Tag six pack abs

Having six pack abs is the dream of many a guy…

Alas, the ability to take off the shirt and wow the girls is a fantasy is a dream come true.

Every year millions of dollars are spent on eBooks, paperbacks, gym memberships, weird ab contraptions sold on the late night infomercials, etc. The goal is the elusive six pack abs that so many want but so few achieve.

What You Need To Do For Six Pack Abs

The answer is simple. You need to watch what you eat, work out often and maintain a calorie deficit. It is that simple! So why do so many people fail?

Execution is the answer my friend, execution. The difficulty is executing the simple concepts stated above. It requires immense determination, dedication, patience and the ability to sacrifice small pleasures in life for the greater goal.

The first and most important step is to get your nutrition under control. Your diet needs to be clean and wholesome. This is so difficult to achieve that most guys never get past this step.

For Six Pack Abs Gaining Control over Your Diet is Top Priority

It’s not easy to give up the habit of eating whatever you desire and maintain an ever watchful eye over every morsel you place in your mouth. People with six packs watch their diets with an eagle eye and they do it religiously. No exceptions and no slip ups. Your diet is everything.

So, you will need to do the research and find out what are the foods you should avoid. The sodas, chocolates, pizzas, fried chicken wings, etc. Even reading this may be painful but it is a sacrifice that you must make. All is not lost. You may consume all these foods once a week on your cheat day.

The strange thing is that many people slowly develop an aversion to most of this unhealthy food once they start eating clean.

For Six Pack Abs Gaining Control over Your Exercise Routine is Second Priority

The next part of your plan will be to get your workouts right. You should be exercising no less than 4 times a week. 5 would be great. You’ll need to alternate between cardio workouts and resistance training or do a workout routine that is a combination of both; think kettlebells.

Your workouts must be intense and leave you panting and sweating profusely. Even your resistance training must have very short rest periods to create an oxygen deficit. This will cause an afterburn effect where your body burns calories for hours after your workout.

You will want to include compound movements such as pull-ups, deadlifts, squats, bench presses, renegade rows and other compound lifts. Working out with kettlebells is an excellent way to lose weight. Your core will be engaged and it will be a hard yet rewarding workout.

Cardio sessions need to be high intensity too. A 20 minute hardcore session will beat a slow 60 minute jog any day. Keep thinking intensity, intensity and more intensity.

It will be painful. You may feel like giving up. The whole six pack goal may not seem worth the effort. If you feel like this, then you know you are doing things right. Just pick yourself up and keep going.

Watch videos on YouTube and the ones found here at http://MyFitnessNut.com to motivate yourself. The six pack abs you want is already there and it’s waiting for you to develop and shoe them off. You just need to go through the hard yards to attain it. Rest assured if you keep on keeping on, you will get there.

The number one mistake thousands of guys make when trying to get ripped abs is assuming that doing countless reps of crunches or other ab exercises is going to get them ripped. Nothing could be further from the truth.

Most of the ab exercises such as sit-ups, crunches and even leg raises tend to be isolation exercises. That means these exercises will tone and work the abs and only the abs. But that is a good thing right?

I’m afraid not. I’m assuming your body fat percentage is above 10 percent. If it was 10 percent or lower, you wouldn’t need to read this article. You would already have ripped abs.

Compound Exercises Burn Fat to Expose Ripped Abs Faster

In order to see your abs, you need a low body fat percentage. The best exercises to burn off the fat are compound exercises and NOT isolation exercises. Knowing the difference is key.

A bicep curl is an isolation exercise because it only works the bicep. A barbell deadlift is a compound exercise; you will work your legs, thighs, hamstrings, lower back and even your forearms. Your core muscles are not spared either. So, when 1 single exercise recruits so many muscle groups, you can bet that is a lot of work done.

Your body will burn more calories and that means more fat is burned. You may research online the different compound exercises that you can do. I’ll list a few that you can start on immediately.

• Deadlifts
• Renegade Rows
• Snatches
• Pull-ups
• Squats
• Bench Presses
• Mountain Climbers
• Kettlebell Training
• Dumbbell Training

These are some of the top exercises I’d strongly recommend learning. When doing them, you need to aim for a weight that will allow you to do about 10 to 12 reps. Combine the different exercises and do 3 sets in total.

