I can see the definition after an ab workout but it usually fades away.
My thing is I'm 5'10 160lbs and my girlfriend says I'm too skinny. So I don't want to lose anymore weight I just want to have my abs to show.
Whats the best way at going about this? HIIT with high intensity weight training or what? I'm so confused now b/c I think with a clean diet, weight training and hiit I'll just continue to lose weight and I don't want to lose weight but bf to get my abs to show.
diet modification and a pair of nuts is all you need man.
Cut on a diet ~300 calories below maintenance. Make sure your nutrient timing is spot on (carbs pre/powo, adequate protein each meal, SOLID pre bed meal, good breakfast). This is essential because though you will be losing weight, you will be giving your body the right nutrients at the right time to rebuild mass while still technically on a cut. If 300 calories below has you losing more than a pound a week, you have miscalculated your maintenance...bump it up until you maintain weight with the intensity of exercise described below.
Now for the lifting. Your diet is most important but if you want to shed fat and not get skinnier you need to lift HARD. If you aren't dripping sweat or your heart rate is lower than 100 or so, use intensity techniques to change that (supersets, dropsets, short rest, etc). Rep ranges can vary, dont stick to just one and don't believe you need high reps to have a fat burning/muscle building combination. For example, this week I decided to try out a weight on deadlift that I had never done before. Since they were low reps and my hr was low, I threw in set of pullups after each deadlift set. If you want to look crazy, you have to be crazy.
Cardio: Since cardio is good for health you still want to do it. Id do hiit 3 times a week after your intense workouts. I do 15-20 mins max. I'd do a 4th cardio session after leg day, but thats just to keep blood flowing before I stretch it all out.
One last tip, on big lift days where you know you did some serious muscle fiber damage, go ahead and eat an extra chicken breast and oats/fruits. On those super intense days I'd eat about 300 calories over maintenance. Its "culking" and its intense. You have to move serious weight like your bulking, but diet like you are cutting (the minimal calorie restriction eliminates hunger so you are fine).
Being lean and muscular is a lifestyle and requires consistancy. The bulk/cut cycle can be combined so your diet remains constant and therefore easier to maintain and you stay lean year round so your girlfriend knows whats up.
oh yeah, heres an example of a given diet. Hits about 3000 calories.
9:00am: 4 egg whites, 2 whole eggs, 1/3 cup oats, 1 tbsp honey
11:00am: banana
1:00:Turkey/tuna sandwich (on ezekiel bread, i use a slice of cheese and natty turkey breast to elminate nitrites) and an apple
3:00 1 oz almonds
5:00: 2/3c oats, 1 tbsp honey, 1 scoop whey in h20 with cocoa
WORKOUT: 5:15-6:30
7:00: 2 scoops whey, 8 oz milk, 1 tbsp natty cocoa, 2/3c oats, 1 tbsp honey
8:30: 8 oz chicken breast, 3 cups veggies, 1/4 dry brown rice (if heavy day), 1 tbsp smart balance light with rice.
PRe-bed: 2 tbsp peanut butter, 5 oz milk, 1 tbsp cocoa, 1 scoop ON casein
There you have it, what I would normally eat in a day. This would be a day where I soaked throguh my beater in the gym so I could eat that rice with dinner, haha.
BTW ON casein is amazing. very thick, cheaper per gram protein than cottage cheese (even if its on mega blowout sale), and I wake up without any hunger pangs whatsoever
Since body weight is fat mass + lean mass (mostly muscle), you could lose fat while maintaining body weight if you gain muscle mass at the same time. This is generally what happens with training, and it's what will happen to you if you haven't been training for long (say, less than 3 months of committed training).
You got it pretty much right about the training part. HIIT is the way to go since you want to lose fat and build muscle simultaneously, except I wouldn't do it more than twice per week.
Lifting-wise, my approach is to use hypertrophy-type weight training for the abs, just like you would for any other body part. Forget about the endless crunch sets. Here's a video of my favorite abdominal exercises:
Aim for 2-3 sets of 6-12 reps with 1-2 minutes of rest in between sets. If you'd like, check out my six pack abs training website.
Let me know how that works for you.
