AbCircle Pro review: unsafe 37

Do not buy Abcircle Pro if you have knee problems, that is the focal point of strength to support you besides your neck and shoulders. It does burn your abs; it works as long as you are strong in those areas otherwise it is not as easy as it looks. I am extremely incensed at the company for the telemarketer trying to Up-Sell me for an extra fifteen minutes be it for vitamins or to buy it out right-I refused innumerous times & finally told her if she did not stop pushing her sales pitch I would hang up and not order Abcircle Pro at all! So the trial order went through and after I said "no" a million times I did not want vitamins!; a deduction for $73 for Abcircle Pro vitamins was taken from my bank account (hence vitamins had not arrived-the UPS guy just knocked on my door as I am writing this and I told him what happened and he told me he experienced a similiar situation w/another co. We both agree this is stealing! he is re-routing package back to co. in Van nuy's as we speak); a long with the second month installment for the equiptment-hence I had already called to cancel the equiptment! As with most start ups I am sure their is a lack of cash as you have to wait 3 weeks for the product to arive at your door; still they bill you anyway. All I have to say is COME ON why do you have to put me through all of this, and waste my time, I wish I recorded my call to ABcircle Pro to illustrate how annoyed that telemarketer made me feel I would certainly upload it here!-right now! Instead I have to call 3 different people to get the vitamins cancelled then I have to call my bank. These company's need to take a close look at how they are running things, honestly I would of told people that Abcircle Pro was a good product despite the fact it does not work for me due to my knees but because they wasted my time to go through all of this; I am left venting!

the forst time i saw it i thought, "lawsuit in a box"

the human knee was not made to take your weight.

I have to agree it works your abbs but you're not going to be able to work out even every other day because youre knees are gonna hurt like crazy. I still have couple more weeks untill i have to make a desicion if i want to keep it, but i don't think so.

i'm just about to order it, but i just wanted to check it out first. maybe i'll try the trial offer before i actually buy it buy it. ughhh

Just to add my half dollar to these comments. Pure physiological/body science. The knee is not only taking the pressure of your body weight; just analyze BOTH the position and movement.

The position may be on "all fours" (hands and knees) but you are also at an incline to start which means your body weight is NOT being evenly distributed to both hands and both knees; the incline shifts your body weight (depending on the incline as there are 3 positions from low to high but even at the lowest position) more on to your knees than arms and since your mid-section is where we all carry the bulk of the extra weight even at the lowest incline you are taking at least 2/3 of your body weight directly on your knees.

Which leads to the second problem. Now you start the exercise.

What are you doing; you are swinging your body weight left and right on your knees as well. They claim this is low impact because there is no jarring effect like running. That statement is true as far as the fact that you are not running but that's where it ends.

The side to side motion is basically throwing your body weight over your knee joints left and right every time you do the motion. To put it simply, this means your own body weight is moving the insides of your knee joint, cartilage, the lubricating fluid in the knee joint, etc., in a motion it was never designed to do. So your own body weight is going to wear on these areas pretty quickly. Having had multiple knee problems, surgeries, working with doctors, specialists and sports therapists I haven't found one who would back this product. On the contrary, they are the ones who said, "even if your knees were in perfect condition, this is one way to make sure they won't be...and in a very short period of time." One more point that no one has mentioned. I live in an apartment. While they claim that it is quiet it is anything but. Common sense; rollers going back and forth constantly make noise (especially to the people living below you). That was how I first heard about this machine. The neighbor directly above me has one and would use it late at night. I sounds like someone is dragging furniture short distances every time she went back and forth. I spoke to her about it and she was kind enough to do earlier in the evening anyway. Of course if you want to annoy your neighbors...

IMHO, stay away and don't waste your money. If you want to stay off the floor and get both full ab and glute exercise along with cardio go with something like the "Cardio Twister". I have no affiliation with them and do not sell them. They are used in the rehab center at my local hospital (which is where I heard about them - actually not big in to infomercials). I was leery about getting on it but did and it definitely worked. Though NO where as quickly as they claim. I can attest that it is a full body work out but what all these machine makers don't really stress (but my hospital rehab center did) is that it doesn't matter what machine you use, if you don't change your diet you might just as well go back to being a couch potato.

The only down side to the "Cardio Twister" (like I said, I live in an apartment) is that there is nothing portable about it. Frankly, it weighs a ton! It doesn't fold up, won't fit under a bed, has no wheels, won't store in a closet. So while it only costs about $50 more than the Ab Circle, doesn't cause injury and does give both a cardio and resistance work out, make sure you have space for it. It's only about two and a half feet long and wide but like I said, you won't be moving it unless you are either in really good condition already or have a friend around.

