I was away for a few days, I spent a few days at the beach, it’s hot, summer is on its way and I love the beach, also the European Football Championship started and so far so good. Portugal won the first two games and the quality of the tournament is good.
Anyway, being at the beach made me want to write about ripped abs, I wish a lot of people could have nice abs to show off, but that’s not the case. Most people still do everything wrong when it comes to abdominal training. At the gym or in the park I still see most people doing hundreds of sit-ups and leg raises, hoping to burn belly fat with it. In the gym I see something else that I think is even worse, I see the trainees doing those exercises with weights and that is a very, very bad idea.
I’ll start by telling you why it’s a bad idea, because using weights will make your abs grow, and that will make you look bloated, your belly will be big and thick, and you don’t want that, what you want is a slim waist and ripped abs.
Doing hundreds of reps won’t do you any good either, high reps don’t give your muscles any definition and won’t burn fat, so stop wasting your time over nothing. First of all, to get ripped abs, you need to have less than 10% body fat, and to do that, you need to eat right and do cardio.
This post won’t be about nutrition, but eating right means cutting out saturated fat and following a low-carb diet. If you need to lose a lot of fat, do it with a low-calorie diet as well. Drink a lot of water, at least 2 L per day, eat a lot of vegetables, make vegetables the center of your diet, also eat good proteins and healthy fats, the best source that combines both is fish.
Now the abdominal training, I only do two exercises and I think that’s all anyone needs. The first is the plank, you get into a push-up position, but instead of supporting your body with your hands, you do it with your forearms, keep your body tense and try to hold the position for at least 30 seconds if you are a beginner. Try to add more time every day and do more sets.
The vacuum stomach is an exercise that works the inner muscles of the abdominal wall, and those muscles when they are strong help you reach your goal of a slim waist. In this exercise, you contract your stomach as if you wanted to bring your stomach to your back, try to keep your abs tight. Try to keep it for 30 seconds, just like with planks, try to add seconds and sets every day. You will be tempted to hold your breath, but you can breathe and you should 🙂
Both exercises are isometric and will tone and define your abs, but to make them visible don’t forget that you need to burn that belly fat, and for that, the most important thing is what you eat, how you eat and cardio.
Good luck, be patient and persistent, you will succeed.