Keep you rest time between exercises and sets minimal. I’d suggest a 15 to 20 seconds rest between exercises and a 2 minute rest between sets. Your goal is to complete the workout as fast as possible while maintaining good form for each exercise.

Intensity in Your Workout is Crucial to Reveal Ripped Abs

This will ensure intensity in your workout which is so crucial in burning fats. Keep your workout to about 20 – 45 minutes depending on the exercises you choose and the shape you are in. Record your workout and the duration in a journal. Try and improve your timing each time you work out. Once you can’t improve it further, add more weight and start all over again.

You will want to change up your routine every moth or six weeks. This will keep your body guessing and you will not hit a plateau. Mix up your resistance training with cardio and work different major muscle groups on different days.

On days where you are not working with weights, go for a run or swim. Cycling, skipping and rowing are other excellent forms of cardio. The 2 most effective ones are running and skipping. They will give your body a heart pounding workout that will elevate your metabolic rate and cause an oxygen deficit. This translates to optimum fat burning. Even 30 minutes of hard cardio can make your body burn fat for hours.

You want to get the maximum benefit from your workouts. This will speed up the duration it takes to get ripped. You will be more motivated when you start seeing results. So, follow the tips above closely and you will have won half the battle.

Learn More about Fitness Nutrition and How To Reveal Ripped Abs

To help you create the six-pack abs that you’d like to call yours, get a free subscription to the My Fitness Nut Newsletter at http://MyFitnessNut.com and receive a full body workout video series to help get you into shape fast. Get yours now while we’re still giving them away.

The answer is that if you’re determined… It takes as long as required. Many men or women who wish to get a six pack always ask this question. How long will it take?

They want results fast. We live in a world of microwaves and text messages. Everything is fast and almost instant. So, it’s only normal to expect to see your six pack abs after 2 weeks of slow jogging.

But this will never ever happen unless you are already at 10 percent body fat and most people are way above that number.

Your body will burn off your excess fat slowly but surely and even then you will need to be doing the right workouts consistently and consuming a proper healthy diet.

You Can Calculate When Your Six Pack Abs Reveal Themselves…

But Not How Long It Will Take

Your body can only lose about 1 percent of your body weight per week. So, if you are 150 lbs., you can expect to lose about 1.5 lbs. per week if you are creating a daily calorie deficit of about 500 calories per day. So, if you need to lose 15 lbs. to reach a body fat percentage of 10 percent, that will take you about 10 weeks… or maybe even 3 months if your body plateaus and stops showing results for a week or two.

This happens even to the best athletes. The body decides to just stop burning the fat for some reason only it knows. You will then have to change up your workouts or your diet or go from intense cardio to long, slow cardio.

Sometimes the nervous system is under immense stress due to hard workouts constantly. The stress on your body puts it in shock and it goes into preservation mode. It holds on to whatever fat it can and you see no results on the scale.

Many people, who experience this, take a few days rest from training, or switch to lower intensity training. Basically, take things down a notch so that the body can recover and go back into fat burning mode.

So, it does take time. Nobody can give you an exact date when you will see your six pack abs. You will just have to stay the course till you reach your goal. You must be happy with small results over a longer period as long as you are seeing results, and the pounds on the scale are dropping, you will see your six pack abs.

You will need to calculate your daily calorie requirement for maintenance and the figure you need to be at to create a calorie deficit. You will also need to measure your body fat percentage. This is an important number to know because if you’re a man, you will need to get your body fat to a percentage of 10 or below. Women should aim for a body fat percentage below 20 percent. It may be difficult but it is definitely attainable.

Once you reach this level, your abs will be revealed and all the hard work will have paid off. It takes time but the best things in life usually do. That’s what makes it such an accomplishment and you will be one of the 2 percent who do have a six pack; definitely something to be proud of.

Learn More about Fitness Nutrition and Getting Six-Pack Abs

To help you create the six-pack abs that you’d be proud to call yours, get a free subscription to the My Fitness Nut Newsletter at http://MyFitnessNut.com and receive a full body workout video series to help get you into shape fast. Get yours now while we’re still giving them away.

