Lower Ab Workout Routines for Great Muscle Definition

You may have been working on your abdominal muscles for quite a while now but you are not getting the results you want. This means that you are doing something wrong or you are not doing enough. You may feel like you are eating a good diet and doing the right lower ab workout routines, but there is still something wrong in the picture.

If you are doing spot reduction then you are definitely doing it wrong. Spot reduction is not possible when working out your ab muscles because lower ab workout exercises does not burn fat, they only shape and develop the abs. To be able to trim down the excess fat you have, you will need to reply on your dieting and cardiovascular exercises. Once you get the excess fats away, then that's the perfect time to start working on your ab muscles.

In order to help you with your lower ab workout routines, here are the best abdominal exercises you can do: The first is called leg lifts. You lie down on the floor flat on your back and put your hands under your buttocks. Lift both your legs up vertically with your toes pointing at the upward direction. Start bringing both your legs down until the heel of your feet closely touches the ground. Hold your position for a few seconds and then lift both your legs up to the starting position.

The next lower ab workout is called reverse crunches. You also lie down on your back with both your hands placed under your buttocks. Then lift your legs and bend your knees. Bring your knees close to your chest. Contract your ab muscles and then bring your knees close to the ground until the heel of your foot closely touches the floor. Hold your position for a few seconds and bring your knees back to your chest. It will be a big help to crunch your abs in the process.

And the last lower ab workout is called alternate leg walks. Start by lying flat on the floor and putting your hands behind your buttocks. Lift both your legs up with your toes pointing upwards. Keep them straight and bring one of your legs down until it is a few inches off the ground. Hold this position for a few seconds and then alternate legs. As you progress with the lower ab workout, you will feel your ab muscles burning.

Best Waist Trimming Exercises

Best Waist Trimming Exercises

In this article I want to share with you some of the best waist trimming exercises that you can do to tone and trim your waistline and get that beautiful firm shape you've always wanted.

All these exercises target and tone the waist. However, none of these will deliver real results unless you also follow a healthy and sensible diet plan to make sure you eat right. So, eat right and do the following exercises to get a toned waist...

1. Standing sideways bend - Stand up straight with your feet slightly apart. Place one hand on your hip and keep the other arm straight and by your side. You may choose to hold a dumbbell in this hand for greater intensity.

To do the exercise, bend sideways to the side of the stretched out arm. Don't tilt or move your hips and keep your neck and head in a straight line to your torso. Feel the stimulation in your waist and rise back to the starting position.

2. Russian Twist - This exercise requires a stability ball to perform. You lie back on the stability ball but keep both feet planted on the ground slightly apart from each other. Stretch out your arms directly in front of you straight above your chest. To do the exercise, twist your upper body to the side (without lifting your feet from the floor) until the side of your body is touching the ball and you're facing directly to the side. Do this movement slowly to keep your stability on the ball.

The Russian Twist is one of the best waist trimming exercises there is but it's also one of the most challenging ones. This is an exercise that may take some practice on your part to perfect, so be aware of it.

3. Windshield wipers exercise - To do this exercise you need to lie on the floor or on a mat. Keep your upper body fully on the ground and lift both legs straight in the air. Place your hands by the sides of your body with your palms flat on the floor to provide support and stability. Let both legs fall directly to one side and halt their movement before they touch the floor. Use your waist muscles to control your legs and bring them back to the starting position.

Do these 3 waist toning exercises and you will get excellent results.

Try These Stomach Exercises to Tone Your Waist

Stomach Exercises

Almost everyone wants to look and feel good about themselves and that is fully possible to achieve when doing the right stomach exercises. For many, losing weight and looking their best can be something that is rather difficult to achieve. With the plethora of diet pills available, many people try their hardest to lose the weight that they need to lose.

Unfortunately, many people also suffer from horrible side effects from these diet pills that they take. The other problem is when a person loses weight and still looks heavy because of excess skin on their body. That's where stomach exercises come into play and that is why so many people use different methods to tone the muscles in this particular area.

When looking for the very best stomach exercises, there are many out there that can be used. Doing sit-ups has long been thought to do a wonderful job at toning the abs. However, some people feel that this exercise causes unnecessary strain on the back and may, in fact, contract muscles in that area, causing them to look bigger and make the stomach appear larger. That's why it's a good idea to suck your stomach in, or tighten the stomach, before doing a sit-up. By toning your stomach muscles like this, you can be sure that the muscles in the back will not contract at all.

There are also exercise machines available that promise to work the ab muscles and tone the stomach. Some people have good experiences with these machines, while others cannot afford to make the investment or they just did not like the results they got from using such equipment. It's up to you which method you want to use in order to lose weight and tone up the muscles in the area. However, it's a good idea to keep these machines in mind when you are initially trying to find what method works the best for you.

There are many different exercises you could try. You want to make sure that you use an exercise that doesn't put too much strain on your back, which will allow you to work out for a longer period of time. You also don't have to always be sitting or laying down to tone the abs. Many people do exercises standing up by lifting one knee at a time and bringing it up to their chest.

No matter which type of exercise you choose, there is just nothing like feeling good and looking your best. Whether you want to maintain your current weight and look or you just want to tone everything up, it's easy to do with the right exercises and equipment.

