How to Get a Six Pack

It would definitely be much easier to explain how to buy a six pack of your favorite beverage, but that’s not actually what this article is about. Yes, we’re talking about the ever-elusive six pack abdominals, otherwise known as “washboard abs”. There are several factors that go into developing the proverbial “abs of steel”, and this article will detail the primary aspects of what it’s going to take to sculpt those abs into six pack perfection.

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• A strong will to succeed

1. The first thing you will have to accept is that there are no “wonder pills” that are going to supernaturally melt the fat off your midsection—this is going to take some good old-fashioned WORK. And when I say “work” in this context, I am referring to ab-toning and ab-building exercises. When you build muscle, the muscle will burn fat even when you’re sitting idle, so the best way to trim the fat off your waist is through building muscle in those areas. The great thing about working your abs is that due to their incredible resilience and strength, you can actually work them every day without suffering any ill effects. So be prepared to work your abs every single day if you want to truly get a jump start on slimming down and toning up your abdominal area.

2. One of the most famous (and probably most effective) ab exercises is the simple “crunch”. I’m not talking about doing sit-ups; the problem with sit-ups is that at the peak of the movement, you actually relieve the tension off your ab muscles and use more of your back muscles instead…this is not the effect that you’re trying to achieve. When you do crunches, you should lie with your back flat on the floor, and your hands behind your head. Simply lift your upper body (from the stomach up) off the floor to where your back is a little bit less than a 45-degree angle. Be careful not to pull your head up with your hands; this will strain your neck muscles. Truly focus on utilizing every centimeter of your abdominal muscles in this movement. The key is to not let your upper back touch the floor again between repetitions—what you’re after is having constant tension on those ab muscles. Just do this simple movement, up and down, with actually a small range of motion, keeping constant tension on your abdominal muscles. Doing about 50 of these crunches a day (actually, the more the better) will do wonders for shredding those abs into perfection.

3. Do push-ups. The focus of this exercise may not seem to be directly related to your abs, but trust me on this one—doing push-ups forces you to learn how to stabilize your midsection due to you having to keep your back flat during the up-and-down motion. Push-ups will strengthen and tone your abs overall…I recommend doing at least 20 push-ups a day for starters, and more as you go along. Many NFL players do 100 push-ups a day or more…and you know how ripped most of those guys’ abs are.

4. Yes, the dreaded “D” word has to come into play here. You cannot avoid changing your diet if you want to be serious about shredding that abdominal fat. Eating high-fat foods or foods that are heavy on the grease (i.e., French fries, doughnuts, practically anything from fast food places) will do nothing to help you towards your six pack goal. You have to commit to at least reducing the amount of overall fat intake in your diet, and also commit to drinking a LOT more water—remember, water can flush out fat cells and keep toxins from accumulating in your body.

5. Any type of regular cardiovascular training will be good for trimming up the midsection as well, although somewhat indirectly. By cardiovascular training, I mean anything from simply going on a daily jog to full-blown calisthenics. Whatever the flavor of cardio workout you choose, just make sure that it’s good enough to get your heart rate up and your blood flowing…good circulation is always an excellent antidote to excessive fat storage, and is better for your overall health in general.

6. Again, I want to emphasize that the above steps must be done on a CONSISTENT basis to see any type of long-term results. This takes work, and you have to be willing to put in the work to see any real results. Yes, this includes the inevitable time period at the beginning where it doesn’t look like ANYTHING is happening. Just keep at it; the results will come soon enough.

Tips & Warnings

• Consistency is the key to the breakthrough!
• Always, always ALWAYS consult a physician before engaging in any new workout or diet regimen.

[AllFYB]

on 3/31/2009 Great Tips for developing a six pack Abs are so impressive. Thanks

[goodselfme]

on 3/30/2009 Your article to build muscles to get a six pack sure will take work. I will pass on ever achieving that now. I will take into consideration your entire workout system and modify it for my better health. TX

[sonni57]

on 3/26/2009 Good article on how to get a 6 pack it's not as easy as they think it is.

[jaredsgirl]

on 3/15/2009 Ha ha ha. I loved your opening sentence because my first thought was how to "buy" a six pack...your right, it would be easier! Thanks for sharing this article. 5*