Getting hardcore 6 pack abs (or the rare 8 pack abs) is
something that most people would like. Each day on Tumblr I see people posting
and reblogging images of guys and girls with shredded 6 pack abs, those images
are always paired with captions describing how they plan on getting a
midsection like the one in the picture or a quote to motivate themselves to
keep working hard in the gym and to stay strong nutrition wise so that they can
avoid bad eating habits.
something that most people would like. Each day on Tumblr I see people posting
and reblogging images of guys and girls with shredded 6 pack abs, those images
are always paired with captions describing how they plan on getting a
midsection like the one in the picture or a quote to motivate themselves to
keep working hard in the gym and to stay strong nutrition wise so that they can
avoid bad eating habits.
Road to getting 6
pack abs – Where to start?
We are all different so our roads to getting abs will never
be the same. Let us say you are fat or overweight, the way you go about getting
ripped abs will not be the same as someone who is skinny and wants to have
thick well developed abs. Each of us reacts differently to different foods, I
know guys who eat whatever they like and still have great bodies with a great
set of 6 pack abs but many people cannot eat what they want whenever they want
if they want abs because doing so will result in fat gain for the average
Joe/Jane. You need to know yourself and how your body reacts to a certain way
of eating.
be the same. Let us say you are fat or overweight, the way you go about getting
ripped abs will not be the same as someone who is skinny and wants to have
thick well developed abs. Each of us reacts differently to different foods, I
know guys who eat whatever they like and still have great bodies with a great
set of 6 pack abs but many people cannot eat what they want whenever they want
if they want abs because doing so will result in fat gain for the average
Joe/Jane. You need to know yourself and how your body reacts to a certain way
of eating.
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| Road to ripped 6 pack abs |
The statement “Abs
Are made In the Kitchen” is a half truth
If you did not exercise and ate very healthy “clean” foods
you would not have the kind of abs you see in Hollywood stars, and fitness
models. That is because abs are not made in the kitchen. It is true that we
naturally have abs which are hidden by a layer of fat on our stomachs, it is
also true that eating clean can help us lose that layer of fat but if you do
not do abs exercises those natural abs hidden under your belly fat will not be
too impressive. I support the famous
words “abs are made in the gym and revealed in the kitchen,” tough you could
probably take out the words gym because abs are one body part that certainly
does not need a gym to develop. So I believe that abs are developed and
thickened through abs exercises and other exercises that involve your core
indirectly, and are revealed through proper nutrition and doing cardio (for
most people anyways).
you would not have the kind of abs you see in Hollywood stars, and fitness
models. That is because abs are not made in the kitchen. It is true that we
naturally have abs which are hidden by a layer of fat on our stomachs, it is
also true that eating clean can help us lose that layer of fat but if you do
not do abs exercises those natural abs hidden under your belly fat will not be
too impressive. I support the famous
words “abs are made in the gym and revealed in the kitchen,” tough you could
probably take out the words gym because abs are one body part that certainly
does not need a gym to develop. So I believe that abs are developed and
thickened through abs exercises and other exercises that involve your core
indirectly, and are revealed through proper nutrition and doing cardio (for
most people anyways).
Nutrition for
Ripped Abs
I am of the belief that the best diet is one that you can
easily maintain for a prolonged period of time. The way you eat needs to be
sustainable and not short term, so you need to make life long changes to the
way you eat, not temporary changes which will only give you results only when
you choose to stick with that short term diet. You need to eat in a way that
will help you lose unnecessary belly fat, but in a way that you would like to
continue eating without craving all of the foods of your previous nutritional
lifestyle.
easily maintain for a prolonged period of time. The way you eat needs to be
sustainable and not short term, so you need to make life long changes to the
way you eat, not temporary changes which will only give you results only when
you choose to stick with that short term diet. You need to eat in a way that
will help you lose unnecessary belly fat, but in a way that you would like to
continue eating without craving all of the foods of your previous nutritional
lifestyle.