Workout: Starting from an early age...

Starting from an early age...

How to Lose 2 Inches Off Your Waist In 1 Month

Its short but sweet - this guy makes sense:

Let me know what you think

3 Waist Trimming Aerobic Workouts

In this article I want to present you with 3 of the best waist trimming aerobic workouts I know. I hope these will help you to trim and tone your waistline and look and feel better. Do these often to achieve the best results possible.

The purpose of each of these aerobic workouts is to burn off as much body fat as possible. This will also eliminate some of the fat around your waistline and give you that toned look you're seeking.

Here are the 3 workouts:

1. Swimming - I love swimming as it's an excellent aerobic workout that also has a lot of strength elements thrown into it. It works your entire body and helps to tone and build lean muscle tissue as well as burn lots of calories. Swimming is also a low impact sport so it's a great waist trimming workout for you to do.

2. Kickboxing - I happen to love kickboxing classes and other martial arts courses (at least those where I don't get beat up too much). What I love about kickboxing is that this is the type of aerobic workout that will challenge your body even if you're already fit. You may run 6 miles each day but this strains your body in a totally different way and helps to burn lots of fat and reduce inches off your waist.

Kickboxing is also a social activity so you're actually motivated to workout harder until you reach the kind of body that you want most of all.

3. The third aerobic waist trimming exercise that I want you to do is running. The reason why I recommend running is that it's a high intensity workout that really pushes your body into faster fat burning. Try to run at various speeds on each workout and include an up hill running segment during your workout. It will create a more intensive experience for you.

One workout which I don't highly recommend is the elliptical machine. For the most part, this is a low intensity workout and although it does have merit (as it's lower on impact than running), it won't burn nearly as much calories as other aerobic workouts, so you want get quite as fast results with it as you may achieve with other options.

Also, remember that without following a healthy diet, you will not be able to trim your waist regardless of how much you workout.

3 Exercises To Tone & Reduce Waist Size

Medicine Balls To Help Tone Waist

Everyone wants to lose some fat from around their waist. It's a trouble spot for men and women both, and the smaller it gets, the better clothes sit on you, not to mention that having too much waist fat can signal health risks.

One of the way to reduce waist size is to use specific and targeted waist toning exercises. In this article I'll describe 3 of them for your benefit.

Exercise #1 - Medicine Ball sidways Twist

To do this exercise you need a to have medicine ball. You sit on the floor or mat or stand and hold the medicine ball straight in front of you with both hands. Now, you twist your torso to one side while holding the ball with outstretched hands in front of you (the ball is always straight in front of your eyes even when you twist). You do a few reps of this exercise for both sides of the waist.

Note: You can do a combined killer exercise by doing a lunge and then twisting with a medicine ball, one leg and a twist to one side after the other. This burns a lot of fat.

Exercise #2 - Sideways Torso Bends

You begin this exercise by standing with both feet slightly apart and one hand holding the side of your waist. Now, you gradually bend your torso to the side with your free arm showing the way by going over your head. Make sure not to sway your hips or raise your feet from the floor. Do this for both sides and repeat several times.

Exercise #3 - Sideways crunch

This exercise starts like a regular sit up, but instead of going straight up, you raise your body to one side, lower yourself down slowly, and they raise yourself towards the other side. This works the oblique abs muscles which are related to the appearance of the waist.

By doing these 3 exercises for a smaller waist, you will lose inches from around your waist and look much fitter.

The How to Guide For Six Pack Abs

The truth is, for most people getting six pack abs is not an easy task because it requires dedication and motivation... but it is possible! Below is a general 2-step guide that, if followed religiously for 3 months, will improve your abs.

Step 1: Nutrition

This is the single most important part of the puzzle, hands down. You can have the most impressive set of abs, but if they're covered with a layer of fat, you won't see them! Break up your day with 5 or 6 mini-meals because this jump starts your metabolism.

And stop eating the food that is preventing you from seeing your abs:

-white bread
-pasta
-soda
-candy
-dessert
-fast food
-hydrogenated oils
-sugars
-fructose corn syrup

Instead, eat the foods that will help you reach your six pack goal:

-oatmeal
-olive oil
-whole grain breads
-fruits
-vegetables
-nuts
-eggs
-natural peanut butter
-chicken
-fish
-protein
-green tea
-water

Be realistic - you'll slip here and there, but make a conscious effort to improve your eating habits. Without good nutrition, getting a true six pack will be impossible.

Step 2: Exercise

You need to focus on 3 different exercises: cardio, weightlifting and ab exercises. And aim to workout 4 times per week (definitely a minimum of 3 times per week). The cardio you do can be anything: walking, running, biking, swimming...whichever cardio you don't mind doing so you stick with it.

The trick is to do the cardio in bursts because it will burn fat fast. For example, if you're running, walk for one minute and then sprint for 15 seconds and repeat 10 times. Perform this type of interval cardio 2 times per week.

Lifting weights is important because 3 pounds of added muscle burns as many calories as a 1 mile jog...and this is while you're just sitting around! Aim for 30-45 minutes, 2 times per week.

