Which Exercise Equipment Is Best?

Eliptical burns most calories.

Youtube the treadmill guy... you can have a full range workout using JUST a treadmill... my treadmill was the best purchase I think I've ever made!

You can't necessarily "spot treat." It's a combination of cardio (to burn calories), resistance (to strengthen muscles--which burn calories even while resting), and healthy eating/calorie reduction.

Mix up your routine to include some cardio work 2-3 days a week -- ellipitical, treadmill/track, bike, etc. You don't even need to make it to a gym for that--just a good pair of tennis shoes!

Then on the other days work out on the weight machines--alternate upper and lower body.

Personally, I love P90X. I can do it at home and it works. Swimming is also one of the most effective and best overall toning exercises you can do--burns lots of calories, includes resistance, and cardio workouts all-in-one.

Good Luck!

Edited to include: Yoga is one of my absolute favorite workouts and you'll be super surprised how great it makes you feel and look!

You cant choose where your body decides to lose fat (oh god i wish i could) but you can target your abs for toning...but you should also tareget your obliques(sides) and lower back...to even it out.

Unfortunately gyms have very minimal ab machines IMO. Theres the "sit up" ones, the reverse sit up ones, and the side sit up ones. The abs are quite complicated structures, the part near the belly button has like 8 sections, then you have the sides, then the lower and middle back which also effect the look.

My advice would be some videos that involve pilates, stability ball or target the abs to add to your routine of going to the gym.

Some of my favorites are "6 week 6 pack" Jillian Micheals, "blast the belly fat" with Jeannette Jenkins and "10 minute solutions, pilates". Using your own body weight is a great way to tone. but you have to burn fat in order to see the overall effects on toning so be sure to add any and all cardio to your routine to burn optimal fat.

I regularly use a gym and all equipment, but I can honestly tell you that for belly and arms, it's the "no equipment" exercises that work best. Especially belly. I kind of use all the machiness just to "build muscles and burn calories" in general for metabolism (which is the best way to get the belly down even without spot training it), but I always feel much more toned and firm when I'm regularly attending Zumba classes where all the arm moves really magically sculpt the arms, or yoga where a ton of up dogs to down dogs sculpt the arms (yoga creates THE best arms and is the only thing that doesnt' make me bulk up-I use those moves even if I'm not doing a yoga class) Even just plain old push ups seem to perk up my arms much better than the weights. For abs I have a collection of moves I've gathered from various DVDs and trainers over the years, and I do them all on the mat in a separate room before or after weights and treadmill. The "sit up machine" really does not help the abs. The one where you hang and lift your legs is good (that's probably best stomach one), but not as effective as shaping the whole waist with different moves. I usually stick to the mat.
Also, I just read an article about how free weights will help you get faster results than machines. For instance if you sit in the weight chair and curl your legs, you only use half the body muscles you would use doing alternating lunges holding free weights hitting the same muscles, because you use many other muscles for balance etc with the free weights rather than relaxing in chair. Same for arms, rather than relaxing in machine and doing arm curls, with the free weights, you'd be using more opposing arm muscles to keep steady while doing the curls. etc. If your gym has free weights, you should work those into your program. Get a fitness friend to teach you some good stomach mat exercises, or google moves. Using many different ones on different days helps too. The Turbo Jam and Turbo Fire workout DVDs have really good ones. Good work, and good luck!

That's funny because I just came across this article...I haven't read it yet but should be helpful, hopefully: http://www.thepostgame.com/blog/training-day/201108/lose-...

If you are going to a gym then they should be able to tell you exactly what you need to do.