How do I get 6 pack abs?

[KaraBulut]

Based upon the pictures you posted recently, you already have a 6 pack (or perhaps an 8 pack- your jeans weren't quite low enough to tell ).

All you really need is to add crunches and some oblique work to your routine to tone the muscles and build them up a little bit. You're lucky in that you are pretty lean already and if you increase your cardio now that the holidays are over, you should see some pretty good results.

There are a bunch of different abs routines here:
http://www.physicalfitnet.com/exercise_video_browse_by/primary_muscle_group-abs_and_obliques.aspx

Start with the basics:

• Crunch With Arms Across Chest
• Crunch With Arms Across Chest and Feet Up
• Crunch and Rotation With Arms Overhead and Medicine Ball
• Bicycle

As you begin building resistance and these get easier, you can add some of the other more complicated crunches to stress your muscles more.

 

[gotdimples77]

does dating a Bel Ami model count? From what I have read you have to have very low body fat content for them to show, no matter how ripped your abs are. Tons and tons of cardio/aerobics and low fat diet are the only way to reduce body fat.

 

[KaraBulut]

Thanks I'll definitely try to impliment some of this into my workout. If they come, great.. if not, not a huge deal I guess. I rather be fit and healthy that's the most important thing

These are exercises that all guys should be doing.

As we get older, our abdominals get weaker and jobs that require sitting for long periods of time exacerbate the problem.

Six pack or not, if you will do these abdominal exercises daily, you'll do a lot to help your core strength and prevent lower back problems.

 

[Corny]

and I just read a few days ago that if you do too many crunches you will have back problems sooner or later because the muscles shorten ..

 

[AverageJoe]

First off, you look good already.

Getting a six pack takes a low body fat. I'd say you probably have to be 8% or less to actually count the muscles well. I'd guess you at 9%, so you're really close. The people you see in pictures probably have 5-7% body fat, photoshop, or some combination of the two.

Just something else to think about, dieting can worsen depression in some people. If you decide to do it, it might be a good idea to talk to a doctor first.

As for exercises, I say skip the crunches. Treat your abs like any other muscle and use weighted exercises. 8-12 reps per set, 4 sets, high weight, and protein. If your school has a gym, it probably has ab machines. You want to hit the abs, obliques, and your back. (It takes a strong back to support strong ab exercises.) Don't exercise your abs more than every other day if you take this route.

I used to do crunches, bicycles, etc, and I did get some definition, but nothing like I got from machines and free weights. Body fat is still key though.

 

[AverageJoe]

Thanks.. i use ab machines at my school gym, but I was worried I use them too much. I'm already seeing a change in my abs.. so maybe it just takes time.. I was wondering how to make them cut and defined though.

Those machines are probably sufficient by themselves, but here are a few recommendations if you just want to mix it up:

Isometric exercises like the plank, side plank, and straight leg dead lift are good supplements.

There's also an advanced variant of the plank I like. Start off like normal, but extend your right arm out and lift your left leg off the ground. Basically, you have one arm and the opposing leg on the ground. You have to use your abs to not only maintain the plank but your balance as well. Hold for as long as you can then switch. I usually try to hold for 90-120 secs. It's brutal.

You can also grab a weigh plate and do situps on a decline bench. This gives you the freedom to rotate to each side while doing the situp to hit the obliques as well, and because it's a free movement, it recruits more muscles.

As far as I know, those are pretty much the best/most advanced ab exercises. They take a really strong back. Once you can do them with a 45lb weight plate or hold the plank for 2 minute, you've pretty much maxed them out. That's the only downside. Most people just start doing high rep sets (i.e. 40 reps), but I don't see the point in that. After 10 reps, you're pretty much just doing cardio.

 

[KaraBulut]

and I just read a few days ago that if you do too many crunches you will have back problems sooner or later because the muscles shorten ..

I don't know that I've read any research that came to that conclusion. There is some evidence that the obsessive nature of some guys can cause imbalance issues- where guys overwork certain muscle groups and neglect others.

For example, there's always that guy who comes to the gym and does nothing for an hour except bench press. When they end up with knee or lower back issues, it's because they've overdeveloped their upper body and neglected the core muscles and leg muscles that are needed to carry the extra load.

The same is true of guys that focus on their 6 pack but neglect to work the oblique (side) abdominals and the lower back. This can cause an inequality where the rectus muscle in the center is stronger than the oblique and erector muscle groups. And any case where one side of the body is stronger than the opposite side can cause problems and make the person more prone to injury.

 

[Corny]

I have not looked but I am unable to find the article again I probably read it somewhere on the train or so (not online).
It was from a guy who promoted walking and jogging (if possible) as a basic exercise for fitness, due to our body being built for it. His basic mantra was "we need movement, movement, movement."
He had some interesting arguments and didn't seem to be only out to advertise "his" program - he had a pretty balanced view on everything.
So then there was this part where he was suggesting the other stuff that you should do in addition to the walks/jogs and spoke about what you could do in the gymn - and there he said that you should do crunches only very moderately because of that.

 

[KaraBulut]

I'd agree with him on the walking and jogging- that's a good core and lower body workout, in addition to the aerobic benefits.

The limitation is that doesn't do much for upper body strengthening or range-of-motion.

Of course, these are all very esoteric discussions. The best exercise involves getting off the couch or pushing one's self away from the dinner table/computer desk.