You can get the tight, toned, six-pack abs with just work and perseverance. First, let’s get rid of a few myths about toning up your abs, and then talk about a few really effective exercises for toning your abs.
1. You can tone your abs by doing a few very specific spot-toning exercises. If you want toned abs, you need to tone your entire body, and also do aerobic exercise to boost metabolism and burn fat.
2. More crunches are always better. It is far more important to do crunches properly than it is to do a lot of them. You are much better off breaking up your sets of crunches into sets of 25-50 crunches with 90 second rests in between.
3. You can eat anything you want as long as you ‘work it off’. The food you eat provides the building blocks for muscle AND fat. If you choose the wrong foods and pack it in there, you will be building on a poor foundation and building muscle on top of fat. Keep to a healthy, low-fat diet.
Before you start this or any exercise regime, be sure to check with a medical professional. These exercises should not be performed by people with stomach or back problems, and there may be other medical conditions that may require modifications to the routines.
Exercise 1: Tighten Up
1. Stand or sit tall and straight.
2. Breathe in naturally, and pull in your stomach.
3. Keep your tummy tense while you continue the exercise.
4. Contract your abs as hard as you can. Hold it.
5. Breathe out, releasing your breath with a hiss or a whoosh to contract your abs further.
6. Hold for 7 seconds.
7. Keeping your stomach tight, repeat ten times.
Exercise 2: Lying Scissors
1. Lie on your back with palms under your lower back and legs outstretched.
2. Exhale as you raise your legs into the air with a slight bend.
3. Inhale as you lower your legs to the floor.
Exercise 3: Reverse Crunch!
1. Lie on your back with your hands on your sides.
2. Raise your legs straight up in the air.
3. Bend your knees and curl your lower body toward your chest, exhaling at the same time.
4. Inhale as you slowly return legs to the starting position (straight up in the air).
Exercise 4: Side Crunches
1. Lie on your back with your knees bent together and twisted to one side of your body. Your
shoulder blades should be flat against the floor.
2. Exhale as you lift your upper body off the ground.
3. Inhale as you lower your shoulders to the floor.
4. Finish your reps on one side, then switch your legs to the other side and do it all again.

If you are interested in using some equipment, you can try the Ab Rocket or the Ab Coaster. Both machines help tone and tighten your abs.