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!

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.

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.