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[H1111]How To Get 6 Pack Abs

by Yuri Elkaim, Yur

But why is it that so many people have such a hard time achieving the 6-pack or the toned abs that they so desire? Well, it boils down to 2 main factors ? training and diet.

Let's first tackle the diet issue. It's important to keep in mind that you can never out train a bad diet. Many athletes seem to think that they can get away with eating whatever they want because ?they need? the calories. That's nonsense.

This type of mentality, especially if adopted by recreational exercisers, can be detrimental to your pursuit of a 6-pack.

To visually see the tone of your abdominals your body fat needs to be about 10% or lower. Most active individuals score in the teens and thus require a little bit more work in their training and especially in their diet if they wish to achieve their goal of washboard abs.

You can exercise all you want and do thousands of sit-ups each day to little effect if your diet is out of whack. I will cover the fundamentals of a 6-pack healthy diet in a future article but for now I'd like to show how you can better your chances by choosing exercises that maximize your body's fat burning potential while strengthening your abs and core.

TRAINING TO BURN FAT

When it comes to training the first thing to realize is that abdominal exercises have little effect on your ability to see your abs. Every person inherently has the same amount of muscles. The only difference is whether or not you can see them. Both you and I have the 8-pack rectus abdominus muscle (most people think it's just a 6-pack) ? that's our human anatomy. But whether or not you can see yours depends on the amount of fat you have covering these abdominal muscles.

Sit-ups and crunches have little fat burning effect simply because they are small, limited movements that involve a small group of muscles. If the goal is to burn fat (and it is!) then the key to fitness training lies in your ability to choose exercises that burn a huge amount of calories. These are exercises that require large muscles.

For instance, squat presses, lunges with biceps curls, and step-ups with shoulder presses are all great examples of movements that use a huge amount of muscle. Try them and just watch how your breathing and heart rate immediately go through the roof.

6-PACK AB EXERCISES

But if you're bent on focusing on your abs then let me give you some helpful pointers to get a great abdominal burn in your workouts. Just remember through ? ab-specific exercises won't get you any closer to your goal. But here goes.

Assuming that you have no history of lower back pain the key to challenging your abs is to work them to fatigue and constantly challenge them with new and exciting exercises. Repeating the same boring exercises over and over is not an effective way to train.

One of my personal favourite abdominal ?props? is the BOSU ball. The BOSU ball challenges your core and abdominals like nothing you've ever experienced before. Its inherent instability requires your deeper core muscles to constantly work to keep you balanced while you attempt to perform the movements at hand.

A simple set of crunches on the BOSU ball is much different and more effective than doing them on the floor. One of the keys to core and abdominal training is muscle activation. Any time you perform exercises that recruit more muscles (ie. greater muscle activation), the greater the ?burn? you're going to feel and the stronger your abs and core will become.

So having said that here's a sample 5 exercise BOSU ball core workout for you to try:

NOTE: BOSU ball is placed so that the flat surface is against the floor ? rounded side facing up. All exercises should be performed to fatigue.

Click here to see what these exercises look like.

Crunches

Deadbug

Hovering Back Extensions

V-Sits

Alternating Jackknife

IntroductionThe other muscles are: external oblique's, internal oblique’s and the transverses abdominus.

All movement from the extremities rely on the core for stabilization and force production, it’s the most important area of the body. As the old saying goes “you can’t fire a canon from a canoe".

The core is the link between your upper and lower body and needs special attention, gone are the days when core training meant performing hundreds of sit-ups off the floor, there are much more effective ways to train.

Below are some general guidelines attaining to what a proper core program should look like, apply these strategies to your routine and you will have a shredded 6 pack in no time.

1. Interval Training.

This is short bouts of high intense exercise broken up with periods of low intense exercise. For example sprint for 1 min then rest for 2 min, as you become fitter increase the reps or decrease the rest period. This will ramp up the metabolic rate whilst burning heaps of calories. Everyone has a six pack, it’s just that it’s usually hidden under fat.

2. Wood Chopping Exercises.

The rectus abdominals (6 pack) are designed more for anti-rotators of the trunk rather than trunk flexion (sit up’s). Otherwise the ab’s would look more like hamstrings. Standing sideways to a cable machine, attach a rope to the high pulley. Pull the rope down and across your body, to just outside your left knee. Return the cable to the starting position, finish your reps and then switch sides.

3. Strength Training.

By increasing your lean muscle mass you’ll burn more calories sitting behind your desk and whilst you’re asleep, you will also burn a considerable more amount of energy whilst you’re exercising through greater energy demand from the increased lean muscle. Do large compound exercises working multiple muscles working every major muscle group in the body.

4. Fit-Ball.

By using a fit ball you’ll be increasing the range of motion from a neutral spine to trunk flexion (sit-ups), to trunk extension to trunk flexion. By doing sit-ups on an unstable surface you’ll also increase the amount of muscle fiber recruitment.

5. Diet.

If your diet is poor, no amount of training will work. Eat plenty of fruit, vegetables, nut’s, seeds, wholegrains, beans, legumes. If your eating meat and dairy make sure it’s lean and low in saturated fat. Keep sugar’s and alcohol to a minimum.

6. Train all Movements.

Don’t just do sit-ups, train all movement patterns. A good core program should include trunk flexion and extension, rotation, side flexion, reverse crunches and static holds. It’s not necessary to do them all in one session, pick one or two for each training session.

7. Less is More.

One of the most common mistakes people make is they do too many reps. The abs are just like any other muscle ,so train them like you would other muscles. Doing hundreds of reps isn’t going to do much except give you posture problems. Add more external resistance and keep the reps under twenty.

8. Stretch.

Like any other muscle the Abs need stretching. Lay face down with your hands under your shoulders, push up until your arms are nearly straight whilst simultaneously pushing your hips into the floor. This will increase the range of motion of the muscle and increase blood flow, therefore speeding up recovery between sessions.

9. Static Holds.

To develop a strong core you must incorporate exercises that incorporate the whole mid-section, including the hips. Stuart McGill (leading researcher on lower back dis-function) believes strength endurance is the most important factor in maintaining a healthy lower back. The plank is a good place to start, hold yourself in the press-up position, keeping your abs braced (tightened) and your butt squeezed tight. Start with a 20 second hold and increase this time by 10% a week.

10. Train the body as one integrated unit.

Use strength training exercises that will actively challenge the core. Some of the best core exercises around are ones that are working other muscle groups. By using exercises such as squat and deadlift variations, overhead presses, bent over rows and even push ups you’ll be creating awesome core strength.

Wishing you the best of health

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Both Yuri Elkaim & Dan Clay are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.

Yuri Elkaim has sinced written about articles on various topics from Cardio Training, Fitness and Fat Loss. Fitness Expert, Yuri Elkaim helps millions of busy health conscious individuals lose fat while sculpting lean muscle with just 3 short enjoyable workouts a week. Watch his new. Yuri Elkaim's top article generates over 22200 views. to your Favourites.

Dan Clay has sinced written about articles on various topics from Lose Weight, Fat Loss and Fitness. For years Dan has been striving to bring the ultimate results in health and fitness to his clients. Helping them to achieve their goals in weight loss, strength training, physique enhancement, sport specific training and nutritional health.Located in. Dan Clay's top article generates over 8100 views. to your Favourites.