Thanks to advances in technology, ab toning belts that utilise EMS like contour abs are discreet, easy to use and very lightweight and portable – they can be worn anywhere pretty much while the wearer carries on with daily life.

Why would YOU use an ab belt or other EMS device like the contour abs? There are three main reasons why you would use an EMS ab belt:

1: To enhance muscle growth/size to improve the appearance of your body without doing hours of painful exercise.
2: To stimulate muscle growth even during downtime from an existing exercise plan
3: Relief from back pain and muscular discomforts which occur, by simply building a stronger core midsection

It is realistic that all three objectives can be acheived with a good quality ab belt, with no great effort on your part.

The problem is that some ab belt manufacturers like contour abs are claiming that their product will actually make you lose weight – this is simply not the case and is a lie!

EMS technology CAN and DOES help to build the abdominal muscles, but it cannot help to remove the layer of body fat that may be covering them up!

Good quality electronic ab belts such as the Flex Belt have 2 outlets or ‘channels’ which have pads attached that will stimulate your adbominal muscles without the need for you to do situps and crunches for hours on end.

With that said, if you have body fat covering your ab muscles (and most of us do) then you will need to burn this off with traditional cardio exercise such as walking, jogging and eating less fatty foods if you actually want to see the benefits that the contour ab belt is giving you.

Many people assume incorrectly that if they can’t see their ab muscles, then their flex or contour ab belt is not working properly – this is not the case! Your abdominal muscles will grow and strengthen, benefits that you will feel, even if you can’t see them!

Choose the best quality ab belt that you can afford, and you will get good results and feel your abs tone up and strengthen and contour. If you can cut your body fat, then everyone else will notice the improvements too!

We recommend the Flex Belt ab toner over the contour abs. Read our comparison of leading ab belts for more information.

First, cut out fatty foods from your diet – eat healthier stuff like vegetables, grilled fish and meat and ditch pizza, chips and burgers!

Second, do a little cardio to help burn any excess fat you might be carrying – this could be as easy as going for a walk each day, or maybe a light workout at the gym.

Third – use your ab toner for 30-60 minutes a day. The best results I’ve gotten, I wore the flexbelt ab toner for 30 minutes in the car on the way to work in the morning, and 30 minutes on the drive home in the evening.

And that is how to see real results with an ab toner like the flexbelt or contour abs!

The infomercials on tv look great, and the idea behind the electronic ab toner is scientifically proven to help build and define your ab muscles – but does the biggest selling ab belt, the contour abs, actually work?

The answer is, yes and no – YES, ab belts in general, and including the contour abs belt will ‘work’, but how well they work depends on you the user.

EMS ab toning belts will NOT burn fat magically, or cause your waistline to shrink at all – unless you put some effort in and exercise and eat well – that means no processed fatty foods, ditch soda and rink water instead! This, coupled with cardio exercise such as jogging or fast paced walking each day will allow you to see results and get more defined ab muscles while you use your ab toning belt for just 30 minutes a day while you do chores, sit at a desk or watch TV.

An ab toning belt is an extremely easy and efective way to get firmer, more toned and defined abdominal muscles – especially when you are eating better and exercising to help cut body fat so you can see your abs growing bigger and stronger!

Now, whether or not the contour abs is the best ab toning product is another matter entirely – read any online review and generally the contour abs is not thought of to be very high quality.

The contour abs main competitor, the flex belt, on the other hand is very high quality – in fact, it uses medical grade components, the same as physicians would use to treat muscle injuries. They are so confident in their product, they offer a 2 year warranty, and also a 60 day money back guarantee in case you don’t like it.

Before you decide which ab belt is best for you, first read our comparison of the flex belt and contour abs.

Electronic muscle toning products like the contour abs are a very popular way of keeping your muscles in shape without doing thousands of situps or crunches, enabling you to precisely target tricky muscle groups such as your abdominals. Abs toning belts use technology that has been scientifically proven over decades by medical doctors and sports injury physiotherapists.