There is a saying in bodybuilding, “Abs are made in the kitchen, not the gym.” That basically means, that you will only see your abs if you watch what you eat. Is it true? Definitely! It is gospel!

You can give your best at the gym and train till your heart feels like it’s going to explode or your muscles are about to burst but if your diet is not good, all your efforts will be in vain and you will never ever see a six pack. You will be fit but you just will not have a six pack.

Why?

Because for a guy to see his six pack abs, his body fat percentage should be around 10 percent or below. Even the genetically blessed guys will have to be around 11 to 12 percent. So, every calorie you eat counts.

Stick with Six Days for Six Pack Abs

Your diet needs to be clean and healthy. You may have one cheat day a week where you go berserk and moderately stuff yourself with your favorite foods. In fact, it is highly recommended that you have 1 cheat day a week. This will motivate you, make you happier and it will boost your metabolism so that your body does not go into starvation mode.

You will want to eat single ingredient foods on the other 6 days. That means you will want to avoid processed foods such as pizza, pasta, etc. A single ingredient food would be chicken breast, broccoli, fruits, etc. It sounds cliché but it is these foods that will give you the six pack. You need the right proportion of protein, carbs and fats and they must be derived from healthy sources.

Foods That Turn Your Six Pack Abs into One Pack Abs

There are some foods that are cardinal sins to consume. Eating these will just about guarantee that you never have six pack abs. Not only do they pile on the calories but some are not even good for your body.

Avoid white flour products. Bread, pastries, cakes, etc. Avoid white rice too. These foods have a high glycemic index. What that means is that these foods will trigger an insulin response in your body. When your insulin levels spike, that is not good for fat loss. You want to maintain a steady insulin level in your body.

Avoid sodas including the diet sodas which contain aspartame. Many people have reported on the ill effects of aspartame. Nothing is proven yet but let’s err on the side of caution and just avoid them. Drink water. It is your best friend. Your body needs water to metabolize fats.

Avoid dairy products and milk. There are 2 groups of people. One who think dairy is good and the other who think it’s bad. My suggestion, stick with the water. Always.

Ice cream, candy, popcorn, pizza, pasta, peanuts, pancakes, junk food, etc. are all foods that must be kept at bay. The fact of the matter is this. You already know the foods to avoid. Deep down you know. It’s the sacrifices that make the process so difficult.

Maintain your determination and discipline with your diet and the elusive six pack will be yours in no time at all. You are what you eat.

Learn More about Fitness Nutrition and Getting Six-Pack Abs

To help you create the six-pack abs that you’d like to call yours, get a free subscription to the My Fitness Nut Newsletter at http://MyFitnessNut.com and receive a full body workout video series to help get you into shape fast. Get yours now while we’re still giving them away.

Do I Need Protein Shakes and Supplements To Get Six Pack Abs?

The muscle magazines and supplement manufacturers will have you believing that by taking the latest supplements, you will become a fat burning machine with bulging biceps, pulsating pectorals and tree trunk thighs and fully defined six pack abs. Words like ‘breakthrough discovery’, ‘scientific formula’, ‘serum’, etc. are used to hype up their claims.

So the big question is if you need to buy these costly supplements? No. That’s it. A simple no.

Six pack abs are not defined by supplements or hype. They can only be achieved with hard work, correct nutrition, determination, discipline and patience. Yes, this sounds boring when compared to the supplements’ sales pitch. It’s so boring that you know it’s true.

If you have watched documentaries of farmers or laborers in Africa slogging it out in the heat, you will notice that many of them are ripped. They have the ‘onion skin’ look. They look ripped and have abs. They are not on supplements. So how did they get abs?

Body fat percentage. That’s how. These farmers are on a diet that is low in carbs and most of them do not eat the processed junk food that we normally do. Their manual labor burns off their calories and fat stores.

Since, they have such a low body fat percentage, their six pack abs show in all their full glory. This is what you need to aim for. To bring your body fat percentage to 10 percent or below. Once you do that, by diet and exercise you will be ripped too.

Good Diet and Workouts for Six Pack Ab Success

While on your six pack abs quest, your diet will have to be clean. All your calories will need to come from wholesome, healthy foods. Your protein sources will come from tuna, chicken breast, turkey meat, etc. Your carbs will come from vegetables such as broccoli, carrots, asparagus, etc. Your fats will come from sources such as olive oil, peanut butter, etc.

