10 Weird Gym Tools, Explained

Photo by: CN Digital Studio

Ab Incline Bench

Unlike all that heavy-metal equipment in the weight room, the simplicity of the ab incline bench-it looks just like it sounds!-makes it mildly approachable. But maybe you've done a driveby and just thought "Uh-uh." Machines are intimidating, and often there are a dozen other more simple, dynamic and effective exercises you can do rather than jump on one.

But this one's different. It uses gravity

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Photo by: CN Digital Studio

Ab Incline Bench

Unlike all that heavy-metal equipment in the weight room, the simplicity of the ab incline bench-it looks just like it sounds!-makes it mildly approachable. But maybe you've done a driveby and just thought "Uh-uh." Machines are intimidating, and often there are a dozen other more simple, dynamic and effective exercises you can do rather than jump on one.

But this one's different. It uses gravity to shred your abs into Gwen-Stefani-lookalikes. We know, we know. That plush surface and reclined angle begs for a swell place to take a breather, not do sweaty work. But trust us. Use this bench at the gym, and you'll be the six-pack benchmark.

Go-to move: Dragon flag

Try it: Lie face-up on the bench with your head near the top, hands gripping the foot pads, weight resting on shoulder blades, legs flat on the bench. Tighten your abs, and, keeping legs straight, raise your hips until the soles of your feet are parallel to the ceiling. Slowly lower your legs until they're parallel to the floor (and not touching the bench!); rise back up for 1 rep. Do 2 sets of 8 reps.

What it works: Hips, abs, lower back

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