by Gerald Holt
Ask anyone you know or anyone you meet out and about, what they think of the looks of a well toned body and a perfect set of 6 pack abs, and you usually will be met with an initial blank look, then the eyes glaze over, and then a small smile as the drool works its way down the chin. Yes, no doubt about it, having a good set of well developed abs is the ultimate challenge for most people that are into fitness and toning up their bodies, and that challenge can be met head-on if you have a well planned 6 pack workout that will accomplish that for you.
When you hear the expression “abs” or 6 pack abs, the speaker is referring to the sets of muscle groups that surround the abdominal area of the human body and control the motion for that part of the body. There are several groups of muscles found in this area and each group has a defined function of its own as well as working hand in hand with the other muscle groups too. One of the main muscle groups is known as the rectus abdominus, or to the man on the street as the 6 pack; the transverse abdominal muscle; and the obliques, which are made up of two working sets of opposing muscles; the external obliques and the internal obliques.
In order to have a good 6 pack workout that will play up the functions of these individual muscle groups, you must understand what they all do and how your workout can incorporate that into the exercises you choose. The transverse abdominal muscle is the workhorse of the groups and circles the area much like a belt, and helps to hold in your insides; the obliques are found on the sides of the abdomen and are both internal and external because they aid in the twisting and rotation of the body; and the rectus abdominus (6 pack) is located between the ribs and the pelvic bone and is concerned with the motion of the midsection of the body.
When you want to put together a 6 pack workout, you must consider all the types of exercises that are out there tailored specifically to the abdominal section of the body. The most common exercise group that is recommended for firm flat abs is the crunches; and they are found to be much more effective in developing a 6 pack more so than are situps. And situps are far more dangerous for people just starting out with a workout regimen because if you are not careful, doing situps can pull on your back and cause painful damage to the lower back. Some of the other exercise choices are leg lifts, static holds (which are used to train your core muscles), various types of twists for the obliques, and the bicycle maneuver.
Including an appropriate diet eating plan into your 6 pack workout is totally necessary because the results you want will elude you unless you lose the fat that is surrounding those hidden abs and keeping them from full view of an admiring world. The key to generating a set of 6 pack abs that will make you oh so proud, is both the correct exercises and a fat loss eating plan working hand in hand. The most result producing means of doing that is for the exercise part of the program to include weightlifting as well as cardiovascular exercises; and the weightlifting is to be done first and then the cardiovascular. The reason being that the weightlifting uses mainly carbohydrates as an energy source and the cardiovascular routine then has very little energy reserve to work with, so the body goes after its stored fat to get the energy it needs and begins burning fat.
So now you have a good idea of what exercises will help you put together a good 6 pack workout, and there are just a few items to keep in the forefront of your mind when you are starting your regimen. First of all, with the exercises on a daily basis, you need to Keep your metabolism steady, Drink more water (include a lot of tea if you want-it’s almost all water and is a good metabolism booster as well), Eat smaller meals and eat more often during the day, Eat more fiber-keep your system moving, and most important of all (to the chagrin of a lot of people) Eat breakfast.
This is not going to be easy; there’s a lot of work involved in the word “workout” especially when it applies to an effective 6 pack workout; so to stay the course, you must be honest with yourself and stick with a well balanced eating plan and a good set of exercises. The diet will get rid of that fat that is camouflaging the abs, and the exercises will develop them; because remember, to get rid of 1 pound of unadulterated fat every week, you must lessen your intake of calories by 500 a day. But it will be worth it in the long run—sooner than you think, you will be sauntering down the beach with your spectacular 6 pack abs glistening in the sun surrounded by people faint with admiration.