But which ab belt is the best? Flex Belt or Contour Abs? Does the contour abs really work? Find out here, I put both to the test side by side in a direct comparison to show you which has the best features and the highest quality, to help you decide which ab toner will help you acheive your goals. The Contour Abs has to be good after all those great looking TV ads, right? Well, before you buy one read on and find out which EMS ab belt is best!

The Flex Belt

The Flexbelt is the highest quality most up to date abdominal toning belt you can buy. It’s also known as ‘Slendertone System Abs’ because it’s officially the next generation of the Slendertone Flex. Just read the ab belt reviews and you will see that more people who have used the Flexbelt have gotten far better results than those using other types of ab belts.
For $199.99, you get the Flexbelt abdominal toning belt, four gel pads, the rechargeable battery pack, extension for larger waists, carrying case, and a user’s manual.

The Flexbelt is easy to use, proven and works for everyone. You also have total peace of mind because it offers a full 60-day money back guarantee and a TWO year warranty – this alone shows that the manufacturers are very confident in their product, which is always a good sign. It’s also the only ab belt that is fully FDA cleared! Visit official flex belt website.

Contour Abs

Contour Abs (a.k.a. Contour Abs or Contour Core Sculpting System) is available on a ‘free trial’ for $14.95, plus four monthly recurring payments of $49.95, but doesn’t offer nearly the quality of construction and performance or ease of operation of the Flex Belt. Since the price is nearly the same as the Flexbelt, the Flexbelt is obviously much better value for your money than the contour abs. Check out my comparison to see how you think the quality and features compare. After ordering, it took 22 days for the Contour Abs to arrive, which I find very bad given the time limits on the ‘free trial’. There is also once again no money back guarantee offered, and only a 1 year warranty which is of slight concern given that this ab belt is the same price as the Flexbelt. Overall I experienced much better results with the FlexBelt.

Read my Flexbelt vs. Contour abs comparison review below and see which ab belt you think will be best for you:

	The FlexBelt	The ContourAbs
Are the claimed results backed up with scientifically proven clinical trials and research?	YES	NO
Does it need batteries to operate?	NO, Flex Belt has a compact lightweight rechargeable power pack for extended use on the move	YES, 4 x AAA size batteries
Can I order from outside the USA?	YES, Flex Belt ships worldwide!	NO, Contour Abs is only available to ship inside the USA
Is it FDA cleared?	Yes	NO due to overstated claims
Can I call them if I need information or customer services?	Yes	NO phone is number listed on official website
How long did delivery take?	4 Working days (to US address)	22 Working days (to US Address)
How long is the warranty?	2 Years	1 Year
Is a ‘Free Trial’ offered?	NO, but there is a 100% satisfaction 60 day money back guarantee’trial period’	YES – but the trial is often expired before the belt even arrives!
Free gifts or special offers?	YES, a free 1 year subscription to Fitness or Maxim magazine worth $50+	Free DVD exercise giude – no value
Any endorsements from sports stars?	YES, hall of famer Jerry Rice among others	NO
Positive product reviews in the press?	YES, many – read them here	NO
How much does it cost?	$199.99	$199.80 + $14.95 ‘trial fee’
Our overall Rating out of 5?
OK so where can I buy one?	Flex Belt is only sold by the manufacturer directly and exclusively through their own official website, not available in stores! Visit the official FlexBelt Site »	Not available in stores, mail order via TV infomercials, official web page. A lot are sold on ebay as well – see for yourself

If you take your health seriously then I think it’s obvious from my comparison of the FlexBelt and Contour Abs, that the FlexBelt should be your choice given the benefits in quality and features. Contour Abs is not a really bad product, and it’s popular due to the TV infomercials but I felt it to be of much lesser quality, and poor value for money compared to the FlexBelt. There are also a lot of complaints on the internet about the Contour Abs, with reports of poor customer service and slow shipping times.

Overall, I highly recommend the FlexBelt ab toner! See for yourself, visit the official site and read the numerous positive press reviews.

If you’re thinking of buying an ab toning belt, then buy the Flex Belt today, you won’t regret it!