While I know people are looking to vent about the Ab Circle, I put in the info (good and bad) about the Cardio Twister since IT seems to accomplish what the Ab Circle claims. Again, it's just anything BUT portable but is an alternative that my hospital uses and you can get at home.

bought the machine, did 600 reps on both positions every morning. had to swing the knee pads upside down to prevent me from literally flying off, which happened several times. SAW NO RESULTS--DO NOT BUY!

Just commenting on chances of being thrown across the room. You are dumb. If I am kneeling on something that was secure but becomes loose or unsecure I either tighten it or throw it away. Not be thrown by it.

No need to be nasty and don't worry about your spelling-the only reason that anyone is on here is to get and give their opinions...THAT is what is important to me! I am so grateful that I came onto this site as I already had my credit card information typed in. Then I saw it was $200.00 and figured I had best investigate more. So, in conclusion, thank you for your opinions and I thank you.for your time. Now I just may have to dig around for an alternative machine. Thanks again for your comments. Take care and I hope that your dreams of becoming healthier comes true!

i bought ab circle only 4 days. I used it every day for 15 minutes and it hurt my knee alot. The last day was more terrible because when i tried to used 2 comforters that they sent me to help get rid of hurting my knee ( as they said), it made me felt on the machine because the comforters was falling a part . If i want to return, i have to pay for shipping 35 bucks and 25% of the orginal price so that totally I lose 120 buck if I want to return. I'm so stupid . I didn't check it before bought it

the problem is with the right wheel the wheel does not move and has damaged the red surface and the wheel it sefl. i am 4'11" tall and wiegth 140 lb . DO NOT BUY...

Definitely, this is really a BAD invest... not only the knees but also my back is in pain... I live in Canada, so it costs for me a lot... and the machine is of a poor quality. The company should return the money to everyone.. please DO NOT BUY...

Biggest Ripoff of the year! Ordered the product and waited for delivery. The package came while I was at work. It was sent back and I was charged S & H both ways plus the cost of the unit; and THEN found out the whole thing was a waste, a scam and a fraud.

Do not buy it at all.
Very poor quality.
I bought it from walmart and I kept it just one day.
yes that was enough time to know.
The day after that i take it back .
best advise Do not buy it !

WELL YOU ALL HAVE ME SCARED TO DEATH TO BYE THE AB CIRCLE. I HAVE A BAD BACK FROM AN AUTO ACCIDENT VERY OLD INJURY. BUT THE LOW IMPACT COMMENT GOT ME GOOD. I THOUGHT IT WAS LOW IMPACT, BUT ONLY TO COMPARE TO RUNNING.WOW. BOY YOU ALL SAVED ME ALOT OF HEART ACHE I THINK I'LL STICK TO MY SLIM IN 6 TAPES THEY REALLY WORK IF YOU ARE LOYAL TO YOURSELF. THANKS AGAIN FOR YOUR OPINIONS

I bought my abcircle from ebay for almost half the price. I thought well why pay full price when you can get it for half the price. I wishI had seen this site before buying the machine. Both my knees hurt so much that i can't even swing there for more than 2 mins. Also, both comforters are falling apart from 1st day, the right one is even worse. I am very stupid as I just managed to give away £80.00 to an ebay seller for something I am going to throw away. Furthermore, throwing away for something as bulk will also costs me money.
SHEER WASTE OF YOUR MONEY!

MD LONDON

I think it depens on fisical shape of your body. I'm very fit. I think it's very important to keep your body in a right position and then you don't have too much pressure on your knees. You don't stand on your knee only, you put a have of weight on your shoulders. You have to keep your body streight and that is difficult for beginners! If you don't, you stand on your knees and you don't work out, you damage your body. I've got this ABCircle with no return option (I didn't know that) and I think it's too expensive for low results. But it works (for small part of body only) and no knee pain. I found that LEG TRAINER gives more result.

Thanks for all the advise here I was going to make a new resolution for 2010 and highly considering buying the product skipping right over the trail cost. Seems that walking has always been the best form of exercise and its free!

i purchased the abcircle new my son and i used it 5times, in that time one of the knee rollers didnt spin we thought it was the workout until it started to mark the red surface, on inspection we discovered the roller was worn down on one side so inturn wouldnt spin.
I tried to ring customer care in america to get a replacement roller and was told they could ship to Australia so how can they sell them here a total scam for fittness and a waste of 150.00 dont buy

Oh dear, i just ordered mine and it should arrive in a week or so. I live in England. I wonder if it is going to be difficult to return. I have very bad knee problems - should have looked at this site before ordering it. I paid £149 pounds for it.

