When it comes to fitness industry, most people are after one wish: to have a six-pack abs. When you think about it, it seems simple and easy, isn't it? You just do many repetitions of crunches, leg raises, sit-ups, and other body-twisting exercises and you expect your fats in your abs disappear, as if like magic. However, this is so not true. As what you don't know, crunches will not flatten your midsection that easy.
If your belly has a layer of fats deposited in it, any amount of crunches will never give you a six-pack abs as you can never force your body to lose fats by exercising alone. There are two vital things you need to do:
Lose that layer of body fats; and then
Gain a little more muscles.
Check your diet
If you need to, change your diet. Nutrition and fitness experts recommend eating more frequently. Dividing three heavy meals into six smaller meals a day will actually help boost more your metabolism as well as burn more fats and calories. Eating three large meals a day is not a good idea as it does the opposite; therefore, not a good idea when you are working out and building muscles.
Experts also suggest eating lesser calories. To some, it is difficult to do this. However, this is as simpler as filling up on foods with high fiber contents.
You can also create a modest caloric diet by watching the portion size as well as eating lesser than what you're burning. And finally, your meals should be balanced between around 50-60% carbohydrates, 20-30% of protein, and 20-30% of fat.
Drinking plenty of water will help remove wastes and toxins fed into your body. It also helps curb away hunger pangs where sometimes they are only the result of your body's asking for water.
Check Your Exercise Routines
A mild-caloric diet can reduce your weight and fat deposits in your belly, however it will not preserve or build muscles. Therefore, it is now time for you to deal with your workout exercises and trainings. It should include the following:
Cardiovascular exercise. It will prepare you to a more rigid abdominal and body workouts as well as it will help lose fats. It can be anything from walking to running, from dancing to cycling, and just anything you like having fun with and at the same time sweating out of it. You can have cardiovascular exercises 30-45 minutes, 3-5 days a week.
Weight strength training. Even if your goal is to have a six-pack abs, it doesn't mean that you have to engage on abdominal-specific exercises. It is necessary that you are also working out on all the muscle groups of your body and not only on your abdominal. Furthermore, it is not a good idea to work on your abdominal muscles everyday. The ideal routine is working out on all muscle groups 2-3 days, non-consecutive, in a week.
Stretching. After and before each workout, it is important to stretch out for relaxation and flexibility of your muscles. Doing warm-ups before and cooling-down after working out will relax your muscles preventing physical pains after. Drinking lots of water in between will also replenish lost water during your physical workout.
Remember that when building six-pack abs, it takes a lot of hard work for you to see visible results. There may be commercialized solutions you frequently see on televisions, but doing it the right way will soon give you realistic results. So, don't rely with quick solutions. Work hard on it.
