# Ab energizers & similar devices

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ab-energizers-similar-devices/99032>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [March 19, 2002, 12:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ab-energizers-similar-devices/99032 "2002-03-19T12:43:18Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Treebeard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/edb3f5/32.png) [@Treebeard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Treebeard)\
**Post date:** [March 19, 2002, 12:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ab-energizers-similar-devices/99032/1 "2002-03-19T12:43:18Z")

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Do these electronic ab exercisers reallly work? Do they make the muscles contract? Or, is it just another TV scam? Anyone have any experience with these things?

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**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\
**Post date:** [March 19, 2002, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ab-energizers-similar-devices/99032/2 "2002-03-19T13:38:09Z")

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I’ll take “Scams” for $200, Alex.

No, they don’t do anything useful. To lose weight, eat less and exercise. To strengthen your abs, do crunches or similar exercises.

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**Author:** ![Tattva](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ba8739/32.png) [@Tattva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tattva)\
**Post date:** [March 19, 2002, 2:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ab-energizers-similar-devices/99032/3 "2002-03-19T14:12:41Z")

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I don’t have any referencible cite, but a friend of mine who was in a terrible car accident said their only real use was to stimulate muscle tissue that someone couldn’t stimulate on their own.

But they’re not going to give you Abs of Steel.

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**Author:** ![breaknrun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bbce88/32.png) [@breaknrun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/breaknrun)\
**Post date:** [March 19, 2002, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ab-energizers-similar-devices/99032/4 "2002-03-19T18:12:34Z")

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In order to get the kind of abs that crunches could give you, your muscles have to be stimulated to at least the same degree that crunches would. I don’t see those folks on tv doubling over from the force of the contractions. Maybe it’s a new tickling workout, I dunno.

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**Author:** ![ultrafilter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/3d9bf3/32.png) [@ultrafilter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ultrafilter)\
**Post date:** [March 19, 2002, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ab-energizers-similar-devices/99032/5 "2002-03-19T19:43:53Z")

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Like everyone else has said, there’s not much to these unless you’re in a coma. Don’t waste the money.

In addition, I seem to recall reading in a thread here that there’s a risk that these things can malfunction, and burn you pretty good. Caveat emptor, indeed.