Summer is on its way and what is the first thing that comes to mind when the weather gets warmer??? How am I going to look in my swimsuit? In a plastic surgery study, men and women reported that their abdominal section was the least favorite part on their body.
Lets first get the ab myths out of the way:
• Not everyone will be able to achieve “6 pack abs” genetics do play a very important roll.
• The key to visual abs is to lose body fat, not by doing 1000 crunches.
• Just because the abdominal muscles are visible does not mean they are strong.
• Exercise all you want, but if you do not have the right diet you will never see those abs.
How to get strong, flat abs:
DIET
You must make dietary changes in order to lose body fat. Specifically, you must reduce your calories, and you must reduce or eliminate certain types of food, and replace them with better choices. Starches and sugars cause the body to produce more insulin, and that will cause your body to store more body fat. You can exercise every day, and even if your caloric intake is not exceptionally high some people produce more insulin than others. If you tend to have a weight problem, it’s likely that you are one of those people. Eliminate unnecessary sugars and starches from your diet immediately.
Try getting your carbohydrates from vegetables (brocolli, cauliflower, zuccini, squash, tomatoes, peas, carrots, etc.) and legumes (lentils, black beans, kidney beans, etc.) and also fruits, (bananas, apples, berries). Try to reduce flour products (breads, pasta, crackers, flour tortillas, etc .), as well as potatoes, white rice, and sugar as much as possible., but don’t be afraid to eat avacados, nuts, olive oil, sweet potatoes, and some cheeses. Studies have shown eating more healthy fats and reducing sugars and starches will highly increase fat loss.
TOTAL BODY WORKOUTS
The best approach is a combination of aerobic exercise and whole-body resistance training. Both types of exercise have a different fat loss effect. Resistance training makes all of your muscles more metabolically active, meaning that they burn more calories all day long. Your body eventually learns to conserve fuel while doing aerobic exercise, which means less fat loss. Those who combine weight training with aerobic exercise have a much better rate of fat loss.
Interval training is more efficient that slow, steady pace cardio. 15-30 minutes of alternating high to low heart rates will stimulate your metabolism more.
When doing your weight training, try to emphasize working the larger muscle groups, like your legs, your back and your pectoral muscles. The smaller muscles, like the shoulders and arms, contribute much less to the overall metabolism. For best results, try weight training 3-5 days per week (with either a full-body workout, or a split program where you work different body parts on different days).
AB EXERCISES
Work your abdominal muscles the same way you would work any other muscle in your body – 2 to 3 times per week (not on consecutive days), approximately 3 to 8 sets of 15 to 20 repetitions,
• with full-range-of-motion
• a deliberate contraction at each repetition
• a resistance that challenges the muscle.
In other words, think of your ab exercises like you would your chest or back exercises. You would never think to do 100 partial-range-of-motion reps of a chest or back exercise. Instead, you do slow, deliberate, full-range of motion reps, for 15 – 20. Do the same thing for your abs.
Try these ab exercises:
• Forearm Plank
• Medicine ball or cable-cross twist
• Spinal Extensions (Supermans)
• Supine Leg Lifts
Over all, to get the lean, sexy abs you have been dying for you need to do the work. A proper diet and exercise plan will guide on your way to reach your ultimate goals!!!
By – Shannon Flanagan – CPT