Six pack abs

[Challenger]

Hey, I have a few questions about getting six pack abs.

I weigh about 155, 16 yrs old and about 5 9". I bench about 200 max.

I have been working out regularly for a pretty long time now, and I am in a competition boxing league (which is my main priority). I would say that I am pretty lean cut, large chested and my abs are pretty much fatless, but I still can't get the six pack exposed unless I am just done working out or if I flex my abs by leaning backwards, and even then it is barely showing. I work out my abs to the point that you can actually see the veins in certain places. I know that the abs should be treated as any other muscle, and not overworked but I really want abs.

My problem is that I stay on a steady diet (not sure about what to eat other than that I try to consume a lot of protein and not a lot of fats. I never drink anything other than water or gateraid and I never have junk food ever. I try to eat to the point that I am not very hungry, but not so that im always full) and I am seeing no results. Even with doing crunches, reverse crunches, lots of boxing, weighted crunches (using a lat pull down on my corner gym) I am still basically staying the same.

I believe that I am doing enough ab work outs to get the muscles there, so I think that it must be something wrong with my diet or my aerobic activity. All though I do not know much about bodybuilding, I do know that I rarely see a 16 year old of my build with a six pack, or even as good abs as I have now. Usually the kids with the six packs are really skinny, and the kids that are really big have fatty abs. While im not huge, I don't consider myself skinny at all either.
Anyway, now that it has been getting warm out I am going to start jogging a lot more instead of just the anaerobic sprinting I have been doing for boxing. I am hoping that then I can still eat what I need to build muscle ut I will burn all the excess fat. Can someone please tell me if this will work? Although I really want a six pack bad, I don't know much about dieting and I am worried that my running will begin to burn muscle instead of fat if I don't eat enough. I don't want to become "soft" or unable to build more muscle.

Please help, im pretty confused here

[placebo]

Try this:

http://forum.bodybuilding.com/search.php?s=

[scrawny-nomore]

Bump.........do a search dude

[The Kurgan]

I started building abs at age 11. I train for Judo, and to me muscle mass has always been secondary to sheer power. My personal bench press- 120 kgs (metric system here). My favourite ways to cut my stomach are-

1) Good old fashioned sit-ups without breaks and for loads of reps, using a radiator or couch.

2) Angled sit-ups.

3) Knife... Ok bad joke.

4) Diet (which you seem to have sorted out.)

One thing you seem not to have noticed is that weighted sit-ups do not really flatten your abs. The best way is the athletes way- the annoying high rep method.

Another good ab-building method is to raise your legs to a 90 degrees angle, push out until straight and then back again. Repeat for around 100 reps to begin with. If you really must do isometric excercises, raise your straightened legs 6" for a minute to begin with (don't forget to try and breathe!)

Best of luck!

[Wilson]

Maybe you are overtraining them? Try twice a week, three days maximum.

[AFJON2003]

Hmm. something doesn't sound right. You don't have to lie to get out attention. You MIGHT be able to get 180 on a smith BP machine MAX.

[strong_safety21]

try using the stability ball.

[Trappy]

Originally posted by AFJON2003
Hmm. something doesn't sound right. You don't have to lie to get out attention. You MIGHT be able to get 180 on a smith BP machine MAX.

Don't be an ass dude, lots of 16 year old in the range of 155 would be able to bench 200.

Anyway- Like it's probably been said, abs are made in the kitchen, so really it's your diet that's got to be spot on. Saying that though, some peoples abs just don't show, even if they are at a extremely low bf%. Just work them hard twice a week and sort the diet completely and they should show.

[Challenger]

Thanks for the info guys. I searched the losing weight forum and I too and I think #1, I am overworking them. I mean, I set aside about a half hour EVERY DAY for abs alone. I do all sorts of crunches and stuff. My abs are really cut, but just no six pack. Im going to start running, but I just don't know when to stop (I don't want to burn muscle tissue).

As for the bench, yes I bench 200, freeweight. Just twice, that's why I said max. I mainly work out at my house where I have a bench machine, so that's probably why I bench so much. I have easy access to it. My chest as always been pretty big from the bench. I know kids whos arms (and rest of their body lol) are twice the size of mine and my chest is still bigger.

I don't know why you wouldn't believe it though, I know a lot of kids smaller than me that put up 215-220. Not to mention, 155 is my weight but as I mentioned above, I hardly have any body fat and I rarely work out my legs which are naturally skinny. All my weight is in my chest and shoulders.

Anyways, thanks again for the help If anyone has any more advice, please keep it coming.

The Kurgan: I do angled situps as well, and I used to do leg lifts (if that's what they are called, lifting both legs up to 90*) but I started doing too many (my V cut looks really ripped, I think I overdid it) and my side started to kill me for a while. I stopped the leg lifts and it went away for good, but I always get worried when doing those that I may pull what ever I pulled again.

[D_I]

You need to build mass on your abs.

Try crunches while hugging a plate to your chest. Been working for me.

[Challenger]

D_I,

I have a lot of muscle mass on my abs, in fact I have a really* thick sheet of muscle that is cut all the way up to my chest. It's hard for me to believe that doing any more ab exercise could help, as I do just about every weighted and unweighed ab exercise that I have come across. I guess what I am trying to say is that the muscle is all there, but there still remains a very thin sheet of fat that wont let it show.

I'll give it a try anyway though, I guess you never know and one exercise may just click for some reason and get results. I still believe that I do just as many, if not more ab exercises than guys with ripped six packs, but I just dont have the body fat down low enough. Im not exactly sure what to eat (and especially how much of it) to allow me to jog to lose body fat, but not to lose any muscle. I know that if you want lots of muscle mass, you need to bulk first and then tone......but I am pretty much happy with the muscle mass I have now, if my routine wont let me gain any more muscle. I don't want to lose any though.