Getting a Six Pack

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Don Juan
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Hi all, I have a question on working out abs/stomache:

Should I work out that area everyday, or like other day?
So far I work out twice a week, and do about 150 crunches or so. I'm seeing some improvement, but i'm wondering if working it out everyday or working out 3-4 times a week would help me get more results? and maybe more sets or repititions.

Like to know some opinions

Thanks
 

Reto

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Depends

I've heard you can do them every day. I don't recover that fast. So, I do abs every other day. Or, if I'm sore, I'll skip a day or so until I recover. I have a friend who does abs once a week. It works for him. Just listen to your body.

I was doing hanging leg raises for lower abs, but found I couldn't use proper form and it started hurting my back. So, now I just do leg raises off a bench.
 

Mr. Mystery

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Right there! mrmystery14@yahoo.com
Heres another question...

If your skinny and bulking (you already have a flat stomach) should you work your abs? I don't want huge bulky abs, I just want some defenition, should I avoid abs until I start cutting to get a more defined stomach?

Mr. Mystery
 

Eternal

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Ok, hopefully this information is right, otherwise DIESEL is going to rip me a new a...bdomen. Your abs are like any other muscle, they should not be worked on everyday. Second, endless crunches will strengthen them, but not build the muscle (there is a difference between strength and muscle). You need to work them with wieght like any other muscle group. A few ways are: holding a wieght plate on your chest while doing a few crunches, get on your knees facing away from the tricep pushdown wieght stack, grab the handle (put it on a weight first obviously) and crunch down while holding this.

By lower abdomen, you mean right below your belly button, right? If so, you just need to lower your bodyfat by cutting. You can't spot reduce, so don't think that you can make it so it only melts the fat from your stomach.

Yes, if you are skinny and bulking, work your abs. You will get the protein to help build the muscle while bulking, and then when you are satisfied you can cut so your bodyfat gets lower and shows your six pack.
 

StuartScott x 2

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I got my 6 pack when my bodyfat got to 11% which is where it is now. I got that by not eating too much and doing cardio and drinking lots of water. The supps I took were Yohimbe and Methoxy 7. Went from about 210 to 192 which is where I'm at now. I also worked on my abs 4-5 times a week. You can work on your abs damn near everryday if you want to.
 

Ofus

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Originally posted by miscombobulated2
What about the lower abdomen? Thats where I need help.
Try some leg raises (in addition to dieting of course)
 

Zircon

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I'm up for correction but I think a lot of it has to do with your diet. Your abdomen is usually the first place where you put on fat (men), so you will have to concentrate on lowring your overall bf%. I would do abs 3 times a week with the last 2 sets very hard (ie crunches holdin a 20 kg weight on your chest).

Should do the trick. I'm 6-7 % at the mo and when I go above 8-9 I can see the fat already accumulating on the abs, nowhere else.
 

misunderstood??

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150 crunches does nothing but waste your time and work on endurance. You train abs like any other muscle. Personally I go slightly lighter and work them more often tho, but I stay in the 8-16 rep range for all my ab exercises, I add weight to my crunches or whatever to make it so that I can't do more than 16 reps. I work abs twice a week, don't work it anymore than 3 times a week, your abs need time to heal, you get bigger and stronger from your muscle healing so let it have time to heal.

Also hopefully you know this, but it can't hurt to repeat it, if you want a 6-pack your first priority should be your diet. You have to lose the fat over your abs so that they can be seen. Your abs could be ripped really nice but you wouldn't even know because it's behing a layer of fat.
 

Shiftkey

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What's your bf%? You can do 1000 situps a day and you'd be wasting your time if it's any higher than 10-11%.
 

Broadband

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About the abs.

I'm 21, 195lbs and 6'9" tall. I have one of those electronic body fat scales and it jumps all over the place but it looks like I'm around 12%

First off is there a surefire way to track your body fat at home because all the methods I've found seem to be very unstable as far as one day to the next.

The next question is...How the Hell do you manage to get your body fat under 9%?

I have a superfast metabolism and literally can eat as much fatty foods as I want without gaining a pound. Back in High school I swam an hour practically daily for a good 6 months for Water Polo and Swim team, but I never saw any decrease in that little bit of fat covering my abs.

Now I'm in the body for life program and I'm sticking to a correct diet and I do cardio 4 times a week for an hour and the other 3 days I'm lifting. Each trip to the gym I'm burning nearly 1,000 calories and there is no noticable change in my body fat. Yes I'm gaining muscle but the body fat is nearly the same it was a year ago when i didn't work out at all.

Any tips? And yes I do alternate my workout between eliptical, stair stepper, treadmill, bike, and Dance Dance Revolution.
 
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