How can I get my ABS faster? This is one of the first questions that personal trainers hear when they meet a new person. Many think that abs is only possible thanks to months, if not years of hard work and many sacrifices.
Is this really the case? Not necessarily, you can get a six-pack much faster. If you do it well. However, exercises for ABS must be combined with a well-balanced diet and cardio training to burn excess body fat.
How to get ABS – the key to success
To get ABS visible on your abdomen, you need two things:
- A low level of body fat (the lower, the better)
- Developed abdominal straight and oblique muscles
Period. It’s as simple as that.
If the level of body fat is low and you do not see “cubes”, it means that you lack muscle mass.
If “cubes” are palpable but invisible, it is due to a high level of body fat and probably excess water.
The abdomen is the same muscle as any other and it is built by strength exercises.
Initially, multi-joint compound exercises such as the deadlift, bench press, squat will give sufficient impulse. Over time, however, you will need to perform exercises targeting the abdominal-lumbar region, as it is with every other muscle part (e.g. a good-morning supplementary exercise is added to the deadlift)
The best way to build ABS is by using isolated exercises after a set of complex exercises, e.g. lifting your legs hanging from a bar, Russian twist, Cable Crunch – Abs, Side bends, Roman bench.
Of course, the abdominal muscles work during most of the exercises (walking, running, swimming, etc), so overloading them with daily training will negatively affect other activities. However, these activities are not a sufficient impulse to develop your abdominal muscles. As with other muscles, there is virtually no sport that would not use strength training.
Therefore, the optimal solution is to train your abdominal muscles during a strength session 2-3 times a week. There are reasonable workouts where it is done only once a week. However, due to faster regeneration, 2-3 workouts in a small volume are a far more effective solution.
Let’s take a closer look at all key points:
6 Pack Abs: All You Need To Know About Getting Abs Faster
First up, let’s understand that everyone has some form of a 6 pack abs. Sure, it might be hidden or shaped differently, but the amount of abdominal definition and the quality of it is reliant on a few, simple, key variables:
Body Fat Levels
This is the overall amount of body fat your body has. For many people, this figure is too high, and you’ll never be able to reveal your 6 pack abs unless this is lessened. You can have the world’s best (hardest) abs, but if your body fat content is too high, you’ll never see them (nor will anyone else). As you can see, shedding excess fat is an essential factor for getting Abs faster.
Abdominal Muscle Mass
Once you have become lean enough, you can do additional ab work, and the increased ab muscle mass will lead to an improvement in ab definition and thickness. Genetics and Abdominal Structure Some individuals tend to store less body fat around their midriff and might seem to have been handed some excellent ab genetics, giving them a very-worthy cover model, or 6-pack look. But not to worry, even if that doesn’t sound like you, my system works for all body types.
Stubborn Areas and Body Fat Storage
Many people store surplus fat around their stomach area. This, in turn, requires them to diet a little harder and to reduce that stubborn fat around the belly, (midriff or core). For a high number of people, the primary focus should be shedding (or stripping back) body fat. This is more crucial around the belly. Some have sufficient ab muscles (core) to give them a head-turning 6-pack, already. All they have to do is become lean enough for it to show. Once you become leaner and can start seeing your 6-pack, then you can add some ab-specific work to help increase your abdominal density and thickness.
Body Fat Level – How Much Is Required for ABS to appear?
Men:
With a body fat percentage below 14%, men can start showing their 6-pack form. Yet, under 10% body fat gives a broader, cover model look, allowing for a more-defined 6-pack, while revealing the lower abs, also.
Women:
Women tend to find they store more body fat than men in general. Once they hit the 20% mark, they can likely start to see their ab outline. This can turn out to be further defined and even more obvious around the 16% mark. Many women can get under 14% body fat when they use the best training methods because fat is stored around organs for protection, during childbirth, especially. The universal 10% body fat rule that most individuals/trainers endorse is perfect. You can go for more or less later, depending upon how you feel, and what seems right for you.
Eating to Promote Your 6-Pack
If your primary goal is to reduce your overall body fat level, then your diet will play a substantial role in this, too. By targeting your nutrition, you can efficiently burn body fat which then helps to reveal your abs and give you that fantastic 6-pack look. And one you can boost with exercise. When a healthy diet is combined with the above exercise methods (HIIT and resistance training), you will start to notice results really soon.
When you have a well-designed healthy weight loss/nutrition plan, you will see there are a few essential variables to master. Here is a quick overview:
Protein:
Protein is crucial when losing fat. Research shows it can help double weight loss while still protecting the hard-earned muscle you already have.
Total Calories:
Total calorie intake or energy balance or is also imperative. Initially, you must consume fewer calories than your body requires. This helps force it to burn your stored body fat. As a general rule for quick weight loss, I suggest you target around 11 to 12 calories per 1 lb. of overall body weight. For an individual weighing 200 lbs., this equates to 2200 – 2400 calories per day. This is just a small amount of information pertaining to six-packs, but I have a complete guide and formula in my title “The six-pack formula” it’s completely free to check it out.
