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Do you know which part of your body is the “rectus abdominis”? Even if you don’t know or have never heard of that term, we’re sure that you’re absolutely familiar with it. The term “rectus abdominis” typically refers to your abdominal muscle or abs. When most people hear the word “abs,” they think of a chiseled, defined six-pack midsection.
A lot of people who work out aim to sculpt a visible six-pack. While regular exercise is a big factor in getting that incredible ab definition, there are other things that you should consider. If you want to get a six-pack, here’s a guide to help you out.
Can I Get Abs in 30 Days?
For a lot of gym-goers, a typical workout goal is to achieve abs in 30 days. While this is theoretically possible, it is just not doable for the vast majority of people, especially those who are new to exercising. To build visible abs, one must meet certain fitness conditions.
Can I Get Abs in 1 Week?
No, it is not possible to achieve defined abs within one week. There is a lot more to creating toned abs than just doing basic ab exercises.
How Long Does It Take to Get Abs?
Ripped, chiseled ab muscles are the goal of many people who exercise. Getting abs depends on a lot of factors, and so the timeline to achieve them can vary from one person to another. An individual who aims to have abs has to consider their genetics, body composition, diet, and exercise to achieve their fitness goal.
The timeline of your road to getting six-pack abs depends on the body fat percentage you’re starting with. According to studies, in the United States, the average woman has about 40 percent body fat while the average man has 28 percent.
The American Council on Exercise says that a good rule of thumb, which is safe for most people to follow, is to aim to lose 1 to 2 percent of body fat per month.Â
With that in mind, it could take a woman with average body fat about 20 to 25 months to achieve the appropriate amount of fat loss to gain abs. As for an average man, it would take about 15 to 21 months.
How Many Times a Week Should I Workout for Abs?
Your abdominal muscles are just like any other muscle group in your body. They also need rest in between exercises. Doing core exercises every single day without rest will leave your abs in an overworked state. Instead of getting the visible abs you’re aiming for, you’ll end up injuring your muscles.
To get the results that you want and to prevent overtraining, it’s best to devote two to three sessions a week to your abs.
How to Build a Six-Pack?
Building a six-pack is more than just doing core workouts. Various factors can play a role in the strength and appearance of your abs. Here are some things to take note of to build your defined abs.
Lower Your Body Fat Percentage
Even if your core muscles are well-developed, you won’t ever get that visible six-pack you want if they’re covered by too much fat. This doesn’t mean that you should spot-treat your belly fat by only doing ab exercises and nothing more, because that tactic doesn’t actually work.
According to research, exercising a muscle group increases blood flow and lipolysis, which is the breakdown of fat cells into usable energy in the area. But that is not enough to noticeably reduce fat stores. Instead of doing crunches all day, every day, what you can do is reduce your body fat percentage.
While there is no universal amount of body fat percentage needed for six-pack abs to be visible, in general, it ranges around 10-12% for men and 16-20% for women.
Have a Healthy Diet
One of the best ways to gain a low body fat percentage is to switch and check your diet. To burn fat, you need to be in a caloric deficit, meaning consuming fewer calories than burned. And, although you need a caloric deficit, you have to maintain a healthy, balanced diet.
To start shedding off your stubborn belly fat and begin your journey to toned abdominal muscles, the first step is to focus on eating lean protein. This means consuming pork, lamb, chicken, fish, dairy, nuts, seeds, and legumes.
Doing so will promote satiety and help the body repair and rebuild muscle tissue after working out. It can also help maintain the amount of lean muscle mass that you need to get a six-pack.
In addition to lean protein, choosing whole grains over refined carbs is ideal. This means switching out processed foods for better options. For example, instead of white rice, it’s better to eat brown rice. Reaching for complex carbohydrates instead of refined carbohydrates will maintain your blood sugar levels, allowing you to feel full for longer.
Build Muscle to Burn Fat
Let’s say that you’ve successfully switched up your diet to a healthier one. That’s good, but it can make you feel disheartened if you don’t see a defined six-pack yet. Aside from changing your diet, abdominal strength training exercises are important to incorporate into your routine.
Compound exercises such as squats, deadlifts, and overhead presses work multiple muscle groups and have a profound effect on the body. You can do weighted lifts or bodyweight workouts two to three days a week and perform them in a moderate rep range.
Do Cardio Exercises
Pairing up your core training exercises with cardio workouts is a brilliant way to lose fat. Since spot-training muscles isn’t effective at all, doing cardio alongside your ab training will help you lose weight and tone all the other muscle groups in your body.
Experts recommend mixing high-intensity interval training (HIIT) with steady-state cardio. Doing HIIT workouts can speed up the process of weight loss as it combines cardio and strength training in one session. HIIT workouts give you the benefit of body fat loss, as well as increasing your lean mass.
What is the Quickest Abs Workout?
If you simply have very little time to exercise, one workout that can work your entire core is a crunch. This is the most basic and simplest out of all ab workouts, but it can help a lot in building the foundation for your strong core.
To perform the tried and tested crunch, begin by lying down on your back, knees bent, feet on the floor, and hand supporting your neck. Next, slowly crunch up enough to get your shoulders off the floor.
Repeat as many reps as you can. If you want to make it more challenging, lift your feet in the air, your knees positioned at 90 degrees, and pull your knees to your chest as you crunch up.
