It is well established that to achieve 6 pack abs you have to do two simple things. You need to strengthen your abdominal muscles and lose body fat. That is it – 6 pack abs exercise. Gimmicky abs exercises are not the answer though. Although strenghtening the ab muscles is necessary, the true answer goes far beyond this!
It must be more than just abdominal exercises like sit-ups and other types of exercises. You should focus more on full body conditioning. In order to realize total success, yes you do need firm abs but you also need to control fat development and accumulation.
Chiseled, rock-hard, washboard, killer abs or pot belly, paunch, sag, gut. Athletes are midsection crazed and obsessed with the dream of the perfect abs. Take a look around the gym on any given day, and you’ll find men and women exercising their abs with intensity and commitment.
There are several issues though that muddy the waters that define success.
“Abdominal muscle is different from regular muscle” just does not ring true. As the body and brain see it – muscle is muscle. The abdominals differ only in their physical location. They cover the stomach and intestines like skin on a drum. Look at any anatomy book. All muscles including ab muscle is enlarged and strengthened in the same manner. There is no structural difference, no physiological difference and no difference in how the ab muscle contracts and gets stronger.
Who says that you have to train abs at least every other day? Qualified experts ascertain that you should train them at most every other day in order to provide time to rebuild and recover from hard workouts. Your abs can get strong and stay strong when you work them twice a week if you train them hard enough.
The most important point to understand is that you should practice exercises that work your ab muscles to the point that they actually need recovery time. Try to incorporate exercises that will mimic everyday muscle activity. In normal activity the routine function of the abdominals is to stabilize the upper and lower body. Mimic this function by briefly maintaining a push-up position without letting your belly sag.
You don’t need to actually complete the push-up. Just try to maintain the position and feel your abs working hard to contract enough to stabilize your body. To increase the difficulty and benefit, elevate your feet up on a weight bench or stool.
Another effective 6 pack abs exercise is often called “pizza feet.” Lie on the floor with your legs up in the air (straight or slightly bent) and the soles of your feet aimed at the ceiling. Visualize yourself balancing a pizza box on your feet. Lift the box straight up until your hips are off the floor. Concentrate on foot position so that you will not lose control of the pizza. Utilize your hands on your hips to push a bit if necessary. I
Why do they say 6 pack abs exercises melt away abdominal fat?
The concept of spot reducing has been proven ineffective by many qualified studies. You will not eliminate the fat over a muscle by repeatedly exercising that specific muscle. Study after study has supported that conclusion. Spot reducing is a dead issue!
You can do quality crunches all day long but this alone will not reduce your waistline or belly size. You may develop abs of steel, but they can still remain covered by body fat if you don’t maintain the appropriate diet and practice some form of cardiovascular activity to reduce the fat layer. Burning abdominal fat is the same as burning fat anywhere on your body: You have to do aerobic exercise and manage calorie intake.
6 Pack Abs and Exercise benefit from The Perfect Crunch
Lie on your back with your knees bent
Contract your abs as you exhale deeply
Pause when your upper body is about halfway to an upright position
Slowly return your body to the resting position resisting gravity as you inhales
Don’t permit full muscles relaxation but- maintain the tension in your abs and begin the next contraction. Continue until you are fatigued.
When this gets easy, make it more difficult by adding weight to your chest but don’t permit your feet to lift off the floor
Not True – High repetitions are required to make gains
The key to abdominal conditioning is working the muscles hard – not long. If you find that you have to do 50 to 100 crunches before you begin to tire, slow down concentrate on perfect technique. What constitutes good technique? Don’t cheat by pulling your head forward or rounding your upper back. Make your abdominals contract before any other body part moves. Go slow. If you go too fast, you use momentum to perform the movement — not your muscle.
Wrong – 6 Pack Abs and exercise is not about lots of sit-ups!
Complete sit-ups primarily strengthen muscles that are already strong and do not typically key on the abdominal muscles. It’s better to incorporate a variety of exercises to work the six pack muscle from a variety of aspects and to include all abdominal muscles.
Although the 6 pack muscle is the most visual muscle, you need to have healthy ab muscle to promote back health. You need to engage in a variety of exercises that also strengthen the external obliques, internal obliques and the transverse abdominals.
Bizarre Concepts -barbell twists are great to trim your abs!
I love this statement from a professional. “Barbell twists are a great way to help your chiropractor send his kid through college at your expense. You have to rate barbell twists up at the top of the stupid things that people do in the gym.” This combination of strain and movement cause stress on the lower back area that is potentially very damaging to the lower back. This exercise is useless as well as hazardous to overall health.
Don’t Waste Time
Don’t waste time by falling victim to 6 pack abs and exercise myths. Exercise intelligently utilizing scientifically based training techniques.
Learn total body conditioning through manipulation of your metabolism and natural hormone activity.
By following this advice you will see greater gains, and your ripped six pack will be the envy of those myth believers.
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