Want to learn more about The Flex Belt? Watch the full video below:

To learn more or purchase the Flex Belt visit the official site – The Flex Belt – today!

You can use an ab belt almost anywhere – while you watch TV, while you surf the net, when walking, playing with the kids, even when taking a nap! Imagine how much time you can save, by working your abdominal muscles while you do something else like drive to and from work – you are basically doing situps while you sit in traffic!

Ab belts are ideal for busy people who just don’t get time in their day to go to the gym for 2 hours, or those of us that are simply too tired after a long day at work to do 500 situps a night. You get home after a long day and you just want to rest, right? but you still want a toned midsection as well! Thats where an ab belt comes in.

In terms of which areas of your body you can use an ab belt, as its name suggests, an ab belt is designed to be used directly and only on your abdominal muscles.

That said, there is nothing stopping you using your ab belt on your lower back, if it comfortable for you to wear in that way. If you wish to target other muscle groups, there are other electronic products available such as the flex enervive mentioned above, that can be worn anywhere on the body to target any muscle group.

Ab toning belts remain the most popular of the toning products though, because the abs traditionally are the hardest muscle group to target specifically – this is why using an ab belt to tagret your abs makes it very easy to have a sixpack in a short time!

The two most popular ab belts on the market today are the Contour Abs and the Flex Belt – read the review of both I made and see which has the best features for you.

Personally I prefer the Flexbelt, as I’ve used both and found the Flexbelt to be of much higher quality, and much more effective. The flexbelt was designed to be the best product in its class, and to be used as a piece of exercise equipment by people who take their health seriously!

An ab toning belt like the contour abs or flexbelt causes your abdominal muscles to contract by using tiny electrical pulses, replicating what your muscles do when you do a situp or crunch. So, they are a very effective way of building or repairing muscle. Ab belts are very easy to use and suitable for all body types, in fact suitable for anyone who wants to build stronger abdominal muscles.

Of course, an ab belt cannot make you lose weight, and to see your new ab muscles you would need to lose any excess bodyfat first, but otherwise, using an ab belt for just 30 minutes each day can give you very strong toned abs very quickly – much quicker than traditional forms of ab exercise, and without even breaking sweat!

Many professional sportsmen and women have found electronic ab belts to be a highly efficient way to keep toned and in shape – American Football star Jerry Rice for example uses the Flexbelt, and is so impressed with its effects, that he now endorses the product!

An ab belt is not just a gimmick or a scam – a good quality ab toning belt is a very serious piece of exercise equipment! If you choose the highest quality ab belt you can afford, then you will see positive reults.

Some ab belts are more effective than others though, and its always a good idea to read reviews before you buy – I made a direct comparison of the two leading ab belts, the Contour Abs and Flexbelt to help others avoid falling for the hype around the contourabs like I did after watching the infomercial on TV. Read my ab belt comparison here – Contour Abs vs Flexbelt.

So How do you get ripped abs?

It’s about diet, cardio, ab belts and hard ab routines. I’ll give you the low down on how to burn in some washboard abs with this killer ab routine and save the diet ramble for another time.

First of all if your not training abs, start. That would be beginner ab routine phase one! Three sets of crunches for 20 reps a set. If that’s not a problem then superset each set of crunches with a set of hip roles, followed by a brief 30 second rest to let the burn fizzle a bit.

For hip roles you lie on the ground pushing down with your hands and raise your pelvis off the floor so the tail bone comes right up and squeeze the abs!

Last step in the beginner ab routine is to add in some bridges or “planks” as some “guru’s” of fitness have coined them. This is basically a pushup position but you don’t rest on your hands, you rest on your forearms and just hold it for 30-60 seconds. Don’t let your lower back sag! Keep a slightly inverted c posture like your trying to pull your hips toward your chin.

So here is the ab routine once you are working all exercises together.

Beginner ab routine phase 1:
Crunch x20
Hip roll x20
Bridge for 30-60 seconds
Rest and repeat for 3 circuits or just keep rotating through!

Alright enough of the easy stuff, we’re here for some serious abs, killer abs.

