Now that has been said lets move on...

There are a wide variety of exercises that target this area of the body, so you can choose which moves will work best for you. However, why would you want to target any one part of the body? The body is a whole being. If your stomach muscles need to be tightened up the chances are that the rest of the body needs it too. It is best to select an exercise regime that includes exercises for the various stomach muscle groups incorporated with exercises for the whole body.

Not all exercises are created equal. Each group of muscles in the abdominal area must be worked individually. If you were to concentrate simply on one area of the abdominal group, your work out would not be effective. These exercises must be worked in with other body parts to have the whole body working as a fluid, graceful being.

It is also important to know that special equipment is not necessary to perform abdominal exercises. Although some people do prefer to use exercise equipment or special machines at the gym, they are not necessary. Some exercise equipment, that is advertised to give you washboard abs, is sheer crap and in no time will be shoved under the bed and forgotten about.

All you need is some room to lie down; the desire to improve your looks and health; and the commitment to see it through. Exercises to tighten your stomach muscles is a good place to begin before building into a whole body regime. They will give you more of an idea as to what kind of shape you are in. If you are unable to perform the exercises, you will know right away that you may need to start with simpler routines to begin stretching those unused muscles and to limber up.

The basic crunch is considered to be one of the more effective stomach exercises. Crunches are considered a convenience since you can do them anywhere without using any special equipment. Convenience is good unless you are wasting time and energy with no results.

Crunches are actually one of the least effective exercises, unless used in combination with other more effective resistance exercises. The crunch, like the sit-ups of old, will not get much accomplished on their own. In my opinion they are not very effective unless combined with other exercises such as the side crunch, which works on the oblique, which are the side muscles.

The best stomach exercises, combine a resistance workout along with working the oblique, the lower abdominals, the mid section and also the upper abdominals.