Your Two Part Exercise Plan For Developing Lean, Flat Abs

If you are looking to build ab muscles that are the envy of your friends or if you have tried to accomplish this in the past but have not been successful then this article will help you get off to a fresh start.

Developing firm abs is not rocket science but it does require two things. The first is the right exercises and the second is consistency. Without either of these you're wasting your time.

The two part exercise plan.

One of the most common misconceptions among those who want to develop eye popping abs is that if they just do enough crunches for a long enough time the abs will magically appear. For those who are carrying excess belly fat they might think that if they work on developing their abs the belly fat will disappear in the process. But that's not how it works.

If you're sporting too much fat around your mid section those abs that you'll work hard to develop will never shine through the blubber. This means you need an exercise plan to get rid of the belly fat and an exercise plan to build your abs. Along with the exercise for eliminating the fat you'll also need to change your eating habits.

Start with looking at what you eat and when. Is your idea of breakfast a donut and coffee or even no breakfast at all? That's like putting water in your car's gas tank. Breakfast is the most important meal in the day and if you short change your body you'll be looking to make up for it later in the morning or at lunch when you may overeat to make up for the lack of fuel you should have started with earlier.

When you miss a meal or don't eat a proper meal your body thinks it's being starved and goes into preservation mode. When you finally do eat your body will store more calories as fat in preparation for the next period of starvation. The answer is to eat food that is high in protein and low in calories. Protein shakes for breakfast are a good way to fill your tank as they are low in calories and high in protein, but there are other choices as well.

Part one of the exercise plan.

Once you've started controlling the calorie intake the next step is to get rid of the belly fat. Your best bet is to do cardio exercises that involve the whole body. These exercises include biking, swimming, jogging (or running), and even rope jumping. Always remember to keep your body well hydrated by drinking lots of water or sports drink. This will also help to flush out the toxins in your system. Belly fat can be hard to get rid of but if you follow this regimen consistently you'll find that fat disappearing before you know it and will allow those abs to shine through when they finally develop.

Part two of the exercise plan

While you're working on your belly fat you can also work on building those abs. Keep in mind that even the best ab exercises, if done wrong, will not produce the results you're looking for. Do not rush through the workout. As you do these as well as your cardio exercises remember to pull your stomach in as if you were trying to squeeze through a tight place. Tightening the stomach muscles will help to give them definition.

Proper breathing is also important as you go through your workouts. Inhale as you begin a body motion and gradually let it out on completion. Do not hold your breath during any part of the cycle.

You should do your ab exercises on alternate days to give your muscles time to recoup. In the interim you can work on your cardio exercises.


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Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Bob_Storrs

How To Get Abs: A Basic Guide For The Genetically Impaired

With most other muscle groups there's a correlation between the effort you put in and the results you get. However, the abdominal muscles are a completely different beast to conquer for most of us. I say most because we all know one of those genetic freaks that are lucky enough to do nothing and eat what they want while still sporting a six-pack. Unfortunately, I'm not one of them.

The good news is that we all can still get six-pack abs regardless of genetics. The only reason you don't have them is because you are probably not training them correctly. When it comes to achieving six-pack abs, most people fail because they focus on things that aren't effective for exposing this overly shy muscle group.

Notice how I said, "exposing"? Not creating, not building, but exposing them. We all have abdominal muscles. They're just hiding behind a layer of fat and fluid. Learning how to get abs doesn't require some ridiculous new ab machine that looks more like a death trap than a training device. It requires a super clean diet and proper training.

It doesn't matter how many crunches you do every day. If your body fat percentage is too high you will never uncover them. Typically, for men to show a six-pack, they need a body fat of less than ten percent. For women, they need a body fat percentage below eighteen percent to get significant definition.

Go ahead and accept the fact that you cannot crunch the fat from your lower abs. Spot reducing fat on the human body is impossible. To lose the fat from your stomach you must burn it off of your entire body by eating a clean diet, doing cardio, and lifting weights.

For cardio, brisk walking on an incline for thirty minutes burns fat quickly. This is a tip that is more for men that don't want to lose muscle mass in the process of lowering body fat. For men, too much cardio results in muscle loss. If done correctly though, you can decrease the loss of muscle.

Don't do ab exercises every day. Just like the rest of your muscles, they need rest too. They cannot repair properly from earlier workouts if they aren't rested enough. At the most, train them two times per week. If you wanted to improve your biceps you wouldn't do curls every day would you? Of course not. You would work them once or twice a week. Your workouts should consist of you training major muscle groups separately on specific days. For example, train your chest on Mondays, back muscles on Tuesdays, shoulders on Wednesdays, and legs on Thursdays. Then do your ab work on Fridays. Get some form of cardio in at the end of each training session. Working major muscle groups like this will help train your core as much if not more than concentrated ab exercises.

The above information for how to get abs is the easiest part of the process. The most difficult, yet influential part, is the diet. Achieving six-pack abs is at least 75% diet and 25% training. Get your diet right and use the above tips and you will eventually start seeing those ab muscles pop out. The key is commitment and long-term discipline. Success will not happen overnight, within a week, or month even. You have to change your lifestyle to get and keep an awesome looking six-pack.


For more detailed information on getting your six pack please visit: How To Get Abs

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Wes_Holyfield