Creating the Six Pack...

 

Have you ever wondered why after performing hundreds and thousands of abdominal specific exercises like sit-ups that you never get that much closer to losing weight and creating a more toned stomach. In fact many will never make any progress at all towards dream of a six pack because they are not going about it the right way.


Mike Bach explains how to approach this issue in a way that will help strip fat off your midsection as well as the rest of your body

 

 

 

Numerous consultations with future clients and conversations with many others fitness participants will inevitably draw into the same subject time and time again whether that persons aim is weight loss, muscle gain, sports specific or fitness. They want to look better and especially have a flatter stomach and better still get some abs! Maybe you’ve heard the same question from yourself or another in one of these contexts…


•    How do I get defined abs?
•    Everything else is okay but I’d like to focus on a flatter stomach
•    I’ve been doing 1000 sit-ups a day but still don’t get no abs
•    I’ve been doing loads of ab exercises but still no progress and now my back hurts!

 

Sound familiar? Having a lean mid-section comes top on a lot of peoples most wanted list!

 

I’m going to tell you that the secret to having a leaner, more defined abdominal section does not come from doing 1000’s of old school sit-ups and instead talk about how your overall training and nutrition program will develop better results.

 

A flatter stomach or defined abs come as a result of lowering your body fat levels, which in turn will lead to a lower proportion of fat tissue around the waist and belly region.  While fat is distributed across the whole of your body (if you’ve ever had measurements taken with callipers you’d remember that skinfold readings would be taken from your arm, back and hips), it is fair to say that it is not evenly distributed in most cases and is relatively more stubborn in the waist and hip region. AT the very least, it’s where we are more likely to notice it.

 

Therefore, it makes sense that to shift fat in general and eventually target the more stubborn regions, that performing exercise across all muscles and joints of the body will bring about the most success. By targeting all areas you will eventually get to the toughest areas!

 

For body fat loss to occur, you must first get the fat cell to release the fat into the bloodstream. Then, the free fatty acids must be delivered to the working muscles where they are burned for energy.

 

By working the muscles and the joints across the whole of the body, you will be burning this energy and lowering your bodyfat more so than doing countless abdominal exercises. Thousands of sit-ups will burn calories to some degree and contribute to a calorie deficit. They are only working one muscle group though.  Resistance training and other forms of intense exercise that utilise the whole body will exceed this amount significantly.

 

For resistance training, use large compound movements that make use of several joints. The more muscles that are working, the more energy that will be used!

 

Combine your resistance training with high intensity interval training (HIIT) to burn more calories for the time you exercise and also create a fat-burning environment after completion. Interval training is a series of intense activity separated with short periods of rest, thus allowing you to perform more exercise at a higher intensity. That’s not to say that typical garden-variety cardio exercise does not have its benefits and can also be included. We’re just talking about getting the biggest gains with HIIT

 

No matter how gruelling you think your exercise regime is, you cannot out train a lousy diet. It's an error to think that 1,000 reps of ab work a day will make your abs magically appear when your diet is a disaster and that's leading to fat storage. It’s not that ab exercises aren’t important. But all the ab exercises in the world won't help as long as you still have body fat covering the muscles. You can't "spot reduce" with just abdominal work.

 

One saying is that “abdominals are made in the kitchen, not in the gym," and there's a lot of truth to that. You can do thousands of reps of ab work every week, but if your nutrition is not in order, you can forget about getting a great lean stomach.

 

1.    Create a calorie deficit; meaning energy consumed by food and drink is exceeded by energy burnt by way of your fitness regime. For beginners, healthy eating choices outlined further below should automatically provide a deficit. For others, number crunching may have to be used to ensure this deficit does exist – see below.

 

2.    Create a calorie deficit about 15-20% below your calorie maintenance level. If you use a more aggressive calorie deficit of 25-30%, then do not keep calories too low for too long; increase calories to maintenance or maintenance +10-15% 1-2 days per week.

 

3.    Spread your calories into 5-6 smaller meals instead of 2-3 big ones. Be very conscious of portion size. If you eat too much of anything (even "healthy" food), you can say goodbye to your abs. Period.

 

4.    Eat a source of complete, high quality lean protein with each meal (egg whites, lean meat, fish, protein powder, etc)

 

5.    Choose natural, complex carbs such as vegetables (especially the greens), oatmeal, sweet potatoes, potatoes, brown rice and whole grains. Start with aprox. 50% of your calories from natural carbs and reduce carbs slightly (esp. late in the day) if you are not losing fat. Most people overeat where starchy carbs are concerned like pots and rice so generally speaking, a reduction from normal portion sizes will be required.

 

6.    Avoid refined, processed, simple carbs that contain white flour or white sugar.

 

7.    Keep total fats low and saturated fats low. Aim for 20% of your total calories from fat (and no more than 30%). A little bit of "good fat" fish fat, nuts & seeds, etc is better than a no fat diet. Essential fatty acids actually assist the fat burning process.

 

8.    Drink plenty of water – at least 3 litres is a good ballpark guide to stay hydrated and over-eating

 

Also adapt your specific abdominal training by creating more resistance and fewer repetitions in the exercises used instead of thousands of lightweight movements. Performing such high volumes will create great endurance in these muscles, not a bad thing at all. There does come a time when the strength of these muscles can be tested and stimulated further by using a reistance that challenges the abdominal group. It should also prevent any pulling in the lower back region that becomes commonplace with high volume and poor technique when the muscle becomes exhausted.

 

Also add core stability exercises to your abdominal routine. Not only do these help in the prevention/rehabilitation of bad posture and back problems. They also strengthen the trunk and pelvic region allowing for better performance while and create a toning and reduction of a wobbly midsection! I have known inches to be taken off using core exercises but that’s for another discussion.

 

Remember to create that calorie deficit by increasing your exercise intensity and making better choices in the kitchen and you’re well on the way to a stomach you want without hours of sit-ups!

Mike Bach