The last exercise you need to add to your workout are ab exercises. Aim to work your abs 3 times per week. There are a lot of different ab exercises you can do so try to find 3 or so that you enjoy doing and mix it up.

Tip: mix up your workout routine every 2 weeks to keep your body guessing and improving. Add or take away different weightlifting or ab exercises, or at the very least, vary the weight and reps you do.

Well, there you have it. Follow the above for 3 months, and while results will vary from person to person, you will see an improvement in your abs. And keep in mind that dedication and motivation will go a long way to helping you reach your goal of having six pack abs.

4 Essential Rules For A Ripped 6 Pack

How to Get A Ripped 6 Pack

OK, here's how to get a ripped 6 pack. While it's simple to get 6 pack abs, it's not easy. But these tips will give you a great start.

Just follow them and you'll be able to brag and show off your amazing chiseled abs all you want. Though it will take real work.

Lose Fat

The number one factor in getting a ripped 6 pack is how much fat your body has. IF you have too much fat, you just won't be able to see your abs.

So, your first goal should be to diet down and lose fat. Working out and adding muscle can come later - in the beginning, simply focus on losing fat.

I cannot stress losing fat enough. This is the single most important action to take to get 6 pack abs.

Gain Muscle

Once you're dropped enough body fat to see your abs, it's time to build up your muscles. Which will give you these amazing abs you want.

The trick with gaining muscle is that you must eat more to fuel your muscle growth. But if you eat too much you'll put on fat along with the muscle - what to do...

There are several solutions. What most bodybuilders do is have a 'bulking' phase of their training, where they put on muscle and fat, and a 'cutting' phase, when they diet down to lose fat while retaining the muscle they put on.

Another solution is to count your calories and just eat 200 or 400 extra calories a day, so that you're just eating enough to put on muscle. Though this gets to be a pain in the ass, I find. And you have to track yourself to make sure you're in that sweet spot for muscle growth, but not fat growth.

Whichever method you choose, commit to it. And while looking great 24/7 is possible, it's difficult.

Watch What You Eat

Seriously, when you're dieting down to your ripped 6 pack and when you're trying to put on muscle, track what you're eating. And if you've never done it before, count the calories that you're eating.

Counting your calories is the ultimate way of controlling what you eat. And if you've never don't it before, I highly recommend it - you'll learn a ton about how what you eat affects your body, and how common foods that you eat all the time actually have a lot more calories in them than you might think.

If you're not counting calories, at least keep some kind of food journal. If you totally don't track what you eat, it's very easy to eat too much and sabotage any chance of getting a ripped 6 pack.

Sleep!

Why is sleep important? Well, for starters sleep is when you release growth hormone and testosterone (even you ladies), which help you retain and build muscle.

Also, lack of sleep triggers you to be more hungry. And staying up late and not getting enough time also gives you a ton more time to give in to snacking. Just say, "Yes!" to sleep!

5 Tips to Developing Great Abs

5 Tips to Developing Great Abs

Are you in pursuit of a much sought after six pack? Do you want to know how to get great abs? Regardless of your sex or age, a six pack is something that many of us aspire to, but few ever achieve.

One of the major problems we all face lies with our modern diet filled with foods that are high in saturated fats and sugars - which tends to cover our perfectly sculpted bodies in a layer of fat. You might not know that, but underneath all the excess weight lies your perfect body - and great abs. So, what do you need to do then to get in shape and have those great abs that you desire? Here are five essential tips for how to get great abs.

1. Diet

What are you putting into your body on a daily basis? Are the foods you eat helping you loose weight or is it adding weight to your body? Excess food tends to accumulate around the abdominal area, which of course, makes your six pack even harder to obtain. By cutting out these fatty foods you will at least stop adding more to it and this will allow your body to use the excess stored fat. Remember that to have great abs you have to get rid of the fat first.

2. Metabolism

Metabolism is nothing but the process through which your body burns calories and turns food into energy. The higher your metabolism the more calories you burn. Exercise is probably the most effective way to increase metabolism, but there are some simple dietary changes that can greatly increase your metabolism and help you burn fat even when you are not exercising. To raise your metabolism, eat more often, but eat smaller amounts at a time and eat only high energy 'natural' foods like fruits and vegetables.

3. Cardio Exercise

If there is one thing that is an extremely important step in how to get great abs, then it the need for cardiovascular exercise. Exercise like swimming, running and cycling will help you shed the extra pounds and since your abdominal muscles are very active during these exercises it will help tone your abdominal muscles. A 45 minute cardio training routine at least 5 days a week will do the trick and in as little as 4 weeks you will start seeing visible results in your abs.

4. Target Exercise

A common misconception amongst most people is that to develop great abs you have to do sit-ups. It's true, but not entirely since cardio training is a vital part of overall weight loss. What targeted exercises like sit-up and crunches do, it to specifically target the abdominal muscles. When you build and work these muscles it increases the muscle activity which raises metabolism and increases weight loss in that target area. The best way to do these target exercises is to combine it with your cardio workout as your muscles will be more active and supple.