Onto Ab Routine 2: The ab killer! I love pet names.

This ab routine will all be done on the decline bench.

The first ab exercise? Decline hip roll/leg raise. Beauty!

Step 1: Put your head where your feet should be

Step 2: grab the bench or the footholds; whichever is more comfortable (not that it will matter in a few minutes)!

Step 3: Stretch out and do a straight-legged leg raises.

Step 4: once at the top of the leg raise turn it into a hip roll so that you point your feet at the ceiling. Hold for a three count and go back down!

Second ab routine exercise:
Incline sit-ups:
Step 1: put your feet in the foot holds (you’ve turned around!)
Step 2: Lower yourself until you’re about a foot short of lying fully back
Step 3: Come back up if you’re still with me!

Third ab routine exercise:
Incline Russian twists (even sounds evil doesn’t it?)

Step 1: don’t move out of the sit up position. Just grab a medicine ball or a 10- pound weight.

Step 2: straighten fully your arms right to your front and lower yourself to the bottom position of the incline sit up and hold it.

Step 3: Rotate to the right 90 degrees with your arms straight and then back to the left at 90 degrees. That’s one rep. You don’t come out of the bottom at all! Fun huh?

Here it is ab routine layout:
Leg raise/hip roll x20
Incline sit-ups x20
Russian twists x20 or 40 if you count both sides!

No rest between ab exercises, and only 30-60 seconds rest after completing the tri-set.

Third Ab Routine:
And the grand daddy hardest ab routine ever? For mortals anyway? Because I remember something about homer Simpson and a cannon ball, but I think you need to have access to the applesauce bar for that ab routine to work!

Well let’s call it the “commando cardio ab annihilation” workout. I have to have a fancy name on it or you wouldn’t be interested! It involves a pre-stretch, a contraction and a dynamic stabilization (I just made that up, but you get the idea) exercise. Here are the ab routine exercises.

1. Smith machine, Swiss ball hip rolls
2. Partner resisted Swiss ball crunches
3. Swiss ball rollouts
4. Profuse sweating and clutching of the stomach.

Ab routine exercise 1: Smith machine, Swiss ball hip rolls:

1.Set the bar low in the smith machine, just below the top of the Swiss ball.

2. Sit on the ball and roll out so that you have to reach back and grab the bar as you lie on the ball. You should be about 2-3 feet away, stabilizing your self by holding the bar and flexing everything!

3. Using only your abs, stretch your pelvis down as low as it will go and then do a hip roll. Legs straight is the hardest.

Ab routine exercise 2: Partner resisted Swiss ball crunches.

1. It’s a normal Swiss ball ab crunch but your arms are crossed across your chest and your “friend” pushes down on your shoulders to apply resistance. That’s it,..ahem.

Ab routine exercise 3: Swiss ball rollouts.

1. Kneel on a pad with legs crossed ball in front of you not on the pad.

2. Your hands are on the ball so it now looks like your praying?

3. Roll the ball out until your straight as a board with your head between your arms and pull it back in.

4. Profuse sweating and clutching of the stomach. This should come naturally.

In an ab routine all together?

Smith machine/Swiss ball hip rolls x20

Partner resisted Swiss ball crunches x20

Swiss ball rolloutsx20

Rest 30-60 seconds after each tri-set circuit or continue right through if you’re a freak of nature or slightly “touched”. I’ve never gotten 20 on all ab exercises on all three sets in a continuous circuit, let me know if you do! Use an ab toning belt like the flexbelt or contour abs to accelerate the results during rest periods. You’ll find your endurance will increase dramatically.

As an example, the Contour Abs belt is widely advertised on TV and makes claims that it will reduce your waistline by 1-3 inches in the first couple of weeks you use it. This to be honest is very unrealistic, and causes people to think that ab belts are gimmicks or scams. The truth is that an ab belt alone will not reduce your waistline – it is not intended to do so.