Some people use low carb diets and there are many benefits
of low carb diets, others use low fat diets, it does not matter which diet you
use as long as it is the kind of diet you are willing to make a part of your
life style (here is a comparison of the two diet models low carb vs low fat –
retire the fad). I personally like
to eat a balanced diet, a diet which does not dramatically decrease one
macronutrient as opposed to another. I find that having a balanced diet is the
easiest to maintain, mixed with regular training it can give great results.
of low carb diets, others use low fat diets, it does not matter which diet you
use as long as it is the kind of diet you are willing to make a part of your
life style (here is a comparison of the two diet models low carb vs low fat –
retire the fad). I personally like
to eat a balanced diet, a diet which does not dramatically decrease one
macronutrient as opposed to another. I find that having a balanced diet is the
easiest to maintain, mixed with regular training it can give great results.
Also note that the key to losing and gaining fat is the
amount of calories that you consume, if you consume more than you need than you
will gain fat/weight, whereas if you consume less than you need to maintain
your current bodyweight than you will lose fat/weight. Whether you are eating
good foods or bad foods, if you eat too much food no matter what food that is
you will get fat. It’s not fats that make you fat; if you eat too many carbs
then you will also get fat. I guess I like the IIFYM (if it fits your macros)
kind of nutrition plan.
amount of calories that you consume, if you consume more than you need than you
will gain fat/weight, whereas if you consume less than you need to maintain
your current bodyweight than you will lose fat/weight. Whether you are eating
good foods or bad foods, if you eat too much food no matter what food that is
you will get fat. It’s not fats that make you fat; if you eat too many carbs
then you will also get fat. I guess I like the IIFYM (if it fits your macros)
kind of nutrition plan.
Also if you are not overweight and want to find a way to get
ripped and stay ripped, then you could look into intermittent fasting, maybe
that is the most suitable thing for you and not the traditional dieting but
rather the intermittent fasting model of playing around with eating periods.
ripped and stay ripped, then you could look into intermittent fasting, maybe
that is the most suitable thing for you and not the traditional dieting but
rather the intermittent fasting model of playing around with eating periods.
The key is finding a nutrition
plan that you are comfortable with, a meal plan that suits you the best.
Dieting is no child’s play and it is definitely not for the weak. Also if you
are going to start a diet do not go from eating whatever you like to eating a
highly restrictive diet the next day, if you do that you are setting yourself
up for failure. Slowly change the way you eat to make your transition easier,
you don’t go from 1st gear to 5th in one gear change,
slowly drop the bad foods as you also slowly introduce the good foods to your
diet.
plan that you are comfortable with, a meal plan that suits you the best.
Dieting is no child’s play and it is definitely not for the weak. Also if you
are going to start a diet do not go from eating whatever you like to eating a
highly restrictive diet the next day, if you do that you are setting yourself
up for failure. Slowly change the way you eat to make your transition easier,
you don’t go from 1st gear to 5th in one gear change,
slowly drop the bad foods as you also slowly introduce the good foods to your
diet.
Developing those
ripped abs
This is the most fun part of building your 6 pack abs. There
are many ways to go about getting your abs thickened but the way that is most
effective is to develop an abs
exercise plan which targets all the regions of your abs from your upper abs
and lower abs to your oblique’s so that you have that dream midsection.
are many ways to go about getting your abs thickened but the way that is most
effective is to develop an abs
exercise plan which targets all the regions of your abs from your upper abs
and lower abs to your oblique’s so that you have that dream midsection.
Abs recover quickly so it is best to work your midsection as
often as you can, at least about 3 times a week if you really want Greg Plitt
like 8 pack abs. At first you will only do a few abs exercises like crunches
and you will struggle but push through the pain, your abs will be in pain for
the next couple of days even though you did not do that many sets or reps for
that matter, but as always your body will adapt and you will need to do more
sets and more reps to achieve the same effect the next time.
often as you can, at least about 3 times a week if you really want Greg Plitt
like 8 pack abs. At first you will only do a few abs exercises like crunches
and you will struggle but push through the pain, your abs will be in pain for
the next couple of days even though you did not do that many sets or reps for
that matter, but as always your body will adapt and you will need to do more
sets and more reps to achieve the same effect the next time.
