pedal motion. Touch your left elbow to your right knee, then your right elbow to your left knee. Breathe evenly throughout the exercise.

1.Lay on the ground with your legs bent and your feet flat. Do not pull from your arms, keep your focus on your abdominal muscles. Remember, this is an abdominal crunch not a sit up.

2. Keep your abdominal muscles tight, neck straight and chest up.

3. From your sternum, crunch your weight up and forward.

4. Your lower back should remain flat on the ground at all times.

5. Under control, lower your weight, stop just before your shoulders touch the ground and reverse the motion back up.

Perform several (3-5) abdominal exercises 3-5 times a week. Start with exercises and repetitions that are comfortable for your fitness level and as you improve increase the number of repetitions. You do not need to do all the exercises; simply select those that work well for you and vary your routine over the months.

1. Make sure your head is horizontal to the ground and centered over your shoulders.

2. Bring your chest up.

3. As you bring your chest up, your shoulders must relax and not go up. Therefore, relax your shoulders down and back.

4. Tighten your abs by pulling your belly button to your spine.

5. Align your knees with your second and third toes.

6. Make sure your knees are not locked. There must always be a slight bend in them.

7. Lay with your feet spaced comfortably apart (usually hip width).

Weak and/or overly tight supporting muscles can have painful spasms and suffer injuries themselves, which then prevent them from supporting the spine as needed. Compromised muscles can also lead to problems with bone structure of the spine due to poor posture from the weak muscles, thereby creating an increased risk of back pain or back injury.