Abs Abs Abs Part 1
I've gotten several inquires about how to attain the coveted
six-pack. The range of difficulty of getting shredded physique
with a washboard stomach will vary person to person (especially
in increasing idling America). And why is everybody so
infatuated with abs anyway? I once saw a guy's t-shirt that had
an arrow pointing to his gut and exclaiming "fuel tank for the
sex machine". Now a sense of humor can more sexier than a
six-pack!
To be painfully honest, getting shredded abs is not going to be
easy for anyone. But its not impossible. Let me give you little
story:
I have to pictures on my wall of when I was back in college.
They both had beaches in the background. Once was in Hawaii and
the other in California.
My Hawaii photo was taken on spring break. This was one week
after I competed in NCWA wrestling nationals. I had spent the
prior 2 months working my butt off training. Tons of cardio to
cut weight, weird dieting of vegetables, grains, lean meats. I
had to make weight (165 lbs for competition) and I was already
skinny.
Anyway to my unpleasant surprise I had a little stomach in my
Hawaii photo. This was even more surprising since I just
finished a 40 mile bike ride!
And then a few months later I started lifting heavy. During the
summer I did a body part training program with little cardio
except wrestling practice twice a week. It was early September
and I decided to visit Santa Monica on a whim (I live in
Denver). During this time I had to admit I'd been doing a little
bit of drinking too (hey it was my last year in college). To my
pleasant surprise, I had a shredded six pack at this time. Why?
My resistance training had increased my metabolism rate and
helped get rid of extra body fat.
So here are some tips for you guys (and girls)
1. Resistance Training: I recommend resistance training over
cardio but both are very important. Heavy lifting that promotes
muscle hypertrophy should be the initial approach of your
program. I'll go into more detail about this in part 2.
2. Cardio: most people do this wrong. If you want abs you can't
go for a 20 minute nice easy jog in the park and expect to
incinerate a ton of fat. Your cardio needs to be tough and
challenging. You needs to focus on INTERVAL training. My
favorite is doing repeat miles on the treadmill. You got 1 mile
at a very uncomfortable pace (but not to the point you can't go
on) get off the treadmill and immediately hop on a stationary
bike (or elliptical machine) for a moderate 5 min recovery. Get
back on the treadmill for another mile. Repeat 4-8 times. This
will help boost testosterone levels and spike your metabolism.
Warning: although I think swimming is an awesome cardiovascular
workout I strongly advise against this method of training for
fat loss.
3. Dieting: this one is so complex I'm going save it for part 3.
4. Supplements: did someone ask for the magic pill for abs?
Almost as wishful as asking for the magic pill for financially
security or a significant other. Alright I take that back. There
are supplements available that can expedite your fat loss
training regime. I just don't want you folks downing a bottle of
ephedrine everyday and doing nothing else. Here are my favorite
weight loss supplements (I linked to where you can find them).
Hot-Rox (http://www.discountanabolics/p/HRX) I used this while I
was getting ready for my last fight. I got my body fat down to
around 6% (it's normally around 8-9%). Hot Rox will increase
your metabolism for up to 24hrs. Be careful though. Too much of
this will give you the jitters. I recommend taking a max 3
capsules early in the day.
Hoodia Gordonni (http://www.discountanabolics.com/p/AP04) This
supplement is very effective appetite suppressant. Might not be
a bad idea to help cut down on holiday/winter time binging.
Axis Labs SesaMAX (http://www.discountanabolics.com/p/AX04) -
This nifty little supplement works to control your appetite uses
the lignan sesamin which is a powerful thermogenic (fat
oxidizing) molecule. The SesaMax complex also contains flax seed
oil which help support healthy metabolic function, reduce
oxidative stress, and reduce cholesterol.
Now if you are going to approach your ab routine correctly you
should be doing heavy resistance training (you better not plan
on sitting on the couch and popping weight loss pills). I would
recommend some protein and ergogenic supplements.
Optimum Nutrition 100% Whey
-(http://www.discountanabolics.com/p/ON03) - Out of all the
proteins available I found this one to be the most economical
(much cheaper than myoplex). It's also excellent for dieting
since its really low in carbs.
Muscle Milk (http://www.discountanabolics/p/CSMM) - this is
best tasting protein drink on the market. It also contains a
special MCT (medium chain triglycerides) that help promote
leanness. Muscle Milk is an awesome product, but just one
warning: don't overdo it. I've seen many folks consume too much
muscle milk thinking that its "safe" since it's a protein
supplement. Remember that muscle milk does contain a lot of
calories. One scoop before bedtime is what I suggest (I'll get
more into this in Part 3 about dieting).
NE2 Nitric-Ester (http://www.discountanabolics/p/AX03) - While
you're doing resistance training you should consider nitric
oxide supplements for quicker recovery. It's believe to be more
powerful than NO2 since it keeps L-Arginine molecule is coupled
with ester to keeping the arginine intact is it passes through
the large intestine. I found that nitric oxide helped me become
leaner as well.
5. Patience, patience, perseverance
If you think your going to get a six pack in two weeks you are
out of your mind. You can only lose about 1-2 pounds of real fat
(any more is water and muscle) a week. You should plan on
sticking to your program for at least 3 months.
I got plenty more to write on this topic. Stay tuned for abs abs
abs Part 2 and 3.