The aim of using an ab belt is to build, tone and strengthen your abdominal core muscles – and an electronic ab belt is an ideal way of doing this. Aside from toning your ab muscles, other products are now becoming available that allow you to target specific muscle groups all over your body – products like the Flex Enervive for example allow the user to target anywhere they like from their shoulders to their butt for an easy electronic workout!

Before you decide which of the ab belts is best for you, read this ab belt comparison and see which has the best features that would suit you best.

Many brands of ab belt are available on the market, but there are two popular brands that you should consider when buying an ab belt – the contour abs and the flex belt.

The way an ab toning belt can help you is by passing tiny electrical pulses through gel pads on the belt, which in turn you wrap around your mid section. The tiny electronic pulses cause the wearers muscles to contract exactly in the area the belt is placed, as if the muscles were being exercised by crunches. The same technology has been used for decades by doctors to treat muscle injuries.

Ab toning belts are suitable for all body types, but will not cause the user to lose weight, or make your waist shrink dramatically as some of the TV infomercials suggest. The FDA frowns on this type of sales pitch as its simply not true or realistic. The FDA has approved on ab belt, the Flex Belt.

Ab toning belts are a very good way of maintaining or building your ab muscles, especially if you are short on time or energy! You can use an ab belt almost anywhere – driving, cooking, sitting on your couch watching TV – playing with the kids – just 30 minutes a day is all you need to use an ab belt for to see results. Ab belt technology is safe and easy to use for everyone, old or young, male or female, fit or unfit.

The highest quality ab belt I have found on the market is the flex belt – it is not available to buy in stores, just exclusively direct from the manufacturer’s official website. The flex belt has a 2 year warranty, and you can try it for 60 days and send it back for a refund if you’re not happy.

No competing ab belt offers the same quality and features. You can see the comparison of ab belt features I made between the flexbelt and the contour abs. Visit the flex belt official site here.

The answer is yes, you can buy some of the slendertone models in stores, and also some cheaper poor quality brands. The two most popular and effective ab toning belts are the flexbelt and the contour abs – both of these brands you can only buy directly from the manufacturers official websites.

Which is better out of the contour abs and the flex belt though? Well you should read online reviews before you decide to buy, but the flex belt is proven to be effective for everyone and has excellent customer service if you should ever have a problem. The contour abs unfortunately has more complaints about it online from people who fell for the hype of their infomercials.

Our recommendation is the flex belt ab toner, as it is proven to be good quality and works for everyone. Importantly, the flex belt also ships very quickly – normally you will receive your ab belt by courier in as little as 3-4 working days from when you order it.

Visit the official flex belt website and order your flex belt today!

The Flex Belt works like other ab toning belts on the market through the use of Electrical Muscle Stimulation (EMS). The EMS unit sends signals to the targeted nerves which in turn send them through to all the abdominal muscles, not just those muscles under the gel pads. The pulse strength and frequency range is adjustable to  suit all users.

The design of the Flex Belt means that the 4 gel pads used are pre-positioned in the ab belt so they cover the central abdominal muscles and the external obliques. This ensures consistency when using the Flex belt and also produces the best results.

The Flex Belt retails at $199.99 and comes with a guarantee of visible results in 4 weeks or else a 60 day money back guarantee along with a 2 year warranty. This proved to us that the Flex belt does achieve results and they are also seriously dedicated to keeping their customers happy.

The Flex Belt is only available to buy on-line direct from the manufacturer. For $199.99 the Flex Belt package includes the Flex Ab Belt and Gel Pads, a rechargeable power supply unit, a belt extension, a carry case, and an instruction manual. The fact that the belt can extend means that the Flex belt is also available for use by people with a waist over 44 inches. The power supply unit can also be used with the other Flex products available which can come in useful.

The fact that the Flex Belt is the only FDA cleared ab toning belt on the market also impressed us.

The Flex Belt is the first Electrical Muscle Stimulator (EMS) ab belt product of this kind to be cleared by the FDA as a Class II medical device for direct sales to consumers.

Due to the use of clinically proven patented medical-grade technology, the Flex Belt is proven to deliver firmer, stronger and more toned abdominal muscles when used daily for 30 minutes.