5. Posture

It's vitally important to stretch regularly, especially after exercise. By stretching your abdominal area for at least 15 minutes after exercise you improve blood circulation in the muscles and the flexibility of the abdominal muscles. Great abs are not just about having a six pack, but it's about having a well toned upper body. Apart from stretching you have to pay attention to your body posture. Your abs play an important part in keeping your body upright. Most people tend to slouch over when walking which actually relaxes the abdominal muscles. An upright body posture where your abs are extended, will keep your abs active even while walking or sitting.

These five tips for how to get great abs is not about picking one or two. What will do the trick however is a combination of all of them. There are no quick fixes and the sense of pride in doing the hard work is what will give you the real 'feel good' factor. You can have great abs. Just do the hard work and you WILL reap the rewards.

4 Easy Steps To Get Ripped Six Pack

Easy Steps To Get Great Abs

For many years I spent time doing crunches. I was told that an ab workout was complete by simply doing crunches and chances are you have heard this advice as well. Despite what you may have heard you are about to learn more about getting ripped six pack abs and burn fat the best way.

Every time you look in the mirror and see less than awesome abs you figure you are doing something wrong. Maybe you think that you are not working out hard enough. Maybe you think that you are not targeting your abs the right way and that is why your stomach muscles do not look tight and ripped.

You Can Not Spot Reduce Your Abs

Even though you have been led to believe that the right number of crunches or sit ups will get you better abs this will not work. In order to get a flat stomach you can not do a long series of ab exercises in hopes that they will start looking better.

Imagine yourself trying to get skinnier arms, or you just want to burn fat on your upper arms. No matter how many biceps curls you do the fat will not decrease because fat can not be spot reduced. The same technique applies to ab exercises. Doing sit ups will not burn fat.

You Already Have Abs Beneath The Fat

Although you may think I am joking around or you find it hard to believe but you definitely have six pack abs. Everyone has six pack abs the problem is they are not always visible. Most people assume that some quick exercises will bring out definition when the truth is a layer of fat is what is coming in between abdominal muscle definition and sexy abs.

The Steps To Get Abs To Show

If fat is the primary reason for abs not showing then naturally what you need to do is burn fat around your midsection. If you are serious about losing the fat here are the steps to burn it off.

1. Eat fewer calories: I won't ask you to count calories because it really is annoying to do so. If you want to count calories this is fine but you can simply eat less than what you are eating now if you want to see a decrease in caloric intake. Look at your portions in your meal and decrease them or eliminate one item that is considered unhealthy.
2. Eat less fat or sugar: eating fat and sugar is unavoidable. Every other item of food you eat will be heavy with either one of these substances. The important thing to keep in mind is that high amounts of these unhealthy items are probably contributing to your high fat percentage. Look at what you are eating or drinking; is it soda, chips, junk food, high fat foods that are holding you back? Eliminate them altogether or greatly reduce them and you will see improvements.
3. Perform interval type cardio: if you hate doing cardio believe me, you are not alone. Nobody likes to do cardio but it is a great way to burn off those extra calories. However, doing long steady state cardio sessions like running for an hour on a treadmill or on the track is not the ideal way of doing this. If you want to make your cardio more effective do intervals for 15 to 30 minutes and you will burn more calories not just during a workout but even after your workout is done.
4. Do some form of strength training: when someone mentions the words strength and training they picture bodybuilders. Although this is one way of doing strength training, weights is not the only way. Any exercise that puts the muscle under constant tension is strength training. You can do bodyweight exercises, kettle bells, resistance bands or machines. Any of these types of exercises will help you burn more calories and will boost your metabolism.

The only way you will see your abs show is by burning excess fat, especially around the midsection. Put these tips in to practice and you will see that your midsection will begin to show definition. Remember that ab workouts are only a small part of achieving ripped six pack abs.

Muscle Workout Routines - What You Need To Know...

Chest Muscle Workout Routine

Muscle building should be viewed as a marathon, instead of a sprint. The painful truth about gaining muscles is this, you will hardly notice any sort of results even after weeks have gone by training in the gym! If you truly want to be successful in building muscles, you will need determination as well as commitment to stay to your planned muscle workout routines.

Developing a muscle building workout routines can be difficult especially with so many different muscle building tips. Here are some simple and effective ways to help you with developing a muscles workout routines and diet plan.

Muscle Building Diet

It's a known fact to many professional trainers and world fitness experts that in order to increase your muscle mass; you'll need to have a solid stream of proteins in your diet. The most common and accessible proteins source would be red meat, but if your diet only compromises meat, your organs are bound to have complication in the future. Do consider other source of proteins aside from meat, cheese, milk, nuts, fish, eggs are all excellent source of proteins and they contain different form of nutrition such as amino acids, fatty acids, healthy fats.

Using Free Weights in Your Muscles Workout Routine

While it is difficult to get used to the idea and balance initially, free weights offers you the flexibility as well as a wider range of choices for increasing your muscle mass at different part of your body. They are also inexpensive and can be done at home with little space required as compared to a strength training machine. When done right, it will match the form of an exercise performed through strength training machine.

Remember to Train Safely

Most people do not have the discipline to warm up and warm down before and after their workout sessions, and this leave them extremely prone to injuries. You will want to observe this rule as it puts your body in a more optimum and effective state when you start working out, as well as sending a signal for your body to rest when you're done. Another important tip when in the gym is to make sure you do not overstretch your body with weights that you're not ready to lift. It's common to try to outdo your previous lifting session, but keep your feet on the ground and do not get carried away lifting weights that you're not ready.

Advance Training with Alternatives

Once you're starting to complete your workout routines consistently, you might be ready for more advance and intensive training. Access your strengths and check your overall status to make sure that when you're trying a more advance alternatives, you're ready for it. A good way to tell is to make sure that you do not stress your muscles too much to the point that you compromise safety and your form!

Check Your Progress

The only way to tell if your current muscles workout routine are really bringing you closer to your muscle gaining goals is to cross check it with either your trainer or your gym buddy. Write down your progress for every gym session and observe whether your intensity of training has increased and whether you're actually gaining any muscles mass or not. Improvise and improve when necessary and also find out what strengths and weaknesses that you can further improve on.

Be sure that you're ready for the long haul ahead as previously mentioned. Bodybuilding is not a sprint, it is the slow and consistent workout sessions coupled with the right attitude and knowledge that gets you the perfect body you dreamed of.

Top 10 Protein Foods For Six Pack Abs

Protein is highly essential for any diet plan, or anyone who wants to gain muscle, whether in their abdominals area or in their biceps.

Protein, which provides four calories of energy per gram, is the building block of muscle and amino acids are the building blocks of protein.

There are vital amino acids, which are ones that you MUST get from the diet because your body cannot produce them, and there are non-essential amino acids that your body already has enough of.

Protein helps support lean muscle tissue, aids in the production of hormones and enzymes and supports immune function. Exercising individuals have higher daily protein requirements than inactive individuals, since exercise increases the body's need for protein.

Since protein is necessary to build muscle, it can actually help speed up metabolism, because it takes energy to maintain lean muscle at rest. This allows individuals to lose more fat in the areas they don't want fat.

So now that you know how vital protein is, what are the top 10 recommended proteins?:

Casein- This is a milk protein that seems to have a timed-release effect and a high glutamine content, which can enhance exercises recovery and boost immune function. Casein is clinically proven to increase lean muscle mass and strength, and is considered to be one of the best nighttime proteins.

Milk Protein Isolate- This contains both whey and casein and is a good source for these two proteins.

Soy Protein Isolate- This vegetarian protein source has been shown to enhance thyroid hormone output, which can increase metabolic rate to support fat loss. There are certain isoflavones in soy that have numerous health benefits, including lowering cholesterol and triglyceride levels.

Whey Protein- This highly absorbable protein provides the highest concentration of the branched chain amino acids, which play a HUGE role in the muscle building process and weight loss process, and even supports the immune function. Hydrolyzed whey protein has some of the benefits of whey, while providing highly absorbable peptides that can have muscle building effects.

Chicken Breast- This is a relatively low-fat, high-quality protein source. It contains numerous doses of different branched amino acids and has a good potassium-to-sodium ratio for improving the balance of water in your system.

Sirloin Steak- A lean protein source with an excellent potassium-to-sodium ration, it provides heme iron and good amounts of the amino acids that support energy and lean body mass.

Egg Albumin- This traditional protein source boasts great amino acids, and cooked egg whites are the highest source of egg albumin protein.

Tuna- This is a very lean protein source that provides an excellent amount of branched chain amino acids. Canned versions make it easy to use and help with portion control.

Orange Roughy Fish- Another lean protein source with an outstanding potassium-to-sodium ratio. Orange Roughy is a good source of the amino acids that promote lean body mass and muscle building, along with weight loss.

Salmon- Yet another lean protein source, that is most famous for the amount of amino acids found in its source. Strong source of protein that provides muscle building and supports energy.

Bodyweight Chest & Back Workout

A really neat video muscle building with bodyweight chest and back workouts

Ways To Build Muscle Definition

All of us want to look good and a essential element of this appearance is a muscular and well toned body. Some of us fail to realize that building muscle definition is not that tough, it just requires some effort. All you have to do is figure out the proper work outs to stimulate the cardiovascular system in addition to proper diet and a sufficient amount of rest. Not only will this enhance the look of your muscles but will also provide you with a great deal of energy and self-confidence. As with any method of training, you ought to be knowledgeable about what you should do and what you shouldn't do but, once you have determined a good routine, the results will surely follow.

The first requisite of improving muscle definition is to train often and effectively. Without physical activity, muscle tissues do not get a workout and there's no chance of improving muscle definition. If you wish to build this tone quickly, the only way to do so is to go to the gym habitually and do some weight training. Weights increase your overall muscle definition quickly and also have the advantage of being able to focus on certain regions of the body. Furthermore, you will need to frequently participate in activities such as jogging, speed walking, cycling or playing a sport such as basketball.

The method of exercise in which you follow is essential and, if your time is restricted, you must try and work out two groups of muscles at the same time. You should also try and alternate these different muscle groups on a normal basis so that each group gets a good workout. If you are using the gym, remember that heavy weights are only essential if you are building muscle mass. If you just want to tone your muscles, then lifting lighter weights at an increased frequency will be most advantageous.

The importance of proper rest and diet can't be over exaggerated. Concentrate on your protein intake and decrease the fats that you consume by eating more white meat or lean meat. Supplement your protein intake with healthy protein drinks particularly after working out. Be sure to drink lots of water and unsweetened juices. Also remember to get plenty of rest as the body needs to recover or else you will feel continuously tired.

Bruce Lee's Abs Workout - The Six Pack Secret

What training methods did Bruce Lee use?

Most people agree that Bruce Lee's abs are the most striking part of his highly developed body. In fact, Lee strongly believed that the abdominal muscles were one of the most important muscles for a martial artist:

"My strength comes from the abdomen. Its the center of gravity and the source of real power" (Bruce Lee, The Art of Expressing the Human Body).

In addition to his huge collection of books on martial arts and bodybuilding, Lee also had a special folder with countless articles on different ab workouts. He tried countless exercises and finally chose 3 major exercises that he would perform daily:

1) Twists (bar/ stick required)
2) Sit-Ups (abdominal board required)
3) Leg Raises

Here's the description of the first exercises called "The Twist":

Starting position: Stand upright, feet shoulder-width apart. With a light bar or a stick across the back of your shoulders, bend forward and try to touch the right end of the bar to your left foot. Straighten up and repeat the movement - now touching the left end of the bar to your right foot. Lee did at least 50 repetitions.

"The proper way of doing sit-ups isn't just to go up and down, but to curl yourself up; to curl your back up, like rolling up a roll of paper" - Bruce Lee.

As you can see, Bruce Lee's abs workout isn't that complicated, it's the daily repetition combined with a proper diet (see the amount of calories you take to you during the day; try to keep starches, sweets and fat to a minimum: no donuts, cakes, candies, soda) that gets you the results.

P.S. Long cardio sessions are by far not the best way to reduce your body fat percentage! Weight training (only 2 sessions a week) and interval training (high intensity work for short periods of time) are far more effective - this has been confirmed in several studies.

3 Abdominal Muscle Routines To Get A Great 6 Pack

Ab Muscle Routines to get ripped!

Amazing, washboard, ripped and sexy abs are the key to a sexy body. If you're under the impression that training is all about Biceps and chest strength, then you're working. Rock-hard abdominal muscles are where it's at these days.

This is as, in a recent survey of 500 women; all were asked "What is the sexiest part of the male body?" 78% of them said the abs. I'm sure you could agree, without massively, ripped and taught abs your body is essentially not as attractive as it possibly could be.

So, how do you get ripped abs?

Well, it has everything to do with your abs routines and workouts and diet. However, I'm going to tell you about how to achieve massive abdominal muscle mass through exercise and leave the diet talk for a later time. Just one quick tip, it is recommended that you avoid all 'fast food' and eat a balanced diet, consisting mainly of fresh fruit and vegetables.

Returning to the original statement, the best way to achieve perfect abs is with the perfect exercise routine / workout. Personally, I recommend you do something similar to these basic principles:

When you first begin your six pack quest, you should start with:

30 x Crunches (avoid sit-ups, they cause stress to the back)

30 x Hip rolls ( all you do is lie on the ground and push down with your hands, whilst raising your pelvis off the ground, so your butt comes right up - while you're doing this you should be squeezing your abdominal muscles)

50 seconds Bridge (A bridge is essentially just that, you make your body into a bridge whereby you place your feet flat on the ground and hands out as far in front as possible, you then try and place your butt in the air as high as possible. You hold this position for approximately 50 seconds - Bridges are sometimes referred to as "planks")

After a while your abs will become a lot stronger, therefore you can do these routines longer, you should try and increase your six pack workout routines in increments of 5. Meaning you do 35 x Crunches, 35 hip rolls and 55 seconds bridge.

To conclude; these routines have worked for myself and countless others, just a bit of advice; you should also start running and other cardio work. This will essentially help to trim the layer of fat over the abdominal muscles and they'll take a on a much more predominate focus.

After a while your abs will become a lot stronger, therefore you can do these routines longer, you should try and increase your six pack workout routines in increments of 5. Meaning you do 35 x Crunches, 35 hip rolls and 55 seconds bridge.

Diet Tips To Get Great Abs

Great Diet Tips For Amazing Abs

Contrary to popular belief, the most important thing you can possibly do to have perfect 6 pack abs is not just thousands of crunches. In fact, it's not even endless stomach exercises or special machines bought from late night TV commercials. The best thing you can do to start to show perfect 6 pack abs is control your diet.

What about all of those models doing hundreds of ab exercises each day?

Most of the time, ab exercises alone won't get you the washboard stomach that you're looking for. While there are some fantastic ab exercises that will build muscle in your stomach, they won't give you the look of the 6 pack that you're looking for. In order to have that 6 pack look, you need to reduce your body fat, and this is best

done through good dieting.

So what kinds of foods are best for a 6 pack?

There are several different foods that can be absolutely great to help you achieve sexy 6 pack abs.

Egg Whites

Egg whites are a low calorie, high protein low fat breakfast that give you lots of energy and nutrients and keep you full for hours without needing to load up on useless calories that will end up making you fatter. I eat them almost every morning, and sometimes throw them in for a dinner meal if I'm in a rush and don't feel like cooking a bigger meal.