How to Get Abs in 30 Days?
Achieving abs in 30 days is possible in theory but it is not doable for the majority of people. For the average person, it can take 20 to 25 months to achieve a six-pack.
How Do You Get Abs Fast in 2 Weeks?
Achieving abs in just two weeks is impossible for most people. If you are serious about achieving this goal, you will need to burn more fat and exercise more than usual — but experts do not recommend doing so.
How Do You Get Abs in 7 Days?
While there are a lot of exercise articles and videos out there that say they can help you attain abs in 7 days, it is actually impossible to do so.
Is It Possible to Build Abs at Home?
It is absolutely possible to build your six-pack at home, but you will need a lot of hard work and commitment to make it happen. Keep in mind, though, that there is no specific formula to achieve a six-pack at home.
Whether you’re doing your core exercises at the gym or at home, it’s important to pair it up with a low body fat percentage, a healthy diet, maintain muscle mass, and do the correct exercises.
How Long Does It Take to Get Abs From Home?
The timeline to getting a six-pack can take 20 to 25 months. It is possible that it can take longer as it also depends on your body fat percentage, body shape and build, your training program, and your diet.
What’s the Easiest Way to Get Abs at Home?
It is nice to plug in some gym time to achieve a six-pack but it’s not a requirement. Not every individual has the time or resources to hit the gym multiple days a week.
If you’re working out at home and want to have defined abs, the best way is to combine your core training with HIIT workouts. Doing so can help you shed excess weight, give you a strong core, and keep you fit overall.
What Exercise Gives the Most Abs?
According to experts, bicycle crunches are one of the most effective workouts that can help reduce abdominal fat. Bicycle crunches work not only your upper abs but your lower abs as well.Â
Here’s how you can do bicycle crunches. Lie on the floor with your legs straight and your feet raised a few inches off the floor. Place your hands beside your ears. Lightly touch your head with your fingertips.
Then, using your core, lift your chest off the floor and bring your left knee toward your head. At the same time, bring your right elbow to meet your left knee. Reverse the movement and return to the starting position, then repeat on the opposite side.
Will Doing 100 Sit-Ups a Day Give Me Six-Pack Abs?
According to experts, 100 sit-ups a day will not give you a six-pack. A sit-up is the least effective core exercise and it won’t help you with the weight loss that you need to gain defined abs.
Instead of doing sit-ups, try establishing a regular exercise routine that involves strength training, cardio exercises, and compound workouts.
How Do I Train My Body to Get Abs?
Thinking of doing sit-ups? Forget about that because it won’t be able to help you in achieving your goal of having a toned core. Instead, here are some effective ab workouts to try.
Leg Lowers
Lie on your back and neutralize your pelvis and engage your pelvic floor and core. Next, bring your legs up above your hips and make sure they’re straight. Slowly lower your legs on an inhale.
Re-engage your core, then lift your legs on an exhale. Bring your legs back to the ground to rest.
Leg Lifts
Want to tone your lower abs? This one will do the trick. Simply lie on your back with your legs elevated a few inches off the ground. Keep your knees straight as you slowly raise your legs until they’re perpendicular to the floor.
Slowly return to the original position without letting your feet touch the ground.
Side Plank Dips
Place one elbow directly under your body and press yourself up into a side plank position. Lower your hip so that you are hovering just below the ground.
Next, use your core to return to the initial position. Repeat the exercise on the same side for 10 reps, then switch sides.
Mountain Climbers
For your starting position, arrange yourself in a high plank with your shoulders over your wrists, pelvis tucked, and ribs drawn towards your hips. Drive your right knee toward your chest, then your left in a quick, alternating motion.
Pull your right knee back toward your chest and pause. Repeat the pattern with your other knee. Come to your knees to rest.
Russian Twists
Sit up straight with your knees bent and feet in front of you. Lift your feet about a foot off the ground and engage your core. Next, twist your entire upper body to one side, keeping your legs in front of you. Repeat on the other side.
Do 10 reps on each side. To make Russian Twists more challenging, you can hold a dumbbell while doing the exercise.
Hanging Leg Raise
You will need a pull-up bar for this exercise. Begin by gripping a pull-up bar with your palms facing away from you and positioned slightly wider than shoulder-width apart. Then, lift up your feet so that you’re hanging with your arms straight.
Lift your feet toward the ceiling, keeping your legs as straight as possible without swinging your feet or knees. Lift your feet as high as you can. Reverse the movement and return to the starting position.
If you find it difficult to do the exercise with straight legs, you can also perform it by bringing your knees upward first so that your thighs are parallel to the floor.
Final Note
Six-pack abs are a sight to behold. Generally, it can mean that a person is disciplined enough with their diet and training regimen to achieve that muscle definition.
More than the aesthetic aspect of it, a six-pack and strong ab muscles can help you maintain good posture, prevent injuries, alleviate lower back pain, improve athletic performance, and increase your muscular endurance.
There’s a lot more to creating a six-pack than doing exercises that only target your core muscles. By committing to a healthy diet and a regular workout program, you can achieve that six-pack that you desire.
If you experience any discomfort during your workout, it’s best to stop and seek the advice of a fitness instructor or a personal trainer.