In fact, after a clinical study which lasted 6 weeks an amazing 100% of those people taking part reported firmer more toned abs. Flex Belt also reported that 93% of their users reported achieving firmer abs after a period of daily use, and with over 2 million users worldwide this is a very impressive statistic, unlike the contour abs which has no trials. Flex also makes the ‘Flex Enervive‘, a next generation EMS toner that is able to target any muscle group – read our full review.

Another plus with the Flex Belt is that it is aimed at and is suitable for both men and women unlike some belts which are gender specific. In fact the Flex Belt has become so popular amongst both genders that it can be seen in magazines from Cosmopolitan and Glamour to Men’s Fitness. The Flex Belt ab toner is also endorsed by various major league sports stars such as Jerry Rice.

We felt that the high quality design and manufacturing which goes in to the Flex Belt from a company with over 40 years proven experience in EMS technology produced better results faster than the other toning belts we have tested. And with the customer guarantees that come as standard, the Flex Belt is definitely the best value for money.

Visit the official Flex Belt website – click here »

See how the Flex Belt did against the competiton in our ab belt review »

**Update**

Is the Flex Belt better than the Contour Abs belt? Read the Flexbelt vs. Contour abs comparison.

One point worth noting is that from all the various electrical toning devices available on the market, those focused on the abdomen are the most popular amongst consumers.

It is also often the case that people who are working out or are trying to tone up often focus on their abdominal muscles. This is partly due to the style of a lot of today’s clothing which is often tailored to show off your abs.

The main reason for wanting toned abs however is often because of the feelings it can result in when achieved. Having toned abs can improve your self esteem incredibly and makes you feel better about yourself due to the increased confidence it will produce.

Whilst excess weight around your stomach can be unattractive, it can also be dangerous. Excess weight increases the chance of illnesses such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and high blood pressure amongst others.

It can also cause muscle problems and cause people to feel lethargic and lazy making it harder to motivate yourself to get fitter and more toned.

While using an toning belt will not result in weight loss, it will help you achieve a more toned stomach. When you can visibly see the results achieved through the toning belt it will motivate you further and it may be easier for you to continue with your exercise or diet routine.

If you have no excess weight around your stomach then the results of using a toning belt will be even more apparent as the muscles will not be hidden under any stomach fat.

Muscles in your abdomen (or indeed any part of your body) are hidden by any excess weight you may carry, so no matter how toned your muscles may be, they will not be visible. If you want to achieve the best results for your abs then it is recommended that you carry out some form of exercise routine which will result in weight loss and a sensible eating plan.

The ab belt can then be used as an alternative to abdominal exercises such as crunches or sit-ups to supplement your exercise regime and achieve faster results.

Due to the design of ab toning belts it is easier now than it has ever been to incorporate their use into your everyday routine. The electronic abdominal toning belts wrap around your stomach and hold gel pads over your core muscles. The electrical muscle stimulators (EMS) used in the belt then pass through to the nerves in your muscles causing them to expand and contract at a rate unmatched by regular abdominal exercises.

Because the belt holds the gel pads in place, it can be worn under your clothes enabling you to carry out everyday activities without getting in the way. As you can carry out activities unhindered such as walking, watching TV, working, using the computer etc you are more likely to keep using your toning belt daily, therefore achieving the best results possible!

Ab  belts will however strengthen, build and tone the muscles already there in the same way conventional abdominal workouts will.

It is also advisable to stick to a healthy and balanced diet and keep an eye on what you drink. The way the body works means that if you have any fat, it will sit on top of your muscles and conceal them. So whilst you may have toned muscles, these will be hidden by any excess weight on your body, and in this case around your stomach.

This is why a gym or home exercise routine of cardiovascular/aerobic exercises to lose weight is recommended, along with weights and toning exercises to tone and strengthen your muscles.

The beauty of an abdominal toning belt is that it removes the need to carry out the toning exercises for your abs, giving you both faster results and more time for other activities. Many people who use toning belts also feel that using the belt encourages them to exercise more as they can spend more time focusing on exercises that burn fat, while the belt will concentrate on toning.

The desire to get the most from your results also encourages some users to work out more so as the muscle definition achieved with their toning belt will not be hidden by excess weight on their abdomen.

A common misconception of ab toning belts is that they are a miracle form of weight loss or a quick fix to achieve a ‘six-pack’. This has resulted in some bad reviews and has caused people to be sceptical of electronic toning devices.

It is important that people understand that electronic toning appliances are not an alternative to a sensible diet and a healthy lifestyle and exercise routine. However, they can be used as an alternative to toning exercises for the area of the body they will be used on – most commonly the abs.

This is why the best results will be achieved from your toning belt if you also stick to healthy eating and some sort of exercise regime that will result in weight loss. This will enable you to make the most of your toned abdominal muscles by ensuring they aren’t concealed by fat, making them more visible.

If you are serious about achieving toned muscles from your electric toning belt then it is also a good idea to try to use it on a daily basis and stick to your routine. This has been made even easier to do due to the design used by the majority of toning belts.

The most common design of toning belts means that they wrap around your stomach holding the conductive gel pads in place which cause the electric stimulation which works the underlying muscle.

This design means that the toning belt can be worn under your clothes, which in turn means it can be used while carrying out everyday chores, so there is no excuse not to use your toning belt everyday which will speed up the results you see!

A lot of ab toning belts like the contour abs make claims of weight loss and extreme toning results in a few weeks. However, this has been proven to be false and as such has given all electric toning devices a bad reputation. The more responsible manufacturers like Flex Belt don’t make such amazing claims about their product, and thus do not fall foul of the FDA.

Some people still view toning belts as the ‘lazy-mans’ alternative to exercise or have a misconception of them being a useless scam – but toning belts do work and achieve what they are meant to achieve, which is toned muscles – not weight loss.

Toning belts use scientifically and medically proven methods to increase muscle activity in the area they are used on.

Electrical muscle stimulators (EMS) are often used by medical professionals to increase muscle activity during some rehabilitation treatment. Electrical stimulation is sent to the muscle to increase muscle activity when patients are unable to do it themselves, for example when suffering from a broken limb. This stimulation keeps the muscles active and as a result stops them from becoming weak or ‘wasting away’.

Toning belts use EMS to send electrical stimulators to the nerves in the abdominal muscles.  These muscles then continuously expand and contract at a rate found to be faster than the rate achieved through normal abdominal exercises. This constant stimulation of the muscles results in greater muscle activity and therefore greater muscle definition.

To achieve the best results from your toning belt, it is recommended that you also consume a healthy diet and carryout an exercise regime, particularly focusing on fat burning exercises. This will reduce the amount of excess weight which may be present on your stomach and which will in turn hide your muscles.

When the stomach is free from fat the muscles are more visible and so any toning carried out on the muscles will be easier to see. If you are busy and don’t have the time do any abdominal exercises then a toning belt is definitely an alternative option worth considering, and if you normally do no crunches or sit-ups then the results will be even more evident to you.

One of the main reasons that electrical toning appliances have become more and more popular in recent years is due to the increased amount of people not being able to find the time in their daily routine to fit in as much exercise as they would like to.

The most popular EMS toning devices are electronic abdominal belts made by Contour Abs and Flex Belt. This may be due to the desire of a lot of people to improve the muscle definition in the stomach, which is one of the most visible muscle areas of the body. However the increase of abdominal toning belts in particular may also be put down to their design and ease of use.

Because ab toning belts wrap around your waste and so can be worn under your clothes, users find them convenient enough to use whilst carrying out daily activities and chores. As a result of EMS toners being so effortless to use, users find it easy to stick to a regular daily routine with their belt which inevitably helps achieve results faster.

Read our comparison of leading EMS toning products

As there are so many different ab toning belts available on the market, it is hard to say if every single one of them is good, although the majority follow the same principles and technology so almost all are good quality.  However, we have conducted a head to head ab belt review to help you find the belt for you.