I just bought the Abcircle from Sears for $199. yesterday and will be returning it today. The first time I used it, it seemed pretty easy and fun. After several little sessions throughout the day, I started feeling my knees burning and also noticed how red they were getting from them scraping on the ever so flimsy knee pads! Definitely not worth the money. I was going to give it a try for at least two weeks to see if there would be any positive results but I don't think my body will be able to take two weeks of torture!

I received the Ab Circle for Christmas and used it twice. The rollers on the bottom of the knee pads scratched the track so bad that it catches everytime you try and swing back and forth. And let me also note that I weigh less than 130 pounds. There is NO REASON that a machine that costs that much money should be made so poorly. It is a PIECE OF CRAP. I will just stick with the AbCoasters that are at my gym (by the way...those work)

I am 5'7 & weigh 120lbs. I workout 5-6 days a way doing pilates, cardio & you name it.

This machine has made my lower back hurt from day one. The pads are not comfortable you are putting your knees on hard plastic & a screw!

There is one section that it catches on every time when you try to go across it & all you see while using it is paint chips flying up in the air!

Yesterday the pads came off on the one side. I put about 50% of my weight on my knees the other on the handles well the whole machine flips (on carpet) since my knee flew off with the pad. My big toe will not move like it should it is 2 or 3 times the size of my toe on my other foot. I have a purple/black knee. My hip has a large red/purple/black mark on it. I can't sleep because of the pain.

As for RESULTS, very little! On the highest level I never felt like my abs were getting a workout or my thighs. My butt you could tell that it was getting a workout, but thats it! I bought it for my abs!

Okay, while I understand that the human physiology is different for everyone, I am having problems understanding some of these complaints. Namely, the machine breaking and knee-pain. Unless I am a naturally occurring mutation, I am just not experiencing these things, and I stress equipment to the max when I use it. I am 5', 11" and weigh 308.4 lbs before breakfast. I just recently retired medically from the military, for many reasons. Of those reasons was osteo-arthritis in both knees due to extensive shrapnel injuries. I gained weight after I left, but I have always been a large framed guy, (an inch and a half between middle finger and thumb when wrapped around the wrist), but after the army i put on a few pounds. I have used the AbCircle Pro for going on three weeks now, with no problems what so ever. I dont use kinetic momentum in the workout. I start in the neutral position and continue to the 90 degree angle, focusing on one side at a time. I usually do 30-60 reps each, twice to three times a day. I assume that if you do the exercises correctly, the results speak for themselves. I am seeing optimum results for the time and effort exerted, focusing on good form. I have had no reliability problems with this machine, nor any irregular pain in the knees, and my knees usually hurt for a very good reason, which metal detectors will agree with me. i dont get how some of the people are having so much trouble with the machine, but again I realize that everyone is different. If what i have seen on youtube is any indication, people are using this machine with disregard, lack of discipline, and no focus on form, then blaming their experience solely on the machine itself rather than being held accountable for their own form. I will continue to use this machine, and I am extremely happy with my purchase. The only other exercises that I've done that really targeted that inner and outer core, involved plyometrics while in the army. i can only speak for my own experience, but perhaps a few need to reflect on their form and discipline before blaming the machine. FACT, if you do crunches and sit-ups incorrectly, then you will see adverse progress, as well as injure yourself.

As a reference, I watched the DVD. I assembled the machine with my weight in mind(thoroughly). There is supposed to be a small padded piece for each hole on the kneepads, so that the knees never make contact with the hex-screws underneath. I do not use the extra knee pads that came with the machine, I start in the neutral position, and I work one side at a time, keeping my back completely straight, and my arms flexed and straight. I pivot only at the hips while keeping my back straight, and I absolutely never hold my breath. Not only are my love handles disappearing, but my lower abdomen, inner thighs, and buttocks get a very good and focused workout, not even taking into account that my shoulders and triceps are growing. I also make good use of my boxing equipment for cardio, prior to using the AbCricle Pro.

I have to agree with most of what you all are saying... I just received my abcircle in the mail last Friday. I have been on this machine for 15 minutes at a time. The knee holder will not stay into place to keep your knees keep falling put of the holder. On yesterday I went flying off the machine. I only had this for 5 days... I will be sending this back on tomorrow... You will not be able to use this because of your knees will hurt like hell...