You will want to avoid sodas, junk food, white bread, white rice and other foods with a high GI index.

Protein Shakes Helpful but Not Necessary to Build Six Pack Abs

While protein shakes are not necessary, if you can afford them, they will make things convenient. For example, if you need to eat some protein and you do not have the time or energy to steam or cook a chicken breast, then making a quick protein shake will deliver the same amount of protein.

They are just a quick substitute for a normal meal. These shakes are a means to an end and not an end itself. The ads will have you believing that the shakes and serums will burn your fat off and put on slabs of muscle on your body. That is not true.

Only hard training and a proper diet can give you the abs you want. The shakes are just there to make life a little simpler. There is no shake that can give you benefits that normal food can’t. The only difference is that protein powders and other supplements are more expensive.

My advice would be to get your diet and training spot on. Once you are going with the flow, then you may take your time and consider if these supplements are really necessary. Most often, your results from good training and nutrition will be so good that you will not even think about forking out money on supplements.

Learn More about Fitness and Getting Those Six Pack Abs You Really Want

To help you create the six-pack abs that you would like to call your own, get a free subscription to the My Fitness Nut Newsletter at http://MyFitnessNut.com and receive a full body workout video series to help get you into shape fast. Get yours now while we’re still giving them away.

This is an excellent question and it does make me smile. There was an info product created by an excellent marketer claiming to provide shortcuts to getting a six pack. The whole fitness community online was in an uproar calling the guy a snake oil salesman, liar and other things I shall not mention here thus avoiding giving this article a PG 13 rating.

The fact of the matter is that there are no shortcuts. That being said, I can also understand what the marketer was trying to mean when he said ‘shortcuts’. He meant getting the best results in the least amount of time.

Is this possible?

Yes, but there is a price to pay. However, I’d gladly pay that price.

Let me explain. If you do a slow cardio workout such as jogging for 60 minutes, you will burn about 250 to 300 calories during those 60 minutes. However, once you stop, your metabolic rate will drop and taper off real fast. Your body will not be in fat burning mode for the rest of the day.

High Intensity Interval Training Burns Fat with Effectiveness

However, if you engage in a high intensity interval training (HIIT) for 30 minutes which involves sprinting uphill for 1 minute. Then resting for 1 minute and sprinting back downhill for 1 minute and you repeat this 15 times, you may not have burned as many calories as the 60 minute jog but, this is where it gets interesting…

The 30 minute workout will leave you gasping and panting because of the sheer intensity. You will be sweating profusely and your heart will be pumping like crazy. What you have done is create and oxygen deficit and an afterburn effect. Your body will now be burning fat for the next 8 to 10 hours. Some studies have shown that the fat burning effects last for up to 18 hours.

The point to note here is that a 30 minute workout has more benefits to your six pack quest than an hour long workout. Is this a shortcut? Definitely. You spent less time and burnt more fat. Is there a price to pay? Yup! You truly suffered during your workout. It was tiring and painful. Was it worth it? Hell yeah!

The same applies to weight training or resistance training. You can go to the gym and spend an hour doing bicep curls, tricep curls and using the calf raise machine. You may even take a 10 minute rest with every set or ogle like a fool at the girl with the hot pants on the treadmill. Will that be effective?

Nope. Instead, you may go and do a 45 minute workout that involves compound exercises such as deadlifts, snatches, renegade rows, pull-ups, etc. with minimal rest time and you would have achieved more in 45 minutes than someone who spends 90 minutes doing slow or moderate workouts.

Is that a shortcut? Yes!

Price to pay? Yes… pain and effort.

Worth it? Yes definitely.

So, in this case, shortcuts do not mean an easier way but a faster way to achieve results while working your butt off. The shortcuts are more tiring. They save you time by making you more efficient but they are tough.

I’d suggest training hard and tough for shorter periods. It’s more challenging, fun and the results that come sooner will motivate you to do more. Next thing you know, you’ll be the guy at the gym with a six pack that other guys are only dreaming of.

Learn More about Fitness and Making Six-Pack Abs Your Reality

To help you create the six-pack abs that you would like to call your own, get a free subscription to the My Fitness Nut Newsletter at http://MyFitnessNut.com and receive a full body workout video series to help get you into shape fast. Get yours now while we’re still giving them away.

