What's Good For You?

Just about everyone wants a flatter, more toned stomach and most of us have probably tried to get one at some point. But are sit-ups really the way to athletic abs or just a whole lot of pain for no real gain? Is there a better option?

We asked two volunteers — both keen to turn the tables on their burgeoning bellies — to put tummy toning to the test. One stuck to traditional sit-ups using a Swiss ball, while the other tried a cheeky new alternative: pole dancing.

Our sit-ups volunteer, Nicola, has half-heartedly walked down this path many times before, even splashing out on an ab machine. She agreed to give sit-ups one more go. Pole-dancing volunteer, Erika, suspected that her body was getting a little ahead of itself. She took up the challenge to try pole dancing.

To keep the playing field level over the eight-week trial, Erika attended one 45-minute pole-dancing class a week, while Nicola performed a less taxing 20-minute sit-ups program twice a week.

Before the girls began, we needed to measure the current state of their stomach muscles. We tested their abdominal endurance using the plank test and abdominal strength with an angle test. And of course, we took a visual reference.

At the halfway point, both girls were happy with their progress and felt that they were beginning to see the benefits. Nicola, however, was finding her sit-ups program to be a bit of a grind, while Erika was loving the social and athletic aspects of pole dancing.

THE RESULTS:
After eight weeks, we performed the same tests with the girls to see how their respective programs stacked up. When we re-tested their abdominal endurance, we found Nicola's results were much improved while Erika had made steady gains.

Nicola: Sit Ups
Original score: 1:12 minutes
New score: 2:33 minutes

Erika: Pole Dancing
Original score: 1:52 minutes
New score: 2:33 minutes

The strength test revealed quite the opposite, with Erika making a great leap
forward, while Nicola struggled to even match her original score.

Nicola: Sit Ups
Original score: 126 degrees (grade 3)
New score: 107 degrees (grade 2)

Erika: Pole Dancing
Original score: 118 degrees (grade 2)
New score: 124 degrees (grade 3)

BUT THE BIG QUESTIONS IS - Who's abs are looking the goods?

Well, Nicola's clearly on track with modest but steady improvement to her stomach's definition while Erika has made striking gains with both a flatter tummy and better defined abs.

CONCLUSION
Our trial shows that while sit-ups are an effective way to flatten and tone your stomach, they're definitely not the best way.

Pole dancing not only works your abs to give you a flatter, toned tummy but it will help give you stronger abs and therefore a stronger, more stable body core. But the big bonus is that it's also a great kilojoule-burning cardio work-out, which helps trim away excess fat to make sure everyone else can appreciate your new stomach as much as you do.

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