Sunday, 7 December 2008

Six Fixes for a Six Pack Abs

By: Mujuthaba

Weight-loss and a perfect six pack don’t come easy. It takes dedication and a good reason to motivate oneself. I have decided to put up these six fixes based on my exercise science knowledge and personal experience. Hope this helps in achieving your six-pack goal.

1- Diet Diet Diet
Yep. If you pursue a dream of weight-loss and flashing your six-packs, diet is the most important factor. Then exercise would account for just 30% of your program. Exercise and diet work hand in hand. Following a good strict diet is the hardest thing for people to abide. It cannot be achieved unless you are ready to change your lifestyle. Unless you are ready to do this, I can assure you, you CANNOT lose weight.

My Advice: Get advice from a dietician if you are dead serious. They can help you with the haves and not haves from our local foods. Make the dietary change gradually not immediately.


2- Ab exercises???
No. If your wish is to scrape off the flab on your abs, crunches and sit-ups barely help. Ab exercises only help to strengthen the muscles of the abdomen, but won’t help to get rid of the fat that hides them.

My Advice: Jog, bike, swim or row at low intensity for over thirty minutes four times a week. Don’t stop those ab exercises; just mix them to the cardio workout instead.


3- Fat not muscle
I want you to lose fat and not muscle. Weight training is the way to do this. Ladies, you will not look like musculature monsters, but you will just have toned up body. The better muscle mass, the more fat you burn. The more fat you burn the quicker your six pack will show. You should not lose the muscle, they are important for the body unlike the excess fat.

My Advice: Try adding weight training sessions into your training program. Do it three times a week.


4- Expecting Results overnight
I have repeated this over and over in my blog. If you expect to see results over-night, you will end up very disappointed. If you take up a good training program and a good diet, results gradually start showing at around the first month. Before that, good things start happening inside your body, such as increase your heart size, blood volume, lung capacity and density of blood capillaries. It just takes a while for it to show on the outside.

My Advice: For the best results give your body about twelve weeks or three months. Pick a date and make this your goal date.


5-Motivation is the key
Throughout my fitness career, I have seen a number of people start training to lose weight, but just can’t keep on going. To start training, most people have a motivating factor or a goal. Once that factor is gone, so is the intention of the healthy active lifestyle.

My Advice: If your goal is to get a six-pack, remain focused and be positive. Make short-term goals to achieve your major goal. Do not get distracted by other factors.


6-Maintaining
Too often people who lose weight gain the kilos back on. It is known that among obese individuals only about three to five out of a hundred maintain their weight long-term. The rest jump on the inactivity wagon and gain the flab again. Losing weight is hard and maintaining the lost weight is harder.

My Advice: When you get your six-pack, keep on training, even if it is once a week. It is best to have competitive and consistent training partner or a group.

No comments: