Make 2003 the "Year of the 6-Pack"

[LeBrunFitness]

Make 2003 the "Year of the 6-Pack"
by Shawn LeBrun
Fitness Trainer


I think of all the goals I hear from people I train both in person and online, getting a "6-pack" is definitely high on the list.

Not so much "Increasing my bench press by 50 pounds this year" or "I want to enter and place high in a bodybuilding contest."

It always seems to be "Man, I want some washboard abs!"

It intrigues me that people want this goal so much and yet it remains elusive for many people to accomplish.

But the more I talk with people, I can start to see why maybe they have trouble toning up the "spare tire" section, getting ripped abdominals.

I received an email from someone a couple days ago asking why, after they've been doing 500 cruches, 500 hanging leg raises, 500 incline crunches, and 500 stability ball crunches for 3 nights a week for the past year, they haven't gotten killer abs yet.

When I replied to the email and asked them what their diet consisted of, I received another email from them telling me,
"I wanted advice about getting a 6 pack, not on eating better!"

Well, it didn't take long for me to diagnose his problem.

So, in just a couple lines below, I am going to de-mistify some of the common myths about what it takes to get a "6-pack."

The more of the tips you follow, the more likely you are to get killer washboards.

And yes, it has a lot to do with your diet, in fact, probably 99.9% to do with your diet.

Here we go.....

To make 2003 the "Year of the 6-pack" you need:

1. Low levels of body fat. Period.

Remember that lean, skinny kid we all used to pick on in school, the one who could eat 5 school lunches and not gain a pound.

We called him "Twiggy" or "String Bean."

Well, he holds the key to killer abs.

Having a Six Pack simply has to do with having low levels of body fat. All of us have abs, already.

It's just that most peoples' are covered by a layer of fat.

So no matter how many crunches you do or how long you fry yourself with an "Abtronica (little Adam Sandler joke there) you will not burn off the body fat covering the abs.

So, to see the abs, you need low levels of body fat.

2. To lower your body fat, you need to focus on a combo of two things: Your nutrition and your cardio.

For the best results to burn body fat, you should begin to gradually reduce your calorie intake as you increase your cardio/aerobic intensity.

After figuring your maintenace calorie amount, start to reduce it by 150-200 calories a day until you see results. If you don't see some results after a couple weeks, reduce it again by 150-200 calories. Continue this until happy with your levels of fat and that you feel you can adequately maintain.

Also, make sure you are doing your cardio INTENSELY.

3-4 sessions a week, 20 minutes a pop is all you need to help condition your metabolic rate to speed up and burn calories at rest.

Most people are under the false assumption that cardio is just good for burning calories during the session. So they try and kill themselves by hanging onto the Stairmaster for dear life for an hour at a time.

GONG---WRONG! Cardio can be short and still effective. Cardio is great for speeding up your resting metabolic heart rate so that long after your cardio session is over, you're still burning off calories (and body fat)

So far we know that we must get rid of body fat to see the abs and we do this with a combo of reduced calories and increased cardio output.

3. Here's the kicker. The email I got talked about doing around 2000 different forms of crunches for 2-3 nights a week.

And he didn't have a 6 pack.

I personally spend 10 minutes a week total, doing only 2 different ab exercises for 10-15 reps each and I've had a 6 pack for the past two years.

And unlike some, I wasn't born with it. Two years ago, I was a fat 250 pounds.

But as I began to focus on the above 2 steps, I also began this 3rd step.

I began using weight (resistance) for all my ab exercises.

I had never in the past, and of course, never had a 6- pack either.

I began using dumbbells on my chest for weighted crunches.

I began using weight by doing cable crunches.

I began weighted leg lifts.

Bottom line, I began using resistance whenever and wherever I could.

And it made so much sense. After all, the abs are muscle groups like chest, back, bis, tris, etc...

You wouldn't even think about training those muscle groups without using weight, why do it with your abs?

So begin slowly at first, adding weight where you can to your abdominal exercises.

Soon, you'll have no problem throwing (actaully, placing) an 80 pound dumbbell on your chest to do crunches or using 200 pounds on weighted cable crunches.

This part's real cool. Picture in your mind, as you are melting away the body fat from working on the above, you are also starting to add lean muscle growth to your abdominals by using weight on your ab exercises.

And then, the two come together and meet..... PRESTO!

2003 is now the "Year of the 6-pack."

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Shawn Lebrun has one and only one mission in 2003.
To make it the year you achieve your best body ever.
See how you can get it. http://www.shawnlebrunfitness.com
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[CreatineMan]

6 pack is nothing, you need an "8 pack"

[Quaker]

Youre right about Bodyfat and that we all have abs already cause its an always working stablizing muscle but to get an 8 pack you will undoubtedly have to do roman chair leg raises etc..
plus if you wanna get killer obliques internal and external start doin Boxing for cardio and use alot of leaning movments boxers have the best obliques cuz that muscle group defends many internal organs and also is connected to the linea alba tendeon which practicly connectes the sternum and ribcage to your appendicular skeleton ( hip bones for this case )
But keep crunching !

[Assassinator]

Originally posted by CreatineMan
6 pack is nothing, you need an "8 pack"

AGREED
My genetics were kind enough to give me 8

[Black_Curtain]

I really liked this article! Well written and very useful for those who are new in the game!

just a sidenote: I wouldn't recommend "intense" cardio (where heart rate is extremely high) - that may burn muscle as well in the process.

[Quaker]

Yea, Intesne cardio will burn muscle but try to get some ab work on that limited time you give yourself to burn cal's
Boxing is the answer
it even works on sculpting your upper cody if you put some weight on your arms ( strap on weight) you can really strength your scapula muscle and your delts and many more muscle in your back, cause just to keep your arms up guarding your face will stimulate the deeper muscles in your back to work.

[CreatineMan]

6 packs are nice, but u need to have big biceps, tricps, chest and the rest of the package

[wesley101]

lmao there are those who doesn't have time to do boxing hehe

[Quaker]

your just lazy man

[PHrKandy]

fed f

[BryanHawn]

6 pack is nothing, you need an "8 pack"

Love this!