Chicken Breast

Boneless skinless chicken breasts are the staple of any good dieters meal program. They're low in fat, high in protein, and full of great nutrients. As long as you don't cover them in unhealthy sugar filled sauces or fry them in fatty cooking oil, eating them with at least one meal a day will help you feel full and help you trim the fat so you can have those sexy abs.

Fish

Fish, like chicken breast is absolutely the best source of animal protein available. As long as you don't bread it and fry it, it's actually better than chicken breasts. This is because fish contains Omega-3 fatty acids which have been proven to help people lose weight as well as lower bad cholesterol.

Broccoli and green veggies

If you're trimming body fat to have perfect abs, green vegetables should be on your plate at every meal. They are full of fiber, vitamin c, and plenty of other nutrients that help cut the fat. Because they are full of fiber and low in calories, they are also a great snack to help you get through your day. Even if you don't love them, don't overlook them if you want a healthy way to get 6 pack abs.

While exercise will help you build the muscles in your stomach, it is so important to control your diet so that you cut your stubborn body fat. If you Diet for 6 Pack Abs, you will see them quicker than you could imagine.

Can supplements help build abs quicker?

Supplement and Vitamins To Aid Muscle Definition

Millions of people across the world are nowadays able to feel and look better as well as boost their fat loss greatly by increasing their muscle using bodybuilding and weight lifting aids and by doing abs exercises that enable them to work on their core. However, although these people are able to build their muscles effectively by doing workouts without the use of supplements, some supplements such as protein, Vitamin C, Creatine, multi-Vitamins, Glutamine, nitric oxide supplements and L-arginine, play a key role in enhancing their muscle building efforts and hence it is advisable that they use them in their endeavors.

Protein, which is the main ingredient in protein shakes, can allow people who use it to lift more weights more frequently by quickening their muscle recovery time and hence it is not only advisable to include it in their diet but also to increase its intake by consuming more meat. Vitamin C plays a vital role in recovery by combating free radical damage that occurs during bodybuilding workouts and for this reason; it is advisable for people who want to build their muscles to take this supplement.

Creatine increases significantly, the energy that muscles utilize and in effect, it produces quicker results from the various weights that people who want to build their muscles lift during their abs training. In addition, it enables them to lift heavier weights and hence it is important for people who want achieve the above results to take this supplement.

Multivitamin supplements are essential in bodybuilding efforts because they help in counteracting the depletion of essential vitamin and mineral levels that occurs during intense and regular weights training and for this reason, people who want to build their muscles effectively should take them.

Glutamine plays a vital role in preventing muscles from breaking down during workouts since it is an amino acid. For this reason, it is important for people who want to achieve the desired muscle building results to take it but in order to reap maximum benefits from it; they should combine it with a protein supplement.

Nitric oxide supplements, which enable people to be the subject of admiration from their peers, play a vital role in helping them to build their bodies with amazing abs by serving them with adequate amounts of energy supply. For this reason, they are indispensable in the abs development process since they make its implementation much quicker.

L-arginine on the other hand enables people who want to build muscles to do so quickly and easily and hence it is advisable for them to take it in order to achieve their desired results within the required time.

Although the aforementioned supplements are not a necessity for people who are want to boost their muscle building efforts, they are essential for them because they enable them to enhance and increase their chances of success. However, in order to reap maximum benefits from these supplements and in effect, take individual routines to the next level, it is advisable for them to combine them with regular cardio exercises, abs routines and all round weights.

What's The Best Workout To Get Perfect Abs

Whats the best type of workout to get great abs?

There are many abs workouts that can be followed to get washboard abs. however it is not possible to state the best abs workout as all workouts are effective as long as you follow them with the right determination and dedication with a healthy diet.

It is possible to get 6 pack abs if you build muscle not only in your abdominals, but all over the body. You also have to strengthen your core muscles and most important, work at losing any excess fat. This is because with fat in your body, no matter what abs workout you follow, or whatever abdominal exercises you do, your 6 pack abs will not be visible under this fat.
The abs workout should comprise of various exercises

It is only if you have 10 or less than 10% body fat that your abs become prominent. To get great abs, your abs workout should not actually concentrate on isolation exercises like crunches and leg raises. Instead, it should include different exercises like a dumbbell workout as it places emphasis on the core muscles of the body.

The perfect abs workout should be one with not only abdominal exercises, but also cardio exercises that help eradicate any belly fat you have. The abs workout should helps build muscle, helps in strengthening the core and at the same time, is effective in burning fat.
A gym instructor will be able to advise you

The best person to approach for the right abs workout to get 6 pack abs is your gym instructor. According to your body type, the amount of fat you have in your body and your medical condition, you will be given the right workout that will not only give you perfect abs, but also help in eliminating any fat you have in your body and give you a healthy body.

Remember, you need the cardio exercise before jumping into muscle definition to ensure you lose the excess body fat first.

You can also get ideas for a good abs workout on the internet as there are many sites offering information regarding this. Use search engines to reach these sites and to learn whatever the sites have to offer.