I saw the informational ad on television this morning for the Ab Circle and the reasoning behind the device seemed sound, but the results looked Too good to be true. Plus there was the caveat that not all results would be the same for everyone and that a calorie reduced diet and cardio workout plan worked in tandem for maximum results. That rang an alarm bell and I decided to check out what other consumers of this project had to say. I'm very glad I did.

I have been wanting this machine for a long time, but I didn't want to end up wasting money. I did tons of searching the internet...I finally saw it in a KMart and they said I could return it for 90 days, open or not. So I decided to use some tax return money for beautiful abs =) Sooo...while waiting for my return, I decided to look online again. I found this at Walmart.com:

"NOTE: some users have reported problems with rollers and uneven excessive wear. Free roller upgrade kits are available from the manufacturer; call [protected]"

The version in store also comes with additional gel knee pads. I think I'll buy. Wish me luck! Hope this helps...anyone!

WARNING! DO NOT BUY!
Don't even do the trial. You will have the hardest time cancelling, if at all. This machine is CRAP!

I have gotten the ab circle pro I get slung off of it and I have never had knee proubles but I do now. I tryed it for toweeks for 3minutes a day and nothen it dont work. just a big hip.

Injured myself when the knee support came loose and i flew off the left knee support landing with my chest on top of the knee support breaking my ribs!

I purchased Ab Circle Pro from an Ebay site in January this year for $116 Australian. After three months of using it most days, I have worn out two red bases. The seller replaced one base after one month when I complained but is not receptive to issuing another.
I have had to resort to sticking duck tape around certain places around the red base plate to be able to continue to use it.
As for results, I weighed about 230 pounds when I started, now after 3 months I weigh about 220.
No noticeable weight loss around the belly, but I feel great and believe I've lost a little around the hips and legs.
Knee soreness was evident early but I don't seem to be having any bother with them now.
Needed to tighen the centre bolts as they were loose and made the motion sloppy.
Changed the position of the stand to a higher elevated level and moved the handle bars down to bottom level.
No sore back.

Thanks to everyone for your opinions. I have a horrible middle aged middle and was about to spend my income tax money on this. I have a problem with my lower back and right knee hurting me all the time, anyway. Definitely cannot afford to do this one at any cost. They make all this stuff look so easy and so much fun (that should be a clue right there). Wish I had kept my Total Gym.. Guess you are right about walking, though. And it's free.

l bought off ebay which turned out to be a copy it just self destructed in a few weeks got money back through paypal.

I then spent just under $500 for the geniune article it came with a set of rollers with gouges in them so it didn't work rang them up and they sent another set of rollers put them on one seized and took a chunk out the roller so l put one old roller back on with a new set of bearings which cost $30 from bearing suppler, used it for a week then the bush in right leg bracket started to disintegrate. This product was the mk2 version with steel roller guide the plastic version was a total dud. I sent the AbCirclePro back and got a refund.

I should have taken photos before l sent it back and complained to consumer affairs.

Frankly this is a typical poorly designed american product made as cheap as chips in china and sold at more than 10 times its value is totally unsafe and should be withdrawn from market till it is built properly.

When is consumer affairs in Australia do something about this product and the cheaper copies.

Thanks for all your comments, you have convinced me to not even buy it at a garage sale. I've usually accumulated the stuff I've seen on tv through garage sales lately, including the Abking pro. I will not be paying any amount of money for the AbCirclePro.

Glad to see opinions from both sides. Being a single mother, I am better saving my money for 0ther stuff.

hey guys. was just about to order one when i stubled on this site. i'm so glad i did. thank god for websites like this. thank you very much x x

I have the Abcircle for a month and have found it to be marvelous I have had 3 hip replacements and do not find it to be a problem to use .So far I have lost 3 kilos and I only really got serious about using it about 2 weeks ago . I can burn off now 220 calories a day . I am extremely happy with Abcircle and I fully recommend that anyone who is serious abut their weight control, should consider the Abcircle, my age is 61years. Janet, Maffra, Victoria.

I have had the Ab circle pro for 6 weeks. In the first week my left knee flew off the pad and was swollen and bruised for 2 weeks. Finally I got back on and within a few days my right knee flew off..same thing, ice. and pain killers...I've tried using the knee holders upside down, but now I'm so anxious and I haven't lost a centimeter off my waist or my hips. Very disappointed..I don't think the reality is connected to the sales pitch.
Dian from Brisbane, Australia.