I have written a lot about abs and shared many abs exercises;
you can start by doing this hardcore
abs workout. The idea is to do exercises that target each region of your
abs, whether you mix the abs exercises for all the regions or you workout one
abs region per ab workout day is up to you. Also you do not need a lot of time
to do ab workouts. You could do them in the morning when you wake up, after
your workouts (for other body parts) or just before you sleep, it all depends
on you.
you can start by doing this hardcore
abs workout. The idea is to do exercises that target each region of your
abs, whether you mix the abs exercises for all the regions or you workout one
abs region per ab workout day is up to you. Also you do not need a lot of time
to do ab workouts. You could do them in the morning when you wake up, after
your workouts (for other body parts) or just before you sleep, it all depends
on you.
The people with the most developed thick abs with those deep
cuts usually lift weights, the heavy lifting involves a lot of core work so
doing heavy squats, dead-lifts, barbell shrugs and so on is a great way to
indirectly work out and thicken your abs.
cuts usually lift weights, the heavy lifting involves a lot of core work so
doing heavy squats, dead-lifts, barbell shrugs and so on is a great way to
indirectly work out and thicken your abs.
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| Training with intensity can burn fat to reveal 6 pack abs |
If diet and abs
exercises don’t reveal your solid abs, turn to cardio
I was used to be skinny and had abs without doing any
cardio, I also bulked up and do not do any cardio and had ripped abs so you
don’t always have to do cardio in order to lose the belly fat. Sometimes
training a very high intensity can give you great results without doing cardio,
look at Adam Charlton for example he is super ripped and does not do cardio.
cardio, I also bulked up and do not do any cardio and had ripped abs so you
don’t always have to do cardio in order to lose the belly fat. Sometimes
training a very high intensity can give you great results without doing cardio,
look at Adam Charlton for example he is super ripped and does not do cardio.
For other people even
after doing abs exercises, and eating well they still do not have the desired
midsection that is when you have to go one step further and do some cardio to
burn that belly fat so your hard work is revealed. The key to doing cardio is
to choose a type of cardio that you enjoy be it a morning jog to help you start
your day, a hectic dance session if you got the moves or a weekly soccer game
with your mates to get your heart pumping. If you enjoy it, it will be
something you look forward to which will help you to do it regularly and get
ripped in the process.
after doing abs exercises, and eating well they still do not have the desired
midsection that is when you have to go one step further and do some cardio to
burn that belly fat so your hard work is revealed. The key to doing cardio is
to choose a type of cardio that you enjoy be it a morning jog to help you start
your day, a hectic dance session if you got the moves or a weekly soccer game
with your mates to get your heart pumping. If you enjoy it, it will be
something you look forward to which will help you to do it regularly and get
ripped in the process.
Train and connect
with like-minded people
If you have a partner or a supportive community that could
motivate you to push harder and inspire you when you feel like giving up.
Training with a partner can give you an edge, you two could be competitive with
one another to see who could do more reps and sets; you could support each
other and encourage each other to push on, as well as hold each other
accountable so you deliver on your promises to yourself and to your partner.
Together with a partner you could set weekly goals and help each other reach
those goals for example setting goals liking increasing the amount of reps you
can do for each abs exercise by 25 per week or increasing your plank time.
motivate you to push harder and inspire you when you feel like giving up.
Training with a partner can give you an edge, you two could be competitive with
one another to see who could do more reps and sets; you could support each
other and encourage each other to push on, as well as hold each other
accountable so you deliver on your promises to yourself and to your partner.
Together with a partner you could set weekly goals and help each other reach
those goals for example setting goals liking increasing the amount of reps you
can do for each abs exercise by 25 per week or increasing your plank time.
I have seen many people on twitter thank the #fitfam for
their support; it is amazing how influential people from across the world can
be. Every month they come up with new goals such as #SquatSeptember last month
and I have seen people doing #OctoAbs
this month; they encourage each other by sharing workouts, diets and progress
pictures.
their support; it is amazing how influential people from across the world can
be. Every month they come up with new goals such as #SquatSeptember last month
and I have seen people doing #OctoAbs
this month; they encourage each other by sharing workouts, diets and progress
pictures.
I hope this post has helped you somehow, realize that
getting abs can be made easier by doing things that you enjoy, having a
sustainable diet , working all abs regions often and by embracing the fitness
family and the power of community.
getting abs can be made easier by doing things that you enjoy, having a
sustainable diet , working all abs regions often and by embracing the fitness
family and the power of community.