This is an excellent question because there is a common saying among those in the bodybuilding community that abs are made in the kitchen and not the gym. It’s catchy but more importantly, it’s true.

I’d say that 75 percent of your six pack success is resting on your diet choices. Your diet will ultimately determine if you ever see your abs or just keep working out but getting no closer to your dream.

Will Getting Six Pack Abs Escape You?

Many people do not realize that only 2 percent of the world’s population can claim to have six pack abs. With our current diets and food choices, obesity is on the rise and getting a lean, mean set of abs seems to be becoming more elusive.

In order for a man to see his abs in full glory, he’ll need to drop his fat percentage to 10 percent or even lower into the single digits. About 8 or 9 percent body fat will reveal shredded washboard abs. Sounds beautiful, doesn’t it?

But the sacrifices are not easy. Many guys are more than capable of giving their best and working out like crazy in the gym. They’ll pump out the sets and reps till they are dripping with sweat. These same guys will then go home, eat a pizza, wash it down with a diet soda and top it all off with a candy bar.

Their theory is that since they work out so hard, they can make these small allowances in their diet and they’ll still be able to burn off the calories. This is exactly the reason why after months of training they still can’t see their abs. For every step forward, they’ve taken two steps back.

When you put in an intense workout at the gym, you’re trying to raise your metabolic rate, create an oxygen deficit and aim for an afterburn effect where you burn calories for hours even after your workout is over. You do not train to give yourself a license to eat whatever you want later on in the day.

Every calorie that is not derived from proper food sources is an extra calorie. These calories all add up and translate to fat stores. A 60 minute run on the treadmill will burn about 400 to 500 calories.

1 slice of pizza is around 230 to 300 calories. Eat 2 slices and you have just cancelled out an entire workout! You do not want to waste your calories on junk food, to see your abs; you will need a calorie deficit till all your fat stores are burned off. That may take a while. Don’t make it longer by consuming calories that are not beneficial.

You need to be on a very clean diet. Eat proper foods like chicken breast, broccoli, eggs, fruits in moderation, green vegetables, etc. These are single ingredient foods. Avoid processed foods, dairy products and white foods such as white rice and white bread.

Once you have got your diet on track, your workouts will have double the effect since your body will not have unnecessary calories to burn. It can access the fat stores and burn off the stubborn belly fat slowly but surely. Then and only then can you ever hope to see your abs.

Learn More about Making Your Six-Pack Abs In the Kitchen

To help you create the six-pack abs that you would like to call your own, get a free subscription to the My Fitness Nut Newsletter at http://MyFitnessNut.com and receive a full body workout video series to help get you into shape fast. Get yours now while we’re still giving them away.

This is a question that has run through many guys’ minds as they have struggled over and over to get the washboard abs that gets the girls sighing. It looks so easy on the television with all the guys walking around parading their abs like it’s so normal. So why is it so difficult to get six pack abs?

Firstly, do not believe everything you see on TV. The directors are not going to cast a fat slob as an action hero. Even the major stars go on ridiculous diets and hardcore training for months before even getting in front of the camera. Henry Cavill took 11 months to train for Man of Steel.

Building Your Six Pack Abs Takes Patience

Patience is crucial. To see your abs, your training sessions must be intense and rewarding. You will need to combine resistance training with cardio workouts on alternate days. You will need to be doing full body workouts comprising mostly of compound movements.

Your cardio sessions must be of high intensity. You will end up panting and gasping for air on most sessions. Your shirts will be soaking with sweat after every workout. You will have to raise your metabolic rate and your workouts must be tough enough to create an oxygen deficit and produce lactic acid.

When you create an oxygen deficit, your body experiences an after-burn effect. What that means is your body will be in fat burning mode for 8 to 12 hours after your workout. This after-burn effect only occurs if you work out at full intensity.

Building Your Six Pack Abs Requires Strict Fitness Nutrition.

Your diet must be spot on. You will need to watch everything that you put inside your mouth. You can’t consume empty calories such as sodas or candy or chocolates. You’ll need to be on a clean, wholesome diet comprising of the correct amounts of protein, fats and carbohydrates. Above all this, your calorie consumption must be at a deficit of about 500 calories of your daily requirement.

