In a recent report, the Federal Trade Commission warned consumers that many weight loss ads are false and misleading, containing claims not supported by medical evidence. In fact, the report noted that claims for fast and effortless weight loss could harm consumers by steering them away from safe and reliable, although slower, methods of controlling their weight.

For years, marketers have gotten away with claims that were unfounded and unsafe. Millions of people have been victimized. It’s time to give people credible information and products and lead them on a safe path to healthy weight loss.

No reasonable consumer would buy a car, or even a stereo, without comparing the merits of those available. They should be even more careful with the health of their families and themselves. Flach suggests looking for these features in choosing a weight-loss program.

1. Reasonable goals

The program should offer no more than two pounds of weight loss per week. Any claims that a plan’s users lost “18 pounds in one week!” represent results that are unusual and unhealthy.

2. Healthy food choices

Neither pills nor supplements will allow you to “eat as much as you like and lose weight!” Only by controlling caloric intake can you control weight. The plan should provide guidance in choosing the right foods in reasonable portions to achieve a healthy weight loss while maintaining energy and meeting nutritional needs. Natural Medicine Talk is a health forum which discusses natural ways of losing weight and treatment for other health illnesses.

3. Exercise component

To lose weight you must burn more calories than you take in. Regular daily exercise is necessary not only to control weight, but to help prevent heart disease, osteoporosis, and a host of other illnesses.

4. Credible sources for claims

Any endorsements should be from recognizable organizations such as major universities or the federal government. Beware of vague claims of “major national studies” or references to independent institutes that can’t be verified. Use the library or the Internet to research institutions and studies.

5. Lifestyle changes for long-term results

Supplements and pills have not been shown to provide life-long results. Only permanent changes in diet and activity level can help a person control their weight for life.

Toning your abdominal muscles may seem hard, but there are several tried-and-tested ways to achieve this. Traditional stomach exercises and machine-assisted exercises can help tone your stomach. If you’re looking for effective methods that you can do from home, listed below are some abdominal exercises for you to choose from:

The Bicycle

Without any pricey equipment, the bicycle is one of the oldest and most effective abdominal exercises around. You begin by laying down flat on your back and placing your hands behind your head with your fingers laced together. You then bring your knees to the chest and rotate them at about 45 degrees. As you do this, touch your left elbow to your right knee and vice versa. As its name suggest, the bicycle is an exercise that involves movements similar to peddling a bike.

The Balance Ball

Not only does using a balance ball tone your stomach muscles, it also improves core stability and provides a great exercise for the entire body. The goal of this exercise is to stay balanced on the ball by keeping your abdominal muscles tight.

The Red Exerciser

Although this machine is relatively new, it is an effective tool in keeping your body at place while your lower body moves back and forth using your abdominal muscles. Regular use of the red exerciser often produces noticeable results.

The Hindu Pushups

To start this exercise, place your hands and knees with your legs spread wide and your rear end pushed up. Just like a pushup, you then bend your knees and bring your back down in an arc. Straighten your arms to make your back arch upwards, while your hips remain just above the ground.

The Rowing Machine

The rowing machine aims to tone your legs, triceps, biceps, forearms and shoulders, but because of the position needed to complete the exercise while on the machine, your stomach can also be toned and strengthened.

Whether you use a machine or not, it is important that you follow a healthy diet with plenty of fruits and vegetables while exercising. In addition, a variety in your abdominal workout can prevent you from becoming bored with the routine while giving your abdominal muscles more definition.

Abdominal training is not as easy as jumping into a pool and learning how to swim. If you make repetition after repetition and still lead to mediocre results, you may be doing something wrong. Understanding the basics of abdominal training is important to determine which exercises will work best for a particular stomach area and which movements you should do with every abdominal exercise you follow. Listed below are three of the most important things you should know to achieve maximum results and get a flatter and stronger stomach in no time:

Complete lower abdominal training before anything else

Regardless of which exercises you wish to do, make sure to target your lower abdominal muscles first. As you tighter your lower abs, the other muscle groups on your midsection also contract, making them ready for the next movements. Since you are working on your whole abs section while targeting the lower abs, it is always best to start with lower ab training before focusing on the obliques and rectus abdominis muscle.

Breathe in, breathe out

The secret of working your abs is to contract the muscles completely. You cannot do this if you have air in your lungs, so make sure to breathe out deeply. If you hold your breath while doing any abdominal exercise, you are not contracting your muscles effectively. You should exhale on every contraction. To do this, let go of air whenever you start the movements and stop when you have no air left in your lungs.

Give your muscles time to recover

Unlike other muscles groups, your ab muscles can recover within minutes. Because of this, the ab muscles can respond to continuous movements. As long as you give at least several seconds for your ab muscles to recover, you can keep on doing repetitions of the exercise until you feel exhausted.

Follow these three important steps every time you start your abdominal training exercises and you’ll see results more quickly. It wouldn’t hurt if you add diet and cardio exercises to your program to achieve results more rapidly.