Whatever the final abs workout you reach at to get those six pack abs you always wanted, it is important that you work out regularly on these workouts. Occasional workouts, junk food and insufficient sleep will get you nowhere, even with the best abs workout. Dedication, hard work and the goal of a flat stomach is what motivates you into getting your perfect abs.

3 Keys To Getting Perfect Abs

Weight training, cardio training and proper nutrition are the keys to perfect abs. All three should be combined to achieve maximum results. A great weight training program can provide you with a rock solid set of abs but without the proper diet, your abs may be covered with a layer of fat and no one will see them.

Conversely, you may have an excellent diet and have a very lean physique but without a proper exercise program your abs will be weak and under-developed.

Weight training includes any type of resistance exercises. You don't have to join a gym and work out with barbells loaded with hundreds of pounds of weight to get perfect abs. Body weight exercises and simple dumbbell exercises can easily be done at home with excellent results.

Workouts should start with a combination of multi-joint exercises targeting the large muscle groups. This will increase the resting metabolic rate which speeds up the metabolism and burns more fat. Body weight and dumbbell exercises that can be included in this routine include:

• Squats 
• Deadlifts 
• Mountain Climbers 
• Lunges 
• Pushups 
• Planks 
• Dumbbell Rows 
• Dumbbell Bench Press

Try to keep the time between exercises to less than 30 seconds. This will help maximize the cardio effect of the session and burn even more fat. Ab-specific exercises should be done at the end of the workout and should last about 5-10 minutes.

Try to mix-up your ab workouts using some of these effective exercises:

• Lying leg thrusts (hip thrusts) 
• Reverse crunches (crunching hips off floor) 
• Ab bicycles (alternating knees to elbows) 
• Ab scissors 
• Jack Knife 
• Bench crunches 
• Alternating (oblique) crunches

Rest time between sets should last no more than 30 seconds.

Another key to getting perfect abs is cardio workouts. To maximize the fat burning benefits of cardio training, try using short, high-intensity sessions. The residual metabolic after-burn effect of short, high intensity sessions will keep your body burning fat long after the session has ended.

High intensity cardio routines include:

• Wind sprints 
• Stair climbs 
• Hill climbs 
• Jumping rope

Try to keep your high intensity cardio sessions in the 15-20 minute range with 30-90 second rest periods between sets. One of the most important aspects of how to get perfect abs is a proper diet. Obvious guidelines for a healthy diet is to avoid deep fried foods, sweets such as soda pop and foods containing trans fats or high fructose corn syrup.

Other recommendations include:

1. Eat 5-6 small meals per day of equal size. 
2. Try to include lean protein, complex carbohydrates and some healthy fats with each meal. 
3. Avoid highly processed foods and try to eat more foods in their natural state such as nuts, raw fruits and raw (or steamed) vegetables.

These are some of the main guidelines on how to get perfect abs but the most important rule is to get started. The sooner you get started, the sooner you will see results.

Source: http://ezinearticles.com/?How-to-Get-Perfect-Abs---Learn-the-3-Keys&id=2255441

The Basics of Getting 6 Pack Abs

A pretty neat video showing the basics of getting 6 pack abs

What do you think? Comment below to let me know...

Is It Worth Buying an Abdominal Fitness Machines?

People often see abdominal fitness machines as a shortcut to developing the perfect abs they've always wanted. However, this couldn't be further from the truth. Its true that certain equipment will aid in getting that 6 pack (and even maintaining it), but they have to be used at the correct stage of your short term plan.  Here's why…

Getting an abdominal fitness machine very much depends on the stage you are in your workout regime

The ab machines and equipment that Im sure you're very tempted to buy, will definitely help strengthen your core and develop some definition for the midsection, but what they will not do is help you lose weight.  It amazes me that people down the gym don't realise this - they're making things ten times harder than it really needs to be.  You see, while sits ups, leg raises, crunches and other equipment will help tone you up, you must lose the excess body fat especially around your waist, prior to toning up the muscle.

So now the question is how to do this?

The best thing I can suggest is go and play some sport with your friends.  Anything from football, to basketball, or even jogging after work will do the trick.  When I was at the beginning stages of my training, I loved to play squash in the evening with my work colleagues (i actually killed two birds with one stone there - losing the excess fat and also becoming good friends with the people I work with).  As a general rule of thumb, if you're sweating, then you're making progress - by sweating you're heart is pumping blood faster around your body, using more oxygen and burning the calories to provide more energy to your muscles.

A great way to aid in burning those calories is to use squats, or dead lifts and other strength training exercises.  Although people think that this would cause them to get bulky, thats not really true - indeed, if you are planning to become a body builder and develop a workout regime fit for this, then getting bulky with dead lifts is the aim of the game, but for the ordinary Joe Bloggs, its not really an issue.  Why?  Well because you need to use those calories up as quick as possible, and by breaking down the muscle and letting your body rebuild it, you are effectively increasing your metabolism.

With this information, you should be able to answer the question if you need to buy an abdominal fitness training machine.  It all depends at what stage you are at in your personal development.  If you are just starting out, then your aim should be to burn the excess fat, especially around the midriff - so buying equipment isn't going to help you here.  However, if you're further along the path, and have got your body fat down to where it needs to be, then buying a good ab machine will certainly aid in getting that perfect 6 pack.