The Fastest Way to Get a Six Pack Without Machines
Doing hundreds of crunches daily isn't going to get you a six pack. Crunches may tone and strengthen your abdominal muscles, but without reducing your tummy fat, you will never see them. To get a six pack fast, you have to commit to eating a clean, healthy diet and to getting regular exercise. Workout machines are not needed. All you need is to stay focused on lowering your total body fat so your tummy fat also reduces.
Instructions
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Replace your standard large breakfast, lunch and dinner with six smaller meals or divide them in half to create six smaller meals. Consume a small meal every two to three hours. Eating often provides you with constant energy, prevents overeating and stimulates your metabolism.
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Reduce your carbohydrate intake to stimulate your body to use fat for energy instead. Get less than 40 percent of daily calories from complex carbohydrates such as brown rice and oatmeal. About 40 percent of your daily calories should come from protein. Eat poultry, fish, raw nuts and legumes. Get 20 percent of your daily calories come from unsaturated fats, including canola and olive oil.
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Drink eight glasses of water per day to hydrate the body. A hydrated body allows the liver to efficiently metabolize fat. Your body will also be less likely to retain water.
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Watch your salt intake. Excess salt makes your body bloat and retain water. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends a daily salt consumption of no more than 1,500 milligrams.
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Perform aerobic exercise three days per week for 45 minutes per session. Go walking, running or biking outdoors to burn calories. Include high-intensity cardio into your exercise for a greater caloric burn. Exercise three minutes at low intensity and accelerate to three minutes of high-intensity exercise. Switch back and forth between intensities.
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Perform calisthenic exercises to increase muscle mass. Muscle tissue aids in fat burn by stimulating your metabolism. Use your body weight to perform exercises such as pushups, triceps dips, lunges and squats.
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Perform crunches for your upper abdominals. Lie on your back on the floor with your knees bend and feet on the floor. Place your hands behind your head. Use your abdominal muscles to raise your shoulder blades off the floor. Exhale and bring your body back down to the starting position. Repeat until fatigued and then rest.
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Target the lower abdominal muscles with reverse crunches. Lie in the standard crunch position and raise your knees to a 90 degree angle. Use your abdominal muscles to lift your hips and bring your legs up and inward toward your rib cage. Exhale and lower your hips back down. Repeat until fatigued and then rest.
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Work your obliques with bicycle crunches. Lie on your back on the floor with your knees at a 90 degree angle in the air. Place your hands behind your head. Extend your right leg and bring your left knee in toward your chest. Raise your shoulder blades off the floor and twist from your torso to the left. Visualize bringing your right shoulder toward your left knee. Straighten your torso and lower back down. Repeat the exercise with your right knee and left shoulder. Repeat until fatigued and then rest.
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References
- WebMd: Striving for Six-Pack Abs; Barbara Russi Sarnataro
- Middle Management: 6 Pack Abs Exposed
- Strong Lifts: Fat Loss 101
- Centers For Disease Control And Prevention: Most Americans Should Consume Less Sodium; March 27, 2009
- Bodybuilding.com: What's The Best Calisthenics Workout
- Mayoclinic.com: Abdominal Crunch; Feb. 2, 2010
- Photo Credit Comstock Images/Comstock/Getty Images