Whilst a good toning belt will increase your chances of achieving toned abs, it is also important to continue with a regime of good diet and exercise.  This will increase your chances of weight loss and improve your health.  If you lose any excess weight you may have around your stomach then your muscles will become more visible, this is how to get the most out of your abs.  While toning belts will not aid weight loss, they will tone up your muscles and in turn define your abs.

As previously mentioned, it is hard to say how good all toning belts are, however most work in the same way albeit with different levels of effectiveness due to their quality and the pulse rates you can set them on.

While the belt holds the gel pads in place over your stomach, electrical muscle stimulators (EMS) are sent to the nerves in your muscles causing them to tense and release.

It is for this reason that electric toning belts are seen as a good alternative or addition to traditional forms of abdominal exercise as they follow the same context of your muscles tightening and relaxing in order to become toned.

Although some people may not see the point in paying for a toning belt when they can do exercises at home for no cost, thousands of people every year decide to buy an abdominal toning belt.  There are two main reasons for this.

Firstly, the rate at which the toning belt causes your abdominal muscles to expand and contract is far greater than the rate you will achieve if carrying out regular abdominal exercises. This has resulted in users of toning belts claiming to have achieved faster results than with exercise alone.

The second reason is the ease of use. As the belt wraps around your stomach to hold the gel pads in place many users operate their toning belts while carrying out their daily chores or while relaxing at home.  Some users also incorporate it into their exercise routine by wearing it while walking, decreasing the time needed to be set a side each day for exercise.

In short, electronic abdominal toning devices work best when used in conjunction with a healthy diet and exercise routine.

Although it is hard to say that all toning belts are effective due to the increased number available on the market, it is safe to say that the vast majority of those offered do achieve beneficial results. So long as you choose a good quality EMS toner, you can expect it to be very effective in toning the muscle groups you target with it.

How do EMS devices work my muscles?

The electrical impulses sent through the nerves to the muscles from the gel pads attached to electronic stimulators are designed to stop muscles from ‘wasting away’ – known as atrophying – in situations where a patient’s limb must be immobilized.  A common example of this would be a broken limb where the doctor would use electronic stimulants to help keep the muscle active.

Electronic abdominal toning belts work in the same way, and with continued use will not just keep the muscles active but also help tone and build the muscles.  By employing theses methods, toning belts cause the muscles to continually expand and contract.  This is what causes the muscles to become more toned, just as they would do during normal abdominal exercises.

Whilst toning belts may work the muscles at a faster rate than conventional exercises do, this does not carry any risk and is perfectly safe.

Although it can be said that all toning belts are safe, the only fully FDA approved toning belt available is the Flex belt.  Even though an FDA approval cannot say how well a toning belt works with regards to toning muscles, it does mean that it has been proved safe as an electrical appliance.  Whilst no problems have been reported with any other brands of toning belts, some consumers find this approval reassuring and it is therefore worth noting.

Whichever toning belt you buy it is recommended that you read the instructions as they may not be suitable for people with some medical conditions.  This might sound obvious, but some users often decide to ignore instructions and use the product without properly consulting them.

It is particularly important to read the instructions supplied with toning belts before use as they often can’t be used by people with certain medical conditions, such as those with a pace maker or pregnant women.

Whilst abdominal toning belts can be used by the majority of people, it is always worth checking this out (as with any product) before you decide to use a toning belt.  Although toning belts are safe, some users have found that after using their toning belt they have experience some localised redness.  However, this is completely safe and is usually caused by the skin reacting to the gels pads you place over the muscle groups you wish to work, particularly amongst those with sensitive skin.  In any case this redness will fade very rapidly after use of the ab belt.

As the increasing wide use by major league sports stars and general popularity of these ab belts show, they do not pose any threat to your health or wellbeing.  They are a safe and easy way to achieve toned abs without the time and effort needed to achieve the results through abdominal exercises such as sit-ups and crunches.

Due to the medical background to the electrical ab muscle stimulators used in abdominal toning belts, manufacturers were able to create a safe product that is proven to achieve results whilst posing no risk to the user.