This is where most guys falter. They can’t handle the diet. Or rather, the sacrifices just seem too much. The body starts craving for the usual unhealthy food. The pizzas, burgers, pasta, beer and other wonderful delights just keep beckoning to them. They give in a little and eat a slice here and have a sip there and sooner or later, they’re eating whatever they want.

The workouts can’t compensate for their poor diet. The calories accumulate and instead of losing fat, in some cases they gain fat. This is even more depressing and makes them want to quit. They do not understand that they are sabotaging themselves. They fail to realize that it takes time to get a six pack and there are sacrifices.

It is not as easy as the movies make it out to be. Only about 2 percent of the world’s population has ripped abs. There is a reason for that. It’s difficult but it is NOT unattainable. It is not a dream that cannot be achieved.

Anybody who really wants a six pack bad enough and is willing to endure the sacrifices, go through the hard yards and have patience will see his six pack. That is almost a guarantee. It is a dream that can come true.

Learn More about Making Your Six-Pack Abs Dream Come True

To help you create the six-pack abs that you would like to call your own, get a free subscription to the My Fitness Nut Newsletter at http://MyFitnessNut.com and receive a full body workout video series to help get you into shape fast. Get yours now while we’re still giving them away.

Getting a six pack is tough work. It really is. It’ll take determination, time, hard work, patience, sacrifices and motivation. There is no hiding the truth. This is one of the toughest goals to achieve.

Things may be worse if you go about it wrongly without knowing what to do. Not only would you have wasted time and effort, it may also discourage you and make you give up. We certainly do not want that.

This article has 5 pointers for you to take note of. I can safely say that if you follow these 5 tips to the letter, there is an over 90 percent probability that you will attain your six pack goal.

Five Important Six Pack Ab Necessities

1. Get your six pack diet right

Sounds obvious but so few do it. You will need to find out your calorie requirements for the day and how many calories you should be hitting to get a calorie deficit to attain a loss of 1 lb. a week.

Avoid foods such as pastries, pasta, candy, sodas, etc. You can do a quick online search with Google to see which the foods you should be avoiding or visit this page http://myfitnessnut.com/healthy-nutrition-guide for lots of great tips concerning fitness nutrition.

2. Do not starve yourself

Many people make this mistake. They cut their calories too quickly and drastically. When this happens, the body goes into starvation mode and holds on to every bit of fat that it can. Your metabolism will also drop. You do not want this.

Drop your calories sensibly using the diet tips at the page above. There are no instant results to be had, nor are there shortcuts to a chiseled six pack.

3. Workout regularly for six pack success

You must be training at least 4 to 5 times a week. Intensely. You will need to mix up cardio and resistance training. Your cardio workouts should be high intensity with little time for rest.

Your resistance training routines will involve compound movements such as squats, bench presses, dips, pull-ups, snatches, renegade rows, deadlifts, etc. Compound movements enlist the aid of major muscle groups. It’s a complete full body workout.

You will burn way more calories this way. Lactic acid will also be produced and that is good because it aids fat loss. If your workouts are intense, your body will be burning fat for hours after you have stopped. That’s what you want.

4. Drink water

Water is so essential to fat loss. Drink lots of water and your body will metabolize the fat and remove toxins faster. You should be aiming for 8 to 10 glasses a day. As with all things, don’t overdo it and drink too much water.

5. Have one cheat day a week

This is very important. A cheat day will ease the mental torture of going through a strict diet and training regimen. It gives your body a chance to indulge in its favorite food. This can be very motivating and refreshing. It’s like a reward for all the hard work.

Another benefit is the surge in metabolism your body will create due to this sudden surplus in calories. It’s fat burning mode all over again.

If you follow these five tips, you will surely get a six pack in due time. Put in the effort, stay the course and be patient. That’s the only way to make your six pack dream come true.

Learn More About Creating Six-Pack Abs of Your Very Own

To help you create the six-pack abs that you would like to call your own, get a free subscription to the My Fitness Nut Newsletter at http://MyFitnessNut.com and receive a full body workout video series to help get you into shape fast. Get yours now while we’re still giving them away.