-CJ
__________________
Carl Juneau
B.Sc Exercises Sciences
Coach and specialized writer
www.sixpackabsexercises.com
oh yeah, heres an example of a given diet. Hits about 3000 calories.
9:00am: 4 egg whites, 2 whole eggs, 1/3 cup oats, 1 tbsp honey
11:00am: banana
1:00:Turkey/tuna sandwich (on ezekiel bread, i use a slice of cheese and natty turkey breast to elminate nitrites) and an apple
3:00 1 oz almonds
5:00: 2/3c oats, 1 tbsp honey, 1 scoop whey in h20 with cocoa
WORKOUT: 5:15-6:30
7:00: 2 scoops whey, 8 oz milk, 1 tbsp natty cocoa, 2/3c oats, 1 tbsp honey
8:30: 8 oz chicken breast, 3 cups veggies, 1/4 dry brown rice (if heavy day), 1 tbsp smart balance light with rice.
PRe-bed: 2 tbsp peanut butter, 5 oz milk, 1 tbsp cocoa, 1 scoop ON casein
There you have it, what I would normally eat in a day. This would be a day where I soaked throguh my beater in the gym so I could eat that rice with dinner, haha.
BTW ON casein is amazing. very thick, cheaper per gram protein than cottage cheese (even if its on mega blowout sale), and I wake up without any hunger pangs whatsoever
I have a question, it's better if you eat and don't work out after?
Better to sleep with a full stomach? I always thought it's better to work off the food? But you claim eat a solid meal before you go to sleep, I guess your way is better cause well, look at you lol
Thanks
I have a question, it's better if you eat and don't work out after?
Better to sleep with a full stomach? I always thought it's better to work off the food? But you claim eat a solid meal before you go to sleep, I guess your way is better cause well, look at you lol
Thanks
sleep is when your muscles regenerate the most, so you want to have a a good protein in your stomach before you go to bed. best one to take before bed is casein protein since it stays in your system the longest (up to 8 hours!)
sleep is when your muscles regenerate the most, so you want to have a a good protein in your stomach before you go to bed. best one to take before bed is casein protein since it stays in your system the longest (up to 8 hours!)
Hey,
So I shouldn't work out every night before I sleep anymore then, wow I can't believe i was killing myself this past year doing these workouts twice daily and really going no where with it.
Funny thing is I used to eat dinner late all the time, but decided in the past year to keep the food off the table at 6pm tops.
Is it healthy to take all these suppliments together? like this casein protein one and the other you recommended in my other topic?
oh yeah, heres an example of a given diet. Hits about 3000 calories.
BTW ON casein is amazing. very thick, cheaper per gram protein than cottage cheese (even if its on mega blowout sale), and I wake up without any hunger pangs whatsoever
he's right-casein is the only protein of ON's i've ever tried, and the vanilla is INCREDIBLE- and usually chocolate is my favorite flavor, but vanilla is all i've had
Hey,
So I shouldn't work out every night before I sleep anymore then, wow I can't believe i was killing myself this past year doing these workouts twice daily and really going no where with it.
Funny thing is I used to eat dinner late all the time, but decided in the past year to keep the food off the table at 6pm tops.
Is it healthy to take all these suppliments together? like this casein protein one and the other you recommended in my other topic?
lol i did that same thing for a couple months... trying to keep dinner early. but you NEVER want to let yourself go more than 3 hours without eating, and you want to try to get at least 8 hours of sleep a night.
and yes all those supplements are fine together, you want to take in about 1.5g of protein/lb of weight/day to gain muscle
I think any discussion of protein intake and meal frequency is off track unless you first specify your total calorie intake.
Remember: no matter how much protein you eat, you won't build muscle if you're not in positive energy balance. And, generally speaking, the more (often) you eat, the more likely you will be in positive energy balance.
So, chances are, higher meal frequency works better because you simply eat more calories at the end of the day. Same goes for casein before bedtime: anything before an 8-hour fast is better than nothing, as far as energy balance is concerned.
That being said, I agree with Uno99: eating protein before bedtime is good for your muscles. Personally, I add a little fat (olive oil) to it to slow down absorption by the gut and make my energy balance even more positive.
CJ
__________________
Carl Juneau
B.Sc Exercises Sciences
Coach and specialized writer
www.sixpackabsexercises.com
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